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The Bible and Gender-based Violence in Botswana (ISSN)
by Mmapula Diana KebaneilweThe Bible and Gender-based Violence in Botswana foregrounds the rampancy of gender-based violence against women and girls in biblical texts and how it resonates with gender-based violence (GBV) in the author’s contemporary context of Botswana.The volume reads selected texts from the Bible alongside newspaper reports of GBV against women and girls in Botswana to show that while the Bible is taken as an authoritative text within the Botswana context, it is riddled with GBV against female persons. It asserts that by acknowledging and naming GBV in biblical texts and not concealing, ignoring, or spiritualizing it, contemporary communities of faith will be able to confront the problem in these contexts. By so doing, the book argues, the Bible will become a resource for positive transformation rather than a tool for supporting gender injustice.The book appeals to everyone willing to see positive change in regard to gender in/equality and is intended for a wide readership including researchers, postgraduates, church and other representatives of religious institutions, and upper-level undergraduates.
The Bible in Photography: Index, Icon, Tableau, Vision (Scriptural Traces)
by Dr. Sheona BeaumontSheona Beaumont addresses the untold story of biblical subjects in photography. She argues that stories, characters, and symbols from the Bible are found to pervade photographic practices and ideas, across the worlds of advertising and reportage, the book and the gallery, in theoretical discourse and in the words of photographers themselves. Beaumont engages interpretative tools from biblical reception studies, art history, and visual culture criticism in order to present four terms for describing photography's latent spirituality: the index, the icon, the tableau, and the vision. Throughout her journey she includes lively discussion of selected fine art photography dealing with the Bible in surprising ways, from images by William Henry Fox Talbot in the 19th century to David Mach in the 21st. Far from telling a secular story, photography and the conditions of its representations are exposed in theological depth.; Beaumont skillfully interweaves discussion of the images and theology, arguing for the dynamic and potent voice of the Bible in photography and enriching visual culture criticism with a renewed religious understanding.
The Bible in the Age of Empire: A Cultural History
by Scott McLarenThe nineteenth century was a time of titanic change. At the very heart of that change – driving it, confounding it, complicating it – was a singular book reputed to be utterly unchanging in its true and perfect expression. This book was the Bible. No other book could rival its ubiquity or cultural potency. Neither was any other book quite so divisive. Many revered it. Others deplored it. Still others used it for creative inspiration or borrowed its authority to bring about particular economic or political ends. But whatever status it enjoyed, whatever purpose it served, it was never far from the centre of Victorian discourse. The essays in this book explore how the Bible shaped and was shaped by the social and cultural forces at work during the nineteenth century -- forces that drove both scientific discovery and the colonial project, provoked unprecedented economic gain and condemned countless workers to urban poverty, gave birth to women's rights movements and reinforced traditional gender norms. Ultimately, all the essays in this book demonstrate one thing: that the nineteenth century emerges in its greatest clarity only when we approach it as the Victorians themselves approached it: through the lens of the Bible.
Biblical Exegesis and Mystical Theology in the Venerable Bede (Variorum Collected Studies)
by Arthur HolderBiblical Exegesis and Mystical Theology in the Venerable Bede brings together 17 essays by Arthur Holder exploring the theology and spirituality found in Bede’s biblical commentaries and homilies. The volume shows that Bede was both a masterful student of received tradition and a creative thinker concerned to address the needs and interests of his audience of Christian pastors and teachers in the eighth-century Northumbrian church.Although Bede is best known as the author of The Ecclesiastical History of the English People, the last half-century of scholarship has demonstrated the sophistication and vast influence of his work in the fields of grammar, biblical interpretation, hagiography, poetry, computus, natural science, and theology. The chapters in this volume show how Bede’s exegesis was integrally connected with his work in all those genres and with the monumental artistic productions of his monastery such as the illuminated bible manuscript known as the Codex Amiatinus. The five parts of the book deal with Bede as teacher and biblical scholar, his interpretations of the tabernacle and the temple, his commentary on the Song of Songs, his attitudes toward philosophy and heresy, and his mystical theology.This book will be of interest to students of Christian theology, mysticism, the development of biblical interpretation, and the history of early medieval England.
