Journal of the American Academy of Religion Advance Access originally published online on April 12, 2006
Journal of the American Academy of Religion 2006 74(2):469-482; doi:10.1093/jaarel/lfj087
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Religion and Secrecy: A Bibliographic Essay
Ann Duncan is at the University of Virginia, Department of Religious Studies, PO Box 400126, Charlottesville, VA 22904-4126.
The events of the early twenty-first century have led to a resurgence of interest in the public and private expression of religion and the role of secrecy in religious traditions. In modern incarnations and throughout history, claims to secret knowledge, the limitations of knowledge of the divine, and private or secrete religious activities have existed in all types of religious traditions. From long-standing mystical traditions in Abrahamic faiths to smaller groups such as Theosophists, secrecy touches on many aspects of religious experience. Sociologists, anthropologists, political theorists, historians, and theologians have undertaken studies of religion and secrecy in general and in reference to particular traditions and localities. What follows is an attempt to highlight major themes of religion and secrecy in history and theory, as well as the implications of September 11, 2001, the "War on Terror" and the Patriot Act for religious practice and privacy in the United States of America and beyond.