The Question of the Animal and Religion

Theoretical Stakes, Practical Implications

Nonfiction, Religion & Spirituality, Theology, Ethics, Science & Nature, Nature, Animals
Cover of the book The Question of the Animal and Religion by Aaron Gross, Columbia University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Aaron Gross ISBN: 9780231538374
Publisher: Columbia University Press Publication: December 2, 2014
Imprint: Columbia University Press Language: English
Author: Aaron Gross
ISBN: 9780231538374
Publisher: Columbia University Press
Publication: December 2, 2014
Imprint: Columbia University Press
Language: English

Through an absorbing investigation into recent, high-profile scandals involving one of the largest kosher slaughterhouses in the world, located unexpectedly in Postville, Iowa, Aaron S. Gross makes a powerful case for elevating the category of the animal in the study of religion. Major theorists have almost without exception approached religion as a phenomenon that radically marks humans off from other animals, but Gross rejects this paradigm, instead matching religion more closely with the life sciences to better theorize human nature.

Gross begins with a detailed account of the scandals at Agriprocessors and their significance for the American and international Jewish community. He argues that without a proper theorization of "animals and religion," we cannot fully understand religiously and ethically motivated diets and how and why the events at Agriprocessors took place. Subsequent chapters recognize the significance of animals to the study of religion in the work of Ernst Cassirer, Emile Durkheim, Mircea Eliade, Jonathan Z. Smith, and Jacques Derrida and the value of indigenous peoples' understanding of animals to the study of religion in our daily lives. Gross concludes by extending the Agribusiness scandal to the activities at slaughterhouses of all kinds, calling attention to the religiosity informing the regulation of "secular" slaughterhouses and its implications for our relationship with and self-imagination through animals.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Through an absorbing investigation into recent, high-profile scandals involving one of the largest kosher slaughterhouses in the world, located unexpectedly in Postville, Iowa, Aaron S. Gross makes a powerful case for elevating the category of the animal in the study of religion. Major theorists have almost without exception approached religion as a phenomenon that radically marks humans off from other animals, but Gross rejects this paradigm, instead matching religion more closely with the life sciences to better theorize human nature.

Gross begins with a detailed account of the scandals at Agriprocessors and their significance for the American and international Jewish community. He argues that without a proper theorization of "animals and religion," we cannot fully understand religiously and ethically motivated diets and how and why the events at Agriprocessors took place. Subsequent chapters recognize the significance of animals to the study of religion in the work of Ernst Cassirer, Emile Durkheim, Mircea Eliade, Jonathan Z. Smith, and Jacques Derrida and the value of indigenous peoples' understanding of animals to the study of religion in our daily lives. Gross concludes by extending the Agribusiness scandal to the activities at slaughterhouses of all kinds, calling attention to the religiosity informing the regulation of "secular" slaughterhouses and its implications for our relationship with and self-imagination through animals.

More books from Columbia University Press

Cover of the book Greenhouse of the Dinosaurs by Aaron Gross
Cover of the book Experiencing Animal Minds by Aaron Gross
Cover of the book The Cinema of Louis Malle by Aaron Gross
Cover of the book Cold War, Cool Medium by Aaron Gross
Cover of the book Subjects of Desire by Aaron Gross
Cover of the book Beyond Individualism by Aaron Gross
Cover of the book Pretty by Aaron Gross
Cover of the book Okinawa and the U.S. Military by Aaron Gross
Cover of the book Asia's New Multilateralism by Aaron Gross
Cover of the book The Columbia Guide to American Indians of the Southwest by Aaron Gross
Cover of the book Freedom's Right by Aaron Gross
Cover of the book Islamophobia and the Novel by Aaron Gross
Cover of the book Edwin Arlington Robinson by Aaron Gross
Cover of the book Shizi by Aaron Gross
Cover of the book Islam by Aaron Gross
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy