World Religions Today

by Esposito, John L.; Fasching, Darrell J.; Lewis, Todd

• ISBN13: 9780199759514
• ISBN10: 0199759510
• Edition: 4th
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2011-10-14
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

Revealing the significance of religion in contemporary life,World Religions Today,Fourth Edition, explores major religious traditions--Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, East Asian Religions, indigenous religions, and new religions--as dynamic, ongoing forces in the lives of individuals and in the collective experience of modern societies.This unique volume accomplishes two goals: it connects today's religions to their classical beliefs and practices and focuses on how these religions have responded to and been transformed by the modern world.The authors combine thorough coverage of the historical background of each religion with up-to-the-minute discussions of its current practices. The volume is enhanced by numerous pedagogical aids--text boxes, timelines, maps, illustrations, discussion questions, a comprehensive glossary of key terms, and suggestions for further reading--and more than 200 photographs. NEW TO THIS EDITION: * Updates throughoutthat cover more aspects of the current international situation and developments in religious life around the world * "Rituals and Rites" boxesexamining rituals that have changed in practice or meaning over time * "Gender Focus" boxesthat highlight gender-specific customs within each faith * A revised and updated Instructor's Manual and Test Bank on CDcontaining overviews, learning goals, and summaries for each chapter; lecture outlines; PowerPoint-based lecture slides; fill-in-the-blank, multiple-choice, and true/false test questions; sample essay/discussion questions; flash cards of key terms; and suggested reading, viewing, and links * An updated Companion Website at www.oup.com/us/espositofeaturing all of the material from the Instructor's Manual and additional resources for students World Religions Today,Fourth Edition, is also available as two separate volumes: Religions of Asia Today,Second Edition (978-0-19-975949-1) Religions of the West Today,Second Edition (978-0-19-975950-7)

