This title presents an analysis of 'messianism' in Continental philosophy, using a case study of Levinas to uncover its underlying philosophical intelligibility. There is no greater testament to Emmanuel Levinas' reputation as an enigmatic thinker than in his mediations on eschatology and its relevance for contemporary thought. Levinas has come to be seen as a principle representative in Continental philosophy - alongside the likes of Heidegger, Benjamin, Adorno and Zizek - of a certain philosophical messianism, differing from its religious counterpart in being formulated apparently without appeal to any dogmatic content. To date, however, Levinas' messianism has not received the same detailed attention as other aspects of his wide ranging ethical vision. Terence Holden attempts to redress this imbalance, tracing the evolution of the messianic idea across Levinas' career, emphasising the transformations or indeed displacements which this idea undergoes in taking on philosophical intelligibility. He suggests that, in order to crack the enigma which this idea represents, we must consider not only the Jewish tradition from which Levinas draws inspiration, but also Nietzsche, who ostensibly would represent the greatest rival to the messianic idea in the history of philosophy, with his notion of the 'parody' of messianism. This groundbreaking series offers original reflections on theory and method in the study of religions, and demonstrates new approaches to the way religious traditions are studied and presented. Studies published under its auspices look to clarify the role and place of Religious Studies in the academy, but not in a purely theoretical manner. Each study will demonstrate its theoretical aspects by applying them to the actual study of religions, often in the form of frontier research.

Este valioso libro viene a llenar un hueco enorme en la Teolog a Cristiana en lengua castellana: La falta de informaci n confiable sobre los or genes jud os de la fe cristiana. Para aquellos que buscan la sencillez, el libro expresa muchas verdades fundamentales que permanecieron ocultas en los antiguos tratados de la historia de la Iglesia en un lenguaje simple y ameno. En cambio, para aquellos que aman la seriedad acad mica el tratado est lleno de referencias cuidadosamente documentadas, frutos de la erudici n moderna y la antiqu sima tradici n de Israel. El inicio de esta obra provee al lector de la perspectiva hist rica del origen jud o de la Iglesia y su posterior separaci n de Israel. Luego, expone las fallas de las hip tesis aramea y griega como idiomas originales del Nuevo Testamento, y demuestra el origen hebreo de los Evangelios y las ense anzas de los ap stoles. Los siguientes cap tulos se enfocan en la judaidad de Jesucristo, y por qu nunca abandon su fe ancestral para fundar una religi n separada del tronco tradicional del juda smo del Segundo Templo. Explican, adem s, por qu las ense anzas de Jesucristo o Yahush a ha Mash aj son todas ellas jud as e interpretarlas fuera de ese marco religioso inevitablemente lleva a graves errores en la doctrina y la pr ctica de la fe. Por ltimo, explora con integridad teol gica c mo los Padres de la Iglesia y los Reformadores Protestantes forjaron con su antisemitismo los cap tulos m?'s vergonzosos de la historia humana: Las Cruzadas, la Santa Inquisici n y el Holocausto. Sin duda alguna, su consistente punto de vista jud o nazareno lo hace un libro sumamente interesante, informativo y conmovedor que debe ser le do por cada pastor, seminarista, misionero y estudiante sincero de la Biblia; tanto cristiano como jud o por igual.

This book is the first of two volumes that aim to produce something not previously attempted: a synthetic history of Muslim responses to the Bible, stretching from the rise of Islam to the present day. It combines scholarship with a genuine narrative, so as to tell the story of Muslim engagement with the Bible. Covering Sunni, Imami Shi'i and Isma'ili perspectives, this study will offer a scholarly overview of three areas of Muslim response, namely ideas of corruption, use of the Biblical text, and abrogation of the text. For each period of history, the important figures and dominant trends, along with exceptions, are identified. The interplay between using and criticising the Bible is explored, as well as how the respective emphasis on these two approaches rises and falls in different periods and locations. The study critically engages with existing scholarship, scrutinizing received views on the subject, and shedding light on an important area of interfaith concern.

Similarities between esoteric and mystical currents in different religious traditions have long interested scholars. This book takes a new look at the relationship between such currents. It advances a discussion that started with the search for religious essences, archetypes, and universals, from William James to Eranos. The universal categories that resulted from that search were later criticized as essentialist constructions, and questioned by deconstructionists. An alternative explanation was advanced by diffusionists: that there were transfers between different traditions. This book presents empirical case studies of such constructions, and of transfers between Judaism, Christianity, and Islam in the premodern period, and Judaism, Christianity, and Western esotericism in the modern period. It shows that there were indeed transfers that can be clearly documented, and that there were also indeed constructions, often very imaginative. It also shows that there were many cases that were neither transfers nor constructions, but a mixture of the two.