ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book deals with the Joel Robbins' advocacy for the consideration of theology in anthropology that has been a significant encouragement to Christians to bring the full set of theoretical tools to the table. It addresses the ethnographic encounter and how it might be enriched by epistemological insights from theology into ways of knowing the other. The book addresses the need to broaden the ontologies that are used in anthropological theorizing to include aspects of reality affirmed by interlocutors as well as by religiously committed scholars. It concludes with an afterword by Joel Robbins, who, as one of the founders of the anthropology of Christianity, is in a unique position to critique our work for its strengths and weaknesses.
