Introduction

Discursive approaches to the study of religion have gained momentum in recent years. Closely linked to developments in linguistics, historiography, and sociology, discourse research has slowly but steadily become an accepted way of addressing theoretical and methodological issues in the study of religion. It is time to take stock of the state of the art in the discursive study of religion, to identify its strengths and weaknesses, and to explore new directions for future research—hence this book. All of the authors included in Making Religion have contributed to the emergence of the field of discourse research in the study of religion from their respective points of view. They have discussed these themes in various contexts, especially at the 2010 iahr Conference in Toronto, and most recently at the 2014 Annual Meeting of the European Association for the Study of Religions in Groningen. Many of the chapters in the present volume emerged from that conference.