Alexander Henley leads a graduate programme in Islamic Studies at the Institute of Ismaili Studies in London, UK, and is an associate member of The Faculty of Theology & Religion, University of Oxford, UK.

• Preface: ‘Critical religion’ and the purpose of this book, Alexander Henley (Institute of Ismaili Studies, UK)Notes on ContributorsAcknowledgementsPart 1: Introducing critical religion: A toolkit of critiques, methods and trajectories1. What is wrong with the category ‘religion’ and what can we do about it?, Alexander Henley (Institute of Ismaili Studies, UK)2. What is critical religion? Past, present and future of critical scholarship, Alexander Henley (Institute of Ismaili Studies, UK)Part 2: Perspectives on being critical about ‘religion’ and the ‘secular’3. The Reluctant Genealogist: Why it matters where our terms come from, Aaron W. Hughes (University of Rochester, UK)4. Classification matters: Why you should care about scholarship on the category religion, Russell T. McCutcheon (University of Alabama, USA)5. The Ideology of Religious Studies then and now: The author’s view, Timothy Fitzgerald (University of Kent, UK)Part 3: Applying critical approaches in the field6. The projection of ‘religion’ upon Japan by the United States since the 1850s, Mitsutoshi Horii (Shumei University, Japan)7. Religionization of minorities and culturalization of Christianity in Europe: How to study boundary cases?, Teemu Taira (University of Helsinki, Finland)8. Researching ‘religion’ in Indigenous cultures, Suzanne Owen (Leeds Trinity University, UK)9. Managing ‘faith’ in a late modern state: ‘Time for Reflection’ in the Scottish Parliament, Steven J. Sutcliffe (University of Edinburgh, UK)10. Thinking outside of the ‘religion and politics’ duality: The Jewish-Israeli case, Yaacov Yadgar (University of Oxford, UK)11. The category of religion in the technology of governance: An argument for understanding religions as vestigial states, Naomi Goldenberg (University of Ottawa, Canada)12. The implications of critical religion for (gendered) Religious Education,Alison Jasper (Independent scholar, UK) and John I’Anson (University of Stirling, UK)Index

What can you do with theory? This accessible volume shows how the multiple approaches of critical religion generate new insights when applied to a range of contemporary and historical topics. A great resource for scholars and students with its engaging and constructive overview and applications of critical religion.