Abstract
This contribution to a symposium on Manuel A. Vásquez’ More Than Belief: A Materialist Theory of Religion (2011) looks at the role of genealogy in the book. Vásquez reviews a range of authors (from Plato to Tweed) to contextualize his view that the study of religion should place greater emphasis on embodiment, practices, and emplacement. The resulting sequence of paraphrases is highly dichotomized; some illustrate the 'dominant canon' that he critiques and some the view that he champions. This is used to illustrate two very broad 'epistemologies.' (In this light, the book champions a very general meta-theoretical stance, not a specific theory.) I suggest that this approach does not offer an argument, i.e., independent rational support, for Vásquez' view. However, it does tell a story that could be very persuasive in the study of religion, given that the use of theory in the discipline tends to be a matter of applying precedents and concepts from an accepted body of literature.
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