Princeton historian Elaine Pagels has spent her career considering early Christianity. When she lost her son and husband though, she says studying religion became an exercise in dealing with grief.
Scholar Elaine Pagels has spent her career considering the earliest days of Christianity, but she never imagined including her own story in her studies. But some 30 years ago, Pagels lost her young son and husband within a year, and she says studying religion was an exercise in dealing with that grief. She’s now written a memoir that asks how religion helps us understand ourselves and each other, and how tradition gets us through our most difficult challenges. Her book is called Why Religion?
Elaine Pagels is a historian who has published widely on Gnosticism and early Christianity. She’s a Professor of Religion at Princeton University, and was awarded the 2015 National Humanities Medal. Her memoir is called Why Religion? A Personal Story [Indie bookstores|Amazon|Audible]
