Comparative religion Books

Book SynopsisThis volume examines the intellectual trajectories of remarkable individuals who interacted with religious discourses, doctrines or practices in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Inspired by S. Subrahmanyam and S. Gruzinski’s historiographical model of “connected histories”, this book introduces the approach of “connected religion” and invites the study of cross-cultural and “translocal” encounters by bringing together documents that represent diverse aspects of the story and reconstructing a narrative from diverse standpoints, with analytical potential. Testing this approach through specific cases of interactions between Asia and Europe, the volume explores the little-known stories of actors such as migrants or expatriates interacting with religious discourses, and of religious leaders producing and propagating beliefs and practices. The cases pose questions that can be applied to further contexts, such as: the significance of improved travels and communications for the diffusion of religious content across national, cultural and institutional boundaries; the impact of specific individuals, charismatic or not, well-established or subaltern in the reconfiguration of institutional forms of religion; and the role of the South Asian referent in legitimating the propagation of specific religious views. Offering both an innovative methodological framework and original cases based on new research, the book will be of interest to scholars of religion, to specialists of South Asia in late modernity and to the broader public.Table of ContentsPreface Sujit Sivasundaram, Cambridge University Editor’s Introduction Philippe Bornet Part I: Introduction 1. From Comparative to Connected Religion: Translocal Aspects of Orientalism and the Study of Religion Philippe Bornet Part II: Transnational Trajectories and Individual Appropriations of Religion 2. “In-Between” Religiosity: European Kālī-bhakti in Early Colonial Calcutta Gautam Chakrabarti, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München/Freie Universität Berlin 3. The Making of the Ideal Transnational Disciple: Unravelling Biographies of Margaret Noble/Sister Nivedita Gwilym Beckerlegge, The Open University 4. The Curious Case of the Drs. D’Abreu: Catholicism, Migration and a Kanara Catholic Family in the Heart of the Empire, 1890-1950 Dwayne Ryan Menezes, Institute of Commonwealth Studies, University of London 5. Religion and the “Simple Life”: Dugald Semple and Translocal “Life Reform” Networks Steven Sutcliffe, University of Edinburgh 6. Re-discovering Buddha’s Land: The Transnational Formative Years of China’s Indology Minyu Zhang, Beijing Foreign Studies University Part III: Religions on the Move 7. Charles Pfoundes and the Forgotten First Buddhist Mission to the West, London 1889 Brian Bocking, University College Cork 8. Travelling through Interstitial Spaces: The Radical Spiritual Journeys of Pandita Mary Ramabai Saraswathi Parinitha Shetty, Mangalore University 9. A “Christian Hindu Apostle”? The Multiple Lives of Sadhu Sundar Singh (1889‒1929?) Philippe Bornet 10. The Chen Jianmin (1906-1987) Legacy: An “Always on the Move” Buddhist Practice Fabienne Jagou, École française d’Extrême-Orient, Paris Part IV: In Summary 11. Afterword Maya Burger, University of Lausanne

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Book SynopsisEvil: A Critical Primer begins with the claim that evil is a concept that is contextually bound. This means that we should not expect to find shared or similar notions of evil across cultures. Addressing evil in a way that is at once contextually specific and applicable to cross-cultural settings, this primer breaks with moral conceptions of evil by redescribing it within a new framework of dangers and aversions (i.e., things that cause harm and things to avoid). Doing so provides an empirical and heuristic framework as a new starting point for the study of religion, deemphasizing things associated with evil (like the devil, wickedness, or a diabolic will) and focusing instead on attitudes and practices (like rituals of purity and impurity, notions of clean and dirty, or expressions of disgust). Introducing and reflecting on cultural and cognitive aspects of classification, myth, ritual, emotions, and morality, Evil: A Critical Primer argues that our colloquial conception of evil, as related exclusively to the moral domain, is usefully illuminated by attending to historical and cultural context and cross-cultural comparison.Table of ContentsPreface 1. Introducing Evil 2. Classification and Magical Thinking 3. Ritual and Authority 4. Myths and Mythmaking 5. Strong Emotions 6. Morality 7. Conclusion Further Reading

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Book SynopsisHuman cultures, especially religious groups but also secular artists and performers, often ritualize bodies as sacred books and books as divine beings. An international team of scholars addresses this theme of books as sacred beings in this volume through an impressively diverse range of primary material and perspectives. These studies show the wide variety of ways in which books, bodies, and beings intermingle in material sacred texts manipulated by human bodies, and also in literary and artistic depictions of transcendent textual bodies. The boundary between material immanence and spiritual transcendence turns out to be very thin indeed when people use books. The chapters on specific book practices in different cultures are bracketed by an introduction to the collection and by a concluding essay that extrapolates on the widespread theme of books as sacred beings.Table of Contents1. Introduction James W. Watts 2. Performing Scriptures: Ritualizing Written Texts in Seolwi-seolgyeong, the Korean Shamanistic Recitation of Scriptures Yohan Yoo 3. Embodying the Qu’ran Katharina Wilkens, LMU Munich 4. Sacred Texts and the Digital Turn: Reflections on Scriptures as Material Objects in a Liminal Age Brad Anderson, Dublin City University 5. Being the Bible: Sacred Bodies and Iconic Books in Bring Your Bible to School Day Dorina Miller Parmenter, Spalding University 6. Body Building in the Hindu Tantric Tradition: The Advantages and Confusions of Scriptural Entextualization in the Worship of the Goddess Kali Rachel McDermott, Barnard College and Columbia University 7. Saints’ Lives as Performance Art Virginia Burrus, Syracuse University 8. Aspiring Narratives of Previous Births: An Interdisciplinary Approach to Written and Visual Media in Ancient Gandhara Jason Neelis, Wilfrid Laurier University 9. Daoist Writs and Scriptures as Sacred Beings: With a Focus on Cosmological Meaning Jihyun Kim, Seoul National University 10. Books as Sacred Beings James W. Watts

