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Books > Humanities > Religion & beliefs > General > Interfaith relations
One of the most comprehensive volumes on Myanmar’s identity
politics to date, this book discusses the entanglement of ethnic
and religious identities in Myanmar and the challenges presented by
its extensive ethnic-religious diversity. Religious and ethnic
conjunctions are treated from historical, political, religious and
ethnic minority perspectives through both case studies and overview
chapters. The book addresses the thorny issue of Buddhist
supremacy, Burmese nationalism and ethnic-religious hierarchy,
along with reflections on Buddhist, Christian and Muslim
communities. Bringing together international scholars and Burmese
scholars, this book combines the perspectives of academic observers
with those of political activists and religious leaders from
different faiths. Through the breadth of its disciplinary approach,
its focus on identity issues and its inclusion of insider and
outsider perspectives, this book provides new insights into the
complex religious situation of Myanmar.
With globalization helping those who assert incompatible
differences between their respective faiths, clashes of faith are
increasingly common in different parts of the world. As a result,
the study of religious conflict is also increasing. This book
reverses that perspective by addressing a case of peaceful
religious coexistence and social cohesion, namely in the South
Indian village of Tranquebar (Tharangambadi) in Tamil Nadu. The
birthplace of the Lutheran mission to India in 1706, this former
Danish colonial settlement is now a famous heritage site. Although
badly hit by the 2004 tsunami and today numerically dominated by
members of a Hindu fishermen's caste, so far the town has managed
to steer clear of the kind of religious conflicts too often found
in a number of states in present-day India, including Tamil Nadu.
This in-depth study, based on post-tsunami field studies in 2006
and 2007, examines the ways in which Hindus, Muslims and different
Christian denominations interact in their day-to-day lives.
Further, it demonstrates that the role played by religion - as far
as social cohesion is concerned - is invariably tied up with
several other factors (social stratification, economic development,
educational institutions and such social communities as caste
councils, etc.) and may serve as a basis for unity as well as
division.
Earth, Empire and Sacred Text examines the Muslim-Christian
theology of creation and humanity, aiming to construct a dialogue
to enable both faiths to work together to preserve our planet, to
bring justice to its most needy inhabitants, and to contribute to
peace-building. Earth, Empire and Sacred Text opens with an
analysis of the influential shift from the Cartesian view of the
autonomous, disembodied self to a self defined in discourse,
community and culture. The "career" of Q. 2:30 (Adam's God-mandated
trusteeship) is then traced, from Islamic commentaries of the
classical period to writings of Muslim scholars in the modern and
postmodern periods. This is examined alongside the concept of human
trusteeship under God in Christian and Jewish writers. The book
concludes by highlighting the essential elements for a
Muslim-Christian theology of human trusteeship.
This Reader brings together nearly 80 extracts from major works by
Christians and Muslims that reflect their reciprocal knowledge and
attitudes. It spans the period from the early 7th century, when
Islam originated, to 1500. The general introduction provides a
historical and geographical summary of Christian-Muslim encounters
in the period and a short account of the religious, intellectual
and social circumstances in which encounters took place and works
were written. Topics from the Christian perspective include:
condemnations of the Qur'an as a fake and Muhammad as a fraud,
depictions of Islam as a sign of the final judgement, and proofs
that it was a Christian heresy. On the Muslim side they include:
demonstrations of the Bible as corrupt, proofs that Christian
doctrines were illogical, comments on the inferior status of
Christians, and accounts of Christian and Muslim scholars in
collaboration together. Each of the six parts contains the
following pedagogical features: -A short introduction -An
introduction to each passage and author -Notes explaining terms
that readers might not have previously encountered
The far right is on the rise across Europe, pushing a battle
scenario in which Islam clashes with Christianity as much as
Christianity clashes with Islam. From the margins to the
mainstream, far-right protesters and far-right politicians call for
the defence of Europe's Christian culture. The far right claims
Christianity. This book investigates contemporary far-right claims
to Christianity. Ulrich Schmiedel and Hannah Strommen examine the
theologies that emerge in the far right across Europe,
concentrating on Norway, Germany and Great Britain. They explore
how churches in these three countries have been complicit,
complacent or critical of the far right, sometimes intentionally
and sometimes unintentionally. Ultimately, Schmiedel and Strommen
encourage a creative and collaborative theological response. To
counter the far right, Christianity needs to be practiced in an
open and open-ended way which calls Christians into contact with
Muslims.
This is a new four-volume collection from Routledge 's Critical
Concepts in Islamic Studies series. It brings together in one mini
library the canonical and the best cutting-scholarship to explore
the complex relationship between Islam and religious diversity.
The collection is supplemented with a full index, and includes
an introduction to each volume, newly written by the editor, which
places the assembled materials in their historical and intellectual
context.
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