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Religion and Modernity: An International Comparison
by Detlef Pollack Gergely RostaThis is not a book that provides a new integrated theory of religious change in modern societies, but rather one that develops theoretical elements that contribute to the understanding of some contemporary religious developments. Most of the approaches in sociology of religion are prone to emphasise either processes of religious decline or of religious upswing. For example, secularization theory usually includes a couple of relevant factors—such as functional differentiation, economic affluence or social equality—in order to account for religious change. However, the result of such a theory's empirical analyses seems to be certain in advance, namely that the social relevance of religion is decreasing. In contrast, the religious market model devised by sociologists of religion in the US is inclined to detect everywhere processes of religious upsurge. Religion and Modernity: An International Comparison avoids a purely theoretically based perspective on religious changes. For this reason, Detlef Pollack and Gergely Rosta do not begin with theoretical propositions but with questions. The authors raise the question of how the social significance of religion in its various facets has changed in modern societies, and explain what factors and conditions have contributed to these changes.
Religion and Modernity in the Himalaya (Routledge Contemporary South Asia Series)
by Megan Adamson Sijapati Jessica Vantine BirkenholtzReligion has long been a powerful cultural, social, and political force in the Himalaya. Increased economic and cultural flows, growth in tourism, and new forms of governance and media, however, have brought significant changes to the religious traditions of the region in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. This book presents detailed case studies of lived religion in the Himalaya in this context of rapid change to offer intra-regional perspectives on the ways in which lived religions are being re-configured or re-imagined. Based on original fieldwork, this book documents understudied forms of religion in the region and presents unique perspectives on the phenomenon and experience of religion, discussing why, when, and where practices, discourses, and the category of religion itself, are engaged by varying communities in the region. It yields fruitful insights into both the religious traditions and lived human experiences of Himalayan peoples in the modern era. Presenting new research and perspectives on the Himalayan region, this book should be of interest to students and scholars of South Asian Studies, Religious Studies, and Modernity.
Religion and Modernity in the Himalaya (Routledge Contemporary South Asia Series)
by Megan Adamson Sijapati Jessica Vantine BirkenholtzReligion has long been a powerful cultural, social, and political force in the Himalaya. Increased economic and cultural flows, growth in tourism, and new forms of governance and media, however, have brought significant changes to the religious traditions of the region in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. This book presents detailed case studies of lived religion in the Himalaya in this context of rapid change to offer intra-regional perspectives on the ways in which lived religions are being re-configured or re-imagined. Based on original fieldwork, this book documents understudied forms of religion in the region and presents unique perspectives on the phenomenon and experience of religion, discussing why, when, and where practices, discourses, and the category of religion itself, are engaged by varying communities in the region. It yields fruitful insights into both the religious traditions and lived human experiences of Himalayan peoples in the modern era. Presenting new research and perspectives on the Himalayan region, this book should be of interest to students and scholars of South Asian Studies, Religious Studies, and Modernity.
Religion and Morality: GCSE Religious Studies for AQA B (PDF)
by Jan Hayes Lesley Parry Kim HandsCombines engaging content and activities with effective exam preparation for AQA GCSE Religious Studies B: Unit 3, and has been written by experienced examiners and teachers.
Religion and Morality (Claremont Studies in the Philosophy of Religion)
by D. Z. PhillipsReflection on religion inevitably involves consideration of its relation to morality. When great evil is done to human beings, we may feel that something absolute has been violated. Can that sense, which is related to gratitude for existence, be expressed without religious concepts? Can we express central religious concerns, such as losing the self, while abandoning any religious metaphysic? Is moral obligation itself dependent on divine commands if it is to be objective, or is morality not only independent of religion, but its accuser if God is said to allow horrendous evils? In any case, what happens to the absolute claims of religion in what is, undeniably, a morally pluralistic world? These are the central questions discussed by philosophers of religion and moral philosophers in this collection. They do so in ways which bring new aspects to bear on these traditional issues.
Religion and Morality (Routledge Philosophy of Religion Series)
by William J. WainwrightReligion and Morality addresses central issues arising from religion's relation to morality. Part I offers a sympathetic but critical appraisal of the claim that features of morality provide evidence for the truth of religious belief. Part II examines divine command theories, objections to them, and positive arguments in their support. Part III explores tensions between human morality, as ordinarily understood, and religious requirements by discussing such issues as the conflict between Buddhist and Christian pacifism and requirements of justice, whether 'virtue' without a love of God is really a vice, whether the God of the Abrahamic religions could require us to do something that seems clearly immoral, and the ambiguous relations between religious mysticism and moral behavior. Covering a broad range of topics, this book draws on both historical and contemporary literature, and explores afresh central issues of morality and religion offering new insights for students, academics and the general reader interested in philosophy and religion.
