Patristics: Handbooks - Religion

Product description: This two-volume handbook presents the most comprehensive coverage of the current state of the psychology of religion and spirituality. It introduces a new integrative paradigm for this rapidly growing and diverse field. This paradigm sheds light on the many purposes religion serves, the rich variety of religious and spiritual beliefs and practices, and the capacity of religion and spirituality to do both good and harm. The integrative paradigm encourages psychologists to attend to the ways religion and spirituality are expressed not only in individual lives, but also in the lives of couples, families, institutions, communities, and cultures...

This prestigious Companion offers the most comprehensive survey to date of the study of religion. Featuring a team of international contributors, and edited by one of the most widely respected scholars in the field, The Blackwell Companion to the Study of Religion provides an interdisciplinary and authoritative guide to the subject. Examines the main approaches to the study of religion: anthropology, the comparative method, economics, literature, philosophy, psychology, sociology, and theology. Also covers a diverse range of topical issues, such as the body, fundamentalism, magic, and new religious movements Consists of 24 essays written by an outstanding team of international scholars Reviews, within each chapter, an outline of a particular subfield and traces its development up to the present day Debates how the discipline may look in the future Represents all the major issues, methods and positions in the field

This title provides concrete guidance for working effectively with clients from a wide range of religious backgrounds, including all of the main Christian denominations as well as Judaism, Islam, and Eastern traditions. Each of the 16 core chapters is written by a contributor who is both a mental health professional and an expert in the religious tradition described.

Research has indicated that spiritual and religious factors are strongly tied to a host of mental health characteristics, in both positive and negative ways. That body of research has significantly grown since publication of the first edition of this book 20 years ago. The seconnd edition of the Handbook of Spirituality, Religion and Mental Health identifies not only whether religion and spirituality influence mental health and vice versa, but also how, why, and for whom. Hence 100% of the book is now revised with new chapters and new contributors. Contents address eight categories of mental disorders, as well as other kay aspects of social, emotional, and behavioral health.

This Handbook has the potential to redress the distortion of information about particular religions, to add to understanding about what religions have in common, and to suggest how they can work together for justice and peace. In the present day there is a vital resurgence of interest in religions, with new movements emerging from long established religious traditions. There is also, around the world, a growing sense of the need to preserve indigenous religions, even when these have accommodated to imported traditions. The Handbook gives a voice to this resurgence of interest, and addresses inter-religious education from a range of religious viewpoints and contexts. The publication is very timely especially in light of the need for religions of the world to together contemplate and actively promote human rights, social justice and peace, for religions have a specific mandate for this.

Traditionally, spirituality has resided and been contained within religious frameworks but while the links between the two areas are still acknowledged by many in the contemporary world, spirituality is perceived by some as an aspect of human life that is distinct from religion. Consequently, many are searching for meaning within and without religious traditions today and seeking answers to ethical and moral questions that have been generated by the knowledge and technological explosion. One outcome is the renewed interest in the religious, spiritual and moral dimensions of education throughout the life cycle. This International Handbook presents the research and professional practice of scholars who are daily engaged in the consideration of these dimensions in education. The result is a collection of essays which reflects the discipline, in all of its internationality, as it as today. Embedded within the chapters is also an agenda for the future, where the religious, moral and spiritual dimensions in education are proposed as an exciting and challenging way forward for educators at all levels in society. As well, it offers a vision for the emergence of a peaceful and just world.

