World Religions Today

by Esposito, John; Fasching, Darrell J.; Lewis, Todd T.; Feldmeier, Peter

• ISBN13: 9780197537657
• ISBN10: 0197537650
• Edition: 7th
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2021-06-15
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

Revealing the significance of religion in contemporary life, World Religions Today, Seventh Edition, explores major religious traditions--Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, South Asian religions, 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 both radically changed the modern world and been changed by it. The book 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.

Author Biography

John L. Esposito is University Professor of Religion and International Affairs, Professor of Islamic Studies, Founding Director of the Alwaleed Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, and Director of The Bridge: Protecting Pluralism--Ending Islamophobia at Georgetown University. He serves as
Editor-in-Chief of Oxford Islamic Studies Online and The Oxford Encyclopedia of Islam and is the author of What Everyone Needs to Know about Islam, Second Edition (2011), The Future of Islam (2010), and Unholy War: Terror in the Name of Islam (2002), and coauthor of Islam and Democracy after the
Arab Spring (2015), all published by Oxford University Press.

The late Darrell J. Fasching was Professor Emeritus of Religious Studies at the University of South Florida.

Todd T. Lewis is Professor of World Religions at the College of the Holy Cross.

Peter Feldmeier is the Murray/Bacik Professor of Catholic Studies at the University of Toledo.

Table of Contents

Preface

Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION
Understanding World Religions in Global Perspective
Why Study World Religions?
Our Task
Understanding Religious Experience and Its Formative Elements
The Great Religious Stories of the World
The Fundamental Terms and Organization of This Book
Historical Overview: From Premodern to Postmodern
The Modern/Postmodern Transition: Colonialism and Socialism
Postmodern Trends in a Postcolonial World

Chapter 2 INDIGENOUS RELIGIONS
Origins of Homo religiosus: Prehistory
Confrontation with Modernity
Religion's Origins Among Hunter-Gatherers
Indigenous Religious Traditions: Soul Belief and Afterlife
Shamans: "Technicians of the Sacred"
Indigenous Religions Today
Conclusion

Chapter 3 THE MANY STORIES OF JUDAISM: SACRED AND SECULAR
What Does It Mean to Be Jewish?
Encounter with Modernity: Modern Judaisms and the Challenge of Ultra-Orthodoxy
Premodern Judaism: The Formative Era (2 BCE-500 CE)
Premodern Judaism: The Classical Era (500 CE-1729 CE)
Judaism and Modernity (1729-1967)
Conclusion

Chapter 4 CHRISTIAN DIVERSITY AND THE ROAD TO MODERNITY
Encounter with Modernity: The Fundamentalist-Modernist COntroversy (1859-)
Premodern Christianity: The Formative Era (31-313 CE)
The Life of the Early Church
Premodern Christianity: The Classical Era (313-1517 CE)
The Medieval Church
Christianity and Modernity (1517-1962)
Postmodern Trends in a Postcolonial World (1962-)
Conclusion: The Challenge of Religious Pluralism

Chapter 5 ISLAM: THE MANY FACES OF THE MUSLIM EXPERIENCE
Encounter with Modernity: The Challenge of Western Colonialism
Premodern Islam: The Formative Era
Premodern Islam: The Classical Era
Islam and Modernity
Islam and Postmodern Trends in a Postcolonial World
Islam: Postmodern Challenges
Conclusion

Chapter 6 HINDUISM, JAINISM, AND SIKHISM: SOUTH ASIAN RELIGIONS
Defining Hinduism: Univty, Diversity, Localities
Encounter with Modernity: Hindu Challenges to India as a Secular State
Premodern Hinduism: The Formative Era
Premodern Hinduism: The Classical Era (180 BCE-900 CE)
Premodern Hinduism: The Postclassical Era (900 CE-1500 CE)
Hinduism and Modernity
Hinduism and Postmodern Trends in a Postcolonial World
Hindu and Sikh Festival Practice
The Religious Institutions of Contemporary Hinduism
Conclusion

Chapter 7 BUDDHISM: PATHS TOWARD NIRVANA
Encounter with Modernity: Socially "Engaged Buddhism"
Premodern Buddhism: The Formative Era (600 BCE-100 CE)
Premodern Buddhism: The Classical Era (100-800 CE)
Premodern Buddhism: Buddhist Expansion (400-1500 CE)
Buddhism and Modernity
Buddhism and Postmodern Trends in a Postcolonial World
Conclusion

Chapter 8 EAST ASIAN RELIGIONS: CONFUCIANISM, DAOISM, SHINTO, BUDDHISM
Encounter with Modernity: The Fall and Return of Confucianism
East Asian Religions in the Formative Era (1500 BCE-617 CE)
East Asian Religions in the Classical Era (645-1271 CE)
East Asian Religions in the Early Modern Era
East Asian Religions and Postmodern Trends in a Postcolonial World
Conclusion: Have We Entered a Third Confucian Age?

Chapter 9 GLOBALIZATION: FROM NEW TO NEW AGE RELIGIONS
The Challenge of Global Diversity
New Religions
Part I: Global Trends in World Religions Today
Part II: Religions Today and the Nation State
Part III: The Future of World Religions admist Global Crises
Part IV: "Passing Over": World Citizenship Facing Global Challenges

Glossary
Art Credits
Index