History of religion Books

Book SynopsisTrade Review"Cobb’s book is a valuable introduction to the reception history of stories related to the martyrdom of Perpetua and her companions, especially for students and others new to the traditions surrounding their cult." * Reading Religion *"This volume is a crucial addition to any personal or institutional library for the study of Perpetua and Felicitas, early Christian martyrs and their legacies, the connection between textual evidence and material culture, Christianity in late antiquity, and more." * Journal of Orthodox Christian Studies *Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Acknowledgments General Introduction Part One. The Accounts of the Martyrdom 1. Passion of Perpetua and Felicitas (Latin) 2. Martyrdom of Perpetua and Felicitas (Greek) 3. Acts of Perpetua and Felicitas Acts of Perpetua and Felicitas AActs of Perpetua and Felicitas B Part Two. The Interpretations of the Martyrdom 4. TertullianOn the Soul 55 (excerpt) 5. Augustine Sermon 280 Sermon 281 Sermon 282 Sermon 282auct On the Nature and Origin of the Soul (excerpt) Expositions on the Psalms (excerpt) Sermon 159A 6. Pseudo-AugustineSermon 394 Sermon 394A On the Feast Day of Saint Victoria (Mai 66) 7. Treatise on the Feast Day of Perpetua and Felicitas 8. Quodvultdeus On the Barbaric Age I 9. Pseudo-FulgentiusOn Job and Blessed Perpetua 10. References to the Passion in Other Martyr Accounts Martyrdom of Polyeuctus Martyrdom of Procopius of Scythopolis Part Three. The Celebrations of the Martyrs 11. Martyrs' Burials of the Codex-Calendar of 354 12. Syriac Martyrology 13. Liber genealogus 14. Martyrology of Jerome 15. Fasti Vindobonenses priores and posteriores 16. Prosper Chronicle 17. Calendar of Willibrord 18. The Gelasian Sacramentary 19. BedeMartyrology of Bede On the Reckoning of Time 20. Martyrology of Tallaght 21. Félire of Oengus the Culdee Part Four. The Representations of the Martyrs 22. Arcosolium of the Coemeterium Maius (Rome, Italy) 23. Basilica Maiorum (Tunis, Tunisia) and Victor of Vita 24. Arcosolium of Saints Marcus and Marcellianus (Rome, Italy) 25. Sarcophagus (La Bureba, Spain) 26. Basilica Sant’Apollinare Nuovo (Ravenna, Italy) 27. Archiepiscopal Chapel (Ravenna, Italy) 28. Basilica Eufrasiana (Poreč, Croatia) Index

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Book SynopsisImprisoned for conspiring against Pope Paul II, Platina (1421–1481) returned to favor under Pope Sixtus IV, and composed this biographical compendium of the Roman popes, which became the standard reference on papal history for early modern Europe. This first complete translation into English is accompanied by an improved Latin text.

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Book SynopsisPerhaps nothing has ever been so frightening to people of faith as the modern. Pluralistic and rationalizing, modernity would seem the antithesis of traditional religious practice. But as historian Jon Butler shows, even Manhattan, the supposed capital of American secularism, has consistently proven a place steeped in devotion.Trade ReviewAre you there, God? It’s me, Manhattan…Butler…argues that far from being a Sodom on the Hudson, New York was a center of religious dynamism throughout the 20th century…[He] reminds us that New York was a center for Catholic religious orders too, their numbers rivaling any city’s except Rome. -- Katrina Gulliver * Wall Street Journal *In his enthralling God in Gotham, Butler takes us through the mighty city’s neighborhoods, traditions old and new, and bustling heterogeneous populations to illuminate the ways diverse Manhattanites have organized themselves in pursuit of community and faith. I learned something rich and surprising on every single page of this compelling book, as fascinating as Gotham itself. -- Elizabeth Alexander, President, Andrew W. Mellon FoundationWhat a pleasure it is to take a tour of Manhattan’s sacred past led by one of the nation’s preeminent religious historians…Butler offers yet one more reason why contemporary Americans might want to ask hard questions the next time they hear someone declaiming against urban places. The worlds of the city, the suburbs, and beyond are more interdependent than we sometimes think. And an unrelenting pursuit of the divine is common to them all. -- Heath W. Carter * Christianity Today *Elegantly written and persuasively argued…You cannot put this book down without feeling that Sin City has gotten a bad rap from the media. The metropolis has long been characterized by deep religious feeling and expression…This is a major book on a major topic in American history. It will complicate our judgements about the nation’s biggest city. -- Kenneth T. Jackson * Gotham *Serves as a reminder of how vital religiosity was to the old New York of 1900–1960…Butler gives readers a deeper sense of how ‘New York values’ were once a modus vivendi for religious pluralism that provided a broadly religious foundation for American culture. He believes that it could be so again. -- James M. Patterson * Law & Liberty *If I were still teaching Introduction to Religion in American History, I would assign Jon Butler’s God in Gotham, with its excellent cameos of Reinhold Niebuhr, Paul Tillich, Abraham Heschel, Dorothy Day, the Reverends Adam Clayton Powell Jr. and Sr., and other great or notorious divines who shaped Manhattan’s religious landscape from the Gilded Age to the Sixties. -- Bob Carey * The Metropole *Proves that ‘tools of modernity’ were also the tools of religion. Scholars of urban history, American religion, urban religion and modernity and secularism will find much to think with in God in Gotham’s compelling history of how congregations responded to the technologies, pace, and cityscape of Manhattan to engage with ‘the enchanted,’ not turn away from it. -- Alyssa Maldonado-Estrada * Journal of Ecclesiastical History *Butler paints a landscape of religious vitality in arguably the heart of burgeoning modernity—Manhattan…[He] shows that religion adapted to modernity rather than being trampled on the concrete. -- Justin McGeary * Modern Reformation *Spans the 1880s to the 1960s, arguing that contrary to the expectations of many, modern Manhattan did not suffocate organized religion…Will certainly resituate the place and significance of Manhattan for American religious life more broadly. -- Justin McGeary * Reading Religion *A splendid read, the most instructive feature of the work is the author’s ability to capture the resourcefulness of the city’s faith communities. With material drawn from the area’s rich collections, the work will remain a textbook model for courses on urban religion for a long time to come. -- A.J. Scopino, Jr. * Religious Studies Review *A lively account of religion…[and] a sharp poke in the eye to traditional theories of religion and modernity that should make scholars ask some tough questions. -- Matthew Bowman * S-USIH: Society for U.S. Intellectual History *God in Gotham portrays a city where people of faith eagerly engaged modernity, where immigrants were welcomed, not shunned. Butler argues that modern Manhattan actually gave rise to a new urban religious landscape of unparalleled breadth and popularity, rather than a crippled, old-fashioned religion of exclusion…Splendid. -- R. William Franklin * Living Church *Enlightening and engaging, God in Gotham chronicles the collision of religion and modernity in Manhattan with incredible skill. Butler not only reveals traditional religious forms challenged and changed by their confrontation with a secular city, but also a major metropolis sacralized by the work of the faithful. A must-read for anyone in search of the soul of America. -- Kevin M. Kruse, author of One Nation Under GodA masterwork by a master historian. Butler’s lively multidisciplinary, multidenominational book will serve as a model for all future work on the subject. God in Gotham should be an instant classic. -- Jonathan D. Sarna, author of American JudaismAn expansive work on a sweeping subject. Butler persuasively argues that religion flourished rather than foundered in Manhattan—not in spite of modernity but precisely because of the ways diverse communities of faith engaged with modern structures, sensibilities, challenges, and opportunities. He shows religious traditions as fluid, dynamic, and resilient. -- Heather D. Curtis, author of Holy HumanitariansWith lively prose, fascinating accounts, and riveting analysis, Butler transforms our understanding of urban religion and the very meanings of modernity as he convincingly portrays a city at once notably secular and a religious ‘hothouse.’ Whether considering the uses of urban space, the impact of racial segregation, or the significance of technologies such as electricity, radio, and sound recordings, he has produced nothing less than a distinctive urban history as well. God in Gotham is history at its finest. -- Michele Mitchell, author of Righteous PropagationButler’s marvelous contrarian intelligence is on full display, as is his silky smooth prose. Could any other author help us better understand James Baldwin, Abraham Heschel, Norman Vincent Peale, and Dorothy Day? Read God in Gotham as a primer on almost the whole of modern U.S. religious history and beyond. -- John T. McGreevy, author of Catholicism and American FreedomGod in Gotham shows how religion in Manhattan thrived as the borough barreled along the leading edge of American modernity—defying the prophets of secularization who looked for piety to wither away. In elegant prose, Butler tours Manhattan’s evolving religious landscape, showing how the city’s crowded pluralism nurtured both ugly prejudices and brilliant theological breakthroughs that left a lasting imprint on American culture well beyond New York. -- Molly Worthen, author of Apostles of Reason[An] illuminating history [of] why religious practice flourished in Manhattan during a period when urbanization and its associated ‘spiritual exhaustion’ were destroying it elsewhere…This eye-opening history is sure to enlighten anyone interested in cultural histories of New York City. * Publishers Weekly (starred review) *

