The Matrix as Sacred Canopy: Teaching Theory in Religion

Abstract

Introduction When theory in religion is taught well, classes become electric with thought, as students engage the theoretical intricacies of classic and contemporary theorists. Indeed, on occasion, students not only understand theory, but critique and create it. We have seeded this field of creative and critical thought, teaching undergraduate and graduate courses in the theory of religion over the last ten years. During our most recent course, the lightning hit the ground, in large part because we used the Wachowski brothers’ Matrix trilogy. Many students had seen these films, but not all – some were aficionados of the films, while others stopped after the initial 1999 film The Matrix, balking at the film’s violence. Our class dove into the movies with eyes newly focused by the lens of theory in the study of religion. We used the films for a fifty student undergraduate course and found that the papers the students produced were articulate examinations not only of the films, but more importantly, of the use of theory and its application to cultural phenomena from the perspective of the study of religion. Discussions in class and students’ written papers lit up our hopes that theory can be much more than dry abstraction – it can be a creative field of thought. This essay explains what we did in the course – what texts we used and how we implemented the Matrix trilogy – and provides background on the movies themselves. We examine and reflect on several of the best student papers using theory to interpret the Matrix. Finally, we argue that theory is a form of critical thinking which is not so much a matter of creating the right answers, but of provoking better questions – questions that lead to greater understanding, to more adequate theories, and indeed to creative contributions from students. In this sense, the application of theory can lead to theory building as an adventure of thought, creating dynamic avenues of understanding and explanation in the study of religion.