Books in the Introduction to Religion series

This comprehensive introduction to Quakerism balances a history of the theology of the movement with an overview of present day practice. It charts Quaker history across three and a half centuries including the schisms of the nineteenth century which resulted in the range of Quaker traditions found worldwide today.

The best introduction to medieval theology from the time of St Augustine to the 14th century, in an expanded, 2nd edition. This volume invites us to think along with major theologians and spiritual authors in order to understand how pre-modern thought can enrich and challenge us in a (post-)modern context.

An Introduction to Swaminarayan Hindu Theology provides a comprehensive doctrinal account of the Swaminarayan tradition's belief system, drawing on its rich corpus of theological literature, including the teachings of Swaminarayan himself and classical commentaries on canonical Vedantic texts.

During the formative period of Islam, in the first centuries after Muhammad's death, two particular intellectual traditions emerged, Sunnism and Shi'ism. Sunni Muslims endorsed the historical caliphate, while Shi'i Muslims, supporters of 'Ali, cousin of the Prophet and the fourth caliph, articulated their own distinctive doctrines. The Sunni-Shi'i schism is often framed as a dispute over the identity of the successor to Muhammad, whereas in reality, Sunni and Shi'i Muslims also differ on a number of seminal theological doctrines concerning the nature of God and legitimate political and religious authority. This book examines the development of Shi'i Islam through the lenses of belief, narrative, and memory. It also covers a wide range of Shi'i communities from the demographically predominant Twelvers to the transnational Isma'ilis to the scholar-activist Zaydis. The portrait of Shi'ism that emerges is that of a distinctive and vibrant community of Muslims with a remarkable capacity for reinvention and adaptation, grounded in a unique theological interpretation of Islam.

An accessible account of the Bible in the Middle Ages for those engaged in medieval and biblical studies. Discussion of the material evidence - the Bible as book - complements in-depth examination of lay literacy and book culture. Principles of medieval hermeneutics and the formation of the medieval canon are examined.

This introduction provides a comprehensive overview of the development of Catholic ethics in the wake of the Second Vatican Council (1962-5), an event widely considered crucial to the reconciliation of the Catholic Church and the modern world. Andrew Kim investigates Catholic responses to questions of moral theology in all four principal areas: Catholic social teaching, natural law, virtue ethics, and bioethics. In addition to discussing contemporary controversies surrounding abortion, contraception, labor rights, exploitation of the poor, and just war theory, he explores the historical sources of the Catholic worldview. Beginning with the moral vision revealed through the person of Jesus Christ and continuing with elaborations on this vision from figures such as Augustine and Aquinas, this volume elucidates the continuity of the Catholic moral tradition. Its balance of complexity and accessibility makes it an ideal resource for both students of theology and general readers.

How is a free faith expressed, organised and governed? How are diverse spiritualities and theologies made compatible? What might a religion based in reason and democracy offer today's world? This book will help the reader to understand the contemporary liberal religion of Unitarian Universalism in a historical and global context. Andrea Greenwood and Mark W. Harris challenge the view that the Unitarianism of New England is indigenous and the point from which the religion spread. Relationships between Polish radicals and the English Dissenters existed and the English radicals profoundly influenced the Unitarianism of the nascent United States. Greenwood and Harris also explore the US identity as Unitarian Universalist since a 1961 merger and its current relationship to international congregations, particularly in the context of twentieth-century expansion into Asia.

This second edition offers an updated global history of Pentecostalism, addressing recent events and significant changes in what has become the fastest growing religious movement. A survey of the main theoretical issues will make this book important for those studying Pentecostalism, Charismatic Christianity, theology and sociology of religion.

Over the last decade there has been a resurgence of writing on the Trinity, indicating a renewal of ideas and debate concerning this key element of Christian theology. This introduction challenges the standard account of a decline and revival in Trinitarian theology, taking into account recent, alternative readings of the theological tradition by Lewis Ayres and Michel Barnes amongst other scholars. By clearly analysing the scope of these new approaches, the authors establish the importance of a considered understanding of the Trinity, resisting the notion of separating faith and reason and identifying theology's link to spirituality. Their account also eschews the easy stereotypes of Western Christianity's supposedly more Unitarian approach as opposed to the more Trinitarian view of the East. Offering an overview of the main people and themes in Trinitarian theology past and present, this book thus provides an accessible, comprehensive guide for students and scholars alike.

This book explores and assesses the cultural sources of Baptist beliefs and practices. The Baptist movement has focused on a small group of Anglo exiles in Amsterdam in constructing its history and identity. Robert E. Johnson seeks to recapture the varied cultural and theological sources of Baptist tradition and the diversity, breadth, and complexity of its cultural influences.

Beginning with the question 'who is a Jew?', this book offers a lucid account of Judaism and the Jewish people. Written for Jews and non-Jews alike, be they students, teachers, or general interested readers, the book brings out the extraordinary richness and variety of Judaism: its historical depth, and the vigour and at times amazing endurance of its traditions - in the home, in the synagogue, in its literature, in individual and community life. Nicholas de Lange explains the history and details of inherited rituals and customs; of established religion; of concepts such as Zionism, Diaspora, Messianism. Half of the world's Jews live in North America and the rest are widely scattered, and the book is sensitive to the global context of Judaism. An Introduction to Judaism contains illustrative tables and maps, a full glossary, chronology, bibliography and index. This is a stimulating and comprehensive introduction to a major world culture.