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Book SynopsisJustice and Leadership in Early Islamic Courts explores the administration of justice during Islam's founding period, 6321250 CE. Inspired by the scholarship of Roy Parviz Mottahedeh, ten scholars of Islamic law draw on diverse sources including historical chronicles, biographical dictionaries, exegetical works, and mirrors for princes.Trade ReviewThis book makes a valuable contribution to the literature. It will be widely used and appreciated by scholars and graduate students with an interest in the historical practice and development of Islamic law. -- Marion Katz, Professor of Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies, New York UniversityThis book will be welcomed as a significant contribution toward a better understanding of the development of Islamic law in practice. Students of Islamic law have generally relied on the theoretical and ideal formulations of judicial procedure in manuals and chapters in textbooks that Muslim jurists wrote on dispensing justice. By contrast, this book offers path-breaking studies on Islamic legal practice by exploring biographical literature, local histories, and more, and by critically analyzing judicial contexts. These studies enlighten the reader about close interactions between jurists and judges on the one hand, and between judicial and political authorities, who kept revisiting concepts of the rule of law and of justice as they led the early Muslim societies, on the other. -- Judge M. Khalid Masud, Ad Hoc Member, Shariat Appellate Bench of the Supreme Court of Pakistan

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"One of the Financial Times' Best Books of the Year: Critics' Picks""One of Asian Review of Books' Books of the Year (Biography & Memoir)"

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Book SynopsisHow encounters with the Roman Empire compelled the Jews of antiquity to rethink their conceptions of Israel and the TorahThroughout their history, Jews have lived under a succession of imperial powers, from Assyria and Babylonia to Persia and the Hellenistic kingdoms. Jews and Their Roman Rivals shows how the Roman Empire posed a unique challenge to Jewish thinkers such as Philo, Josephus, and the Palestinian rabbis, who both resisted and internalized Roman standards and imperial ideology. Katell Berthelot traces how, long before the empire became Christian, Jews came to perceive Israel and Rome as rivals competing for supremacy. Both considered their laws to be the most perfect ever written, and both believed they were a most pious people who had been entrusted with a divine mission to bring order and peace to the world. Berthelot argues that the rabbinic identification of Rome with Esau, Israel's twin brother, reflected this sense of rivalry. She discusses how this challenge transfTrade Review"Winner of the National Jewish Book Award in Scholarship""Destined to constitute one of the main bases of discussion on Jews and Rome for years to come."---Catherine Hezser, Journal for the Study of Judaism"Illuminating. . . . Bertholet’s book, a work of erudite scholarship, opens new vistas into an understanding of the events and dynamics that shaped Rome’s relationship with Jews over several centuries."---Sheldon Kirshner, The Times of Israel"Insightful . . . [Jews and Their Roman Rivals] is a refreshing surprise."---Sara Jo Ben Zvi, Segula

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"An intellectually-absorbing work. . . . The book’s relevance extends far beyond academia. It provides invaluable insights into the modern-day challenges confronting Muslim societies across the world."---Saleem Rashid Shah, The Wire

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"A Financial Times Best Summer Book""A Financial Times Best Book of the Year- History""The origins of the modern European state are conventionally traced to the era between 1500 and 1800. Grzymała-Busse makes a convincing case that we should go several centuries back and look at the way that rivalries between the papacy and the Holy Roman Empire and other trends framed the emergence of European states."---Tony Barber, Financial Times"Carefully crafted." * Choice *"Grzymała-Busse . . . foregrounds the medieval church as the primary actor in the state-building process. Her arguments rest on a masterly synthesis of pertinent secondary literature coupled with innovative statistical representations." * Choice *"[Sacred Foundations] offers a fresh and innovative perspective on the process of state formation in Europe. Even more notably, it places a significant emphasis on the pivotal role of religion in forming the very institutions that continue to shape our world today."---Farah Adeed, Reading Religion"One of my favorite books . . . Grzymala-Busse [sic] provides a clear argument with details that make the reader want to know more. This is all the more impressive considering the topic is largely unfamiliar to most audiences. It’s a great book for anyone interested in the history behind modern representative democracy."---Justin Kempf, Democracy Paradox

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"A Financial Times Best Summer Book""A Financial Times Best Book of the Year- History""The origins of the modern European state are conventionally traced to the era between 1500 and 1800. Grzymała-Busse makes a convincing case that we should go several centuries back and look at the way that rivalries between the papacy and the Holy Roman Empire and other trends framed the emergence of European states."---Tony Barber, Financial Times"Carefully crafted." * Choice *"Grzymała-Busse . . . foregrounds the medieval church as the primary actor in the state-building process. Her arguments rest on a masterly synthesis of pertinent secondary literature coupled with innovative statistical representations." * Choice *"[Sacred Foundations] offers a fresh and innovative perspective on the process of state formation in Europe. Even more notably, it places a significant emphasis on the pivotal role of religion in forming the very institutions that continue to shape our world today."---Farah Adeed, Reading Religion"One of my favorite books . . . Grzymala-Busse [sic] provides a clear argument with details that make the reader want to know more. This is all the more impressive considering the topic is largely unfamiliar to most audiences. It’s a great book for anyone interested in the history behind modern representative democracy."---Justin Kempf, Democracy Paradox