Religion and Morality (Routledge Philosophy of Religion Series)
by William J. WainwrightReligion and Morality addresses central issues arising from religion's relation to morality. Part I offers a sympathetic but critical appraisal of the claim that features of morality provide evidence for the truth of religious belief. Part II examines divine command theories, objections to them, and positive arguments in their support. Part III explores tensions between human morality, as ordinarily understood, and religious requirements by discussing such issues as the conflict between Buddhist and Christian pacifism and requirements of justice, whether 'virtue' without a love of God is really a vice, whether the God of the Abrahamic religions could require us to do something that seems clearly immoral, and the ambiguous relations between religious mysticism and moral behavior. Covering a broad range of topics, this book draws on both historical and contemporary literature, and explores afresh central issues of morality and religion offering new insights for students, academics and the general reader interested in philosophy and religion.
Religion And Morality (PDF)
by Sheila ButlerThe AQA (B) GCSE Religious Studies Revision Guide provides a carefully planned course of revision. It is written specifically for Unit 3: Religion and Morality. The core topics are covered in six sections, presented as a series of spreads which outline the key facts and terms. Case studies are included where appropriate, and each section concludes with test-yourself review questions and sample exam questions with tips.
Religion and Mysticism in Early Islam: Theology and Sufism in Yemen (Library of Middle East History)
by Muhammad Ali AzizScholar, mystic and visionary, Ahmad Ibn 'Alwân lived through the transition from Ayyubid to Rasulid rule in thirteenth-century Yemen. He was well known in his time for his critique of the ruling elites and their governance, and left behind a substantial body of writings on Islamic mysticism, theology, law and exegesis of the Qur'an. Here Muhammad Aziz presents a comprehensive portrait of the life and works of Ibn 'Alwân, arguably the greatest religious and mystical thinker of medieval Yemen. By placing Ibn 'Alwân in the context of the religious and political background in Yemen, Aziz delineates the development of Sufi orders, the interplay between Sufi, Shi'i and Sunni traditions, and the impact of Ibn 'Alwân on the history of Sufism and Islam. He discusses Ibn 'Alwân's religious and social convictions and their impact on the religious and intellectual life of Yemen in subsequent centuries. Ibn 'Alwân's legacy lives on, not least in an annual pilgrimage to his tomb. Aziz demonstrates the ways in which Ibn 'Alwân's quasi-legendary image has been appropriated, imagined and used by representatives of various political, religious and intellectual trends in modern Yemeni society, from Islamists to secular nationalists. The first study of Ibn 'Alwân and the first comprehensive study of medieval Yemeni mysticism in Western scholarship, 'Religion and Mysticism in Early Islam' is essential reading for all those interested in mysticism, early Islam, Sufism, Yemen, and religion and history more generally.
Religion and Nation: Iranian Local and Transnational Networks in Britain (Forced Migration #15)
by Kathryn SpellmanAn estimated 75,000 Iranians emigrated to Britain after the 1979 revolution and the establishment of the Islamic Republic. They are politically, religiously, socio-economically and ethnically heterogeneous, and have found themselves in the ongoing process of settlement. The aim of this book is to explore facets of this process by examining the ways in which religious traditions and practices have been maintained, negotiated and rejected by Iranians from Muslim backgrounds and how they have served as identity-building vehicles during the course of migration, in relation to the political, economic, and social situation in Iran and Britain. While the ethnographic focus is on Iranians, this book touches on more general questions associated with the process of migration, transnational societies, Diasporas, and religious as well as ethnic minorities.
Religion and National Identities in an Enlarged Europe (Identities and Modernities in Europe)
by Wolfgang Knöbl Willfried Spohn Matthias KoenigThis volume analyzes changing relationships between religion and national identity in the course of European integration. Examining elite discourse, media debates and public opinions across Europe over a decade, it explores how accelerated European integration and Eastern enlargement have affected religious markers of collective identity.
