Science, Not Scientists: Reflections on Science, Culture, and Their Mediators

In this commentary, we lay out a research agenda for studying religion and science communication that moves beyond theological and moral tensions to include embodied knowledge practices and orientation toward particular vocational futures. Based on findings from a case study of a National Geographic Kids magazine tailored for Orthodox Jews, we argue that diversifying science communication includes navigating embodied knowledge practices and competing “imagined futures” regarding science-related vocations. Advancing recent conversations at the nexus of religion and science communication, our case study highlights the generative possibilities that arise when centering religion amid other processes of science communication diversification.