Transcendence and Religion

Authors

  • Meerten B. ter Borg University of Leiden, The Netherlands

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1558/imre.v11i3.229

Keywords:

Transcendence, Religion

Abstract

This essay deals with the relationship between religion, both implicit and explicit, and transcendence. The starting point is Thomas Luckmann’s idea that man is a religious animal. After all, it is necessary for human beings to transcend their biological habitus in order to survive. It is suggested that transcendence is a necessary, rather than a sufficient precondition for religion.

Author Biography

  • Meerten B. ter Borg, University of Leiden, The Netherlands
    University of Leiden, The Netherlands

References

Berger, P. L. and T. Luckmann. 1967. The Social Construction of Reality, A Treatise in the Sociology of Knowledge. New York: Doubleday.

Comte, A. 1966. Cátechisme positiviste. Paris: Garnier.

Giddens, A. 1984. The Constitution of Society. Cambridge: Polity.

Heidegger, M. 1972. Sein und Zeit. Tübingen: Niemeyer.

Luckmann, T. 1967. The Invisible Religion. New York: MacMillan.

———. 1990. Shrinking Transcendence, Expanding Religion? Sociological Analysis 51(2): 127–138. doi:10.2307/3710810

Schutz, A. 1971. On Multiple Realities. In M.A. Natanson and H.L. van Breda (eds.), Collected Papers I: The Problem of Social Reality, 207–259. The Netherlands: Martinus Nijhoff Publishers.

Schutz, A. and Thomas Luckmann. 1984. Strukturen der Lebenswelt. Frankfurt: Suhrkamp

Published

2009-02-26

Issue

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Borg, M. B. ter. (2009). Transcendence and Religion. Implicit Religion, 11(3), 229-238. https://doi.org/10.1558/imre.v11i3.229