Religious Studies: The Key Concepts (Routledge Key Guides)

material dimension

whereas contact implies that things once in contact continue to act upon

each other, which he calls contagious magic. With the homeopathic type,

magic is produced by, for instance, injuring or destroying an image of a

likeness of a person, whereas contagious magic operates by using bodily

residues, such as hair or nails, against someone. The sharp contrast drawn

between religion and magic by these theorists and others does not pertain

to more current theory where they are interrelated more closely within a

particular religion.

Further reading: Glucklich (1997); Luch (1985); Siegel (1993); Stutley (1980)

MARTYRDOM

This concept is derived from the Greek term martus (witness), and it
specifically refers to an individual who suffers death for his or her faith.
Christian martyrs are the first historically to be venerated as saints. From
the second century, it is common for martyrs to be defined as those who
imitate Christ and suffer as He does. During this process, the martyr
becomes assimilated to Christ in the popular imagination. At the moment
of the martyr’s death, it is believed that Christ appears to the martyr and
endures all suffering in the place of the martyr. Although a martyr is not
to seek death, he or she is expected to submit passively to it. During the
Middle Ages, Christian martyrs could expect visions and dreams that
reveal the future and the afterlife. Not only are martyrs worthy of these
visions and dreams, it is believed that they have a right to demand them
and to converse with God. Besides its importance to Christianity, martyr-
dom plays an important role in Shi’ite Islam and mystical Sufism.

Further reading: Boyarin (1999); Davis (2003); Frend (1965); Gregory (1999);

Le Goff (1984)

MATERIAL DIMENSION

This refers to the physical aspect of religion that can be divided into four

major categories: artifacts, art, architecture, and landscapes. The objects

associated with any of these categories provide insight into a particular

religious world. Landscapes represent, for instance, a cultivation of