Theology and Anthropology: A Critical Discussion

Dear Colleagues,

Throughout the past decades, the dialogue between anthropology and theology has expanded. For anthropology, this is due to the increase in studies of Christianity and self-critical reflection on the influence of Christian perspectives on the historical formation of discipline. Theology turns to anthropology primarily because of its fieldwork methods to provide detailed insight into how people actually practice their beliefs. This turn is also inspired by self-critical motives to change an all-too-abstract or idealistic practice of theology and the dominance of certain taken-for-granted normative perspectives. Anthropologist Joel Robbins is a central figure in initiating this dialogue from the side of anthropology. From the outset, he has emphasized that the dialogue should not just be a complementary one of borrowing from each other’s methods and data without questioning the existing disciplinary paradigms. In this Special Issue, we take up Robbins’ challenge to transform anthropology through interactions with theology, and vice versa by asking what it may mean, in researching concrete topics at stake at the interface of both disciplines. The topics have been selected because of their relationship to the overarching theme of ‘interruption’. This theme follows the shared concern for otherness between anthropology and theology. An initial formulation of this commonality is to view anthropology as studying human otherness and theology as concerned with otherness as an ultimate or transcendent dimension. Both disciplines do so because they expect something of this otherness beyond the regular aims of science. Relating to otherness implies a moment of interruption which cannot be controlled. This raises methodological difficulties which may require transformations in both disciplines. We wish to go beyond a complementary exchange to a more tranformative dialogue.

Research areas may include, but are not limited to:

• The nature of the sacred in research;
• The agency of God in theology and anthropology;
• The transformative qualities of prophetic speech for theology and anthropology;
• Flat ontology in the anthropology of religion;
• Theological reception of anthropological concepts.

We request that prior to submitting a manuscript, interested authors initially submit a proposed title and an abstract of 200–300 words summarizing their intended contribution. Please send it to the Guest Editor or to the Assistant Editor of Religions. Abstracts will be reviewed by the Guest Editors for the purposes of ensuring a proper fit within the scope of the Special Issue. Full manuscripts will undergo a double-blind peer review.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Peter Versteeg
Prof. Dr. Petruschka Schaafsma
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Religions is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• anthropology
• theology
• dialogue
• transformation
• reception
• methodology