Biblical Exegesis and Mystical Theology in the Venerable Bede (Variorum Collected Studies)
by Arthur HolderBiblical Exegesis and Mystical Theology in the Venerable Bede brings together 17 essays by Arthur Holder exploring the theology and spirituality found in Bede’s biblical commentaries and homilies. The volume shows that Bede was both a masterful student of received tradition and a creative thinker concerned to address the needs and interests of his audience of Christian pastors and teachers in the eighth-century Northumbrian church.Although Bede is best known as the author of The Ecclesiastical History of the English People, the last half-century of scholarship has demonstrated the sophistication and vast influence of his work in the fields of grammar, biblical interpretation, hagiography, poetry, computus, natural science, and theology. The chapters in this volume show how Bede’s exegesis was integrally connected with his work in all those genres and with the monumental artistic productions of his monastery such as the illuminated bible manuscript known as the Codex Amiatinus. The five parts of the book deal with Bede as teacher and biblical scholar, his interpretations of the tabernacle and the temple, his commentary on the Song of Songs, his attitudes toward philosophy and heresy, and his mystical theology.This book will be of interest to students of Christian theology, mysticism, the development of biblical interpretation, and the history of early medieval England.
Biblical Wisdom and the Victorian Literary Imagination (New Directions in Religion and Literature)
by Denae DyckExamining the creative thought that arose in response to 19th-century religious controversies, this book demonstrates that the pressures exerted by historical methods of biblical scholarship prompted an imaginative recovery of wisdom literature.During the Victorian period, new approaches to the interpretation of sacred texts called into question traditional ideas about biblical inspiration, motivating literary transformations of inherited symbols, metaphors, and forms. Drawing on the theoretical work of Paul Ricoeur, Denae Dyck considers how Victorian writers from a variety of belief positions used wisdom literature to reframe their experiences of questioning, doubt, and uncertainty: Elizabeth Barrett Browning, George MacDonald, George Eliot, John Ruskin, and Olive Schreiner. This study contributes to the reassessment of historical and contemporary narratives of secularization by calling attention to wisdom literature as a vital, distinctive genre that animated the search for meaning within an increasingly ideologically diverse world.
Black British Gospel Music: From the Windrush Generation to Black Lives Matter (Congregational Music Studies Series)
Black British Gospel Music is a dynamic and multifaceted musical practice, a diasporic river rooted in the experiences of Black British Christian communities. This book examines gospel music in Britain in both historical and contemporary perspectives, demonstrating the importance of this this vital genre to scholars across disciplines. Drawing on a plurality of voices, the book examines the diverse streams that contribute to and flow out of this significant genre. Gospel can be heard resonating within a diverse array of Christian worship spaces; as a form of community music-making in school halls; and as a foundation for ‘secular’ British popular music, including R&B, hip hop and grime.
Black British Gospel Music: From the Windrush Generation to Black Lives Matter (Congregational Music Studies Series)
by Monique M. Ingalls Dulcie Dixon McKenzie Pauline MuirBlack British Gospel Music is a dynamic and multifaceted musical practice, a diasporic river rooted in the experiences of Black British Christian communities. This book examines gospel music in Britain in both historical and contemporary perspectives, demonstrating the importance of this this vital genre to scholars across disciplines. Drawing on a plurality of voices, the book examines the diverse streams that contribute to and flow out of this significant genre. Gospel can be heard resonating within a diverse array of Christian worship spaces; as a form of community music-making in school halls; and as a foundation for ‘secular’ British popular music, including R&B, hip hop and grime.
Black Clergy in the Church of England: Towards a Sense of Belonging
by Ericcson T. MapfumoThis book explores the experiences of ordinands and Black clergy of the Church of England (CofE). An increasing number of Black ordinands (trainees) from African and Caribbean heritages are choosing a ministerial pathway in the Anglican Communion, which has necessitated insights which recognise what they have to bring from their place of origin. Accounts of some of their relationships in the Church of England have been documented and reports on the issues and challenges of institutionalised racism. Anecdotal reference also suggests that the CofE has become a White institution which has not supported its Black clergy in their ministry. The purpose of this book is to present the lived experience of Black clergy in the Church of England, while highlighting some of the challenges they face and to offer solutions to make the church anti-racist.