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Book SynopsisA fascinating account of how Canada's largest Protestant church reinvented itself during the tumultuous 1960s.Trade Review"Flatt demystifies the place of evangelicalism in a denomination replete with tensions on how to deal with the fundamentals of Christianity - it is fascinating to follow the different trajectories of the elite and apparently most of the laity. After Evangelicalism is essential reading for anyone serious about Canadian Protestant history and the polarization of those who championed ethical imperatives above all else and those who defended the core truth claims of Christianity." Eric Crouse, Department of History, Tyndale University College " Flatt' s book is readable, well organized, carefully argued, and grounded in meticulous archival research. Moreover, it is an important work. As this country' s largest Protestant denomination, the United Church of Canada played a prominent role in Canadian public life - and in the personal lives of many Canadian families - throughout the twentieth century. Given the denomination' s importance, it is surprising that few academics have produced books devoted exclusively to the history of the United Church. Thus, Flatt' s work is a welcome addition both to the field of Canadian religious history and to the social and cultural history of postwar Canada." Canadian Historical Review " After Evangelicalism is a study of an important part of Canadian Protestant history, throwing light on the dilemmas and implications of competing interpretations of the Holy Scriptures within a church as an institution/human organisation, and on the tension between the leadership at church headquarters and the laity in terms of religiosity and morality, which has consequences for its members." British Journal of Canadian Studies

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Book SynopsisBased on Stearns's analysis of Muslim and Christian legal, theological, historical, and medical texts in Arabic, Medieval Castilian, and Latin, Infectious Ideas is the first book to offer a comparative discussion of concepts of contagion in the premodern Mediterranean world.Trade ReviewA welcome addition to the growing literature on plague-and medical thought-in the premodern Islamic world. Stearns's translations add new voices to those already known, and approach known figures with subtlety and nuance, challenging or at least refining the conclusions of the established scholarship... Stearns has provided future students commanding the requisite skills and depth of vision both a model and a solid target. -- Joseph P. Byrne American Historical Review Provides readers not only with a fascinating, beautifully researched account of contagion and plague in the premodern Western Mediterranean, but also with a series of thought-provoking new approaches to religious exegesis, legal interpretation, and literary production, and a set of methodological models that should serve scholars in the fields far beyond the realm of fourteenth- and fifteenth-century studies of illness and health in the Maghrib. The book is a fascinating read. -- Ruth A. Miller Journal of the American Oriental SocietyTable of ContentsPrefaceAcknowledgmentsChronological List of Relevant Muslim and Christian Scholars Who Wrote on Contagion in the Premodern PeriodIntroduction: Contagion and Causality in the Study of Premodern Muslim and Christian Societies1. Contagion in the Commentaries on Prophetic Tradition2. Contagion as Metaphor in Iberian Christian Scholarship3. Contagion Contested: Greek Medical Thought, Prophetic Medicine, and the First Plague Treatises4. Situating Scholastic Contagion between Miasmaand the Evil Eye5. Contagion between Islamic Law and Theology6. Contagion Revisited: Early Modern Maghribi Plague TreatisesConclusion: Reframing Muslim and Christian Views on ContagionAppendix A: Contagion in the Christian Exegetical TraditionAppendix B: The Presence of Ash'arism in the MaghribNotesBibligraphyIndex

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Book SynopsisThis is a survey of the history of Taoism from approximately the third century B.C. to the fourteenth century A.D. For many years, it was customary to divide Taoism into philosophical Taoism and religious Taoism. The author has long argued that this is a false division and that religious Taoism is simply the practice of philosophical Taoism. She sees Taoism as foremost a religion, and the present work traces the development of Taoism up to the point it reached its mature form (which remains intact today, albeit with modern innovations).The main aim of this history of Taoism is to trace the major lines of its doctrinal evolution, showing the coherence of its development, the wide varieties of factors that came into play over a long period of disconnected eras, the constant absorptions of outside contributions, and the progress that integrates them. The author shows how certain recurrent themes are treated in different ways in different eras and different sects. Among these theTrade Review"This is a work of monumental importance by arguably the foremost scholar of Taoism in the world. Insights from the study of Taoism are profoundly changing the way we view China's past, and this book fills the need for a comprehensive history that reflects the progress made in Taoist studies over the last few decades. Though Taoism is known to be an abstruse religion, Robinet lays bare its 'bones and sinews' in exceptionally clear language, one of the things that makes the book so valuable for classroom use."—Stephen Bokenkamp, Indiana UniversityTable of ContentsTranslator's foreword Author's preface Chronology Introduction: definitions and controlling concepts 1. The warring states (fourth to third centuries B. C.) 2. New elements under the Han 3. The celestrial masters 4. Ge Hong and his tradition 5. The Lingbao school 7. The Tang period 8. Under the song and the Yuan: interior alchemy Conclusion Notes Suggestions for further readings Index.

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Book SynopsisPhilip Fabian Flynn led a remarkable life, bearing witness to some of the most pivotal events of the twentieth century. Flynn took part in the invasions of Sicily and Normandy, the Battle of Aachen, acted as confessor to Nazi War Criminals, and assisted Hungarian revolutionaries on the streets of Budapest. The Priest Who Put Europe Back Together tells the story of this fascinating life.

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Book SynopsisThe Jesuit Luis de Molina (1535-1600) discussed the legal and ethical aspects of the Portuguese trade in African and Asian enslaved persons. Molina surveys, develops, and problematizes the criteria necessary for the legitimate possession, sale, and purchase of human freedom.

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Book Synopsis2023 Top Five Reference Book from the Academy of Parish Clergy The Torah is truly the Book of Revolutions, born from a military coup (the Northern Israelite revolution), the aftermath of an assassination and regency (a Judean revolution), and a quiet but radical revolution effected by outsiders whose ideas proved persuasive (Babylonian exile). Emerging from each of these were three key legal codes—the Covenant Code (Exodus), the Deuteronomic Code (Deuteronomy), and the Holiness Code (Leviticus)—which in turn shaped the Bible, biblical Judaism, and Judaism today. In dramatic historical accounts grounded in recent Bible scholarship, Edward Feld unveils the epic saga of ancient Israel as the visionary legacy of inspired authors in different times and places. Prophetic teaching and differing social realities shaped new understandings concretized in these law codes. Revolutionary biblical ideas often encountered great difficulties in their time before theTrade Review"Feld displays a remarkable talent for balancing accessible language with depth of thought and rigorous research, all while exercising a penetrating insight for how ancient conflicts factor into contemporary discourse. Stellar scholarship makes this an essential religious and cultural history."—Publishers Weekly, starred review"Feld's mode of unpack­ing [biblical] his­to­ry is unique. . . . He sug­gests that these legal [texts of the Torah], which were not edit­ed for cohe­sion as the nar­ra­tive sec­tions were, demon­strate. . . a rev­o­lu­tion in the reli­gious pro­gres­sion of the Israelites. . . . The acces­si­bil­i­ty of Feld’s writ­ing, and the con­clu­sions he draws about how today's Judaism is a prod­uct of these rev­o­lu­tions, makes The Book of Rev­o­lu­tions a valu­able addi­tion to the book­shelves of lay read­ers and aca­d­e­mics alike."—Jonathan Fass, Jewish Book Council"The weaving together of solid academics and committed religiosity, scholarly hypothesis and lived faith, makes this book a gem among the many volumes devoted to the study of the Pentateuch. And a Christian reader has much to learn."—Commonweal Magazine"A pleasure to read. Those readers who are biblically literate will find the author's reconstruction of the Torah's composition fascinating. Those beginning a study of the Torah could find no better way to begin the encounter with the Bible's foundational texts."—Bible Today"[Feld's] exemplary reader-friendly work of critical biblical scholarship respects traditional approaches in demonstrating that pluralism, not singularity, better explains the origins of the Torah, its conflicting teachings, and the multiplicity of traditions that molded Jewish belief and practice from antiquity to the present."—Zev Garber, Catholic Biblical Quarterly"[A] really superb book. . . . I was so deeply impressed. . . . The book is so truly rich that no reasonably sized review can do justice to all of the questions that it raises. Indeed, I have already pressed the manuscript on friends with whom I hope to discuss the book at some length."—Tikkun"Edward Feld's new book, The Book of Revolutions: The Battles of Priests, Prophets, and Kings That Birthed the Torah (JPS), is such a spectacular resource—so much so, that I confess that I could not put it down. . . . Move over Game of Thrones. There is far more intrigue here than we had ever imagined."—Religion News Service"Feld insists that Jews 'have not grasped the Torah's truths in their entirety because the parts do not ultimately quite fit together.' The same is true for Christians and the New Testament. But it's the very effort to grasp that helps make the life of faith so lively and fascinating. That's what makes this book appropriate for anyone with a solid knowledge of Scripture, as well as a hunger to know more. And readers familiar with scholar Amy-Jill Levine's writings that place Christianity in its Jewish context will find Feld’s book especially useful."—Presbyterian Outlook“In highlighting the innovative development of codes within biblical material while revealing their afterlife and influence, this substantive and stunning work succeeds in introducing the Torah to a new generation of general readers, all the while delighting more advanced readers in its sophisticated reflections.”—Adriane Leveen, author of Biblical Narratives of Israelites and Their Neighbors“Outstanding. Feld breaks through simplistic notions of a monolithic biblical and later Jewish religion to reveal its multiplicity and richness. I learned quite a bit from his insights.”—Stephen A. Geller, Irma Cameron Milstein Professor of Bible, Jewish Theological SeminaryTable of ContentsList of Illustrations Acknowledgments Introduction Prelude: Origins of the People Israel Part I. Revolution in Northern Israel 1. Elijah’s Victory 2. The Covenant Code 3. The Heritage of the Covenant Code First Interlude: In Judea Part II. Revolution in Judea 4. Years of Turmoil 5. Josiah and the Book of Deuteronomy 6. Law in Deuteronomy 7. Deuteronomy’s Revelation 8. The People and the Land 9. The Heritage of Deuteronomy Second Interlude: The End of Monarchy Part III. Revolution in Babylonia 10. Priests, Prophets, and Scribes in Exile 11. The Holiness Code 12. The Heritage of the Holiness Code Part IV. The Last Revolution 13. The Torah Final Thoughts Notes Bibliography Index

