Archaeology of religion

May's issue of The Pomegranate will carry an excerpt from archaeologist Brian Hayden's new book on ancient religion, Shamans, Sorcerers, and Saints: A Prehistory of Religion.

A news release about the book from his university, Simon Fraser in British Columbia, is here.

A key sentence: Hayden argues religious behaviors have largely been shaped by our response to ecological factors, such as the environment, reproduction, survival and the use of energy sources, as well as �an innate emotional foundation in humans that distinguishes us from other animals.