Anthem Press Religion, Supernaturalism, the Paranormal and Pseudoscience: An Anthropological Critique

"Religion, Supernaturalism, the Paranormal, and Pseudoscience" provides a comprehensive rejoinder to the challenges posed to science, scientific anthropology, evolutionary theory and rationality by the advocates of supernatural, paranormal, and pseudoscientific perspectives and modes of thought associated with the current rise of irrationalism, antiintellectualism, and emboldened religious fundamentalism and violence. Drawing upon H. Sidky’s scientific anthropological background and ethnographic field research of supernatural and paranormal beliefs and practices in several cultures over three decades, the book answers several important questions: Why do humans have a proclivity for the supernatural and paranormal thinking? Why has humanity remained shackled to sets of ideas inherited from a violent past that have no basis in reality and which bestow an illusionary solace, promote bloodshed, endless cruelties and fervent hatreds, and have come at a high cost? Why have ancient superstitions been held as sacred, inviolate truths while other aspects of the archaic belief systems of which they were a part have long been discarded? Why have not humans outgrown religion and paranormal beliefs? Review “I highly recommend this book for its excellent psychological and sociological analysis of virtually the entire range of supernatural and paranormal beliefs that continue to have a profound and deleterious influence in the modern world.” ―James Alcock, Professor of Psychology, York University, Canada, and Author of Belief: What It Means to Believe and Why Our Convictions Are So Compelling“The book is valuable and timely, not just as a rebuke to irrational thinking and bad arguments, but as an antidote to ideologies that justify violence by appeal to dogma and supernatural fantasies.” ―Keith M. Parsons, Professor of Philosophy and Humanities, University of Houston-Clear Lake, USA“In this trenchant critique, Homayun Sidky treats traditional world religions on par with all other forms of supernatural nonsense and pseudoscience. And Sidky provides an excellent demolition job. It is time that we recognize that there is no such thing as religion as opposed to superstition. There is only ‘my superstition’ versus ‘your superstition.’” ―Maarten Boudry, Etienne Vermeersch Chair, and Postdoctoral Fellow, Flemish Fund for Scientific Research, Ghent University, Belgium Book Description A comprehensive rejoinder to the challenges posed to science About the Author H. Sidky is professor of anthropology at Miami University (Ohio), USA, specializing in the anthropology of religion, entheogens, ecological anthropology, anthropological theory/history of anthropological thought, and the paranormal and pseudoscience. He is the author of numerous books and scholarly articles.