Religion and National Identity: Governing Scottish Presbyterianism in the Eighteenth Century
by Alistair MutchWhat is the enduring impact of Presbyterianism on what it means to be Scottish? Presbyterianism has shaped Scotland and its impact on the world. Behind its beliefs lie some distinctive practices of governance which endure even when belief fades. These practices place a particular emphasis on the detailed recording of decisions and what we can term a ‘systemic’ form of accountability. This book examines the emergence and consolidation of such practices in the 18th-century Church of Scotland. Using extensive archival research and detailed local case studies, it contrasts them to what is termed a ‘personal’ form of accountability in England in the same period. The wider impact of the systemic approach to governance and accountability, especially in the United States of America, is explored, as is the enduring impact on Scottish identity. This book offers a fresh perspective on the Presbyterian legacy in contemporary Scottish historiography, at the same time as informing current debates on national identity. Key Features: A novel focus on religion as social practice, as opposed to belief or organization A strong focus on Scotland, but in the context of Britain Extensive archival work in the Church of Scotland records, with an emphasis on form as well as content A different focus on the Church of Scotland in the eighteenth century Offers a detailed focus on local practice in the context of national debates
Religion and Nature Conservation: Global Case Studies (Routledge Studies in Conservation and the Environment)
by Radhika Borde Alison A Ormsby Stephen M Awoyemi Andrew G GoslerThis book presents a broad array of global case studies exploring the interaction between religion and the conservation of nature, from the viewpoints of the religious practitioners themselves. With conservation and religion often being championed as allies in the quest for a sustainable world where humans and nature flourish, this book provides a much-needed compendium of detailed examples where religion and conservation science have been brought together. Case studies cover a variety of religions, faiths and practices, including traditional, Indigenous, Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, Judaism, Shinto and Zoroastrianism. Importantly, this volume gives voice to the religious practitioners and adherents themselves. Beyond an exercise in anthropology, ethnobiology and comparative religion, the book is an applied work, seeking the answer to how in a world of nearly eight billion people, we might help our own species to prevent the extinction of life. This book will be of great interest to students and scholars of nature conservation, environment and religion, cultural geography and ethnobiology, as well as practitioners and professionals working in conservation.
Religion and Nature Conservation: Global Case Studies (Routledge Studies in Conservation and the Environment)
by Radhika Borde Alison A. Ormsby Stephen M. Awoyemi Andrew G. GoslerThis book presents a broad array of global case studies exploring the interaction between religion and the conservation of nature, from the viewpoints of the religious practitioners themselves. With conservation and religion often being championed as allies in the quest for a sustainable world where humans and nature flourish, this book provides a much-needed compendium of detailed examples where religion and conservation science have been brought together. Case studies cover a variety of religions, faiths and practices, including traditional, Indigenous, Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, Judaism, Shinto and Zoroastrianism. Importantly, this volume gives voice to the religious practitioners and adherents themselves. Beyond an exercise in anthropology, ethnobiology and comparative religion, the book is an applied work, seeking the answer to how in a world of nearly eight billion people, we might help our own species to prevent the extinction of life. This book will be of great interest to students and scholars of nature conservation, environment and religion, cultural geography and ethnobiology, as well as practitioners and professionals working in conservation.
Religion and Non-Religion among Australian Aboriginal Peoples (Vitality of Indigenous Religions)
by Adam Possamai James L. CoxOffering a significant contribution to the emerging field of 'Non-Religion Studies', Religion and Non-Religion among Australian Aboriginal Peoples draws on Australian 2011 Census statistics to ask whether the Indigenous Australian population, like the wider Australian society, is becoming increasingly secularised or whether there are other explanations for the surprisingly high percentage of Aboriginal people in Australia who state that they have 'no religion'. Contributors from a range of disciplines consider three central questions: How do Aboriginal Australians understand or interpret what Westerners have called 'religion'? Do Aboriginal Australians distinguish being 'religious' from being 'non-religious'? How have modernity and Christianity affected Indigenous understandings of 'religion'? These questions re-focus Western-dominated concerns with the decline or revival of religion, by incorporating how Indigenous Australians have responded to modernity, how modernity has affected Indigenous peoples' religious behaviours and perceptions, and how variations of response can be found in rural and urban contexts.
Religion and Non-Religion among Australian Aboriginal Peoples (Vitality of Indigenous Religions)
by Adam Possamai James L. CoxOffering a significant contribution to the emerging field of 'Non-Religion Studies', Religion and Non-Religion among Australian Aboriginal Peoples draws on Australian 2011 Census statistics to ask whether the Indigenous Australian population, like the wider Australian society, is becoming increasingly secularised or whether there are other explanations for the surprisingly high percentage of Aboriginal people in Australia who state that they have 'no religion'. Contributors from a range of disciplines consider three central questions: How do Aboriginal Australians understand or interpret what Westerners have called 'religion'? Do Aboriginal Australians distinguish being 'religious' from being 'non-religious'? How have modernity and Christianity affected Indigenous understandings of 'religion'? These questions re-focus Western-dominated concerns with the decline or revival of religion, by incorporating how Indigenous Australians have responded to modernity, how modernity has affected Indigenous peoples' religious behaviours and perceptions, and how variations of response can be found in rural and urban contexts.
