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Fred Appel
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Ben Tate
Senior Editor, Europe
Our list reflects the breadth and diversity of religious studies in the contemporary academy. We publish scholars who study religion across a wide variety of time periods, world regions, and religious traditions, using methods drawn from history, classics, philosophy, literary and cultural studies, sociology, anthropology, and political science.
Whether humanities or social science–oriented, books on the Princeton religion list explore and illuminate the ways in which religious traditions have intermingled and influenced each other to inform our past and present.
New & Noteworthy
Featured Audiobooks
Series
Ideas
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Listen in | The Jefferson Bible: A Biography
In his retirement, Thomas Jefferson edited the New Testament with a penknife and glue, removing all mention of miracles and other supernatural events. Inspired by the ideals of the Enlightenment, Jefferson hoped to reconcile Christian tradition with reason by presenting Jesus of Nazareth as a great moral teacher—not a divine one.
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T.M. Luhrmann on small acts of real‑making
The most important question to ask about religion is not why but how. “Why” is a skeptic’s question—a puzzle around the seemingly absurd ideas (a talking snake, a virgin birth) that we find in religions.
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What is Jewish hope?
How, in a global pandemic, can we look forward to the future with hope? The economic and political landscape that COVID-19 will leave in its wake is alarmingly uncertain.
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Emily Sigalow on American JewBu
May is Jewish American Heritage month, and it is worth noting that today, many Jewish Americans are embracing a dual religious identity, for instance, practicing Buddhism while also staying connected to their Jewish roots.
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Adam Sutcliffe on What Are Jews For?
What is the purpose of Jews in the world? The Bible singles out the Jews as God’s “chosen people,” but the significance of this special status has been understood in many different ways over the centuries.
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The longest seder: A story of Haggadah
The Haggadah, the text for the Passover seder meal, is supposed to teach the story of Exodus, primarily to the young. It does that poorly, for it assumes that readers are so well versed in the story that they’d prefer to dwell instead on ancient commentaries.