Black Hebrew Israelites (Elements in New Religious Movements)
by null Michael T. MillerThe Black Hebrew Israelite movement claims that African Americans are descendants of the Ancient Israelites and has slowly become a significant force in African American religion. This Element provides a general overview of the BHI movement, its diverse history/ies, ideologies, and practices. The Element shows how different factions and trends have taken the forefront at different periods over its 140-year history, leading to the current situation where diverse iterations of the movement exist alongside each other, sharing some core concepts while differing widely. In particular, the questions of how and why BHI has become a potent and attractive movement in recent years are addressed, arguing that it fulfils a specific religious need to do with identity and teleology, and represents a new and persistent form of Abrahamic religion.
Black Liturgies: Prayers, poems and meditations for staying human
by Cole Arthur RileyIn the summer of 2020, Cole Arthur Riley was desperate for a spirituality she could trust. Amidst ongoing national racial violence, the isolation of the pandemic, and a surge of anti-Black rhetoric in many Christian spaces, she began dreaming of a harbour for a more human, more liberating expression of faith. She went on to create Black Liturgies, a digital project that connects spiritual practice with Black emotion, memory, and the Black body.In this book, she deepens the work of that project, bringing together new prayers, letters, poetry, meditation questions, breath practice, and the writings of Black literary ancestors to offer 43 liturgies that can be practised individually or as a community. With a poet's touch and a sensitivity that has made her one of the most important spiritual voices at work today, Riley invites readers to reflect on their own experiences of wonder, rest, rage, and repair, while also including liturgies for holidays like Lent, Advent and Mother's Day.For those healing from spiritual spaces that were more violent than loving; for those who have escaped the trauma of white Christian nationalism, religious homophobia, and transphobia; for anyone asking what it means to be human in a world of both beauty and terror; Black Liturgies is a work of healing and liberation, and a vision for what might be.
A Blackqueer Sexual Ethics: Embodiment, Possibility, and Living Archive (T&T Clark Enquiries in Embodiment, Sexuality, and Social Ethics)
by Professor Elyse AmbroseIn A Blackqueer Sexual Ethics: Embodiment, Possibility, and Living Archive Elyse Ambrose looks to an archive of blackqueerness as an authoritative source for religious ethical reflection. This approach counters the disintegrative norms of anti-black and anti-body traditionalism in Christian sexual ethics, even those that strive to be liberative. It builds upon a tradition of black queer and LGBTQ+-centered critique at the intersections of race, sexuality, gender, and religion through exploring the moral imagination of sexual and gender non-conformist communities in 1920's Harlem (their rent parties, blues environments, and Hamilton Lodge Ball); ethics and theology blackqueering the disciplines; and contemporary oral histories (including photographs of the subjects by the scholar-artist) of those doing ethics in their blackqueerness. These serve as integrative sites that signal blackqueer ethical counter-patterns of communal belonging, individual and collective becoming, goodness, embodied spirit/inspirited bodies, and shared thriving. Emphases on both personal and social right-relatedness mark a shift from Christian sexual ethics based on rules, toward a communal relations-based transreligious ethics of sexuality.
The Book of Experience: From Anselm of Canterbury to Bernard of Clairvaux (Explorations in Philosophy and Theology)
by Emmanuel FalqueEmmanuel Falque, one of the foremost philosophers working in the continental philosophy of religion today, takes us by the hand into the very heart of 12th-century monastic spirituality.Translated into English for the first time, The Book of Experience weaves together contemporary phenomenological questions with medieval theology, revealing undiscovered dialogues already underway between Hugh of St. Victor and Maurice Merleau-Ponty, between Richard of St. Victor and Emmanuel Levinas, between Aelred of Rievaulx and Michel Henry, and not least between Bernard of Clairvaux and the trio of Descartes, Heidegger, and Jean-Luc Marion, consummating in a masterful phenomenological reading of Bernard's sermons on the Song of Songs. Whether it is a question of 'the idea that comes to God' (Anselm of Canterbury) or actively 'feeling oneself fully alive' (Aelred of Rievaulx or Bernard of Clairvaux), Falque uses these encounters to shed light on both parties, medieval and modern, theological and philosophical. Leading us through works of art, landscapes, architectures, and liturgies, this major contemporary philosopher of religion clarifies mysteries and discovers experience lying at the heart of the medieval tradition.
