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The Invention of Japanese Religions
Article first published online: 4 OCT 2011
DOI: 10.1111/j.1749-8171.2011.00307.x
© 2011 The Author. Religion Compass © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd
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How to Cite
Josephson, J. Ā. (2011), The Invention of Japanese Religions. Religion Compass, 5: 589–597. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-8171.2011.00307.x
Publication History
- Issue published online: 4 OCT 2011
- Article first published online: 4 OCT 2011
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Abstract
In recent years, the academic study of religion has begun to challenge the usefulness of the concept of ‘religion’ itself. This article examines the extension of this critical turn to the issue of Japanese religion. It traces the history of the invention of Japanese religions as conceptual categories and discusses debates about the continuities and discontinuities of ‘religion’ (shūkyō) in Japan. Finally, it surveys the Japanese invention of ‘religion’ as a legal and political category.