”Leder religionsantropologins utmaningar och forskningsproblematik till nostalgiska elegier och idylliska tankar om ädla vildar?”

Theology, religious studies, the history of religion, and the anthropology of religion have different histories as research disciplines, which explains
differences in how they pose research problems and define their research fields. In some respects, the disciplines have a lot in common and may cross-fertilize each other. In this article, I reflect on a theologian's critical review in Religionsvidenskabeligt Tidsskrift 67 (2018) of a text applying the approach of the anthropology of religion, in order to highlight some of the issues and perspectives that distinguish the two fields. Much of the theological critique appears to derive from a lack of familiarity with the situations, contexts, and discussions that an anthropologist of religion may encounter. My focus is thus on topics such as engaged anthropology, reflexivity, culture contact,
modernity, and power relations.