Wittgenstein links religion to ordinary language use

{
"What the study found": "The paper argues that, in Wittgenstein’s later thought, religion belongs within ordinary language-games and forms of life, where religious expressions have established uses and contexts. It also presents religion as a renewal of attention to everyday life through language.",
"Why the authors say this matters": "The authors conclude that philosophy and religion meet in the effort to find words that speak for us and recover their depth. The study suggests that this way of using language can return people, moment by moment, to ordinary life.",
"What the researchers tested": "The article examines Wittgenstein’s changing engagement with religion, beginning with the early emphasis on the limits of the world in the Tractatus and moving to his later attention to the ordinary. It analyzes his later view of how religious expressions function within forms of life and everyday talk.",
"What worked and what didn't": "The abstract says religious expressions can be understood within ordinary language-games, because their meanings are intelligible against a wider background of non-religious talk and observation. It also says words can be intensified through personal use, but this intensification is open to acknowledgment or failure.",
"What to keep in mind": "The abstract does not describe empirical data, and it does not state formal limitations. The summary is confined to Wittgenstein’s philosophy as discussed in the article."
}

Key points

• The paper links Wittgenstein’s later view of religion to ordinary language-games and forms of life.
• Religious expressions are described as having established places and contexts of use.
• The abstract says these expressions make sense against a background of non-religious talk and observation.
• Words can be intensified through personal use, but this can succeed or fail.
• The authors present philosophy and religion as meeting in the search for words that regain depth.