Experiencing the Divine
Tanya Luhrmann, an anthropologist at Stanford, writes in the NYTimes about faith and the experience of divine forces: To experience God as walking by your side, in conversation with you, is hard. Evangelical pastors often preach as if they are teaching people how to keep God constantly in mind, because it is so easy not […]
Nanotechnology and Religion
Chris Toumey, a cultural anthropologist at the University of South Carolina, studies relations between nanotechnology and faith: Until now, religions have been remarkably silent on nanotechnology, Toumey points out. Nothing compared to the harsh bioethical controversies about in vitro fertilisation in the Catholic world, for example. "Nanotechnology is a heterogeneous body of sciences and technologies: […]
Vodou and Religious Freedom in Haiti
Gina Athena Ulysse, a Prof. of Anthropology & African American Studies at Wesleyan University, writes at the huffingtonpost about the oppression of Vodouists in Haiti: While perception of Haiti as synonymous with Vodou reigns in public imagination, especially abroad, within the republic the religion is under attack again. Vodouists and supporters from all over Haiti and […]
Spirituality
Spirituality is not what it once was – that much is certain, according to anthropologist Peter van der Veer. Working at the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity in Göttingen, he has examined the significance of the spiritual and its transformation processes in modern societies using the example of China […]
Images and video clips from the religious ritual at MetLife Stadium
Kieran Kesner, a photographer, attended the Jewish ritual at the MetLife Stadium. You can view his beautiful images and video clips at AMAGANSETT. I had never heard of Siyum HaShas. After a 6 hour drive on the morning of from Boston to NJ, I found myself immersed in the collective gathering of nearly 100,000 Jews. […]
Solidarity and Redemption at MetLife Stadium
Dr. David J. Landes is an anthropologist studying Orthodox Jewish culture. Last Wednesday David joined 90,000 orthodox Jews in a spectacular religious ritual at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. He shared his fascinating field notes with The Talmud Blog: Over the past several decades a new ritual has taken hold within the Orthodox community, […]