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Book Synopsis2024 Catholic Media Association Book Award Winner in History The Jewish community of Rome is the oldest Jewish community in Europe. It is also the Jewish community with the longest continuous history, having avoided interruptions, expulsions, and annihilations since 139 BCE. For most of that time, Jewish Romans have lived in close contact with the largest continuously functioning international organization: the Roman Catholic Church. Given the church’s origins in Judaism, Jews and Catholics have spent two thousand years negotiating a necessary and paradoxical relationship. With engaging stories that illuminate the history of Jews and Jewish-Catholic relations in Rome, Intimate Strangers investigates the unusual relationship between Jews and Catholics as it has developed from the first century CE to the present in the Eternal City. Fredric Brandfon innovatively frames these relations through an anthropological lens: how the idea and language of familTrade Review"A fascinating and readable history that's essential for those interested in Jewish or Italian history."—Library Journal“[During] two millennia, the Jews of Rome both thrived and endured extreme hardship, their fate alternately buffeted by persecution and acceptance. . . . Frederic Brandfon skillfully tackles these stark contradictions. . . . [His book is] rich in detail.”—Jewish Book Council"This is a scholarly work that any enthusiast of Jewish history will enjoy. Recommended for academic libraries as well as Jewish high school, community, and synagogue libraries."—Association of Jewish Libraries“A fascinating story of the Jews’ unique resilience and strength living in Rome without interruption for twenty-two centuries.”—Riccardo Shemuel Di Segni, chief rabbi of Rome“An absolutely new approach. Investigating an unusual relationship—the one between Jews and Catholics that in Rome could develop uninterruptedly over almost two thousand years—Intimate Strangers frames it anthropologically while revealing notable knowledge about the life of Jews in Rome and their mutual relationships with the Catholic world. This is a well-written, well-documented, and well-argued book.”—Gabriela Yael Franzone, coordinator of the Department of Heritage and Culture of the Jewish Community of Rome“An engaging and sometimes surprising exploration of the intriguing history of Rome.”—Mark Kurlansky, author of thirty-five books, including Cod, Salt, and The Importance of Not Being Ernest“Most involving. There is always fascinating new material on the next page.”—Judith Roumani, author of Jews in Southern Tuscany during the Holocaust: Ambiguous RefugeTable of ContentsList of Illustrations Acknowledgments Introduction: Giannina’s Glance 1. An Inconvenient Liaison: The Triumph of Titus and His Affair with Berenice 2. “Who Is a Jew?”: Jews, Pagans, Proselytes, and God-Fearers in the Roman Catacombs 3. A Torah for the Pope: Jewish Participation in Papal Processions 4. Houseguests and Humanists: Philosophers, Poets, Prostitutes, and Pilgrims in Late Medieval and Renaissance Rome 5. Divorce, Roman Style: The Ghetto 6. Love, Death, and Money: Daily Life in Sixteenth-Century Rome 7. “Till the Conversion of the Jews”: Church Attempts at Forced Baptism 8. Trading Places: Papal Exiles and Jewish Emancipations during the Nineteenth Century 9. Backyard Exiles: The Jews in Fascist Rome 10. The Other Knock on the Door: Jews and Catholics during the Nazi Occupation of Rome 11. The Arch of Titus Redux: Israel and Vatican II in Postwar Rome Conclusion: A Walk through the Ghetto Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisSince 1876, Jehovah’s Witnesses have believed that they are living in the last days of the present world. Charles T. Russell, their founder, advised his followers that members of Christ’s church would be raptured in 1878, and by 1914 Christ would destroy the nations and establish his kingdom on earth. The first prophecy was not fulfilled, but the outbreak of the First World War lent some credibility to the second. Ever since that time, Jehovah’s Witnesses have been predicting that the world would end “shortly.” Their numbers have grown to many millions in over two hundred countries. They distribute a billion pieces of literature annually, and continue to anticipate the end of the world.For almost thirty years, M. James Penton’s Apocalypse Delayed has been the definitive scholarly study of this religious movement. As a former member of the sect, Penton offers a comprehensive overview of the Jehovah's Witnesses. His book is divided iTrade Review"A well-written, clear and fascinating study." -- James A. Beverley Toronto Journal of Theology "All in all, this is an excellent book and required reading for those interested in Jehovah's Witnesses. Penton's special perspective provides a scholarly inside look at a fascinating and persistent example of modern millenarianism." -- Timothy P. Weber American Historical Review 'This is not a vindictive slamming of the Witness organization by a raving ex-member, but a carefully written, well-documented critical analysis by a scholar with the special insight that only a former insider could give.' -- Dwayne Janke Lethbridge Herald 'M. James Penton offers us one of the few comprehensive accounts of a sectarian tradition that remains an enigma to scholars of modern religion.' -- Robert C. Fuller The Journal of Religion 'Penton, a fourth generation Witness with an impeccable academic background, sets forth a detailed and damning outline of the movement and, in particular, those who run the world wide organization.' -- Grant MacGillivray Halifax Daily News 'Highly recommended.' -- D.S. Azzolina Choice Magazine - vol 53:01:2015 "Penton's unique position - a well-travelled, fourth-generation member who served in various capacities - makes him a reliable informant. He aptly gives insight into major doctrines, past and recent prophetic speculation, the authority structure of the Witness organization, and the harshness of the total ban upon those who attempt open discussion of any differing exegetical view." Christianity TodayTable of ContentsIntroduction Part One: History 1. The Doctrinal Background of a New American Religious Movement 2. Charles Russell and the Bible Student Movement 3. The Creation of a Theocracy 4. The Era of Global Expansion 5. Prophetic Failure and Reaction 6. From Dynamic Growth to Organizational Stagnation 7. Relations with the World Part Two: Concepts and Doctrine 8. Bases of Doctrinal Authority 9. Major Doctrines Part Three: Organization and Community 10. Organizational Structure 11. The Witness Community Conclusion

