Homo Religiosus

\n Homo religiosus has already been mentioned in this volume, by Eliade in the “Introduction” to The Sacred and the Profane , in “The Sacred in the Secular World,” by Douglas Allen in his consideration of “the Dialectic of the Sacred and the Profane,” and by Rennie in “The Ontology of the Sacred,” which make this an opportune moment to attempt some clarification and precision of this concept. Gregory Alles here introduces us to the distinction between homo religiosus and modern humanity and the variety of scholarly applications of the term. Thus it will be appropriate next to consult Eliade’s essay on Homo Religiosus and Homo Faber to seek further clarity on Eliade’s own characteristic employment of the term. When Eliade considered “modern” or secular humanity in the preceding selection on “The Sacred in the Secular World,” it was in specific opposition to humanity in what he considered our more usual or prevalent religious mode— "homo religiosus.” The article by Gregory Alles is taken from the first edition of the Macmillan Encyclopedia of Religion , vol. VI, 442, edited by Mircea Eliade. All rights reserved. Copyright © 1987 by the Gale Group. Reprinted by permission of the Gale Group.