British Methodist Revivalism and the Eclipse of Ecclesiology (Routledge Methodist Studies Series)
by James E. PedlarRevivalism was one of the main causes of division in nineteenth century British Methodism, but the role of revivalist theology in these splits has received scant scholarly attention. In this book, James E. Pedlar demonstrates how the revivalist variant of Methodist spirituality and theology empowered its adherents and helped foster new movements, even as it undermined the Spirit’s work through the structures of the church. Beginning with an examination of unresolved issues in John Wesley’s ecclesiology, Pedlar identifies a trend of increasing marginalization of the church among revivalists, via an examination of three key figures: Hugh Bourne (1772-1852), James Caughey (1810-1891), and William Booth (1860-1932). He concludes by examining the more catholic and irenic theology of Samuel Chadwick (1860-1932), the leading Methodist revivalist of the early twentieth century who became a strong advocate of Methodist Union. Pedlar shows that these theological differences must be considered, alongside social and political factors, in any well-rounded assessment of the division and eventual reunification of British Methodism.
British Methodist Revivalism and the Eclipse of Ecclesiology (Routledge Methodist Studies Series)
by James E. PedlarRevivalism was one of the main causes of division in nineteenth century British Methodism, but the role of revivalist theology in these splits has received scant scholarly attention. In this book, James E. Pedlar demonstrates how the revivalist variant of Methodist spirituality and theology empowered its adherents and helped foster new movements, even as it undermined the Spirit’s work through the structures of the church. Beginning with an examination of unresolved issues in John Wesley’s ecclesiology, Pedlar identifies a trend of increasing marginalization of the church among revivalists, via an examination of three key figures: Hugh Bourne (1772-1852), James Caughey (1810-1891), and William Booth (1860-1932). He concludes by examining the more catholic and irenic theology of Samuel Chadwick (1860-1932), the leading Methodist revivalist of the early twentieth century who became a strong advocate of Methodist Union. Pedlar shows that these theological differences must be considered, alongside social and political factors, in any well-rounded assessment of the division and eventual reunification of British Methodism.
British Muslims and Their Discourses
by Laurens De RooijThis book highlights the changing dynamics of Muslim identity and integration in Britain, focusing on the post-9/11 era. Historically, Muslims faced discrimination based on ethnicity rather than religion. However, contemporary discrimination against Muslims is rooted in different reasons, with events like the Rushdie affair significantly impacting multicultural relations. This study analyzes the evolving multicultural landscape in Britain, exploring the shift from predominantly assimilationist policies to a more mutual process of integration. It delves into the emergence of interfaith dialogue as well as the complexities surrounding the intersection of race, religion, gender, and identity. The research examines two key themes: the discursive positioning of Islam beyond integration and terrorism narratives, and the operationalization of identity by Muslims in various contexts. The study employs empirical methods and cultural studies theories to understand how individual and social practices intersect in this context. By doing so, it contributes to Islamic studies, socio-political studies, and cultural studies, shedding light on the discourses that shape and are shaped by Muslim lives in Britain. The analysis encompasses diverse perspectives, from macro-level societal discourses to micro-level individual actions, thus providing a comprehensive exploration of the multifaceted experiences of Muslims in Britain.
