Dr. Jonathan Z. Smith Engages with the Question: What Led You to Become a Scholar Interested In Religion?

What led you to become a scholar interested in religion?

Dr. Jonathan Z. Smith grew up in Brooklyn, New York. He became interested in religion at a young age, when he decided not to eat animals. He was searching for answers to defend his decision, and began reading about religions. He was a philosophy major, and when asking a professor where he should attend graduate school to study Greek mythology the professor told him Yale Divinity School. He adds he missed the fact the professor was joking when he said attend Yale Divinity School to study the New Testament, the biggest piece of Greek mythology.