Description
Religion Examined
Book Summary
This work offers a critical and rigorous analysis of religion from a non-denominational perspective, removed from dogmas and supernatural beliefs. Alfredo Fierro Bardají examines the historical, social, psychological, and anthropological factors that explain the religious phenomenon as a human fact, comparable to any other social fact. The reader will find a study that dismantles the exceptionalism of religious experience and places it under the same scientific scrutiny that other disciplines apply to reality. An essential book for those seeking to understand religion through reason and evidence, rather than faith.
What is it about?
The author subjects religion to a critical examination, presenting contributions from various sciences (such as sociology, psychology, or anthropology) to reveal its human nature. In contrast to the usual stance of the adherent, who rarely self-examines and fears acknowledging the human character of their belief, the book demonstrates that religious facts can be described and explained using the same methods as other social phenomena. It analyzes the factors that have sparked beliefs throughout history, stripping them of their supernatural aura. The work is presented as a study that distances itself from theology, establishing a difference comparable to that which exists between chemistry and alchemy.
Main Topics
- Critical analysis of religion as a human and social phenomenon.
- Study of the historical factors that have shaped religious beliefs.
- Psychological and anthropological explanation of religious experience.
- Differentiation between the scientific study of religion and confessional theology.
- The self-examination of the believer regarding the human nature of their faith.
Who is it recommended for?
This book is aimed at readers interested in the philosophy of religion, critical thinking, and the rational analysis of beliefs. It is especially suitable for students and professionals in the social sciences, philosophy, or comparative theology, as well as for anyone who wishes to understand religion from an academic and non-dogmatic perspective, without the need to adhere to a specific faith.
What this book offers
- A rigorous and scientific view of religion, distanced from confessional stances.
- Tools to critically analyze one's own beliefs and those of others.
- Understanding of the historical, psychological, and social mechanisms that generate the religious phenomenon.
- Conceptual clarity to distinguish between theology and the scientific study of religion.
- An approach that fosters autonomous thinking and well-founded reflection.
Technical Data
- Author: Fierro Bardají, Alfredo
- Publisher: Anthropos Editorial
- Language: Spanish
- Subject: Literary Essays, Philosophy, Religion and Beliefs, Religion: General, Philosophy of Religion, Theology
- Collection: Critical / Utopian Thought
- Binding: Paperback
- Publication Date: April 2017
- Number of pages: 224
- Weight: 280 g
Editorial Review
This is a reference work for those seeking a rational and critical approach to the religious phenomenon. Alfredo Fierro Bardají succeeds in clearly exposing the scientific foundations that explain religion, dismantling prejudices and opening a necessary space for reflection in contemporary debate. Its non-denominational approach and academic rigor make it an essential read for students, researchers, and any reader interested in understanding religion beyond faith.