List of religious studies scholars

Religious studies is the academic field of multi-disciplinary, secular study of religious beliefs, behaviors, and institutions.

The list is in alphabetical order by the scholar's last name. A-D Edwin David Aponte Raymond Apple, Australian Rabbi, writer on Jewish, interfaith and freemasonic issues Karen Armstrong, author of A History of God Miguel Asín Palacios, Spanish Arabist, work on the mutual influence between Christianity and Islam Robert Baker Aitken, author of numerous academic books on Zen Buddhism Reza Aslan, author of Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth, professor of creative writing at the University of California, Riverside Edmond La Beaume Cherbonnier, professor and scholar, author of Hardness of Heart (1955) Catherine Bell, ritual studies scholar Herbert Berg, scholar of Islamic origins Peter Berger, author of The Sacred Canopy Pascal Boyer, author of Religion Explained: The Evolutionary Origins of Religious Thought Joseph Epes Brown, author of The Sacred Pipe and Teaching Spirits: Understanding Native American Religious Traditions Rudolf Bultmann Frank G. Carver John Corrigan, co-author of Religion in America, editor of the "Chicago History of American Religion" book series (University of Chicago Press) Frank Moore Cross, emeritus professor Harvard Divinity School, interpreter of the Dead Sea Scrolls Ioan Petru Culianu, author of The HarperCollins Concise Guide to World Religions and Out of This World Miguel A. De La Torre Arti Dhand, associate professor at the University of Toronto, Department for the Study of ReligionArti Dhand Wendy Doniger, (formerly published as Wendy O'Flaherty) is a leading researcher in Hinduism among other topics on religion. Émile Durkheim, author of The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life, a seminal work on sociology of religion E-H Diana L. Eck Bart D. Ehrman, author, and James A. Gray Distinguished Professor of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Mircea Eliade, author of The Sacred and the Profane and History of Religious Ideas, vol.I-III Steven Engler, Canadian scholar of religion Erasmus Carl W. Ernst, specialist in Islamic studies, author of Sufism: An Introduction to the Mystical Tradition of Islam E. E. Evans-Pritchard James George Frazer, author of The Golden Bough Sigmund Freud, author of Totem and Taboo, The Future of an Illusion, and Moses and Monotheism Rajmohan Gandhi, author of Revenge and Reconciliation Arnold van Gennep Anthony Giddens René Girard, whose theological works include Things Hidden Since the Foundation of the World Stephen D. Glazier, editor of The Encyclopedia of African and African American Religions Richard Gombrich Justo L. González, author of The Story of Christianity and a leading figure in Hispanic theology John R. Hall, American sociologist of religion Wouter Hanegraaff, author of New Age Religion and Western Culture: Esotericism in the Mirror of Secular Thought Ishwar C. Harris Nathan O. Hatch, author of "The Democratization of American Christianity" Friedrich Heiler Steven Heine, scholar of East Asian Buddhism Susan Henking, scholar of religion, gender and sexuality Peter L Hobson, author of The Hermeneutics of Followship: Relocating Narratives of Discipleship Zora Neale Hurston, author of Mules and Men and Hoodoo in America I-M Ada Maria Isasi-Diaz William James, author of The Varieties of Religious Experience Grace Jantzen Carl Jung Klaus Klostermaier Adam Kotsko, author of Zizek and Theology and The Politics of Redemption, and translator of Agamben Hans Küng, Catholic theologian, author of Tracing the Way. Spiritual Dimensions of the World Religions Gerard van der Leeuw Peggy Levitt Bruce Lincoln (University of Chicago), author of Holy Terrors: Thinking about Religion after September 11, Theorizing Myth: Narrative, Ideology, and Scholarship and Discourse and the Construction in Society Philip Lindholm Bronisław Malinowski Martin E. Marty (University of Chicago), author of the series Modern American Religion, editor of The Fundamentalism Project John Macquarrie Jean-François Mayer, Swiss religious historian Russell T. McCutcheon Josef W. Meri George Foot Moore, scholar and theologian, author of History of Religions (two volumes – 1914, 1919) and Judaism (two volumes, 1927) Max Müller, editor of Sacred Books of the East N-S Seyyed Hossein Nasr, author of Islam: Religion, History, and Civilization Rudolf Otto, author of The Idea of the Holy Elaine Pagels, author of The Gnostic Gospels Christopher Partridge, author of The Re-enchantment of the West Geoffrey Parrinder, former professor at King's College London and author of What World Religions Teach Us (1968) Francis Edward Peters, Professor at New York University and author of numerous books on Christianity, Judaism and Islam Stephen Prothero, Professor at Boston University and author of "American Jesus"; "Religious Literacy"; and "God Is Not One." Roy Rappaport Olivier Roy Arne Runeberg (1912–1979), Finnish sociologist, anthropologist and linguist Annemarie Schimmel, author of Mystical Dimensions of Islam Wilhelm Schmidt Arvind Sharma, author of Women in World Religions Christian Smith, author of Soul Searching: the Religious and Spiritual Lives of American Teenagers Huston Smith, author of The World's Religions Jonathan Z. Smith (University of Chicago), author of Map is Not Territory; Imagining Religion: From Babylon to Jonestown and To Take Place: Toward Theory in Ritual Wilfred Cantwell Smith William Robertson Smith, Scottish theologian, early work in the "higher criticism" of the Bible Ninian Smart, author of Dimensions of the Sacred Nathan Söderblom Rodney Stark Michael Stausberg John Shelby Spong, author The Sins of Scripture: Exposing the Bible's Texts of Hate to Reveal the God of Love and other works T-Z Einar Thomassen Toulmin, Joshua (1740–1815), English radical Dissenting minister Edward Burnett Tylor Joachim Wach James Webb, author of The Occult Underground and The Harmonious Circle Max Weber Christian K. Wedemeyer Wesley Wildman Linda Woodhead, MBE. Director of The Religion and Society Programme Zakir Naik Benjamin E. Zeller, American historian of religion and author Heinrich Zimmer, Indologist, author of Philosophies of India and Myths and Symbols in Indian Art and Civilization Volker Zotz Ghil'ad Zuckermann, linguist, revivalist, scholar of language, religion and nationhood References