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Book SynopsisTracing Africa's history through the framework of the Holy Bible and of broader scholarship, this remarkable book uncovers the original Africans, their relationships with Ancient Greece, Israel, Mesopotamia and beyond, from the Patriarchs on through to the New Testament... The book asks what the world can learn from the new Pentecostal Churches, and considering the growth of AQIM, BOKO HARAM and ISIS, it shows the uneasy relationship between Islam and Christianity in Africa.

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Book SynopsisWhat is the role of scripture in illuminating the lives of the faithful today? In this book, three experts in Judaism, Christianity and Islam respectively discuss and debate this question, by exploring the core messages of the Torah, Bible and Qu'ran. Taking a deeper look at the wide range of theological, political and social issues that divide (and sometimes unite) their religions, they reveal how inspiration and guidance can be drawn not only on life's big questions such as sin and the afterlife, but also on societal issues including war, suffering, marriage and justice.Trade ReviewThe book offers a useful trialogue between the authors - as well as between the Hebrew Bible, the Christian Bible and the Quran - concerning the views of these three scriptures on a variety of topics, from creation to afterlife, and from land to God. As such, it not only offers the readers a glimpse into each scripture, but also a background for understanding the differences and similarities between the three scriptures, and the religions which they represent. -- Dr Zohar Hadromi-AlloucheIn this most illuminating and engaging volume, three authors, from (their) committed standpoints as Jew, Christian and Muslim, present their informed positions on a wide range of topics, ranging from the interpretation of the Word of God to gender and ethnicity, aspects that vitally affect how we live, communicate with, and understand each other in today's world. Dispelling ignorance and misunderstanding, the volume will surprise the reader as to the extent of those values and beliefs we actually share in common rather than what keeps us apart.This is a most readable, and informative book, usefully divided into helpful sections so that it can act as a reference volume as well as a work to be read in one sitting. It is an ideal resource for those engaged in interfaith dialogue, at either an academic or pastoral level and is a major contribution to promoting understanding and respect for others, whose beliefs we may not personally hold ourselves. -- Martin O'Kane, Professor Emeritus, UWTSDRich and fascinating, People of the Book will undoubtedly be used as a reference book by those who are involved in interfaith engagement. Members of each faith group will surely learn new things from this book, not just about the other religions but also about their own religious heritage. Just as surely, those outside of the interfaith arena who are seeking to understand diverse religious worldviews among their constituencies, or in the wider global environment, will benefit from this profoundly informative and thought-provoking work. -- Farhana Mayer (MA OXON), Doctoral Research Scholar, Faculty of Oriental Studies, University of OxfordGreat stories, memorable jokes, profound theory - all are interwoven in this wonderful record of what happens when a Jew, a Christian and a Muslim talk together about their scriptures. You could call it Scriptural Reasoning; or you could call it a conversation among friends of God. Whatever you call it, this book will enlighten, enliven and engross your spirit. -- Rt Revd Dr Michael Ipgrave, Bishop of LichfieldA very interesting and informative dialogue amongst three expert theologians that covers a wide range of topics from the perspective of Abrahamic faiths. The dialogue is engaging, thought-provoking and eye-opening in relation to the sources of scripture, God and man's relationship with the divine, daily life, ethics, morality and eschatology. A frank conversation like this, conducted with mutual respect, is rare in our atmosphere of exclusivist discourse, and we need more of this. I very much hope that this worthy book will inspire and encourage further such encounters. -- Sheikh Dr Salah al-Ansari, Egypt and UK-based Imam for 20 years, including at the Regent's Park Mosque (London Central Mosque)Table of ContentsAbout the Authors. Introduction. Section 1: Questions about Scripture. 1. Transmission. 2. Authority. 3. How Are Our Scriptures Used? 4. Methods of Interpretation. Section 2: God. 5. The Nature of God. 6. Creation. 7. God's Presence. 8. Guidance. Section 3: Guidance for Life. 9. Law. 10. Sin. 11. Food. 12. Marriage and Family. 13. Rites. Section 4: Social and political issues. 14. Social Justice. 15. Wealth. 16. Men and Women. 17. War and Peace. 18. Other Faiths. 19. Persecution. Section 5: Hope. 20. Suffering. 21. Prophecy. 22. Land. 23. Life after Death. 24. Concluding Reflections.

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Book SynopsisThis volume investigates contemporary bodily practices as a mode of transmitting and receiving South Asian religious and spiritual traditions.

