The European and American intellectuals who founded modern anthropology in the later nineteenth century tended to think of religion as centrally about the things we believe; and that idea has percolated into the general culture. But I’m going to argue that at the heart of religious life across space and time are matters other than creed. And, once you see that creeds are not so central, you’ll also have to accept that scriptures—as sources of belief—matter less than many people think.
