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Living Religionspresents a highly readable and stimulating survey of the modern religious world though an emphasis on the personal consciousness of believers and their own accounts of their religion and relevance in contemporary life. "Religion is not a museum piece. Religion is a vibrant force in the lives of many people around the world, and many religions are presently experiencing a renaissance." - Mary Pat Fisher, Preface toLiving Religions Along with a team of specialist consultants in each faith, and drawing on a wealth of scholarly research and firsthand source material, Mary Pat Fisher provides a fresh and challenging insight into the historical development and teachings of traditional faiths, indigenous religions, and new religious movements. She considers how the contemporary beliefs and practices of each of these traditions have evolved, and explores the changing nature of each religion; particularly the role of women, and the issues and controversies such as fundamentalism, violence, globalization, and interfaith initiatives.

Mary Pat Fisher writes about all religions, not only from academic research, but also from her experiences with religions around the world. Much of her knowledge comes from the unique interfaith community in India, Gobind Sadan, where she has lived since 1991. In addition to eight editions of Living Religions, she has written other textbooks about religions and also about art.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS:

"In order to try to understand each religion from the inside, I have traveled for many years to study and worship with devotees and teachers of all faiths, and to interview them about their experience of their tradition. People of all religions also come to the Gobind Sadan Institute for Advanced Studies in Comparative Religions, in New Delhi, where it is my good fortune to meet and speak with them about their spiritual experiences and beliefs.

In preparing this book, I have worked directly with consultants who are authorities in specific traditions and who have offered detailed suggestions and resources. For breadth of scholarship, I have engaged the help of a new group of consultants..."

EIGHTH EDITION CONSULTANTS:

JOSEPH ADLER Kenyon College

AFE ADOGAME University of Edinburgh

ROBIN RINEHART Lafayette College

KARMA LEKSHE TSOMO University of San Diego

WANG MINQING Cornell University and Hunan University, China

VANESSA OCHS University of Virginia

AMY DEROGATIS Michigan State University

ALI IHSAN YITIK Dokuz Eylul University, Izmir, Turkey

DR. MOHINDER SINGH Bhai Vir Singh Sahitya Sadan, New Delhi

CHRISTINE GUDORF Florida International University

ARVIND SHARMA McGill University, Montreal

Brief Table of Contents

Chapter 1. Religious Responses.

Chapter 2. Indigenous Sacred Ways.

Chapter 3. Hinduism.

Chapter 4. Jainism.

Chapter 5. Buddhism.

Chapter 6. Daoism and Confucianism.

Chapter 7. Shinto.

Chapter 8. Judaism.

Chapter 9. Christianity.

Chapter 10. Islam.

Chapter 11. Sikhism.

Chapter 12. New Religious Movements.

Chapter 13. Religion in the Twenty-First Century.

Glossary.

Index.

Timeline.

Complete Table of Contents

Preface ix

Teaching and learning resources xiii

MAP Religions of the World Today xiv

TIMELINE xvi

Chapter 1

RELIGIOUS RESPONSES 1

Why are there religions? 3

— Materialistic perspective: humans invented religion 3

— Functional perspective: religion is useful 4

— Belief perspective: Ultimate Reality exists 7

Understandings of Sacred Reality 10

EXCLUSIVISM VS. UNIVERSALISM A letter from

I. H. Azad Faruqi 12

Ritual, symbol, and myth 14

TEACHING STORY Descendants of the Eagle 17

Absolutist and liberal interpretations 18

BOX Angels Weep 19

The encounter between science and religion 20

RELIGION IN PRACTICE When Science Approaches Religion 25

Women in religions 26

Negative aspects of organized religions 28

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Living Religions

Living Religions

0205835856

Summary

Author Biography

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials