Religions Today provides a sympathetic account of what living religions really are. Fisher traces the historical development and practices of major religious movements and explores how these evolve into contemporary belief and teaching. She considers major faiths as well as indigenous religions and new religious movements, focusing on how living religions affect contemporary society. Case studies and interviews with living people ensure that this concise guide is both readable and stimulating.

The field encompassed by this collection on 'Religion, Sexuality, and Spirituality' is a vast and controversial one. It encompasses both normative and non-normative sexual identities and behaviours in the so-called 'world religions' (Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism) and also such modes of being and conduct in the multitudinous indigenous religions, new religions and spiritualities, and smaller long-established traditions (for example, Zoroastrianism, Sikhism, Shinto, and so on).

In Indic religious traditions, a number of rituals and myths exist in which the environment is revered. Despite this nature worship in India, its natural resources are under heavy pressure with its growing economy and exploding population. This has led several scholars to raise questions about the role religious communities can play in environmentalism. Does nature worship inspire Hindus to act in an environmentally conscious way? This book explores the above questions with three communities, the Swadhyaya movement, the Bishnoi, and the Bhil communities. Presenting the texts of Bishnois, their environmental history, and their contemporary activism; investigating the Swadhyaya movement from an ecological perspective; and exploring the Bhil communities and their Sacred Groves, this book applies a non-Western hermeneutical model to interpret the religious traditions of Indic communities. With a foreword by Roger S Gottlieb.

This book, first published in 1994, is a compendium of new translations of certain works regarded as fundamental texts in the Serene Reflection Buddhist Tradition (Soto Zen). All the texts were in Chinese, either as original works or as translations from Sanskrit. Several of them are central to the ceremonial not only of the Soto Zen Tradition but also of other Mahayana Buddhist traditions as well.

In Jews, Judaism, and Success, Robert Eisen attempts to solve a long-standing mystery that has fascinated many: How did Jews become such a remarkably successful minority in the modern western world? Eisen argues that Jews achieved such success because they were unusually well-prepared for it by their religion - in particular, Rabbinic Judaism, or the Judaism of the rabbis. Rooted in the Talmud, this form of Judaism instilled in Jews key values that paved the way for success in modern western society: autonomy, freedom of thought, worldliness, and education. The book carefully analyses the evolution of these four values over the past two thousand years in order to demonstrate that they had a longer and richer history in Jewish culture than in western culture. The book thus disputes the common assumption that Rabbinic Judaism was always an obstacle to Jews becoming modern. It demonstrates that while modern Jews rejected aspects of Rabbinic Judaism, they also retained some of its values, and these values in particular led to Jewish success. Written for a broad range of readers, Jews, Judaism, and Success provides unique insights on the meaning of success and how it is achieved in the modern world.

The topic of love and non-violence in Islam, in an environment imbued with intolerance, extremism and terrorism, is very significant. This book portrays how loving humanity and eliminating violence are key in all the Islamic teachings and are evident in the conduct of Allah's exalted Messenger.The Holy Quran states that Almighty Allah has raised the Prophet as an epitome of mercy for the entire universe. Despite atrocious afflictions caused by the polytheists of Mecca, the Prophet remained peaceful and always sought dialogue as a means of resolution.Islam is a religion that preaches peace, security, love and regard. According to Islamic teachings, a Muslim is one from whose tongue and hand all people, whether Muslim or Non-Muslim, are safe. The dignity, inviolability and protection of human life is basic to Islamic law. Killing a human unjustly is unlawful and also an act of disbelief in certain cases. Islam states that the sanctity of life is superior to the sanctity of the Ka'ba hence shedding blood unjustly has been condemned in the harshest possible terms.Under Islamic law even in the state of war non-combatants cannot be killed during battle.The only enemies who are allowed to be killed are those actively take part in combat. Other restrictions also include killing animals, damaging crops, destroying buildings, properties and places of worship. Such strict rulings are in place even during times of war therefore it is clear that all acts of terrorism and extremism are in direct contravention of the teachings of the Quran and hadith.Islam eliminated hatred through love, terrorism through peace and ignorance through knowledge. This book portrays how love, peace and knowledge form the very essence of Islam.