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Book SynopsisReligions of the World: Questions, Challenges, and New Directions provides a critical introduction to the social, political, and cultural interests that inform how people describe and identify with religion. One of its goals is to provide a sense of methodological transparency that few, if any, other textbooks today offer. The book opens with an Introduction that discusses contemporary methodological concerns in the study of religion, with special focus on the World Religions Paradigm. This is followed by ten chapters, six (6) of which discuss a distinct religion and four (4) of which discuss regional traditions. This organization is intentional and self-conscious, as the authors discuss how these scholarly categories (distinct tradition vs. regional tradition) shape the ways that both insiders and outsiders discuss, practice, and engage religion in their daily lives. Each chapter introduces four different popular descriptions, or representations, of a particular religion or regional tradition. Following each representation is an analysis of what this representation accomplishes for those who promote it and what (or who) it also leaves out. Following this, a specific case study provides a real-world example of the difficulties in thinking about religion in overly simplistic ways. The text does not attempt to diminish or reconcile the possible contradictions between the different representations so as not to leave the reader with the idea that one representation is more correct or authentic than another, or that all four can be easily stitched together to make a tidy picture. Instead, students take away from each chapter a foundation of knowledge about the practices, issues, and conceptions that are associated with global religious traditions as well as the complexity behind any single representation. The objective is to make more transparent the human activity of constructing religion as well as the contemporary consequences of these representations, as people use them to legitimize identities and negotiate for social, legal, and economic resources. Thus, throughout the text, students are challenged to interrogate who gets to decide on a particular portrayal of a religious tradition as well as the interests informing those decisions. An Afterword also discusses ways that the skills learned in the text have applicability beyond the study of religious discourses.Table of Contents1. Introduction 2. African Religions 3. Buddhism 4. Chinese Religions 5. Christianity 6. Hinduism 7. Indigenous Religions of North America 8. Islam 9. Japanese Religions 10. Judaism 11. Sikhism

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Book SynopsisThis volume explores current challenges pertinent to cross-cultural research on religion in today's world. It reflects important aspects of global cultural and religious diversity. All articles stem from the international research project Young Adults and Religion in a Global Perspective.

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Book SynopsisThis anthology asks how the handling, use, and embodied enactments of sacred texts regulate, entangle, occlude, tolerate, or even subvert religious and gendered identities. While many studies have looked at the semantic content of sacred texts to answer this question, the volume mends a knowledge gap by looking at the effects on gender that follow both from uses of sacred texts as directly accessible, material objects and from embodied enactments of sacred texts in indirect ways. To signify the embodied enactment of sacred texts, not directly at hand, Marianne Schleicher coins the term sacred texture in the introduction to extend sacred text studies to capture both the textuality of poetic and narrative expressions in oral cultures and how most lay people, often women, have expressed their religiosity through indirect uses of sacred texts through bodily enactments. Among the insights this volume offers are how Old Norse women''s composition of oral sacred textures renders their gender fluid, how a sacred text in Numbers 5 is used to handle a woman and simultaneously bolsters the masculinities of the involved men, how Jewish women through centuries have been intelligible as such by enabling men''s direct access to sacred texts or by bodily enacting sacred textures themselves, how both Christian women and sacred texts should leave adornments behind to embody Jerome''s ascetic ideals, how four women in contemporary American Judaism write Esther scrolls according to halakhic rules to become intelligible as scribes despite their female gender, how American Evangelical women have compensated for the absence of a directly accessible Bible at work by bodily enacting fragments of the Bible, and how Muslim family members in Denmark bodily enact and navigate Qur''anic prescriptions on filial piety up against its prescriptions concerning the naked body.

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Book SynopsisHistorically and culturally, Sufism and Zen may not seem to have anything in common. However, in the West, their spiritual messages are often perceived as strikingly similar. In this book, scholars analyse the ways in which Sufism and Zen were introduced to and developed in the West. The collection shows that the popularity of these religions arose not because of the substantive shared elements within the two traditions, but because their promoters in the West employed similar strategies to respond to the interests of a modern, Western audience. The first book to make a close comparison of Sufism and Zen, this study is an important contribution to understanding Western religious life and processes of easternisation'. It sheds new light on how Sufism and Zen came to represent a spirituality that is both countercultural and in touch with modern sensitivities.

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Book SynopsisKeshab Chandra Sen (1838-84) was one of the most powerful and controversial figures in nineteenth-century Bengal. A religious leader and social reformer, his universalist interpretation of Hinduism found mass appeal in India, and generated considerable interest in Britain. His ideas on British imperial rule, religion and spirituality, global history, universalism and modernity were all influential, and his visit to England made him a celebrity. Many Britons regarded him as a prophet of world-historical significance. Keshab was the subject of extreme adulation and vehement criticism. Accounts tell of large crowds prostrating themselves before him, believing him to be an avatar. Yet he died with relatively few followers, his reputation in both India and Britain largely ruined. As a representative of India, Keshab became emblematic of broad concerns regarding Hinduism and Christianity, science and faith, India and the British Empire. This innovative study explores the transnational historical forces that shaped Keshab's life and work. It offers an alternative religious history of empire, characterised by intercultural dialogue and religious syncretism. A fascinating and often tragic portrait of Keshab's experience of the imperial world, and the ways in which he carried meaning for his contemporaries.Trade Review‘Stevens scythes his way through the unkempt woods of time to remind readers of the pivotal role which Keshab played at a particular moment in history, both as a seeming arbiter of Indian destiny in close links with British colonialism and also as an individual whose fall from grace was nothing less than spectacular.’ -- Asian Affairs Journal'Much maligned and misunderstood in his days and forgotten thereafter, the genius of Keshab comes alive in these pages. The prophet has at last been redeemed.' -- Professor Amiya P. Sen'Colonial India produced few figures as fascinating as Keshab Chandra Sen, the Brahmo reformer and apostle of East-West harmony. Stevens situates Keshab within the capillaries of transnational reform, highlighting a complex subjectivity pledged to the performance of both Indian and global identities. Keshab emerges as a prophet inspired--and constrained--by the binaries of his age.' -- Brian A. Hatcher'Stevens provides a fascinating and timely account of Keshab's varied reception in both India and Britain. In exploring the mission of this contentious, and now often neglected, 'prophet', Stevens reveals the intractable nature of the problems Keshab sought to address, many of which remain with us to this day.' -- Gwilym Beckerlegge

