Abstract
In the wake of the postsecular turn, we propose to reappraise both the religious as studied in anthropology and how anthropologists who have religious or spiritual interests can contribute to an emerging postsecular anthropology. Such an anthropology recognizes the failure of secularization theory to dissolve the dichotomy between the religious and the secular. We propose that as anthropologists we consciously occupy the ontological penumbra, an ambiguous and plural space in which we engage with various counterparts, both human and nonhuman. This means that we have to be open to the real possibility of the existence of gods, spirits, and other nonhuman entities. These should not only be treated as subjects of study, but also recognized as valid counterparts with whom we can engage in the ethnographic encounter. While this necessitates relinquishing the former privileged position of secular and Western epistemology, it opens up the discipline to a potentially unprecedented ethnographic productivity that is epistemologically and ontologically innovative. Without neglecting its secular heritage, such a theologically minded postsecular anthropology places anthropology in a better position to explore what it is to be human, especially in terms of understanding religious and spiritual experiences.
Highlights
As secularly trained professional anthropologists working for an international faith-basedNon-Governmental Organization (NGO), we often find ourselves caught between the proverbial rock of religious theology and the hard place of secular anthropology
In order to achieve this, we propose that as anthropologists we consciously occupy what we call the ontological penumbra where we engage with various counterparts, both human and nonhuman, as part of the ethnographic encounter
Even though the religious and the secular have been used to dichotomize religion and secularism, these examples demonstrate that they form a nonexclusive dynamic, or a symbiosis, which we propose to be a central trait of postsecularism
Summary
As secularly trained professional anthropologists working for an international faith-based. This means that postsecular anthropology has to be open to the real possibility of the existence of gods, spirits, and other nonhuman entities These should be treated as subjects of study and research, and accepted as valid counterparts with whom we can engage in the ethnographic encounter of the ontological penumbra. We argue that such a postsecular perspective places anthropology in a better position to explore what it is to be human without leaving the religious and spiritual interests of anthropologists and their various counterparts out of the equation. We accept both the secular and the religious as part of human experience and expression. Before we discuss the central argument of this essay, we first present the position of religion and secularism in anthropology’s history and how anthropologists with religious commitments have so far addressed and reacted to anthropology’s explicit secular stance
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