Christian Dispensationalism, the Taiping Revolution, cargo cults in Oceania, the Baha'i Faith, and the Raelian Movement would seem to have little in common. What they share, however, is a millennial orientation-the audacious human hope for a collective salvation, which may be heavenly or earthly or both. Although many religions feature a belief in personal salvation, millennial faiths are characterized by the expectation that salvation will be accomplished for an entire group by a superhuman agent, with or without human collaboration.The Oxford Handbook of Millennialismoffers readers an in-depth look at both the theoretical underpinnings of the study of millennialism and its many manifestations across history and cultures. While the term "millennialism" is drawn from Christianity, it is a category that is used to study religious expressions in diverse cultures, religious traditions, and historical periods. Sometimes, millennial expectations are expressed in peaceful ways. Other times, millennialists become involved in violence. The Oxford Handbook of Millennialismbegins with a section that examines four primary types of millennialism. Chapters in the next section examine key issues such as charismatic leadership, use of scripture, prophetic failure, gender roles, children, tension with society, and violence. The rest of the book explores millennialism in a wide variety of places and times, from ancient Near Eastern movements to contemporary apocalyptic and new age movements, including the roles played by millennialism in national and international conflicts. This handbook will be a valuable resource for scholars of religious studies, sociology, psychology, history, and new religious movements.

The last two decades have seen the emergence of a new field of academic study that examines the interaction between religion and ecology. Theologians from every religious tradition have confronted world religions past attitudes towards nature and acknowledged their own faiths complicity in the environmental crisis. Out of this confrontation have been born vital new theologies based in the recovery of marginalized elements of tradition, profound criticisms of the past, and ecologically oriented visions of God, the Sacred, the Earth, and human beings. The proposed handbook will serve as the definitive overview of these exciting new developments. Divided into three main sections, the books essays will reflect the three dominant dimensions of the field. Part one will explore traditional religious concepts of and attitudes towards nature and how these have been changed by the environmental crisis. Part II looks at larger conceptual issues that transcend individual traditions. PartIII will examine religious participation in environmental politics.

The field of 'religion and science' is exploding in popularity among academics as well as the general reading public. Spawning an increasing number of conferences and courses, this field has shown an unprecedented rate of growth in recent years. Here for the first time is a single-volume introduction to the debate, written by the leading experts. Making no pretence to encyclopaedic neutrality, each chapter defends a major intellectual position - at the heart of the book is a series of 'pro' and 'con' papers, covering each of the current 'hot topics' (such as evolution versus creation, naturalism versus the supernatural). In addition to treatments of questions of methodology and implications for life and practice, the Handbook includes sections devoted to the major scientific disciplines, the major world religions, and the main sub-disciplines in this exciting and ever-expanding field of study.

More than ever before, scholars recognize that nearly every form of religion or spirituality has a vital connection with art. World religions, from Hinduism to The Eastern Orthodox Church, have a long and rich relationship with an array of artistic traditions. In recent decades, the academicstudy of religion and the arts has burgeoned. Yet a broad and serious consideration of the topic has yet to reach readers. The first comprehensive book of its kind, The Oxford Handbook of Religion and the Arts provides expert guidance to artistry and aesthetic theory in religion. Edited by Frank Burch Brown, the Handbook brings together an international team of leading scholars to present an interdisciplinary volume of nearly forty original essays. Readers are presented the main topics, issues, methods, and resources for the study of religious and theological aesthetics. Theessays give light to the dynamic interaction of world religions and art making. The volume ranges from antiquity to present day to examine idolatry, aesthetics in liturgy, and the role of art in popular religion.Ranging from music and poetry to architecture and film, the Handbook crosses the boundaries of different faiths and art forms to survey established and pioneering voices within the field. An authoritative text for scholars and students, The Oxford Handbook of Religion and the Arts will remain aninvaluable resource for years to come.

Violence has always played a part in the religious imagination, from symbols and myths to legendary battles, from colossal wars to the theater of terrorism. The Oxford Handbook of Religion and Violence surveys intersections between religion and violence throughout history and around the world.The forty original essays in this volume include overviews of major religious traditions, showing how violence is justified within the literary and theological foundations of the tradition, how it is used symbolically and in ritual practice, and how social acts of violence and warfare have beenjustified by religious ideas. The essays also examine patterns and themes relating to religious violence, such as sacrifice and martyrdom, which are explored in cross-disciplinary or regional analyses; and offer major analytic approaches, from literary to social scientific studies. The contributors to this volume - innovative thinkers who are forging new directions in theory and analysis related to religion and violence - provide novel insights into this important field of studies. By mapping out the whole field of religion and violence, The Oxford Handbook of Religion andViolence will prove an authoritative source for students and scholars for years to come.