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Book SynopsisThis book is the first authoritative volume in English on Yasukuni, the controversial Shinto shrine in the heart of Tokyo, dedicated to the Japanese war dead. Twelve convicted and two suspected Class A war criminals are enshrined at Yasukuni, while the shrine's museum narrates an account of Japan's actions in the Second World War that is best described as revisionist. Visits to the shrine by cabinet members often set off protests at home and abroad, especially in China, Korea and Taiwan, and Yasukuni remains a source of considerable mistrust between the Chinese and Japanese governments. Despite the controversy, the former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi made annual visits from 2001-6. The distinctive feature of this volume is that it sets out neither to commend Yasukuni nor to condemn it; it seeks, rather, to present authoritative yet divergent views, thereby allowing the contributors to render more complex an issue which, in the media at least, has long been portrayed in starkly simplistic terms. It accommodates chapters by leading pro-Yasukuni and anti-Yasukuni Japanese intellectuals; it carries multiple Chinese perspectives; and there are also contributions from Western commmentators who offer their own insights on the shrine and its place in post war Japanese diplomacy, ideology and history.Trade Review'By bringing together a wide range of perspectives and casting Yasukuni in multiple historical, ideological, political and religious frameworks that cut across Japanese, Chinese and international perspectives, this volume contributes much that is fresh and provocative.' * Mark Selden, Japan Focus *'The controversial Yasukuni Shrine has become a barometer of the inclinations of the Japanese political elite but we have lacked a dispassionate examination of its history and political significance. John Breen has brought his formidable energies as a researcher and his expertise in the history of Japanese religion to bear on a subject of continuing political significance, and this splendid book ought to dispel much of the myth-making and mistaken suppositions that surround this subject.' * Professor Peter Kornicki, University of Cambridge *'One of the key Sino-Japanese points of friction is the relatively obscure Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo. In this impressive English language work John Breen brings together eight scholars who represent a diverse array of perspectives spanning the entire spectrum of thought on the Shinto shrine. The conflicting Chinese, Japanese and foreign opinions found in this volume, illuminate the radically differing standpoints and national narratives surrounding the shrine. They also demonstrate the daunting challenge the two countries face in their efforts to resolve this highly emotive and contentious issue.' * Japan Society *Table of ContentsContentsPrefaceIntroductionYasukuni -- A GenealogyJohn Breen1 The Yasukuni Shrine Problem in Sino-Japanese Relations: Facing a StalemateCaroline Rose2A Religious Perspective on the Yasukuni Shrine ControversyKevin Doak3Unlocking the Secrets of Yasukuni: a Chinese PerspectiveWang Zhixin,4Plumbing the Depths: the Yasukuni Controversy in ChinaSeki Hei5The Showa Emperor and the Yasukuni ShrineTakahashi Tetsuya6And Why Shouldn't the Prime Minister Worship at Yasukuni?Nitta Hitoshi7Yasukuni and the Loss of Historical MemoryJohn Breen8Pledge Fulfilled: the Japanese Media and Prime Minister Koizumi's Yasukuni Worship, 2001-6,Phillip SeatonIndex

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Book SynopsisIn this systematic and accessible analysis, Harold Coward carefully explores the scriptures - written and spoekn - of six major world faiths. He examines their interpretation, their role in devotion and education, and their relationships with each other.Trade Review"nice introduction to how several major world religions view and use scripture." * World Faiths Encounter *Table of Contents1. Scripture In Judaism 1 2. Scripture in Christianity 34 3. Scripture in Islam 81 4. Scripture in Hinduism 105 5. Scripture in Sikhism 130 6. Scripture in Buddhism 138 7. Scripture and the future of religions 159

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Book SynopsisTengiz Abuladze's allegorical film, made in Georgia, is the best known film of the perestroika and glasnost years. With its outspoken and controversial reference to the Stalin era and Stalin's place in the Soviet psyche, 'Repentance' was originally shelved but ultimately released in 1986 to widespread popular and critical acclaim. This _KINOfile_ investigates the production, context and critical reception of the film, the people who made it, and provides an analysis of the film itself and its place in world cinema.

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Book SynopsisAs a result of world events over the past few years, Islam has entered our consciousness in an unprecedented way. The Qur''an, guiding text for over one billion Muslims, is being looked to for answers to questions like: does the Qur''an promote peace and harmony or discord and conflict, does it contribute to pluralism or exclusivism, is its message spiritual or fanatical? Based on a profound study of the Sufi perspectives of the likes of Ibn ''Arabi, Rumi and Ghazali, The Other in the Light of the One is an attempt to answer the above questions and is an invitation to study the universality that is present in the Qur''an. Its aim is to relate some of the most profound interpretations of the Qur''an to philosophical and spiritual questions concerning interfaith dialogue.For Muslims, The Other in the Light of the One offers a pioneering view of da''wa, in that it allows them the tangible means of putting into practice the many Qur''anic verses that commend discoursing with others on the basis of ''the finest, most beautiful manner.''