This introductory study sheds fresh light on the ongoing encounter between Judaism and Christianity, exploring key writings and themes from the Jewish context of the New Testament to major events of modern times, including the rise of ecumenism, the Holocaust, and the creation of the state of Israel.

The beliefs and practices shared by one billion Catholics around the globe form the focus of this essential textbook. It guides the student through the complex, diverse world of 21st-century Catholicism, explaining doctrinal formulas, institutional structures and patterns of life and worship as evolving responses to historical and social contexts.

Feng Shui has been known in the West for the last 150 years but has mostly been regarded as a primitive superstition. During the modern period successive regimes in China have suppressed its practice. However, in the last few decades Feng Shui has become a global spiritual movement with professional associations, thousands of titles published on the subject, countless websites devoted to it and millions of users. In this book Ole Bruun explains Feng Shui's Chinese origins and meanings as well as its more recent Western interpretations and global appeal. Unlike the abundance of popular manuals, his Introduction treats Chinese Feng Shui as an academic subject, bridging religion, history and sociology. Individual chapters explain the Chinese religious-philosophical background, Chinese uses in rural and urban areas, the history of Feng Shui's reinterpretation in the West, and environmental perspectives and other issues.

Peter Smith traces the development of the Baha'i faith from its roots in the Babi movement of mid-nineteenth century Iran, through the lives and work of its prophet-founder, Baha'u'llah (1817-92), and his successors, to its contemporary emergence as a worldwide religion.

Who are the Anglicans? Where did they come from, and what are they up to? This Introduction to World Anglicanism will answer these questions, and on the way tell you about the foundations of their tradition, their beliefs, practices, current disputes, and why they argue so much.

This introduction offers a survey of the key doctrinal themes of Christian theology including revelation, the triune God, and the world as creation. Having identified their biblical basis and historical development, it provides a systematic evaluation of each theme and emphasizes Christianity's relevance to the challenges of today's world.

In this 2006 book, Michael Hornsby-Smith offers a critical introduction to Catholic social thought. While drawing on official papal and episcopal teaching, he takes seriously the need for dialogue with secular thought. He deliberates the social reality of injustices, providing analysis of their causes and suggesting appropriate social action responses.

This book gathers together key experts in their fields on Latin America, India, East Asia, West and East Africa, Southern Africa and the Caribbean, to provide an overview of the main trends and contributions to Christian thought of Third World theologies in today's global world.

This book gathers together key experts in their fields on Latin America, India, East Asia, West and East Africa, Southern Africa and the Caribbean, to provide an overview of the main trends and contributions to Christian thought of Third World theologies in today's global world.

This clear and accessible introduction describes the life of the Orthodox Churches of the Christian East from the accession of the Emperor Constantine in 312 up to the year 2000. It examines both the common tradition shared by all Orthodox Churches and also the different and sometimes divisive local characteristics.

There are 75 million Methodists in over 130 countries today. This is the first book to treat Methodism as a global religious tradition, examining its rich diversity as well as the core beliefs that all Methodists share. It also considers the contribution of Methodism to ecumenical and inter-religious relations.

An Introduction to Christianity examines the key figures, events and ideas of two thousand years of Christian history and places them in context. It also places particular focus on the ways in which Christianity has understood, embodied and related to power. Comprehensive and accessible, it will have wide appeal.

Highly visible, yet a mystery in terms of its core beliefs and theological structure, the Church of Latter-day Saints is one of the fastest growing religious movements in the world. This important 2003 book provides a timely introduction to the basic history, doctrines and practices of The LDS - the 'Mormon' Church.

For this revised and updated second edition, David Waines has added a long section tackling head-on the issues arising from Islam's place in the changing world order at the turn of the new millennium. This new section offers thought-provoking reflections on the place of religion in the current conflicts.

Taking into account the history and range of Confucian Studies, this book introduces Confucianism - initiated in China by Confucius (551 BC-479 BC) - primarily as a philosophical and religious tradition. It draws together the many strands of Confucianism in a style accessible to students, teachers, and general readers.

This systematic introduction to Buddhist ethics is aimed at anyone interested in Buddhism, including students, scholars and general readers. Peter Harvey is the author of the acclaimed Introduction to Buddhism (Cambridge, 1990), and his new book is written in a clear style, assuming no prior knowledge. At the same time it develops a careful, probing analysis of the nature and practical dynamics of Buddhist ethics in both its unifying themes and in the particularities of different Buddhist traditions. The book applies Buddhist ethics to a range of issues of contemporary concern: humanity's relationship with the rest of nature; economics; war and peace; euthanasia; abortion; the status of women; and homosexuality. Professor Harvey draws on texts of the main Buddhist traditions, and on historical and contemporary accounts of the behaviour of Buddhists, to describe existing Buddhist ethics, to assess different views within it, and to extend its application into new areas.

Founded by Sahajanand Swami, a religious reformer in a time of great social and political change in Gujarat, Swaminarayan Hinduism expounds a path of devotion to Swaminarayan as the perfect manifestation of God. This book provides a detailed introduction to the history and ritual of this important form of Hinduism.

A much-needed thematic and historical introduction to Hinduism, which traces its development from ancient origins and the major deities to the modern world. Hinduism is discussed as both a global religion and a form of nationalism. Emphasis is given to the tantric traditions, Hindu ritual and Dravidian influences.

Shamans are professionals who make use of personal supernatural experiences as a resource for the wider community's physical and spiritual well-being. This book introduces the beliefs and rituals typical of shamanic traditions around the world and the techniques used by shamans including music, entheogens, material culture and verbal performance.