Religion and Organization Theory (Research in the Sociology of Organizations #41)
by Paul Tracey Nelson Phillips Michael LounsburyBoth history and current events attest to the continued significance of religion in society. Despite the role and importance of the institution of religion, and the profound influence that religious organizations continue to exert, it occupies a curiously marginal place in organization theory. At the same time, organization theory has been criticized for its narrow focus on corporations and there have been calls to study a much broader range of organizational forms (e.g., Bamberger and Pratt, 2010). Interestingly, the small number of studies on religious organizations to have published have had a disproportionate impact on the field. This suggests that religious organizations deserve more attention, and that attending to them will have significant benefits for our understanding of organizations. This volume brings together leading organization theorists with an interest in religion. The aim is to consolidate and make available in one place existing knowledge on religion and organizations, as well as encouraging more organization theorists to include religion as part of their research activities and agenda.
Religion and Orientalism in Asian Studies
by Kiri ParamoreReligion and Orientalism in Asian Studies analyses the role of religion in past and present understandings of Asia. Religion, and the history of its study in the modern academy, has exercised massive influence over Asian Studies fields in the past century. Asian Studies has in turn affected, and is increasingly shaping, the study of religion. Religion and Orientalism in Asian Studies looks into this symbiotic relationship – both in current practice, and in the modern histories of both Orientalism and Area Studies. Each chapter of the book deals with one regional sub-discipline in Asian Studies, covering Chinese Studies, Japanese Studies, Korean Studies, South Asian Studies, Southeast Asian Studies, and Central Eurasian Studies. The chapters are integrated by shared themes that run through the past and present practice of Asian Studies, covering the role of state actors in originating Area Studies, the role of local scholarship in defining and developing it, the interaction between humanities and social science approaches, debates over the dominance of Western and/or modern categories and frameworks, the interaction of past and present and the role of religious actors and religious sensibilities in shaping Asian Studies.
Religion and Orientalism in Asian Studies
by Kiri ParamoreReligion and Orientalism in Asian Studies analyses the role of religion in past and present understandings of Asia. Religion, and the history of its study in the modern academy, has exercised massive influence over Asian Studies fields in the past century. Asian Studies has in turn affected, and is increasingly shaping, the study of religion. Religion and Orientalism in Asian Studies looks into this symbiotic relationship – both in current practice, and in the modern histories of both Orientalism and Area Studies. Each chapter of the book deals with one regional sub-discipline in Asian Studies, covering Chinese Studies, Japanese Studies, Korean Studies, South Asian Studies, Southeast Asian Studies, and Central Eurasian Studies. The chapters are integrated by shared themes that run through the past and present practice of Asian Studies, covering the role of state actors in originating Area Studies, the role of local scholarship in defining and developing it, the interaction between humanities and social science approaches, debates over the dominance of Western and/or modern categories and frameworks, the interaction of past and present and the role of religious actors and religious sensibilities in shaping Asian Studies.
Religion and Outer Space
by Eric Michael Mazur Sarah McFarland TaylorReligion and Outer Space examines religion in and on the final frontier. This book offers a first-of-its-kind roadmap for thinking about complex encounters of religion and outer space. A multidisciplinary group of scholarly experts takes up some of the most intriguing scientific, spiritual, trade/commercial, and even military dimensions of the complex entanglements of religion and outer space. Attending to the historical reality that the interconnections between religion and the heavens are as old as religions themselves, the volume starts with an examination of "outer space" elements in the most sacred writings of the world’s religions. It then explores some of the religious questions inevitable in this encounter, analyzing cultural constructions (both literary and actual) of religion and outer space. It ends with examinations of the role of religion in the very real and very present business of space exploration. What might motivate the spread of religion (or at least fantasies of religion in its myriad possibilities) into new interior and exterior dimensions of the cosmos? Only the future will tell. Religion and Outer Space is essential reading for students and academics with an interest in religion and space, religion and science, space exploration, religion and science fiction, popular culture, and religion in America.