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Book SynopsisA literary tour of Christian monasteries of the medieval Middle EastThe Book of Monasteries takes readers on a tour of the monasteries of the Middle East by presenting the rich variety of poetry and prose associated with each monastery. Starting with Baghdad, readers are taken up the Tigris into the mountains of south-eastern Anatolia before moving to Palestine and Syria, along the Euphrates down to the old Christian center of ?irah and onward to Egypt. For the literary anthologist al-Shabushti, who was Muslim, monasteries were important sites of interactions with Christian communities that made up about half the population of the Abbasid Empire at the time. Each section in this anthology covers a specific monastery, beginning with a discussion of its location and the reason for its name. Al-Shabushti presents poems, anecdotes, and historical reports related to each. He selects heroic and spectacular incidents, illustrations of caliphal extravagance, and events that gave rise to memo

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Book SynopsisDuring the Second World War, Mennonites in the Netherlands, Germany, occupied Poland, and Ukraine lived in communities with Jews and close to various Nazi camps and killing sites. As a result of this proximity, Mennonites were neighbours to and witnessed the destruction of European Jews. In some cases they were beneficiaries or even enablers of the Holocaust. Much of this history was forgotten after the war, as Mennonites sought to rebuild or find new homes as refugees. The result was a myth of Mennonite innocence and ignorance that connected their own suffering during the 1930s and 1940s with earlier centuries of persecution and marginalization. European Mennonites and the Holocaust identifies a significant number of Mennonite perpetrators, along with a smaller number of Mennonites who helped Jews survive, examining the context in which they acted. In some cases, theology led them to accept or reject Nazi ideals. In others, Mennonites chose a closer embrace of GermaTrade Review"In addition to standing as an important historical study, European Mennonites and the Holocaust should prompt Anabaptists in North America — particularly white Anabaptists — to reflect on their own legacies of anti-Jewish prejudice and discern how to stand against antisemitism as part of their antiracist commitments." -- Alain Epp Weaver * Anabaptist World *"The value of this book reaches well be­yond telling tales of depraved Mennonites. Several chap­ters reflect on the thinking and rationalizations which emboldened Mennonites to reject historic Anabaptism." -- David Giesbrecht * Roots and Branches *"European Mennonites and the Holocaust adds telling details to the picture of Mennonites during the Nazi era … The contributors do not shrink from addressing the gray eras, especially the question of who can be regarded as a ‘Mennonite’ and where boundaries are to be drawn." -- Astrid von Schlachta * The Mennonite Quarterly Review *"For readers who may feel overwhelmed by the volume of books and articles that have appeared in recent years, European Mennonites and the Holocaust offers an excellent summary of the current state of scholarship. Anyone looking for an entry point into the rapidly growing literature on this sober, if controversial, topic would do well to start with this collection." -- John D. Roth, Goshen College * Directions *"This collection will be a precious source for further archival research about these connections for future generations of Mennonite historians." -- Sergei I. Zhuk, Ball State University * Journal of Mennonite Studies *Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Acknowledgments Introduction – Neighbours, Killers, Enablers, Witnesses: The Many Roles of Mennonites in the Holocaust Doris L. Bergen, Mark Jantzen, and John D. Thiesen Introduction to Chapter 1 – Mennonites and Nazi Crimes: Gerhard Rempel's Call for Historical Reckoning Doris L. Bergen 1. Mennonites, War Crimes, and the Holocaust Gerhard Rempel, edited by Doris L. Bergen with John D. Thiesen 2. Enjoying the Entitlements of German Freedom: German Mennonites and Nazi Church-State Policy James Irvin Lichti 3. Antisemitism and the Concept of Volk: The Mennonite Youth Circular Community at the Beginning of the Nazi Dictatorship Imanuel Baumann 4. German Mennonite Theology in the Era of National Socialism Arnold Neufeld-Fast 5. Dutch Mennonite Theologians and Nazism Pieter Post 6. Mennonite Collaboration with Nazism: A Case Study of the Responses of Mennonites in Deutsch Wymyschle, Poland, to the Plight of Local Jews during the Early Nazi Occupation Period (1939–1942) Colin Neufeldt 7. Mennonites in Ukraine before, during, and Immediately after the Second World War Dmytro Myeshkov 8. A Portrait of Khortytsya/Zaporizhzhia under Occupation Aileen Friesen 9. Dutch Mennonites and Yad Vashem Recognition Alle G. Hoekema 10. Identity and Complicity: The Post-Second World War Emigration of Chortitza Mennonites Erika Weidemann 11. A Usable Past: Soviet Mennonite Memories of the Holocaust Hans Werner 12. Selective Memory: Danziger Mennonite Reflections on the Nazi Era, 1945–1950 Steve Schroeder List of Contributors Index

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Book SynopsisIn 1290, Jews were expelled from England and subsequently largely expunged from English historical memory. Yet for two centuries they occupied important roles in medieval English society. England’s Jews revisits this neglected chapter of English history—one whose remembrance is more important than ever today, as antisemitism and other forms of racism are on the rise. Historian John Tolan tells the story of the thousands of Jews who lived in medieval England. Protected by the Crown and granted the exclusive right to loan money with interest, Jews financed building projects, provided loans to students, and bought and rented out housing. Historical texts show that they shared meals and beer, celebrated at weddings, and sometimes even ended up in bed with Christians. Yet Church authorities feared the consequences of Jewish contact with Christians and tried to limit it, though to little avail. Royal protection also proved to be a double-edged sword: when revolts broke out against the unpopular king Henry III, some of the rebels, in debt to Jewish creditors, killed Jews and destroyed loan records. Vicious rumors circulated that Jews secretly plotted against Christians and crucified Christian children. All of these factors led Edward I to expel the Jews from England in 1290. Paradoxically, Tolan shows, thirteenth-century England was both the theatre of fruitful interreligious exchange and a crucible of European antisemitism.Trade Review"This splendid book offers an engrossing and profoundly learned account of the place of Jews in English society. Its cogent and subtle exploration of the interplay between creative social dynamics and the destructiveness of predatory government have relevance far beyond its thirteenth-century setting." * R. I. Moore, author of The Formation of a Persecuting Society: Authority and Deviance in Western Europe, 950–1250 *"There is no comparable book to this one. England’s Jews is a compelling and impressive account of Jews’ changing relationship to the Crown in thirteenth-century England, and John Tolan is a well-respected historian and an excellent storyteller." * Robert Stacey, University of Washington *"England’s Jews is a welcome contribution to the study of the history of England’s Jews. By examining documentation generated by church and crown, John Tolan shows how a small group of subjects occupied the bureaucratic efforts and the religious imagination of the country's leaders in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries." * Miri Rubin, Queen Mary University of London *"John Tolan, in an account as scholarly as it is accessible, casts entirely new light on the predicament of England’s Jews in the century before their expulsion in 1290. His book is essential reading for all those interested in the history of medieval Jewry." * David Carpenter, King’s College London *