The Broken Body: Israel, Christ and Fragmentation (Challenges in Contemporary Theology)
by Sarah CoakleyA fascinating collection of essays exploring a fresh contemporary approach to the person and doctrine of Jesus ChristHow should Christians think about the person of Jesus Christ today? In this volume, Sarah Coakley argues that this question has to be ‘broken open’ in new and unexpected ways: by an awareness of the deep spiritual demands of the christological task and its strikingly ‘apophatic’ dimensions; by a probing of the paradoxical ways in which Judaism and Christianity are drawn together in Christ, even by those issues which seem to ‘break’ them most decisively apart; and by an exploration of the mode of Christ’s presence in the eucharist, with its intensification,‘ breaking’ and re-gathering of human desires. In this sequel to her celebrated earlier volume of essays, Powers and Submissions, Coakley returns to its unifying theme of divine power and contemplative submission, and weaves a new web of christological outcomes which remain replete with controversial implications for gender, spirituality and ethics. The Broken Body will be of interest to those working in the fields of systematic theology, philosophy of religion, early Christian studies, Jewish/Christian relations, and feminist and gender theory.‘Fusing biblical and patristic theology, analytic philosophy, and spiritual tradition, Sarah Coakley has produced a fascinating, inspiring, and compelling account of Christ’s identity, and its importance for questions of life.’ Professor Mark Wynn, University of Oxford‘Coakley argues that good Christology arises only from intellectual and spiritual postures learnt by encountering Christ openly. This volume subtly and powerfully facilitates such encounter, with God and, in him, with our neighbours, especially the Jewish people.’ Professor Judith Wolfe, University of St. Andrews‘Everything we have come to expect from Sarah Coakley is here in this extraordinary collection: wonderful clarity; startling and fruitful comparisons, within and beyond the theological canon; a brisk defiance of feminist conventions that in turn sharpens and deepens feminist analysis; a resistance to cheap theological certainties; and an abiding faithfulness, anchored in Christ, borne aloft by the Spirit. Christology is here shown to embrace abjection and jouissance, to advocate sacrifice that is itself the end of patriarchal violence, and to demand a eucharistic sharing that is incomplete without solidarity to the outcast and the poor, themselves the face of the living Christ. In these essays Coakley exemplifies the semiotic richness of priest and scholar, a breaking open of theological reserves that will transgress, startle, renew, instruct. This is sacrifice, re-made.’ Professor Katherine Sonderegger, Virginia Theological Seminary How should Christians think about the person of Jesus Christ today? In this volume, Sarah Coakley argues that this question has to be ‘broken open’ in new and unexpected ways: by an awareness of the deep spiritual demands of the christological task and its strikingly ‘apophatic’ dimensions; by a probing of the paradoxical ways in which Judaism and Christianity are drawn together in Christ, even by those issues which seem to ‘break’ them most decisively apart; and by an exploration of the mode of Christ’s presence in the eucharist, with its intensification,‘ breaking’ and re-gathering of human desires. In this sequel to her celebrated earlier volume of essays, Powers and Submissions, Coakley returns to its unifying theme of divine power and contemplative submission, and weaves a new web of christological outcomes which remain replete with controversial implications for gender, spirituality and ethics. <div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width:
The Broken Body: Israel, Christ and Fragmentation (Challenges in Contemporary Theology)
by Sarah CoakleyA fascinating collection of essays exploring a fresh contemporary approach to the person and doctrine of Jesus ChristHow should Christians think about the person of Jesus Christ today? In this volume, Sarah Coakley argues that this question has to be ‘broken open’ in new and unexpected ways: by an awareness of the deep spiritual demands of the christological task and its strikingly ‘apophatic’ dimensions; by a probing of the paradoxical ways in which Judaism and Christianity are drawn together in Christ, even by those issues which seem to ‘break’ them most decisively apart; and by an exploration of the mode of Christ’s presence in the eucharist, with its intensification,‘ breaking’ and re-gathering of human desires. In this sequel to her celebrated earlier volume of essays, Powers and Submissions, Coakley returns to its unifying theme of divine power and contemplative submission, and weaves a new web of christological outcomes which remain replete with controversial implications for gender, spirituality and ethics. The Broken Body will be of interest to those working in the fields of systematic theology, philosophy of religion, early Christian studies, Jewish/Christian relations, and feminist and gender theory.