Why Global History of Religion? A Response to Karénina Kollmar-Paulenz

Abstract

The contribution discusses Karénina Kollmar-Paulenz’s programme for a global history of religion. Her approach aims to challenge European hegemony over the analytical concept of ‘religion’ by incorporating non-European realms of experience into theories of religious studies. This provokes the question which epistemological interest is associated with this objective. Why should an academic discipline, whose theories and concepts are shaped by European discourses, integrate non-European perspectives? Several possible answers to this question are examined.