On Salafism offers a compelling new understanding of this phenomenon, both its development and contemporary manifestations. Salafism became associated with fundamentalism when the 9/11 Commission used it to explain the terror attacks and has since been connected with the violence of the so-called Islamic State. With this book, Azmi Bishara critically deconstructs claims of continuity between early Islam and modern militancy and makes a counterargument: Salafism is a wholly modern construct informed by specific sociopolitical contexts. Bishara offers a sophisticated account of various movements-such as Wahabbism and Hanbalism-frequently collapsed into simplistic understandings of Salafism. He distinguishes reformist from regressive Salafism, and examines patterns of modernization in the development of contemporary Islamic political movements and associations. In deconstructing the assumptions of linear continuity between traditional and contemporary movements, Bishara details various divergences in both doctrine and context of modern Salafisms, plural. On Salafism is a crucial read for those interested in Islamism, jihadism, and Middle East politics and history.

Within contemporary orthodoxy, debates over sex and gender have become increasingly polemical over the past generation. Beginning with questions around women’s ordination, arguments have expanded to include feminism, sexual orientation, the sacrament of marriage, definitions of family, adoption of children, and care of transgender individuals. Preliminary responses to each of these topics are shaped by gender essentialism, the idea that male and female are ontologically fixed and incommensurate categories with different sets of characteristics and gifts for each sex. These categories, in turn, delineate gender roles in the family, the church, and society. Gender Essentialism and Orthodoxy offers an immanent critique of gender essentialism in the stream of the contemporary Orthodox Church influenced by the “Paris School” of Russian émigré theologians and their heirs. It uses an interdisciplinary approach to bring into conversation patristic reflections on sex and gender, personalist theological anthropology, insights from gender and queer theory, and modern biological understandings of human sexual differentiation. Though these are seemingly unrelated discourses, Gender Essentialism and Orthodoxy reveals unexpected points of convergence, as each line of thought eschews a strict gender binary in favor of more open-ended possibilities. The study concludes by drawing out some theological implications of the preceding findings as they relate to the ordination of women to the priesthood, same-sex unions and sacramental understandings of marriage, definitions of family, and pastoral care for intersex, transgender, and nonbinary parishioners.

Do you have the courage...the faith...the fire?
Loving the world like God does involves extreme sacrifice. Living the passionate, courageous life Jesus challenged us all to live also has radical effects, demonstrated in these 366 true accounts of fellow believers from around the world:
A Christian claims the names of God at knifepoint-- and lives to tell about it . . .
Prayer revives a coma victim, in defiance of village witch doctors . . .
A former Muslim finds forgiveness in the Jesus she denied . . .
Prayerwalking college students lay a foundation for spiritual revival in West Africa . . .
If you're bored with your comfort-fit Christianity, if you're ready for God to shake you awake, then take the challenge. Find out in these pages what on earth God is doing in your generation . . .and discover your role in making a difference in the world.

Walk alongside Grammy Award-winning artist, worship leader, and Bible study
teacher Laura Story in her continuing journey of accepting God's plan for her
life and living it out in total surrender.

Laura Story's husband, Martin, was diagnosed with a brain tumor early in their
marriage. In a moment their life plans changed drastically. After wondering about
their ability to be parents and a struggle with infertility, Laura gave birth to three
children, including twin boys, in three years' time. Then a sonogram at thirty-seven
weeks revealed an unexpected issue with their fourth child. No life is without trouble,
but when you face one challenging situation after another, your days can begin to feel
desperately hopeless. Yet God truly uses all things for our good. When offered up to
him, every circumstance can become a perfect opportunity to completely surrender
your will to his.

