ABSTRACT
The afterword places discussions within individual chapters, as well as the key concerns of the book as a whole, in dialogue with the central theoretical concerns of the field of anthropology of Christianity. After briefly outlining the history of this field, the afterword addresses how music contributes to discussions of continuity and discontinuity within Christian communities in relation to their pasts; the social and cultural “secondarity” of Christianity; the extra-musical goals of music-making; and the unique ways that music-making forms community, both within and independent of ritual contexts. Ultimately, it suggests that music is a key component of the difference Christianity makes.