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Book SynopsisThe familiar and heartwarming story of Christmas is one of hope, encapsulated by the birth of the infant Jesus. It is also a story that unites Christianity and Islam--two faiths that have often been at odds with each other. The accounts of the Nativity given by the Evangelists Luke and Matthew find their parallels in Surahs 3 and 19 of the Qur'an, which take up the Annunciation to Mary, the Incarnation from the Holy Spirit, and the Nativity. Christmas and the Qur'an is a sensitive and precise analysis of the Christmas story as it appears in the Gospels and the Qur'an. Karl-Josef Kuschel presents both scriptures in a convincing comparative exegesis and reveals startling similarities as well as significant differences. Kuschel explores how Christians and Muslims read these texts and reveals an intertwining legacy that serves as a base for greater understanding. Without leaving the realm of theology, Kuschel approaches his analysis in a theocentric way by emphasizing the shared belief that God is almighty, which, he argues, can act as a healing suture between Christianity and Islam. Christmas and the Qur'an gives the reader the chance to remember the message of hope that the birth of Jesus brings and invites to a dialogue between Muslims and Christians.Trade Review'The depiction of Jesus and indeed of Mary in the Qur'an is a subject of great importance for a more intelligent dialogue between Islam and the Christian tradition. Too many people know little or nothing about it, and it is a pleasure to welcome the English translation of this book from a seasoned and creative scholar.- Rowan Williams, Master of Magdalene College and former Archbishop of Canterbury; 'This is a most interesting and informative book; it is equally valuable for scholars and a wider readership. [...] Professor Kuschel has highlighted very clearly the joint heritage of Christianity and Islam at a time when mutual understanding between these two religious traditions is so vital.' - Prof. Carole Hillenbrand, University of St Andrews; 'Shows convincingly that the beliefs of Christians and Muslims are entwined in unexpected and profound ways' -Daily Telegraph

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Book SynopsisReligiÃse Vielfalt im Fokus: Christlich-Islamisches Teamteaching erobert Klassenzimmer

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Book SynopsisProceedings of the first international conference on the council of Nicaea and its creed

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Book SynopsisThe Dialogue of Ipuwer and the Lord of All is one of the major works from the golden age of Egyptian literature, the Middle Kingdom (c. 1980-1630 BC). The poem provides one of the most searching explorations of human motivation and divine justice to survive from Ancient Egypt, and its stark pessimism questions many of the core ideologies that underpinned the Egyptian state and monarchy. It begins with a series of laments portraying an Egypt overwhelmed by chaos and destruction, and develops into an examination of why these disasters should happen, and who bears responsibility for them: the gods, the king, or humanity. This volume provides the first full literary analysis of this poem for a century. It provides a detailed study of questions such as: its date of composition; its historicity; the identity of its protagonists and setting; its reception history within Egyptian culture; and whether it really is a unified literary composition, or a redacted collection of texts of heterogenousTrade ReviewWith full new translation at the close, this volume brings the work firmly within reach of other ancient historical disciplines as well as studies in comparative literature ... Enmarch offers meticulous and methodical literary commentary * Stephen Quirke, Orientalia *Table of Contents1. Introduction ; 2. Literary aspects of Ipuwer ; 2.1 Description of text ; 2.2 Survey of previous research ; 2.3 Textual unity ; 2.4 Dating ; 2.5 Reception ; 2.6 Speakers, section boundaries, and setting of the poem ; 2.7 Genre and intertext ; 2.8 Literary style ; 2.9 Style, structure, and meaning ; 2.10 Towards a reading of the poem ; 3. Commentary ; 3.1 Commentary on Lament I ; 3.2 Interpretation of Lament I ; 3.3 Commentary on Lament II ; 3,4 Interpretation of Lament II ; 3.5 Commentary on Lament III ; 3.6 Interpretation of Lament III ; 3.7 Commentary on Injunction I ; 3.8 Interpretation of Injunction I ; 3.9 Commentary on Injunction II ; 3.10 Interpretation of Injunction II ; 3.11 Commentary on Injunction III ; 3.12 Interpretation of Injunction III ; 3.13 Commentary on Reproach I ; .14 Interpretation of Reproach I ; 3.15 Commentary on the Meditation ; 3.16 Interpretation of the Meditation ; 3.17 Commentary on Reply I ; 3.18 Interpretation of Reply I ; 3.19 Commentary on Reproach II ; 3.20 Interpretation of Reproach II ; 3.21 Commentary on Reply II ; 3.22 Interpretation of Reply II ; 3.23 Excursus: the jottings of 17A.1-3 ; 4. Continuous transliteration and translation of Ipuwer

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Book SynopsisProvides a counterhistory of the academic study of religion, an alternative to standard accounts that have failed to link the field of comparative religion with either the power relations or the historical contingencies of the imperial project.Trade Review"Elegantly pairing key themes and authors in each section, Chidester's lucid and powerful book will be of central importance to specialists in African religions and history and the larger genealogy of religion as a modern category." (Hugh B. Urban, Ohio State University)"

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Book SynopsisHow is knowledge about religion and religions produced, and how is that knowledge authenticated and circulated? The author aims to answer these questions. He shows that race, rather than theology, was formative in the emerging study of religion in Europe and North America.Trade Review"Elegantly pairing key themes and authors in each section, Chidester's lucid and powerful book will be of central importance to specialists in African religions and history and the larger genealogy of religion as a modern category." (Hugh B. Urban, Ohio State University)"