In I Give Up, Laura uses her story to show why surrender to God is important and
how we can go about doing it. She shares how surrendering expectations is not a
step-by-step process but a willful decision to wait on God, trusting that he and his
word are true. In this four-part study she explains

• why surrender is a good thing
• whom we surrender to
• how we surrender
• how our surrender affects the lives of others

Though surrender sometimes flies in the face of our instincts, hopes, and dreams, it's
never without benefit. A surrendered life includes the surprise of a true joy-filled
existence in which trust is reasonable, reconciliation is possible, and relationships can
heal.

St. Martin de Porres was a friend of St. Rose of Lima. He became a Dominican lay brother and spent his life helping those in need. Many anecdotes telling how he raised the dead, multiplied food, cured the sick, healed animals, visited the needy through bilocation and did extreme penance.

When Bob "Bull" Watson was hired as general manager of the New York Yankees in 1996, his orders were to give the club a title it had not had since 1977 and 1978 World Series Champions -- to do it as soon as possible, preferably that same year. Watson survived that pressure just as he survived his bout with cancer and his difficult climb out of the minor leagues in the racially turbulent 1960s. "After 32 years in baseball .. surviving may be the one thing I do best." Interwoven with his life story is an informative and entertaining discussion of all things baseball -- how a hitter thinks, how to build a powerful ball club, how to manage the personalities and egos in the game, and how the game has changed over the years.

In "You Don't Have to Be Blind to See," Jim Stovall shows you how to choose a new path that will lead to success in every area of your life. This powerful, inspiring book will help you dream big dreams and define success for yourself. It will also give you the tools to make your dreams come true and succeed on your own terms. Let Jim Stovall show you how to discover a vision for your personal destiny. "You don't need to wait for a tragedy to give you a wake-up call about your priorities and your dreams....You don't have to be blind to see "

Since Bob Carlisle's song "Butterfly Kisses" topped Billboard"s national charts it has become an anthem to the special love between dads and daughters. This book shares letters from fans who wanted to share their own father/daughter stories.

Bestselling authors "Bruce and Stan" drive across the country to 12 major cities and 12 colleges asking real people the world's most important question: What is the meaning of life?

In recent years, changes in religious studies in general and the study of Hinduism in particular have drawn more scholarly attention to other forms of the Hindu faith that are concretely embodied in temples, icons, artworks, rituals, and pilgrimage practices. This book analyses the phenomenon of pilgrimage as a religious practice and experience and examines Shri Shailam, a renowned south Indian pilgrimage site of Shiva and Goddess Durga. In doing so, it investigates two dimensions: the worldview of a place that is of utmost sanctity for Hindu pilgrims and its historical evolution from medieval to modern times. Reddy blends religion, anthropology, art history and politics into one interdisciplinary exploration of how Shri Shailam became the epicentre for Shaivism. Through this approach, the book examines Shri Shailam's influence on pan-Indian religious practices; the amalgamation of Brahmanical and regional traditions; and the intersection of the ideological and the civic worlds with respect to the management of pilgrimage centre in modern times. This book is the first thorough study of Shri Shailam and brings together phenomenological and historical study to provide a comprehensive understanding of both the religious dimension and the historical development of the social organization of the pilgrimage place. As such, it will be of interest to students of Hinduism, Pilgrimage and South Asian Studies.

In A Pelican in the Wilderness, Isabel Colegate casts through time and place to uncover tales of human solitude.

The quest for solitude – whether for social, religious, personal or intellectual reasons – dates back to ancient times. As a spiritual phenomenon it has its roots in Chinese, Hindu and Western philosophies; from the mystical Desert Fathers – the most famous of which was St Jerome – who cast themselves out into deserts and wastelands in search of spiritual revelation, to the Celts on Iona and Lindisfarne (who arrived with only onions to live on). Rousseau found solitaries inspirational, (but declared that he would die of boredom if he had to become a hermit himself, a view possibly shared by St Jerome who only managed to stay in the desert for two years).

