Date of Award

Spring 5-16-2026

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts (BA)

Department

Religious Studies

First Advisor

Alexandra Prince

Abstract

Filmmaker and researcher Callahan Mainzer explores two vastly different religious communities and explores how the ethnographic research method and documentary filmmaking are both useful in generating empathy for the "other." The author explores various theoretical constructions of ethnography, namely Robert Orsi, Elizabeth Pritchard, and Gerhard Van Den Heever, as well as documentary theorist Jenn Lindsay's view of documentary as a form of interreligious dialogue, to make sense of his time within these different communities and how to present them to other audiences. The author's central argument is that everyone constructs meaning about the world around them through the lens of their specific religious ontologies, and, because none are exempt from these intersubjective processes, we should all make an effort to understand others’ methods of worldbuilding through sustained, critical participation so that we can better understand and navigate our own.

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