The Oxford Handbook of Religious Conversion offers a comprehensive exploration of the dynamics of religious conversion, which for centuries has profoundly shaped societies, cultures, and individuals throughout the world. Scholars from a wide array of religions and disciplines interpret boththe varieties of conversion experiences and the processes that inform this personal and communal phenomenon.This volume examines the experiences of individuals and communities who change religions, those who experience an intensification of their religion of origin, and those who encounter new religions through colonial intrusion, missionary work, and charismatic and revitalization movements. Thethirty-two innovative essays provide overviews of the history of particular religions, including Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Sikhism, Islam, Christianity, Judaism, indigenous religions, and new religious movements. The essays also offer a wide range of disciplinary perspectives -psychological, sociological, anthropological, legal, political, feminist, and geographical - on methods and theories deployed in understanding conversion, and insight into various forms of deconversion.

Studies in religion are flourishing internationally, and one of the central topics discussed in the field today - perhaps the most discussed topic - is religious diversity. With the influx of religious traditions in the West and the growing diversity of religious adherents and practitioners worldwide, people across the globe are currently nterested in exploring issues in religious diversity. The present work is a response to this ubiquitous interest. It is a substantial volume of thirty-three original chapters covering the full range of issues on religious diversity. Each chapter makes a state-of-the-art contribution by providing a survey and critical analysis of the topic, as well as creative reflections on where discussions in that domain are headed. The chapters are crafted by recognized experts in the field who represent a wide variety of perspectives and backgrounds. Furthermore, the work has a broad, interdisciplinary audience, serving serious-minded scholars aswell as students and others interested in the major themes of the field. The general aim of the volume is to present the central discussions in the discipline today and to direct future discussions on the various topics.

From the United States to the Middle East, Asia and Africa, religion has become an increasingly important factor in political activity and organisation. This Handbook provides a definitive global survey of the interaction of religion and politics. Featuring contributions from an international team of experts, it examines the political aspects of all the world's major religions, including such crucial contemporary issues as religious fundamentalism, terrorism, the war on terror, the 'clash of civilizations' and science and religion. Four main themes addressed include: the World religions and politics religion and governance religion and international relations religion, security and development. References at the end of each chapter guide the reader towards the most up-to-date information on various topics. In addition, large amounts of information make this book an indispensable source of information for students, academics and the wider public interested in the dynamic relationship between politics and religion.

This Handbook breaks new ground by addressing global security through the lens of religion and examining the role religion plays in both war and peace. In recent years there has been a considerable upsurge of public concern about the role of religion in contemporary violence. However, other than historical materials, there has been a relative neglect of the subject of religion and security. The Routledge Handbook of Religion and Security fills this gap in the literature by providing an interdisciplinary, comprehensive volume that helps non-specialists and experts alike understand how religion is both part of the problem and part of the solution to security challenges. Featuring contributions from many of the key thinkers in the field, the Handbook is organized into thematic sections, reflective of three basic questions: What does religion think of security?; What does security think of religion?; and, What happens when the two are mixed in specific real-world cases of religious conflict? This Handbook offers analyses of how nine different world religions have related to issues of war and peace, theologically and practically; overviews of how scholars and practitioners in nine different topical areas of security studies have (or have not) dealt with the relationship between religion and security; and five case studies of particular countries in which the religion--security nexus is vividly illustrated: Nigeria, India, Israel, the former Yugoslavia and Iraq. This Handbook will be of great interest to students of religion, security studies, war and conflict studies and IR in general.

This is the first comprehensive survey in English of research methods in the field of religious studies. It is designed to enable non-specialists and students at upper undergraduate and graduate levels to understand the variety of research methods used in the field. The aim is to create awareness of the relevant methods currently available and to stimulate an active interest in exploring unfamiliar methods, encouraging their use in research and enabling students and scholars to evaluate academic work with reference to methodological issues. A distinguished team of contributors cover a broad spectrum of topics, from research ethics, hermeneutics and interviewing, to Internet research and video-analysis. Each chapter covers practical issues and challenges, the theoretical basis of the respective method, and the way it has been used in religious studies, illustrated by case studies.