‘Fusing biblical and patristic theology, analytic philosophy, and spiritual tradition, Sarah Coakley has produced a fascinating, inspiring, and compelling account of Christ’s identity, and its importance for questions of life.’ Professor Mark Wynn, University of Oxford‘Coakley argues that good Christology arises only from intellectual and spiritual postures learnt by encountering Christ openly. This volume subtly and powerfully facilitates such encounter, with God and, in him, with our neighbours, especially the Jewish people.’ Professor Judith Wolfe, University of St. Andrews‘Everything we have come to expect from Sarah Coakley is here in this extraordinary collection: wonderful clarity; startling and fruitful comparisons, within and beyond the theological canon; a brisk defiance of feminist conventions that in turn sharpens and deepens feminist analysis; a resistance to cheap theological certainties; and an abiding faithfulness, anchored in Christ, borne aloft by the Spirit. Christology is here shown to embrace abjection and jouissance, to advocate sacrifice that is itself the end of patriarchal violence, and to demand a eucharistic sharing that is incomplete without solidarity to the outcast and the poor, themselves the face of the living Christ. In these essays Coakley exemplifies the semiotic richness of priest and scholar, a breaking open of theological reserves that will transgress, startle, renew, instruct. This is sacrifice, re-made.’ Professor Katherine Sonderegger, Virginia Theological Seminary How should Christians think about the person of Jesus Christ today? In this volume, Sarah Coakley argues that this question has to be ‘broken open’ in new and unexpected ways: by an awareness of the deep spiritual demands of the christological task and its strikingly ‘apophatic’ dimensions; by a probing of the paradoxical ways in which Judaism and Christianity are drawn together in Christ, even by those issues which seem to ‘break’ them most decisively apart; and by an exploration of the mode of Christ’s presence in the eucharist, with its intensification,‘ breaking’ and re-gathering of human desires. In this sequel to her celebrated earlier volume of essays, Powers and Submissions, Coakley returns to its unifying theme of divine power and contemplative submission, and weaves a new web of christological outcomes which remain replete with controversial implications for gender, spirituality and ethics. <div id="_mcePaste" style="position: absolute; left: -10000px; top: 0px; width:
Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism and Shintoism: The Unpublished Writings of K. Satchidananda Murty
K. Satchidananda Murty (1924-2011) was a vociferous writer and an iconoclast. This volume is a collection of his unpublished writings in philosophy. It features Murty's essays on Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism and Shintoism. The texts study the origins of Indian, Chinese, and Japanese philosophical traditions and provide a comparative study of the different schools of thought. Murty analyses the development of science in the ancient Indian tradition, especially in the areas of geometry, algebra, architecture, engineering, and astronomy. He also provides recommendations for promoting Asian philosophies and cultures to the world, without dependence on the West. An important contribution, the book presents K. Satchidananda Murty's contribution to philosophy during sixty-one years of his engagement with active writing and teaching. It will be of great interest to scholars, teachers, and students of Indian philosophy, Hindu philosophy, comparative philosophy, Asian Philosophy, religious studies, and South Asian studies.
Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism and Shintoism: The Unpublished Writings of K. Satchidananda Murty
by Ashok Vohra and Kotta RameshK. Satchidananda Murty (1924-2011) was a vociferous writer and an iconoclast. This volume is a collection of his unpublished writings in philosophy. It features Murty's essays on Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism and Shintoism. The texts study the origins of Indian, Chinese, and Japanese philosophical traditions and provide a comparative study of the different schools of thought. Murty analyses the development of science in the ancient Indian tradition, especially in the areas of geometry, algebra, architecture, engineering, and astronomy. He also provides recommendations for promoting Asian philosophies and cultures to the world, without dependence on the West. An important contribution, the book presents K. Satchidananda Murty's contribution to philosophy during sixty-one years of his engagement with active writing and teaching. It will be of great interest to scholars, teachers, and students of Indian philosophy, Hindu philosophy, comparative philosophy, Asian Philosophy, religious studies, and South Asian studies.
