Tara Isabella Burton

Tara Isabella Burton is the author of Strange Rites: New Religions for a Godless World. A contributing editor at American Purpose and a columnist for Religion News Service, she holds a doctorate in theology from Trinity College, Oxford.

The Problem of (Jewish) Positive Thinking

The belief that we can manifest good wishes and look inwards to find God has a long history in the United States. Its influence has left many of the nation’s Jews deluded.

Oct. 13 2020 12:01AM

Podcast: Reflections for the Days of Awe

This week, we dig through the archives to bring you excerpts from our best conversations on faith, mortality, tradition, obligation, and sin.

Sept. 25 2020 12:02AM

Podcast: Tara Isabella Burton on New Religions and Strange Rites

The author of Strange Rites joins us to talk about the expansion of spiritual energy into nearly every domain of contemporary life, from shopping to health to politics.

June 18 2020 12:01AM

Yoga and Judaism Are Incompatible—But Not In the Way Menachem Wecker Thinks

Contemporary yoga culture fits in with the widespread sense of religiosity as something inner and instinctual rather than communal and tradition-bound.

March 23 2020 12:01AM