Author Biography

John L. Esposito is University Professor, Professor of Religion and International Affairs, Professor of Islamic Studies, and Founding Director of the Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding at Georgetown University. Darrell J. Fasching is Professor of Religious Studies at the University of South Florida. Todd Lewis is Professor of World Religions at the College of the Holy Cross.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. xii
Introduction	p. 3
Globalization: World Religions in Everyone's Hometown	p. 3
Why Study World Religions?	p. 5
Our Task	p. 6
Understanding Religious Experience and Its Formative Elements	p. 7
The Great Religious Stories of the World	p. 18
Historical Overview: From Premodern to Postmodern	p. 25
The Modern/Postmodern Transition: Colonialism, the Socialist Challenge, and the End of Modernity	p. 29
Postmodern Trends in a Postcolonial World	p. 33
Conclusion: We Are All Heretics in the Postmodern Situation	p. 34
Discussion Questions	p. 34
Key Terms	p. 35
Notes	p. 35
Indigenous Religions	p. 37
Overview	p. 37
Origins of Homo religiosus: Prehistory	p. 38
Religion's Origins Among Hunter-Gatherers	p. 41
Indigenous Religious Traditions: Soul Belief and Afterlife	p. 48
Shamans: "Technicians of the Sacred"	p. 54
Indigenous Religions Today	p. 62
Conclusion	p. 70
Discussion Questions	p. 71
Key Terms	p. 72
Suggested Readings	p. 72
Notes	p. 73
Additional Resources	p. 73
The Many Stories of Judaism: Sacred and Secular	p. 75
Overview	p. 75
Encounter with Modernity: Modern Judaisms and the Challenge of Ultra-Orthodoxy	p. 79
Premodern Judaism: The Formative Era (2000 BCE-500 CE)	p. 83
Premodern Judaism: The Classical Era (500 CE-1729 CE)	p. 101
Judaism and Modernity (1729-1967)	p. 115
Judaism and Postmodern Trends in a Postcolonial World (1967-)	p. 128
Conclusion	p. 142
Discussion Questions	p. 143
Key Terms	p. 144
Suggested Readings	p. 144
Notes	p. 145
Additional Resources	p. 145
Christian Diversity and the Road to Modernity	p. 147
Overview	p. 147
Encounter with Modernity: The Fundamentalist-Modernist Controversy (1859-)	p. 152
Premodern Christianity: The Formative Era (31-451 CE)	p. 157
Premodern Christianity: The Classical Era (451-1517 CE)	p. 172
Christianity and Modernity (1517-1962)	p. 182
Christianity and Postmodern Trends in a Postcolonial World (1962-)	p. 199
Conclusion	p. 209
Discussion Questiotis	p. 212
Key Terms	p. 212
Suggested Readings	p. 213
Additional Resources	p. 213
Islam: The Many Faces of the Muslim Experience	p. 215
Overview	p. 215
Encounter with Modernity: The Challenge of Western Colonialism	p. 221
Premodern Islam: The Formative Era	p. 224
Premodern Islam: The Classical Era	p. 238
Islam and Modernity	p. 259
Islam and Postmodern Trends in a Postcolonial World	p. 265
Islam: Postmodern Challenges	p. 285
Conclusion	p. 292
Discussion Questions	p. 292
Key Terms	p. 293
Suggested Readings	p. 294
Notes	p. 295
Additional Resources	p. 295
Hinduism and Other South Asian Religions: Myriad Paths to Liberation	p. 297
Overview	p. 297
Defining Hinduism: Unity, Diversity, Localities	p. 298
Encounter with Modernity: Hindu Challenges to India as a Secular State	p. 301
Premodern Hinduism: The Formative Era	p. 304
Premodern Hinduism: The Classical Era (180 BCE-900 CE)	p. 312
Premodern Hinduism: The Postclassical Era (900 CE-1500 CE)	p. 324
Hinduism and Modernity	p. 332
Hinduism and Postmodern Trends in a Postcolonial World	p. 343
Hindu Festival Practice	p. 355
The Religious Institutions of Contemporary Hinduism	p. 363
Conclusion	p. 383
Discussion Questiotis	p. 386
Key Terms	p. 387
Suggested Readings	p. 388
Notes	p. 389
Additional Resources	p. 389
Buddhism: Paths Toward Nirvana	p. 391
Overview	p. 391
Encounter with Modernity: Socially "Engaged Buddhism"	p. 393
Premodern Buddhism: The Formative Era (600 BCE-100 CE)	p. 398
Premodern Buddhism: The Classical Era (100-800 CE)	p. 412
Premodern Buddhism: Buddhist Expansion (400-1500 CE)	p. 427
Buddhism and Modernity	p. 433
Buddhism and Postmodern Trends in a Postcolonial World	p. 447
Conclusion	p. 472
Discussion Questions	p. 474
Key Terms	p. 475
Suggested Readings	p. 476
Notes	p. 477
Additional Resources	p. 477
East Asian Religions: Traditions of Human Cultivation and Natural Harmony	p. 479
Overview	p. 479
Geographical Orientation	p. 481
Encounter with Modernity: The Fall and Return of Confucianism	p. 484
East Asian Religions in the Formative Era (1500 BCE-200 CE)	p. 488
East Asian Religions in the Early Modern Era	p. 518
East Asian Religions and Postmodern Trends in a Postcolonial World	p. 529
Conclusion: Have We Entered a Third Confucian Age?	p. 561
Discussion Questions	p. 566
Key Terms	p. 567
Suggested Readings	p. 567
Notes	p. 568
Additional Resources	p. 569
Globalization: From New to New Age Religions	p. 571
Overview	p. 571
Encounter with Modernity: The Challenge of Global Diversity to the "Purity" of Tradition	p. 573
New Religions	p. 574
New Age Religions	p. 581
Conclusion: The Postmodern Challenge-Can There Be a Global Ethic in a World of Religious Diversity?	p. 595
Discussion Questions	p. 608
Suggested Readings	p. 608
Notes	p. 609
Additional Resources	p. 609
Glossary	p. G-1
Art Credits	p. A-1
Index	p. I-1
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