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Book SynopsisA significant contribution to the historiography of religion in the U.S. south, Forging a Christian Order challenges and complicates the standard view that eighteenth-century evangelicals exerted both religious and social challenges to the traditional mainstream order, not maturing into middle-class denominations until the nineteenth century. Instead, Kimberly R. Kellison argues, eighteenth-century White Baptists in South Carolina used the Bible to fashion a Christian model of slavery that recognized the humanity of enslaved people while accentuating contrived racial differences. Over time this model evolved from a Christian practice of slavery to one that expounded on slavery as morally right. Elites who began the Baptist church in late-1600s Charleston closely valued hierarchy. It is not surprising, then, that from its formation the church advanced a Christian model of slavery. The American Revolution spurred the associational growth of the denomination, reinforcing the rigid order of the authoritative master and subservient enslaved person, given that the theme of liberty for all threatened slaveholders’ way of life. In lowcountry South Carolina in the 1790s, where a White minority population lived in constant anxiety over control of the bodies of enslaved men and women, news of revolt in St. Domingue (Haiti) led to heightened fears of Black violence. Fearful of being associated with antislavery evangelicals and, in turn, of being labeled as an enemy of the planter and urban elite, White ministers orchestrated a major transformation in the Baptist construction of paternalism.Forging a Christian Order provides a comprehensive examination of the Baptist movement in South Carolina from its founding to the eve of the Civil War and reveals that the growth of the Baptist church in South Carolina paralleled the growth and institutionalization of the American system of slavery—accommodating rather than challenging the prevailing social order of the economically stratified Lowcountry.Trade Review"This is a well-researched and clearly written study that makes a significant contribution to the historiography of religion in the U.S. South. The author persuasively demonstrates that from the mid eighteenth century to the decades immediately preceding the outbreak of the American Civil War, South Carolina Baptists organized ecclesiastical institutions of increasing vigor and influence, with a wide-ranging Christian defense of slavery at their center, in order to extend their reach and strengthen their denomination.”&—Thomas J. Little, author of The Origins of Southern Evangelicalism: Religious Revivalism in the South Carolina Lowcountry, 1670–1760

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Book SynopsisThe Visionary Queen affirms Marguerite de Navarre’s status not only as a political figure, author, or proponent of nonschismatic reform but also as a visionary. In her life and writings, the queen of Navarre dissected the injustices that her society and its institutions perpetuated against women. We also see evidence that she used her literary texts, especially the Heptaméron, as an exploratory space in which to generate a creative vision for institutional reform. The Heptaméron’s approach to reform emerges from statistical analysis of the text’s seventy-two tales, which reveals new insights into trends within the work, including the different categories of wrongdoing by male, institutional representatives from the Church and aristocracy, as well as the varying responses to injustice that characters in the tales employ as they pursue reform. Throughout its chapters, The Visionary Queen foregrounds the trope of the labyrinth, a potent symbol in early modern Europe that encapsulated both the fallen world and redemption, two themes that underlie Marguerite's project of reform.Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction. Marguerite de Navarre: The Visionary Queen Part I: Labyrinthine Motifs in Marguerite’s Era, Endeavors, and Spiritual Outlook 1. The Labyrinth as Structure and Symbol: From Experience to Writing in the Medieval and Early Modern Contexts 2. From the Labyrinth, a Vision: Competing Influences on Marguerite’s Religious, Political, and Creative Endeavors 3. “We Walk by Faith, Not by Sight”: Exegesis, Pilgrimage, and Labyrinthine Connections in the Reformation Part II: The Heptaméron as Textual Labyrinth 4. Into the Labyrinth: Mirroring Sin, Prompting Reform 5. Down Tortuous Paths: Exploring Approaches to Justice and Reform 6. Above the Labyrinth: A Higher Vision for Reforming the Self and Society Conclusion. The Empirical Reader at Labyrinth’s End: Responding to Marguerite’s Vision Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisA complete reappraisal of the papacy of Honorius II, highlighting the strategies to which this pontificate turned in order to govern ecclesiastical institutions and to deal with secular matters. The papacy of Honorius II (1124-1130) has often been overlooked by historians, usually considered uneventful, transitional and colourless. This book offers a complete reappraisal, drawing on a detailed examination of the surviving letters produced by the papal chancery to show that conversely, it was a vital and innovative pontificate. It argues that during what was a stabilising period for the papacy in an era of peace, Honorius and the chancery were able to enact the instruments and ecclesiological claims dictated by external threats and produced during previous papacies. In particular, it shows that by adapting the content and form of the letters it issued, Honorius's chancery, led by the official Haimeric, played a decisive role in extending the ecclesiological thinking of the papacy. Furthermore, these years paved the way for ideas which were further developed later in the twelfth century, especially the arguments created by the warring parties in the Schism of 1130 to legitimise their respective popes. This study thus presents a different view of Honorius' administration, highlighting the strategies to which the papacy turned in order both to govern ecclesiastical institutions and to deal with secular matters, when previous protocols and routines could no longer be relied upon.Table of ContentsLIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS ACKOWLEDGEMENTS ABBREVIATIONS INTRODUCTION CHAPTER 1: Honorius II and Roman primacy: continuities and innovations CHAPTER 2: The instruments used to assert Roman primacy CHAPTER 3: Honorius's deafening silences: his relations with lay powers CHAPTER 4: Ecclesiology at work: a case study of Montecassino CONCLUSION APPENDIX: A preliminary calendar of the letters of Honorius II BIBLIOGRAPHY INDEX

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Book SynopsisAnglo-Norman aristocratic patronage of Anglo-Saxon monasteries in post-Conquest England examined. Although the Norman Conquest of 1066 swept away most of the secular and ecclesiastical leaders of pre-Conquest England, it held some positive aspects for English society, such as its effects on Anglo-Saxon monastic foundations, which this study explores. The first part deals in depth with five individual case studies (Abingdon, Gloucester, Bury St Edmunds, St Albans and St Augustine's, Canterbury) as well as Fenland and other houses, showing how despite mixed fortunes the major houses survived to become the richest in England. The second part places the experiences of the houses in the context of structural changes in religious patronage as well as within the social and political nexus of the Anglo-Norman realm. Dr Cownie analyses the pattern of gifts to religious houses on both sides of the Channel, looking at the reasons why they were made. EMMA COWNIE gained her Ph.D. from the University of Wales at Cardiff.Trade ReviewA nuanced but complex picture of the relationship between the victorious incomers and the religious world on which they at first violently intruded, but subsequently often took to their hearts. * ENGLISH HISTORICAL REVIEW *An important addition to the recent corpus of scholarship on Anglo-Norman English society... sheds valuable new light on the problem of multiple self-identities of the new Norman elites in England. * SPECULUM *Cownie is to be congratulated on producing a weighty book which will surely attract a wide readership. * ARCHIVES *

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Book SynopsisThis Companion guides the reader through the main topics and the most significant methods for practicing Christian theology. The essays in this first part engage the ten most notable loci in Christian doctrine. The ten essays in the second part address the most significant movements that have broad impact upon the practice of Christian doctrine.Table of ContentsPart I. Doctrines: 1. Triune God Michael Allen; 2. Creation and providence Simon Oliver; 3. Human being John Behr; 4. Israel Matthew Levering; 5. Christ Katherine Sonderegger; 6. Sin and atonement Adam Johnson; 7. Holy spirit Daniel Castelo; 8. Holy scripture Kevin Vanhoozer; 9. Church and sacraments Tom Greggs; 10. Eschatology Ian McFarland; Part II. Movements: 11. Feminist theology Shelli Poe; 12. Theological interpretation of scripture Andrea Saner; 13. Radical orthodoxy Catherine Pickstock; 14. Public theology Kristen Deede Johnson; 15. Disability theology John Swinton; 16. Black theology Willie James Jennings; 17. Global pentecostal theology Harvey Kwiyani; 18. Analytic theology Oliver Crisp; 19. Apocalyptic theology Wesley Hill; 20. Reformed catholicity J Todd Billings; 21. Ressourcement thomism Thomas Joseph White.

