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The Introduction to Religion series covers a range of topics in the field of religious studies. Covering all major religious traditions and their sub-sects, volumes in the series offer comprehensive and authoritative examination of the topics, including historical development and insights into belief systems, theological issues, and ritual. Written in an engaging manner, the volumes are geared towards readers who have little or no background on a given topic. They are ideal for use as primary or supplementary texts in undergraduate courses.

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27 results in Introduction to Religion

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An Introduction to Medieval Theology
  • Rik van Nieuwenhove
  • Published online:
    05 June 2012
    Print publication:
    19 April 2012
  • Medieval theology, in all its diversity, was radically theo-centric, Trinitarian, Scriptural and sacramental. It also operated with a profound view of human understanding (in terms of intellectus rather than mere ratio). In a post-modern climate, in which the modern views on 'autonomous reason' are increasingly being questioned, it may prove fruitful to re-engage with pre-modern thinkers who, obviously, did not share our modern and post-modern presuppositions. Their different perspective does not antiquate their thought, as some of the 'cultured despisers' of medieval thought might imagine. On the contrary, rather than rendering their views obsolete it makes them profoundly challenging and enriching for theology today. This book is more than a survey of key medieval thinkers (from Augustine to the late-medieval period); it is an invitation to think along with major theologians and explore how their thought can deeply challenge some of today's modern and post-modern key assumptions.

An Introduction to Jewish-Christian Relations
  • Edward Kessler
  • Published online:
    05 June 2012
    Print publication:
    18 February 2010
  • Relations between Christians and Jews over the past two thousand years have been characterised to a great extent by mutual distrust and by Christian discrimination and violence against Jews. In recent decades, however, a new spirit of dialogue has been emerging, beginning with an awakening among Christians of the Jewish origins of Christianity, and encouraging scholars of both traditions to work together. An Introduction to Jewish-Christian Relations sheds fresh light on this ongoing interfaith encounter, exploring key writings and themes in Jewish-Christian history, from the Jewish context of the New Testament to major events of modern times, including the rise of ecumenism, the horrors of the Holocaust, and the creation of the state of Israel. This accessible theological and historical study also touches on numerous related areas such as Jewish and interfaith studies, philosophy, sociology, cultural studies, international relations and the political sciences.

An Introduction to Buddhist Ethics
  • Foundations, Values and Issues
  • Peter Harvey
  • Published online:
    05 June 2012
    Print publication:
    22 June 2000
  • 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.

An Introduction to Third World Theologies
  • Edited by John Parratt
  • Published online:
    05 June 2012
    Print publication:
    10 June 2004
  • The greatest change which has come about in Christian theology over the last generation has been the explosion of contextual theologies in different parts of the world. This book provides an overview of the main trends and contributions to Christian thought of Third World theologies. It sets out the common context of these theologies in their experience of colonialism and western missions, and suggests that they have forged new ways of doing theology which are quite distinct from the theological traditions of the western world. With key contributions from experts in their fields on Latin America, India, East Asia, West and East Africa, Southern Africa and the Caribbean, this book situates Christian thought in the cultural and socio-political contexts of their respective regions, and demonstrates how Third World theologies are providing different perspectives on what it means to be a Christian in today's global world.

An Introduction to World Anglicanism
  • Bruce Kaye
  • Published online:
    05 June 2012
    Print publication:
    14 July 2005
  • What is the nature of world Anglicanism in a postcolonial, global age? With talk of fragmentation constantly in the media, what does it mean to be 'Anglican'? This book presents Anglicanism as a conversation over time amongst a community of people held together by sets of practices and beliefs. The first part describes the emergence of Anglicanism and its foundations in older Christian traditions. The second looks at Anglican practices within the framework of changing understandings of mission, and focuses on liturgy, patterns of engagement with others, organisation and power in the church, and ministerial offices. There are two separate chapters on the ordination of women and homosexuality in the public life of the church. The third part, on beliefs, addresses the central question of knowledge and authority in Anglicanism, as well as ecclesiology, the nature of the church itself. A final chapter looks to the future.

An Introduction to Catholic Social Thought
  • Michael P. Hornsby-Smith
  • Published online:
    14 January 2010
    Print publication:
    09 November 2006
  • Michael Hornsby-Smith offers an overview of Catholic social thought particularly in recent decades. While drawing on official teaching such as papal encyclicals and the pastoral letters of bishops' conferences, he takes seriously the need for dialogue with secular thought. The 2006 book is organized in four stages. Part I outlines the variety of domestic and international injustices and seeks to offer a social analysis of the causes of these injustices. Part II offers a theological reflection on the characteristics of the kingdom of God which Christians are urged to seek. Part III reviews Catholic social thought in six main areas: human rights, the family and bioethical issues, economic life, social exclusion, authentic development, and war and peace. Part IV completes the cycle with a consideration of appropriate social action responses to the injustices which the author has identified and analysed.

An Introduction to Mormonism
  • Douglas J. Davies
  • Published online:
    06 January 2010
    Print publication:
    23 October 2003
  • The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is one of the fastest growing religious movements in the world. It is highly visible, with a massive missionary program, yet it remains a mystery in terms of its core beliefs and theological structure. This 2003 book provides an introduction to the basic history, doctrines and practices of The LDS - the 'Mormon' Church. Written by a non-Mormon it neither seeks to prove or disprove the truthfulness of the religious claims of that faith but rather to describe them in ways that non-Mormons can understand. Particular emphasis is given to sacred texts and prophecies as well as to the crucial Temple rituals of endowments, marriage and baptism for the dead, through which human beings may achieve their divine potential. This rich comparative study offers an understanding of Mormon theology and ideas of humanity.

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