Synopses & Reviews
"Living Religions--Western Traditions" is a highly readable and stimulating survey of the major global religions and new religious movements that originated in the West, with particular focus on how people are trying to live by them in today's world. Evocative illustrations enhance this approach; first-person interviews of ordinary people and boxes uncovering the spiritual roots of well-known public figures bring this book to life. Covering the key religions of Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and new religious movements together with a brief chapter on indigenous religions that focuses primarily on Native American traditions, the social context, origins, teachers, scriptures, and historical development of each faith are carefully explored, with emphasis on how practitioners themselves understand their tradition from the inside. For readers interested in a comprehensive book about Western religions, as well as the clergy of various faiths.
Synopsis
"Living Religions: Western Traditions" presents a highly readable and stimulating survey of the world's major religious traditions that have originated. in the West. Exploring the historical development and teachings of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, as well as local indigenous religions and new religious movements, this book considers how each of these traditions has evolved into contemporary beliefs and practices. A perceptive concluding chapter also examines the spread of religious pluralism and the movement toward interfaith dialogue at the beginning of the new millennium.
With the help of a team of specialist .consultants in each faith, and drawing on a wealth of scholarly research and firsthand source material, Mary Pat Fisher gives a fresh and challenging insight into how believers of today's faiths perceive their religion and its role in the changing world in which they live. FEATURES
- Color feature boxes on religious figures in public life, religion in practice, and interviews with practitioners
- Three color timelines and six color maps providing historical and geographical context for each religion
- Exploration of the contributions and concerns of women in each tradition
- Coverage of the socio-political context of contemporary religious practice
- Suggestions for further reading at the end of each chapter
- Extensive glossary with pronunciation guide
- With 120 illustrations, 64 in color