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Book SynopsisGoing far beyond the standard imagery of Rasta—ganja, reggae, and dreadlocks—this cultural history offers an uncensored vision of a movement with complex roots and the exceptional journey of a man who taught an enslaved people how to be proud and impose their culture on the world. In the 1920s Leonard Percival Howell and the First Rastas had a revelation concerning the divinity of Haile Selassie, king of Ethiopia, that established the vision for the most popular mystical movement of the 20th century, Rastafarianism. Although jailed, ridiculed, and treated as insane, Howell, also known as the Gong, established a Rasta community of 4,500 members, the first agro-industrial enterprise devoted to producing marijuana. In the late 1950s the community was dispersed, disseminating Rasta teachings throughout the ghettos of the island. A young singer named Bob Marley adopted Howell's message, and through Marley's visions, reggae made its explosion in the music world.Trade Review"Powerful historical and social forces come together in Lee's extraordinarily useful book. The First Rasta moves with a truth seeker's determination through the slums of Trenchtown and Jamaica's back country, revealing a dauntingly complex landscape and history in which oral history is often more reliable than the written record." -- Publishers Weekly"Incredible . . . a spellbinding saga . . . Lee's insightful combination of toughness and sensitivity is amazing." -- The Beat"The loose threads of Rasta history [are] impressively woven into a flag of green, red, and gold . . . a clear-eyed political history." -- Kirkus Reviews

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Book SynopsisA sweeping history of the often-violent conflict between Islam and the West, shedding a revealing light on current hostilities

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Book SynopsisIn Egypt during the first centuries CE, men and women would meet discreetly in their homes, in temple sanctuaries, or insolitary places to learn a powerful practice of spiritual liberation. They thought of themselves as followers of Hermes Trismegistus, the legendary master of ancient wisdom. While many of their writings are lost, those that survived have been interpreted primarily as philosophical treatises about theological topics. Wouter J. Hanegraaff challenges this dominant narrative by demonstrating that Hermetic literature was concerned with experiential practices intended for healing the soul from mental delusion. The Way of Hermes involved radical alterations of consciousness in which practitioners claimed to perceive the true nature of reality behind the hallucinatory veil of appearances. Hanegraaff explores how practitioners went through a training regime that involved luminous visions, exorcism, spiritual rebirth, cosmic consciousness, and union with the divine beauty of universal goodness and truth to attain the salvational knowledge known as gnôsis.

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Book SynopsisThe writings of the Apostolic Fathers (first and second centuries AD) give a rich and diverse picture of Christian life and thought in the period immediately after New Testament times. Some were accorded almost Scriptural authority in the early Church.Trade ReviewEhrman’s new Loeb Library edition of The Apostolic Fathers (a title unknown before the 17th century) presents a scholarly edition, with a lively translation, of Christian writings that circulated before the Biblical canon was established. -- Tom D’Evelyn * Christian Science Monitor *

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Book SynopsisWhat really happened in the centuries of conflict between Europe, Russia, China, America, and the peoples of the Muslim worldTrade Review“Crusade and Jihad is a challenging and interesting book, well written and provocative.”—Hugh Kennedy, Literary Review"In this magisterial treatment, William Polk cuts to the core of contemporary conflicts with the Muslim world, providing an accessible, often troubling account."—Joel Gordon,University of Arkansas, author of Nasser: Hero of the Arab Nation“A tour de force covering centuries of history from the perspective of the people who lived in the Muslim world, Crusade and Jihad offers a fresh and urgently needed angle on the present crisis in the Middle East that you will find nowhere else.”—Ilan Pappe, author of The Forgotten Palestinians: A History of the Palestinians in Israel“William Polk combines analytical powers and profound insight with a lively, accessible style. Crusade and Jihad is a pleasure for the mind.”—Uri Avnery, author and peace activist"With rigor and sympathy, William Polk has produced a masterpiece to enlighten us all. No one who reads Crusade and Jihad will put it down without an increased knowledge and understanding of the crucial relationship between the Islamic and Western worlds."— Charles Glass, author of Tribes with Flags and Syria Burning: A Short History of a Catastrophe “A brilliant study, analytical and authoritative. There are few overviews that can rival the depth and the range of this work.”— K.N. Chaudhuri, FBA Emeritus Professor of The History of European Expansion, European University, Florence, Italy

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"One of the Financial Times' Best Books of the Year: Critics' Picks""One of Asian Review of Books' Books of the Year (Biography & Memoir)""In Robert Irwin, Ibn Khaldun has finally found a biographer and interpreter almost as versatile and learned as he was himself."---Eric Ormsby, Wall Street Journal"A compelling new account of the 14th-century Arab historian and polymath. . . . Irwin has produced an exemplary work."---Gavin Jacobson, Financial Times"As an introduction to Ibn Khaldun’s fascinating life and times, his ideas, and how they have been understood and misunderstood over the centuries, you could hardly wish for something better."---Thomas Small, Times Literary Supplement"Irwin wears his immense erudition lightly and gives an often very funny account of how orientalists, historians and modern Arab nationalist have interpreted Ibn Khaldun’s most famous work. . . . Irwin offers his readers a superb work of intellectual recovery, one which presents Ibn Khaldun as a creature of his time. . . . He has resurrected for us the medieval Muslim mind."---Francis Ghilès, The Spectator"Ibn Khaldun: An Intellectual Biography is both an introduction to his work and an intervention into Ibn Khaldun studies."---Sameer Rahim, Prospect"The great merit of Ibn Khaldun: An Intellectual Biography is that it encourages us to treat the intellectual history of the Islamic world not as a battleground for contemporary ideological struggles but as a subject worthy of investigation in its own right."---Fitzroy Morrissey, Standpoint"Irwin’s book lives up to its name. . . . [It is] a work that will be of interest not only to students of Islamic intellectual history, but also to students of historiography, sociology, and anthropology. Irwin’s writing is accessible to all levels of readership. Well suited for seminar discussions, as it offers much to debate."---T.M. May, Choice"Irwin’s portrait of the philosopher is beautifully written, intriguing, stimulating and movingly intimate."---Doris Behrens-Abouseif, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society"In his highly readable appraisal of Ibn Khaldun’s life and work, Robert Irwin sets out to demythologize and, at the same time, remystify a man whose mind was formed far from the seminar rooms of 20th-century social science. . . . [C]oncise and compelling."---Nile Green, Los Angeles Review of Books"I did enjoy this style of biography as Irwin brought the mind of Ibn Khaldun into focus and showed the genius that [is] worthy of standing with other ‘well-regarded’ thinkers of the past."---Gaele Hince, I am, Indeed blog"The book is entertaining and thought-provoking in itself; it is not the last word but provides a fascinating guide to further reading."---Patrick Manning, Connections"Irwin's book is very informative and well-argued in addressing the life and works of Ibn Khaldun in both historical and intellectual contexts."---Fadi Zatari, Insight Turkey"This book engages the mind in a positive way and provides an academic but highly accessible introduction to a complex topic."---Abdullah Drury, Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations"A noteworthy contribution to this ever-growing literature about Ibn Khaldun’s life, ideas and scholarly influence."---Prof Dr Oktay F. Tanrisever, Rest Journal"Irwin’s book is useful, engaging, commendable, and important. Given how Ibn Khaldun used to be misread, Irwin’s is a necessary book."---Ephraim Nissan, Quaderni di Studi Indo-Mediterranei