"The Cambridge Companion to Religious Studies is both informative and provocative, introducing readers to key debates in the contemporary study of religion and suggesting future research possibilities. A group of distinguished scholars takes up some of the most pressing theoretical questions in the field. What is a "religious tradition"? How are religious texts read? What takes place when a religious practitioner stands before a representation of gods or goddesses, ghosts, ancestors, saints, and other special beings? What roles is religion playing in contemporary global society? The volume emphasizes religion as a lived practice, stressing that people have used and continue to use religious media to engage the circumstances of their lives. This underlying conviction provides a realistic perspective on religion, and the volume,s essays engage with real-world religious practices. The volume,s essays should prove valuable and interesting to a broad audience, including scholars in the humanities and social sciences and a general readership, as well as students of religious studies"--

The Cambridge History of Religion in the Ancient World provides a comprehensive examination of the history of the religions of the ancient Near East and Mediterranean world. The essays in these volumes have a broad reach, covering the ancient Near East and Mediterranean, and extending from the Bronze Age into the late Roman period. Its contributors, acknowledged experts in their fields, incorporate a wide spectrum of textual and material evidence into their analyses of their fields. The regional and historical orientations of the essays will enable readers to see how a religious tradition or movement assumed a distinctive local identity, as well as to understand how each tradition developed within its broader regional context. Supplemented with maps, illustrations, and detailed indexes, these volumes will be an excellent reference tool for scholars and students.

This comprehensive guide traces the world's religions from the earliest forms of worship to the present day. Articles by more than 50 specialists clearly and objectively describe each faith along with its history, scriptures, worship, beliefs, and practices. This book includes more than 200 photographs (100 in full color), helpful maps and charts, and a handy "Rapid Fact Finder" glossary for quick reference to 1,100 entries.

What effect does religion have on physical and mental health? In answering this question, this book reviews and discusses research on the relationship between religion and a variety of mental and physical health outcomes, including depression and anxiety; heart disease, stroke, and cancer; and health related behaviors such as smoking and substance abuse. The authors examine the positive and negative effects of religion on health throughout the life span, from childhood to old age. Based on their findings, they build theoretical models illustrating the behavioral, psychological, social, and physiological pathways through which religion may influence health. The authors also review research on the impact of religious affiliation, belief, and practice on the use of health services and compliance with medical treatment. In conclusion, they discuss the clinical relevance of their findings and make recommendations for future research priorities. Offering the first comprehensive examination of its topic, this volume is an indispensable resource for research scientists, health professionals, public policy makers, and anyone interested in the relationship between religion and health.

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Product description: The Oxford Handbook of the Archaeology of Ritual and Religion provides a comprehensive overview by period and region of the relevant archaeological material in relation to theory, methodology, definition, and practice. Although, as the title indicates, the focus is upon archaeological investigations of ritual and religion, by necessity ideas and evidence from other disciplines are also included, among them anthropology, ethnography, religious studies, and history. The Handbook covers a global span - Africa, Asia, Australasia, Europe, and the Americas - and reaches from the earliest prehistory (the Lower and Middle Palaeolithic) to modern times. In addition, chapters focus upon relevant themes, ranging from landscape to death, from taboo to water, from gender to rites of passage, from ritual to fasting and feasting. Written by over sixty specialists, renowned in their respective fields, the Handbook presents the very best in current scholarship, and will serve both as a comprehensive introduction to its subject and as a stimulus to further research.

The moral values and interpretive systems of religions are crucially involved in how people imagine the challenges of sustainability and how societies mobilize to enhance ecosystem resilience and human well-being. The Routledge Handbook of Religion and Ecologyprovides the most comprehensive and authoritative overview of the field. It encourages both appreciative and critical angles regarding religious traditions, communities, attitude, and practices. It presents contrasting ways of thinking about "religion" and about "ecology" and about ways of connecting the two terms. Written by a team of leading international experts, the Handbookdiscusses dynamics of change within religious traditions as well as their roles in responding to global challenges such as climate change, water, conservation, food and population. It explores the interpretations of indigenous traditions regarding modern environmental problems drawing on such concepts as lifeway and indigenous knowledge. This volume uniquely intersects the field of religion and ecology with new directions within the humanities and the sciences. This interdisciplinary volume is an essential reference for scholars and students across the social sciences and humanities and for all those looking to understand the significance of religion in environmental studies and policy.

