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9780199934645

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<br> With his customary clarity and force, Aaron Hughes shows how the term 'Abrahamic religions' does not pick out any naturally shared element in monotheistic religions, but is a term of art that monotheists have used (and still use) to negotiate the significant differences between themselves and their near neighbors--other monotheists. Readers who heed Hughes's cautionary words will return to their scenes of interreligious dialogue and trialogue with a historically and philosophically more sophisticated self-consciousness, and as a result, those scenes will have better and longer-lasting effects. --Martin Kavka, Associate Professor of Religion, Florida State University<p><br> Although quaint and outdated, the 19th century's division between national and ethnic religions was driven by interests little different from those determining how we today group and divide people-making the now popular 'Abrahamic faiths' as tactical a designator as any that came before. Aaron Hughes makes sure that we don't forget this and challenges scholars to keep their eyes on the historical details rather than succumb to the mythology of unity. --Russell T. McCutcheon, author of Manufacturing Religion: The Discourse on Sui Generis Religion and the Politics of Nostalgia<p><br> Hughes's main concern in this volume is to present a case study in the construction of categories in the academic study of religion. Even though the notion of 'Abrahamic religions' has no historical referent, and is largely intertwined with religious and political agendas, it has nevertheless also been adopted as a category of analytical value to the student of religion. The lesson to be learned from the creation of such an 'Abrahamic discourse' for students of religion, he rightly points out, is that they must be highly critical and self-conscious about the categories they deploy in their work. --Donald Wiebe, Distinguished Fellow and Professor of Religion, Trinity College, University of Toronto<p><br> It's an exc

<br> With his customary clarity and force, Aaron Hughes shows how the term 'Abrahamic religions' does not pick out any naturally shared element in monotheistic religions, but is a term of art that monotheists have used (and still use) to negotiate the significant differences between themselves and their near neighbors--other monotheists. Readers who heed Hughes's cautionary words will return to their scenes of interreligious dialogue and trialogue with a historically and philosophically more sophisticated self-consciousness, and as a result, those scenes will have better and longer-lasting effects. --Martin Kavka, Associate Professor of Religion, Florida State University<p><br> Although quaint and outdated, the 19th century's division between national and ethnic religions was driven by interests little different from those determining how we today group and divide people-making the now popular 'Abrahamic faiths' as tactical a designator as any that came before. Aaron Hughes makes sure that we don't forget this and challenges scholars to keep their eyes on the historical details rather than succumb to the mythology of unity. --Russell T. McCutcheon, author of Manufacturing Religion: The Discourse on Sui Generis Religion and the Politics of Nostalgia<p><br> Hughes's main concern in this volume is to present a case study in the construction of categories in the academic study of religion. Even though the notion of 'Abrahamic religions' has no historical referent, and is largely intertwined with religious and political agendas, it has nevertheless also been adopted as a category of analytical value to the student of religion. The lesson to be learned from the creation of such an 'Abrahamic discourse' for students of religion, he rightly points out, is that they must be highly critical and self-conscious about the categories they deploy in their work. --Donald Wiebe, Distinguished Fellow and Professor of Religion, Trinity College, University of Toronto<p><br>

Reading this monograph brings many rewards. Among them is the chance to engage a thoughtful handling of two scholarly aggregations, or constellations, that currently prevail in the academic study of religion. * Kalman P. Bland, Journal of the American Academy of Religion *

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Aaron W. Hughes is Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Rochester.

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