Abstract

Postmodernism has seen the advent and development of phenomenological methods for the study of religion. Scholar of religion Mircea Eliade contributes uniquely to the phenomenological method by emphasizing the universality of religion across heterogeneous human societies and historical circumstances. Eliade also comments upon the negative effects that a decline in religious belief has had in the postmodern era. A growing number of atheists and agnostics corresponds to a rise in positivism and scientism. A survey of the origins of ancient Greek philosophy indicates that philosophical thought is motivated from an impulse to understand the world which might be called “religious”. Philosophers from varying religious traditions have historically felt called upon to answer questions about the divine. However, the connection between philosophy and religion goes deeper than that. The experience of philosophical meditation and the unique nature of philosophical method demand a world-defining view which according to Eliadian methodology could be examined phenomenologically. Philosophy is unique, emerging as the first academic discipline. As a result of its uniqueness, philosophical method rarely comes under scrutiny from other fields. Applying a phenomenological lens to the history of philosophical thought reveals ways in which the postmodern world has adapted to a change in religious life.

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