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Book SynopsisAssembles a collection of essays that both illustrates and reveals the benefits of his methodology, making a case for a critical religious studies that starts with skepticism but is neither cynical nor crude. This book tackles many questions central to religious study.Trade Review"Bruce Lincoln is a rara avis. His combination of precise technical analysis of ancient religious texts, allied to a grand, comparative vision of religion in society, past and present, informs a reflection, at once anxious and radical, anchored in the predicament of our own times. This combination produces a humanistic approach, devoid of grandiloquence, and this strikingly original book will be of great importance to all students of ancient religions and to historians of religion in general." -Guy Stroumsa, University of Oxford"

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Book SynopsisThis third volume chronicling faith in 20th-century America, presents an account of American religious culture from the entry of the United States into World War II through the Eisenhower years. It addresses the role of religion in shaping the social and political life of mid-century America.

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Book SynopsisNineteenth-century philologist and Biblical critic William Robertson Smith famously concluded that the sacred status of holy places derives not from their intrinsic nature, but from their social character. Building upon this insight, this work uses Islamic legal texts to analyze the rituals and objects associated with the sanctuary at Mecca.Trade Review"Mecca and Eden is absorbing from the first paragraph of the introduction to the final footnote in the concluding chapter. It is a completely original work of scholarship and an exceptionally good comparative study." - Richard D. Hecht, University of California, Santa Barbara"

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Book SynopsisTable of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction 1. The Hebrew Bible 2. Judaism 3. Christianity 4. Islam 5. Buddhism 6. Change and the Effective-Defensive Strategy 7. Seeing as a Whole: The Animal Perspective 8. The Problem of Oneness 9. Animal Rights: The Next Step in Human Moral Evolution Notes Glossary Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewWallace is a master, guiding our inquiry into consciousness in exciting new directions. Shift Thought-provoking and at times insightful, this volume raises many interesting philosophical issues and presents many useful references. Choice Anyone interested in understanding more about the mind and consciousness would enjoy reading this book. -- Marcia Howton Inquiring MindTable of ContentsPreface Part I: Meditation: Where It Started and How It Got Here 1. Who Am I? 2. The Origins of Contemplation 3. The Scientific Externalization of Meditation 4. Scientific Studies of Meditation Part II: Meditation in Theory and Practice 5. Practice: Attending to the Breath of Life 6. Theory: Coming to Our Senses 7. Practice: The Union of Stillness and Motion 8. Theory: Knowing and Healing the Mind 9. Practice: Behold the Light of Consciousness 10. Theory: Exploring the Nature of Consciousness 11. Practice: Probing the Nature of the Observer 12. Theory: The Ground State of Consciousness 13. Practice: Oscillating Awareness 14. Theory: Consciousness Without Beginning or End 15. Practice: Resting in the Stillness of Awareness 16. Theory: Worlds of Skepticism 17. Practice: The Emptiness of Mind 18. Theory: The Participatory Worlds of Buddhism 19. Practice: The Emptiness of Matter 20. Theory: The Participatory Worlds of Philosophy and Science 21. Practice: Resting in Timeless Consciousness 22. Theory: The Luminous Space of Pristine Awareness 23. Practice: Meditation in Action 24. The Universe as a Whole 25. What Shall We Become? Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewAn entertaining and highly accessible look at how myths reveal what is common to all humanity. Parabola A racy, enjoyable book... Wendy Doniger brings to her study a wealth of story and folklore from many different traditions, exploring creatively the enduring role of myth through time and across cultures. Theological Book Review A timely meditation on what comparative studies might mean... a cross-cultural comparison of different stories from different areas of the world, different tribes, different languages. London Review of Books A book that is particularly worthy of the attention of readers in religious studies beyond the history of religions. Since it is Wendy Doniger's most methodological book, The Implied Spider is important, not for its analysis of myths, but for the arguments that it makes in support of the comparative study of myths. Religious Studies Review By analyzing the political, theological, and psychological structures of the sacred stories of various cultures through time, from the Hebrew Bible to Star Trek, Doniger shows how myths create a shared interdisciplinary narrative of all human creatures... Ranging widely, she offers a detailed, scholarly account. Library Journal Sparkling with erudite and often entertaining intertextual references, The Implied Spider is an impressive web delicately constructed of deft analysis together with a sustained argument about the myth's ability to convey and conjure the theological and the political. With its challenges to literary theorists, historians, and ethnographers, it takes various bulls by their respective horns. It will doubtless delight and surely provoke readers, whatever their ilk. Church HistoryTable of ContentsPreface to the Updated Edition: Context and History Acknowledgments Introduction: Myth and Metaphor 1. Microscopes and Telescopes 2. Dark Cats, Barking Dogs, Chariots, and Knives 3. Implied Spiders and the Politics of Individualism 4. Micromyths, Macromyths, and Multivocality 5. Mother Goose and the Voices of Women 6. Textual Pluralism and Academic Pluralism Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisDigital and electronic technologies that act as extensions of our bodies and minds are changing how we live, think, act, and write. Some welcome these developments as bringing humans closer to unified consciousness and eternal life. Others worry that invasive globalized technologies threaten to destroy the self and the world. Whether feared or desired, these innovations provoke emotions that have long fueled the religious imagination, suggesting the presence of a latent spirituality in an era mistakenly deemed secular and posthuman. William Gaddis, Richard Powers, Mark Danielewski, and Don DeLillo are American authors who explore this phenomenon thoroughly in their work. Engaging the works of each in conversation, Mark C. Taylor discusses their sophisticated representations of new media, communications, information, and virtual technologies and their transformative effects on the self and society. He focuses on Gaddis's The Recognitions, Powers's Plowing the Dark, Danielewski's House Trade ReviewThis book exemplifies what an entire area within religious studies-'religion and literature'-should be yet has never quite become: a genuinely interdisciplinary, existentially attuned, and constructively ambitious enterprise engaged with our most timely social and cultural questions. -- Thomas Carlson, University of California, Santa Barbara Provocative, engaging, significant... -- N. Katherine Hayles Los Angeles Review of Books Rewiring the Real is a collection of wide-ranging and incisive conversations about contemporary fiction and useful... primer to Taylor's thought... Taylor is a gifted explainer with a remarkably direct and personable style... College LiteratureTable of ContentsList of Illustrations neXus 1. Counterfeiting Counterfeit Religion: William Gaddis, The Recognitions 2. Mosaics: Richard Powers, Plowing the Dark 3. Figuring Nothing: Mark Danielewski, House of Leaves 4. "Holy Shit!": Don DeLillo, Underworld 5. Concluding Unscientific Postscript: Two Styles of the Philosophy of Religion Acknowledgments Notes Index