Religion and Outer Space
by Eric Michael Mazur Sarah McFarland TaylorReligion and Outer Space examines religion in and on the final frontier. This book offers a first-of-its-kind roadmap for thinking about complex encounters of religion and outer space. A multidisciplinary group of scholarly experts takes up some of the most intriguing scientific, spiritual, trade/commercial, and even military dimensions of the complex entanglements of religion and outer space. Attending to the historical reality that the interconnections between religion and the heavens are as old as religions themselves, the volume starts with an examination of "outer space" elements in the most sacred writings of the world’s religions. It then explores some of the religious questions inevitable in this encounter, analyzing cultural constructions (both literary and actual) of religion and outer space. It ends with examinations of the role of religion in the very real and very present business of space exploration. What might motivate the spread of religion (or at least fantasies of religion in its myriad possibilities) into new interior and exterior dimensions of the cosmos? Only the future will tell. Religion and Outer Space is essential reading for students and academics with an interest in religion and space, religion and science, space exploration, religion and science fiction, popular culture, and religion in America.
Religion and Peace: Historical Aspects
by Yvonne FriedmanThis volume represents a departure from the prevailing emphasis on religion and war in the medieval and early modern periods. Instead, the book explores the relationship between religion and peace in the context of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism, both as an ideal and on the practical level. The Introduction, which proposes a holistic model for analysis of violence/nonviolence-peace, provides a framework for understanding the various aspects of peacemaking during the period in question. The topics covered range from religion and diplomacy, peace movements grounded in religious ideals, the Muslim ideal of peace and actual peacemaking, Muslim-Christian treaties in the Latin East, papal policy in the Middle Ages and the twentieth century, the unique role of holy women who were spokeswomen for peace, the internal pursuit of peace in medieval Jewish society, and what fuelled religious tolerance in sixteenth-century Poland. As a whole, these chapters reflect how different societies reacted to and treated the “Other” in the context of peacemaking and overcame the conceptual gap with their ideology that promoted the belief that they possessed the one and only truth. They demonstrate that religion and religious institutions can serve as a positive influence and agents of peace.
Religion and Peace: Historical Aspects
by Yvonne FriedmanThis volume represents a departure from the prevailing emphasis on religion and war in the medieval and early modern periods. Instead, the book explores the relationship between religion and peace in the context of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism, both as an ideal and on the practical level. The Introduction, which proposes a holistic model for analysis of violence/nonviolence-peace, provides a framework for understanding the various aspects of peacemaking during the period in question. The topics covered range from religion and diplomacy, peace movements grounded in religious ideals, the Muslim ideal of peace and actual peacemaking, Muslim-Christian treaties in the Latin East, papal policy in the Middle Ages and the twentieth century, the unique role of holy women who were spokeswomen for peace, the internal pursuit of peace in medieval Jewish society, and what fuelled religious tolerance in sixteenth-century Poland. As a whole, these chapters reflect how different societies reacted to and treated the “Other” in the context of peacemaking and overcame the conceptual gap with their ideology that promoted the belief that they possessed the one and only truth. They demonstrate that religion and religious institutions can serve as a positive influence and agents of peace.
Religion and Place: Landscape, Politics and Piety
by Peter Hopkins, Lily Kong and Elizabeth OlsonThis unique collection highlights the importance of landscape, politics and piety to our understandings of religion and place. The geographies of religion have developed rapidly in the last couple of decades and this book provides both a conceptual framing of the key issues and debates involved, and rich illustrations through empirical case studies. The chapters span the discipline of human geography and cover contexts as diverse as veiling in Turkey, religious landscapes in rural Peru, and refugees and faith in South Africa. A number of prominent scholars and emerging researchers examine topical themes in each engaging chapter with significant foci being: religious transnationalism and religious landscapes; gendering of religious identities and contexts; fashion, faith and the body; identity, resistance and belief; immigrant identities, citizenship and spaces of belief; alternative spiritualities and places of retreat and enchantment. Together they make a series of important contributions that illuminate the central role of geography to the meaning and implications of lived religion, public piety and religious embodiment. As such, this collection will be of much interest to researchers and students working on topics relating to religion and place, including human geographers, sociologists, religious studies and religious education scholars.
Religion and Political Thought
by Michael Hoelzl Graham WardThis book provides an essential resource for studies in religion and politics. It is divided into three parts, beginning with an introduction outlining the contemporary relevance of reviewing the relationship between the two subject areas; a brief history of the interactions between religion and politics that have pertained both in East and the West, and the key concepts that relate these two fields. The second section comprises a selection of classic readings. This title is ideal for students of both religion and politics and general readers who are interested in the topics.