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“Steven Ozment’s Age of Reform remains provocative, magisterial, and incisive; the indispensable guide to the complex web of deep continuities and radical changes in the religious and intellectual history of medieval and Reformation Europe.”—Christopher Boyd Brown, General Editor of the American Edition of Luther’s Works“This new edition of Steven Ozment's work is crucial and timely. His expansive vision of the Reformation challenges us to reconsider how seismic changes in the sixteenth century influenced the development of religion in the West.”—Bruce Gordon, Yale University"The Age of Reform remains the go-to textbook for a masterful account of the religious and intellectual histories of Reformation Europe framed within their medieval context. Its penetrating insights, alongside its eloquence and clarity, make it an enduring treasure."—G. Sujin Pak, Duke Divinity School“Few historians have had the capacity to reach so large an audience with a study of such subtlety and originality. Steven Ozment brought to his work a restless search for truth and has given generations of students a window into a world undergoing a profound intellectual transformation.”—Andrew Pettegree, University of St. Andrews

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Book SynopsisThomas Berry is one of the most eminent cultural historians of our time. Here he presents the culmination of his ideas and urges us to move from being a disrupting force on the Earth to a benign presence. This transition is the Great Work -- the most necessary and most ennobling work we will ever undertake. Berry's message is not one of doom but of hope. He reminds society of its function, particularly the universities and other educational institutions whose role is to guide students into an appreciation rather than an exploitation of the world around them. Berry is the leading spokesperson for the Earth, and his profound ecological insight illuminates the path we need to take in the realms of ethics, politics, economics, and education if both we and the planet are to survive.

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Book SynopsisIn this new and substantially expanded Third Edition, Philip Jenkins continues to illuminate the remarkable expansion of Christianity in the global South--in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Drawing upon the extensive new scholarship that has appeared on this topic in recent years, he asks how the new Christianity is likely to affect the poor, among whom it finds its most devoted adherents. How should we interpret the enormous success of prosperity churches across the Global South? Politically, what will be the impact of new Christian movements? Will Christianity contribute to liberating the poor, to give voices to the previously silent, or does it threaten only to bring new kinds of division and conflict? Does Christianity liberate women, or introduce new scriptural bases for subjection?Acclaim for previous editions of The Next Christendom:Named one of the Top Religion Books of 2002 by USA TodayNamed One of the Top Ten Religion Books of the Year by BooklistWinner of the Christianity TTrade ReviewGracefully written and skillfully argued, The Next Christendom shows the many changes Christianity has undergone and its capacity to survive. * CHOICE *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments ; List of Tables ; Preface ; Maps ; Chapter One: The Christian Revolution ; Chapter Two: Disciples of All Nations ; Chapter Three: Missionaries and Prophets ; Chapter Four: Standing Alone ; Chapter Five: The Rise of the New Christianity ; Chapter Six: Coming to Terms ; Chapter Seven: God and the World ; Chapter Eight: The Next Crusade ; Chapter Nine: Coming Home ; Chapter Ten: Seeing Christianity Again for the First Time ; Index

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Book SynopsisSatan is both a revealing study of the compelling figure of the Devil and an imaginative and persuasive inquiry into the forces that shape a concept and ensure its survival.Trade ReviewDrawing extensively on earlier scholarly literature, as well as his own original research in complex source materials, Russell has offered a coherent account of the development of a tradition in Christian thought that should be of great interest to specialists and nonspecialists alike. Although Russell would be the very last to claim that he can draw out leviathan with a hook, he has competently and diligently drawn out an image of leviathan that takes a respectable place in the literature of early church history. * American Historical Review *Russell has complete mastery of his material, and the book's sweep is grand: a tour of the first five centuries of Christian intellectual history with the spotlight on the villain instead of the hero.... Satan is a valuable introduction to the theological portion of the Western Devil tradition. * Speculum *Table of ContentsPreface1. The Devil2. The Apostolic Fathers3. The Apologetic Fathers and the Gnostics4. Human Sin and Redemption: Irenaeus and Tertullian5. Mercy and Damnation: The Alexandrians6. Dualism and the Desert7. Satan and Saint Augustine8. Conclusion: Satan TodayEssay on the SourcesBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisGreen Mass is a meditation on—and with—twelfth-century Christian mystic and polymath Saint Hildegard of Bingen. Attending to Hildegard's vegetal vision, which greens theological tradition and imbues plant life with spirit, philosopher Michael Marder uncovers a verdant mode of thinking. The book stages a fresh encounter between present-day and premodern concerns, ecology and theology, philosophy and mysticism, the material and the spiritual, in word and sound. Hildegard's lush notion of viriditas, the vegetal power of creation, is emblematic of her deeply entwined understanding of physical reality and spiritual elevation. From blossoming flora to burning desert, Marder plays with the symphonic multiplicity of meanings in her thought, listening to the resonances between the ardency of holy fire and the aridity of a world aflame. Across Hildegard's cosmos, we hear the anarchic proliferation of her ecological theology, in which both God and greening are circular, without beginning or end. Introduced with a foreword by philosopher Marcia Sá Cavalcante Schuback and accompanied by cellist Peter Schuback's musical movements, which echo both Hildegard's own compositions and key themes in each chapter of the book, this multifaceted work creates a resonance chamber, in which to discover the living world anew. The original compositions accompanying each chapter are available free for streaming and for download at www.sup.org/greenmassTrade Review"Michael Marder brings Hildegard's creativity to light and to life, highlighting what is unique about her and, especially, what makes her such a needed voice that should be heard today."—Willemien Otten, University of Chicago Divinity School"A brilliant meditation on viriditas, where materiality and spirituality meet, and truly a 'resonance chamber' of themes that explore the full range of Hildegard's thinking, from roots to flowers."—Charles M. Stang, Harvard Divinity School"The wordviriditas is important to understand here. The author explains that it literally means 'the greening green,' and figuratively it means 'a self-refreshing vegetal power of creation ingrained in all finite things.' That's a mouthful, but it's also rich and beautiful. Take a moment to ponder such a world. This is St. Hildegard of Bingen's vision of what we inhabit, whether we realize it yet or not... Michael Marder points to the transformational quality of such teachings, for Christians and everyone who seeks to integrate the physical and the spiritual in their lives."—Jon M. Sweeney, Spirituality & Practice"I consider this to be one of the—if not the—most significant books of ecotheology to have appeared in recent years... Rather than attempt to explain Hildegard's many-layered analogies between divine spirit and vegetal mattering, Marder seeks to narrate the conditions under which those analogies could be true. The result is a book that is at once faithful to Hildegard's words (Green Mass is a close reading that cites source texts in detail, and dispenses with footnotes) and promiscuous in hermeneutic."—Simone Kotva, Worldviews: Global Religions, Culture, and Ecology"This is an extraordinary work of ecotheology. Not only is it a book, it is also a meditation at the meeting point of materiality and spirituality, a resonance chamber of Peter Schuback's musical compositions, and an invitation to encounter the present world through medieval mindsets."—Luke Penkett, The WayTable of ContentsPrelude Verges Analogies Resonances Missives Ardencies Anarchies Kisses Postlude

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