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Book SynopsisReligion and Film introduces readers to both religious studies and film studies by focusing on the formal similarities between cinema and religious practices and on the ways they each re-create the world. S. Brent Plate shows that by paying attention to the ways films are constructed, we can shed new light on myths and rituals and vice versa.Trade ReviewContributes crucially to film theory as much as religious studies, marking a pivotal moment in the humanities in which religiosity, mythology, media, and narratology are once again being revisited in the continued critique of the Enlightenment, Western society, and secular humanism. * Reading Religion *This new standalone version is erudite yet accessible, with a truly inclusive and knowledgeable appreciation of both cinema and religion. -- Joel Mayward * Journal of Film and Religion *[This] volume is a stimulating contribution to the field of film and religion that will be read with profit by scholars in the field, graduate students and others with an interest in this conversation. -- Stefanie Knauss * Journal of Religion, Film, and Media *Plate gives us the best introduction into the exploration of religion and film by brilliantly interweaving the worldmaking of religious myths and rituals, sacred times, and spaces, with the worldmaking of cinema. Insightful and illuminating, Religion and Film helps us to understand the stagings, structures, and embodiments of film in the light of religion and to rethink the dynamics of religion in the light of film. -- David Chidester, author of Authentic Fakes: Religion and American Popular CultureA truly compelling comparative study. The analogues between filmic and religious worldmaking are richly illuminating, bringing the reader to fresh insights about the structure and dynamics of both mediums. Setting aside the customary approach of simply analyzing religious themes in movies, this volume compares mythic and ritual ways of constructing a world with cinematic processes such as framing, focus, editorial selection, lighting, camera angle, voice, use of time and space, and iconicity—doing so with lucidity, ingenuity, and masterful use of a repertoire of interpretive frameworks. -- William Paden, University of VermontSpiritual questions are still anathema to most film theorists. On the other hand, many religious scholars who dabble in cinema have treated it illustratively and shown a blunt insensitivity to the specifics of film form. This book is exemplary in the cogent and creative way it builds a bridge between these two alienated intellectual worlds. Plate’s unfailingly perceptive mise-en-scène analysis discovers the visual mythologizing at work in an eclectic filmography ranging from George Lucas to Dziga Vertov and Stan Brakhage. At the same time, he remains critically aware of politics and ideology, attempting a more inclusive definition of religion that goes beyond the dogmatic and the doctrinal. A wonderfully syncretic study that offers an amazing bricolage of ideas. -- Peter Matthews, University of the Arts LondonTable of ContentsList of IllustrationsPreface to the Second EditionPreface to the First EditionAcknowledgmentsIntroduction: Worldmaking On-Screen and at the AltarPart I. Before the Show: Pulling the Curtain on the Wizard1. Audio-Visual Mythologizing2. Ritualizing Film in Space and Time3. Sacred and Cinematic Spaces: Cities and PilgrimagesPart II. During the Show: Attractions and Distractions4. Religious Cinematics: Body, Screen, and Death5. The Face, the Close-Up, and EthicsPart III. After the Show: Re-Created Realities6. The Footprints of Film: Cinematic After-Images in Sacred Time and SpaceNotesReferencesFilmographyIndex