Buddhismus für Dummies (Für Dummies)
by Jonathan Landaw Stephan BodianDas Glück liegt in Ihnen, nicht in diesem Buch Erfahren Sie, was den Buddhismus für viele so faszinierend macht. Jonathan Landaw und Stephan Bodian führen leicht verständlich in diese fernöstliche Lehre ein. Sie berichten vom Leben des historischen Buddha und von den unterschiedlichen Traditionen, die sich über die Jahrhunderte entwickelt haben. Die Leser lernen, was es mit dem Kleinen (Hinayana) und dem Großen Fahrzeug (Mahayana) auf sich hat, wie sich der Zen-Buddhismus von der tibetanischen Schule unterscheidet und vieles mehr. Außerdem zeigen die Autoren, wie der Buddhismus unseren Alltag bereichert. Sie erfahren Wie Sie in westlichen Kulturen dem Pfad der Erleuchtung folgen Wie der Geist Glück und Leiden erzeugt Was zum Wesen eines Buddhisten gehört Welche Interpretationen der Erleuchtung es gibt
Buddhist Ethics and the Bodhisattva Path: Santideva on Virtue and Well-Being (Bloomsbury Introductions to World Philosophies)
by Stephen HarrisSantideva's 8th century Mahayana Buddhist classic, the Guide to the Practices of Awakening (Bodhicaryavatara), has been a source of philosophical inspiration in the Indian and Tibetan traditions for over a thousand years. Stephen Harris guides us through a philosophical exploration of Santideva's masterpiece, introducing us to his understanding of the compassionate bodhisattva, who vows to liberate the entire universe from suffering. Individual chapters provide studies of the bodhisattva virtues of generosity, patience, compassion, and wisdom, illustrating the role each plays in Santideva's account of well-being and moral development. Harris also provides in-depth analysis of many of Santideva's most influential arguments, demonstrating how he employs reasoning as a method to cultivate moral character. As the first book-length English language philosophical study of Santideva's most influential text, this will be essential reading for students and scholars of Buddhist ethics, as well as for anyone interested in intercultural ethics and the philosophy of well-being.
Buddhist Public Advocacy and Activism in Thailand: A Rhetoric of Dignity and Duty
by Craig M. PinkertonThis book studies Buddhist public advocacy and activism in Thailand—a movement often broadly called socially engaged Buddhism—from the perspective of rhetorical studies, specifically, on humanizing and dehumanizing communication practices. In modern Thailand and historical Siam, Buddhism has been integral to the social change processes shaping civil society and an emerging democracy. This study examined two problems: How do contemporary Buddhists in Thailand use rhetorical practice to influence the way the issues they work on are understood, and how do these Buddhists justify their advocacy and activism in rhetorical practice? To the first, a rhetoric of dignity, or humanization, was the central answer. To the second, a rhetoric of duty was the central answer. For researchers in Southeast Asian Studies, Thai Studies, and Buddhist Studies, this book offers a fresh perspective on socially engaged Buddhism through the lens of the communication discipline. For researchers in Psychologyand Communication, it sheds light on the understudied practices of humanizing communication. The bulk of the current research is focused on its opposite—dehumanization—and most of this literature is in the field of psychology even though humanization and dehumanization are fundamentally and ontologically communication phenomena. For researchers within the field of Communication and Rhetorical Studies, this book advances innovations in the emerging practices of rhetorical field methods by applying rhetorical criticism to interview data in a new way and provides a non-western perspective on communication and rhetorical theory for which there has been continual calls.
C.S. Lewis and the Problem of God (Elements in the Problems of God)
by null David WertherUnderstanding C.S. Lewis's vocation is essential for reading his works well, as is knowing how he came to it: his long and winding philosophical journey and reoccurring experiences of 'Joy.' Lewis discounted 'proofs' in philosophical theology but offered key arguments in support of theism per se, and Christianity in particular. His account of “mere Christianity” shows the centrality of self-determination, an emphasis on Christ's human nature, and a relativizing of atonement theories. Finally, Lewis's understanding of faith, his attempts to make sense of petitionary and imprecatory prayers, and his emphasis on theosis/deification, are considered.
The Cambridge Companion to Joseph Ratzinger (Cambridge Companions to Religion)
by Daniel Cardó Uwe Michael LangAmong the most important modern Catholic thinkers, Joseph Ratzinger, later Pope Benedict XVI, fundamentally shaped Christian theology in the 20th and early 21st centuries. His collaborations and debates with figures such as Henri de Lubac, Karl Rahner, Jean Daniélou, Hans Küng, Hans Urs von Balthasar, and Jürgen Habermas reflect the key role he has played in the development of Christian life and doctrine. The Cambridge Companion to Joseph Ratzinger conveys the depth and breadth of his significant legacy to contemporary Catholic theology and culture. With contributions from an international team of scholars, the volume assesses Ratzinger's theological synthesis in response to contemporary challenges that Christianity faces. It surveys the major themes and topics that Ratzinger explored, and highlights aspects of the ideas that he developed in his engagement with a wide variety of intellectual and religious currents. Collectively, the essays in this volume demonstrate how Ratzinger's epochal contributions to Christian thought will reverberate for generations to come.