The Oxford Handbook of Religion and Violence

by Juergensmeyer, Mark; Kitts, Margo; Jerryson, Michael

• ISBN13: 9780199759996
• ISBN10: 0199759995
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2013-01-24
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

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 been justified 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 and Violence will prove an authoritative source for students and scholars for years to come.

Author Biography

Mark Juergensmeyer is Professor of Sociology and Global Studies, and Director of the Orfalea Center for Global and International Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Margo Kitts is Associate Professor and Coordinator of Religious Studies and East-West Classical Studies at Hawai'i Pacific University in Honolulu.

Michael Jerryson is Assistant Professor of Religious Studies at Eckerd College, Florida.

Table of Contents

Contributors

Introduction: ''The Enduring Relationship of Religion and Violence''

Overview of Religious Traditions

Hindu: ''Violence and Nonviolence at the Heart of Hindu Ethics''

Buddhist: ''Buddhist Traditions and Violence''

Sikh: ''Sikh Traditions and Violence''

Jewish: ''Religion and Violence in the Jewish Traditions''

Christian:''Religion and Violence in Christian Traditions''

Islamic: ''Muslim Engagement with Injustice and Violence''

African: ''African Traditional Religion and Violence''

Pacific Island: ''Religion and Violence in Pacific Island Societies''

Chinese: ''Violence in Chinese Religious Traditions''

Patterns and Themes

Evil: ''The Religious Problem of Evil''

Sacrifice: ''Sacrifice/Human Sacrifice in Religious Traditions''

Martyrdom: ''Martyrdom in Islam''

Self Mutilation: ''Starvation and Self Mutilation in Religious Traditions''

Apocalypse: ''Apocalyptic Religion and Violence''

Sacred War: ''Cosmic War in Religious Traditions''

Genocide: ''Genocide and the Religious Imaginary in Rwanda''

Terrorism: ''Terrorism as Performance Violence''

Torture: ''Christianity and Torture''

Just War: ''Just War and Legal Restraints''

Abortion: ''Religiously Motivated Violence in the Abortion Debate''

Contested Sites: ''Conflicts over Sacred Ground''

Political Violence: ''Religion and Political Violence''

Death Rituals: ''Rituals of Death and Remembrance''

Violent Death: ''Violent Death in Religious Imagination''

Analytic Approaches

Sociology: ''Religion and Violence from a Sociological Perspective''

Anthropology: ''Religion and Violence from an Anthropological Perspective''

Psychology: ''Religion and Violence from a Psychological Perspective''

Political Science: ''Religion and Violence from a Political Science Perspective''

Literary Theory: ''Religion and Violence from Literary Perspectives''

Theology: ''Religion and Violence from Christian Perspectives''

New Directions

Sacrifice: ''Sacrificial Violence: A Problem in Ancient Religions''

Cities: ''Cities as One Site for Religion and Violence''

Armageddon: ''Armageddonin Christian, Sunni and Shi'a Traditions''

Phenomenal Violence: ''Phenomenal Violence and the Philosophy of Religion''

Constructions of Evil : ''The Construction of Evil and the Violence of Purification''

Mimetic Theory: ''Mimetic Theories of Religion and Violence''

Scarcity: ''Religion and Scarcity: A New Theory for the Role of Religion in Violence''

Evolutionary Theory: ''Ritual, Religion, and Violence: An Evolutionary Perspective''

Rites of Terror: ''Divergent Modes of Religiosity and Armed Struggle''

Sociotheology: ''A Sociotheological Approach to Understanding Religious Violence''

Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.