From the United States to the Middle East, Asia and Africa, religion has become an increasingly important factor in political activity and organisation. This Handbook provides a definitive global survey of the interaction of religion and politics. Featuring contributions from an international team of experts, it examines the political aspects of all the world's major religions, including such crucial contemporary issues as religious fundamentalism, terrorism, the war on terror, the 'clash of civilizations' and science and religion. Four main themes addressed include: the World religions and politics religion and governance religion and international relations religion, security and development. References at the end of each chapter guide the reader towards the most up-to-date information on various topics. In addition, large amounts of information make this book an indispensable source of information for students, academics and the wider public interested in the dynamic relationship between politics and religion.

Bridging the gap between cognition and culture, this handbook explores both social scientific and humanities approaches to understanding the physical processes of religious life, tradition, practice, and belief. It reflects the cultural turn within the study of religion and puts theory to the fore, moving beyond traditional theological, philosophical, and ethnographic understandings of the aesthetics of religion. Editors Anne Koch and Katharina Wilkens bring together research in cultural studies, cognitive studies, material religion, religion and the arts, and epistemology. Questions of identity, gender, ethnicity, and postcolonialism are discussed throughout. Key topics include materiality, embodiment, performance, popular/vernacular art and space to move beyond a sensory understanding of aesthetics. Emerging areas of research are covered, including secular aesthetics and the aesthetic of spirits. This is an important contribution to theory and method in the study of religion, and is grounded in research that has been taking place in Europe over the past 20 years. Case studies are drawn from around the world with contributions from scholars based in Europe, the USA, and Australia. The book is illustrated with over 40 color images and features a foreword from Birgit Meyer.

The Oxford Handbook of the Study of Religions provides a comprehensive overview of the academic study of religions. Written by an international team of leading scholars, its fifty-one chapters are divided thematically into seven sections. The first section addresses five major conceptualaspects of research on religion. Part two surveys eleven main frameworks of analysis, interpretation, and explanation of religion. Reflecting recent turns in the humanities and social sciences, part three considers eight forms of the expression of religion. Part four provides a discussion of theways societies and religions, or religious organizations, are shaped by different forms of allocation of resources (i.e., economy). Other chapters in this section consider law, the media, nature, medicine, politics, science, sports, and tourism. Part five reviews important developments,distinctions, and arguments for each of the selected topics.The study of religion addresses religion as a historical phenomenon and part six looks at seven historical processes. Religion is studied in various ways by many disciplines, and this Handbook shows that the study of religion is an academic discipline in its own right. The disciplinary profile ofthis volume is reflected in part seven, which considers the history of the discipline and its relevance. Each chapter in the Handbook references at least two different religions to provide fresh and innovative perspectives on key issues in the field. This authoritative collection will advance thestate of the discipline and is an invaluable reference for students and scholars.

Religion and popular culture is a fast-growing field that spans a variety of disciplines. This volume offers the first real survey of the field to date and provides a guide for the work of future scholars. It explores: key issues of definition and of methodology religious encounters with popular culture across media, material culture and space, ranging from videogames and social networks to cooking and kitsch, architecture and national monuments representations of religious traditions in the media and popular culture, including important non-Western spheres such as Bollywood This Companion will serve as an enjoyable and informative resource for students and a stimulus to future scholarly work.

This comprehensive guide traces the world's religions from the earliest forms of worship to the present day. Articles by more than 50 specialists clearly and objectively describe each faith along with its history, scriptures, worship, beliefs, and practices. This book includes more than 200 photographs (100 in full color), helpful maps and charts, and a handy "Rapid Fact Finder" glossary for quick reference to 1,100 entries.