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Book SynopsisJews and the American Religious Landscape explores major complementary facets of American Judaism and Jewish life through a comprehensive analysis of contemporary demographic and sociological data. The volume adds empirical value to questions concerning the strengths of Jews as a religious and cultural group in America.Trade ReviewRebhun has produced a pioneering study that provides an in-depth comparative analysis of the sociopolitical and religious patterns of America's Jews and is a major contribution to our understanding of the place of Jews in America's religious landscape. -- Chaim I. Waxman, Rutgers University and the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, author of American Aliya: Portrait of an Innovative Migration Movement Jews and the American Religious Landscape is an ambitious study of American Judaism in relation to the other religious traditions currently developing within the United States. It identifies American Judaism in terms of social class composition, demographic dynamics, educational attainment, religious versus ethnic adherence, native-born versus immigrant composition, religious practices, and voter choice in U.S. presidential elections. Rebhun's effort is masterful, and readers will both enjoy the work and be enlightened by its unique ability to combine structural analysis with cultural analysis. This book will be regarded as a landmark study of religion and politics in the United States. -- Thomas A. Hirschl, Cornell University, coauthor or Chasing the American Dream: Understanding What Shapes Our Fortunes Uzi Rebhun's elegant comparative study of Jews and the American Religious Landscape deftly situates American Jews in multiple, overlapping contexts that yield fascinating results. Whether he is examining demography, religiosity, politics, or education, Rebhun's multivariate analysis disrupts accepted wisdom and points to the enormous value of comparison when trying to understand American Jews. -- Deborah Dash Moore, author of Urban Origins of American Jews Highly recommended. ChoiceTable of ContentsPreface Introduction: Religion in America 1. Population Size and Dynamics 2. Spatial and Socioeconomic Stratification 3. Interfaith Marriage 4. Religious Identification 5. Political Orientation Epilogue: Jews and the American Religious Landscape Appendix A1. Religious Identificational Variables Used in Analysis Appendix A2. Loading of Questions on Religious Identification Factors: Principle Component Varimax Rotation Notes References Index

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Book SynopsisMichael Dumper explores the causes and consequences of contemporary conflicts in holy cities. He offers five case studies of important disputes, beginning with Jerusalem, often seen as the paradigmatic example of a holy city in conflict, and discussing Córdoba, Banaras, Lhasa, and George Town in Malaysia.Trade ReviewHighly original and fascinating empirical research, combined with theoretical depth, positions this book on high ground. Dumper adroitly and expertly examines the nexus between religion and urbanity in five holy cities in Israel/Palestine, Spain, India, China, and Malaysia. The book foregrounds the intersection of structural determinants and street-level phenomena as key to understanding whether dominance or tolerance takes hold in urban space. -- Scott Bollens, University of California, IrvinePower, Piety and People brings together both political insights into the key dynamics that comprise religious conflicts in cities and detailed studies of relevant cases across two continents. Dumper examines the patterns of urban conflict that flow from the way key religious sites are used and how they are managed, financed, and protected. The result is a fascinating and informative analysis of the complexity and the intractability of religious conflicts which will inform those concerned with the growing challenges of an increasingly urbanized world. -- Lynn Meskell, author of A Future in Ruins: UNESCO, World Heritage, and the Dream of PeacePower, Piety, and People is a tour de force. Dumper explores the politics of contemporary “holy cities” through rich and thoughtful case studies of Jerusalem, the Mezquita of Cordoba, Banaras, Lhasa, and George Town. His analysis highlights the complex ways belief, institutions, politics, and economies can interact to support exclusionary claims of communal priority or encourage more pluralist and integrative urban societies. -- Rex Brynen, McGill UniversityTable of ContentsList of Figures, Maps, and TablesAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. Jerusalem: Template of a Holy City in Conflict?2. The Politics of Regionalism: Cordoba’s Mezquita on the Frontline3. Hindu–Muslim Rivalries in Banaras: History and Myth as the Present4. A Very Secular Occupation: Buddhist Lhasa and Communism5. Branding Religious Coexistence: Malaysia’s George Town as a Model City of Harmony?6. Religious Conflicts in CitiesGlossaryNotesBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisMichael Dumper explores the causes and consequences of contemporary conflicts in holy cities. He offers five case studies of important disputes, beginning with Jerusalem, often seen as the paradigmatic example of a holy city in conflict, and discussing Córdoba, Banaras, Lhasa, and George Town in Malaysia.Trade ReviewHighly original and fascinating empirical research, combined with theoretical depth, positions this book on high ground. Dumper adroitly and expertly examines the nexus between religion and urbanity in five holy cities in Israel/Palestine, Spain, India, China, and Malaysia. The book foregrounds the intersection of structural determinants and street-level phenomena as key to understanding whether dominance or tolerance takes hold in urban space. -- Scott Bollens, University of California, IrvinePower, Piety and People brings together both political insights into the key dynamics that comprise religious conflicts in cities and detailed studies of relevant cases across two continents. Dumper examines the patterns of urban conflict that flow from the way key religious sites are used and how they are managed, financed, and protected. The result is a fascinating and informative analysis of the complexity and the intractability of religious conflicts which will inform those concerned with the growing challenges of an increasingly urbanized world. -- Lynn Meskell, author of A Future in Ruins: UNESCO, World Heritage, and the Dream of PeacePower, Piety, and People is a tour de force. Dumper explores the politics of contemporary “holy cities” through rich and thoughtful case studies of Jerusalem, the Mezquita of Cordoba, Banaras, Lhasa, and George Town. His analysis highlights the complex ways belief, institutions, politics, and economies can interact to support exclusionary claims of communal priority or encourage more pluralist and integrative urban societies. -- Rex Brynen, McGill UniversityTable of ContentsList of Figures, Maps, and TablesAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. Jerusalem: Template of a Holy City in Conflict?2. The Politics of Regionalism: Cordoba’s Mezquita on the Frontline3. Hindu–Muslim Rivalries in Banaras: History and Myth as the Present4. A Very Secular Occupation: Buddhist Lhasa and Communism5. Branding Religious Coexistence: Malaysia’s George Town as a Model City of Harmony?6. Religious Conflicts in CitiesGlossaryNotesBibliographyIndex

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