Hermits and hermitages even used to be a feature of rural and urban England. Sir John Soane had a hermit's cell installed in his house in Lincolns' Inn. At Hawkstone in Shropshire in the 1780s it was reported that a live hermit was seen gazing at a human skull. And in the eighteenth-century it was seen as highly fashionable to place a hermitage in landscaped gardens; an advert would then be placed for a hermit, specifying particular requirements such as a promise not to cut hair, nails or beard. In return the hermit would receive food and a small gratuity. One hermit in Painshill, Surrey was sacked for drinking beer in the village inn.

But of course, recluses, solitaries, hermits, anchoresses (female solitaries) and 'loners' continue to exist to this day, quietly opting to live outside society or living in complete seclusion in wildernesses. Isabel Colegate examines their lives, motivations, self-reflections, writings and the thoughts of present-day urban and rural hermits.

Those who love Colegate's fiction will find all of its virtues here: historical imagination, quicksilver characterization, understated wit, and an eye for the bizarre matched by a power to evoke the sublime.

Already an internet phenomenon, these wise and insightful lessons by popular newspaper columnist and Pulitzer Prize finalist Regina Brett will make you see the possibilities in your life in a whole new way.
When Regina Brett turned 50, she wrote a column on the 50 lessons life had taught her. She reflected on all she had learned through becoming a single parent, looking for love in all the wrong places, working on her relationship with God, battling cancer and making peace with a difficult childhood. It became one of the most popular columns ever published in the newspaper, and since then the 50 lessons have been emailed to hundreds of thousands of people.
Brett now takes the 50 lessons and expounds on them in essays that are deeply personal. From "Don't take yourself too seriously-Nobody else does" to "Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift," these lessons will strike a chord with anyone who has ever gone through tough times--and haven't we all?

Whether you're a veteran grandma or a Nana-to-be, this collection of stories will warm your heart and make you laugh about the universal experiences of being a grandmother.

The Jewish intellectual tradition has a long and complex history that has resulted in significant and influential works of scholarship. In this book, the authors suggest that there is a series of common principles that can be extracted from the Jewish intellectual tradition that have broad, even life-changing, implications for individual and societal achievement. These principles include respect for tradition while encouraging independent, often disruptive thinking; a precise system of logical reasoning in pursuit of the truth; universal education continuing through adulthood; and living a purposeful life. The main objective of this book is to understand the historical development of these principles and to demonstrate how applying them judiciously can lead to greater intellectual productivity, a more fulfilling existence, and a more advanced society.

Explores how Black Buddhist Teachers and Practitioners interpret Western Buddhism in unique spiritual and communal ways In Black Buddhists and the Black Radical Tradition, Rima Vesely-Flad examines the distinctive features of Black-identifying Buddhist practitioners, arguing that Black Buddhists interpret Buddhist teachings in ways that are congruent with Black radical thought. Indeed, the volume makes the case that given their experiences with racism-both in the larger society and also within largely white-oriented Buddhist organizations-Black cultural frameworks are necessary for illuminating the Buddha's wisdom. Drawing on interviews with forty Black Buddhist teachers and practitioners, Vesely-Flad argues that Buddhist teachings, through their focus on healing intergenerational trauma, provide a vitally important foundation for achieving Black liberation. She shows that Buddhist teachings as practiced by Black Americans emphasize different aspects of the religion than do those in white convert Buddhist communities, focusing more on devotional practices to ancestors and community uplift. The book includes discussions of the Black Power movement, the Black feminist movement, and the Black prophetic tradition. It also offers a nuanced discussion of how the Black body, which has historically been reviled, is claimed as a vehicle for liberation. In so doing, the book explores how the experiences of non-binary, gender non-conforming, and transgender practitioners of African descent are validated within the tradition. The book also uplifts the voices of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer Black Buddhists. This unique volume shows the importance of Black Buddhist teachers' insights into Buddhist wisdom, and how they align Buddhism with Black radical teachings, helping to pull Buddhism away from dominant white cultural norms.

Sexuality, Religion and the Sacred is a thoughtful collection of bisexual, polysexual and pansexual scholarship on religion and spirituality. It examines how religious and spiritual traditions address sexuality, whilst also exploring the ways in which bisexually-, polysexually-, and pansexually-active people embrace religious and spiritual practice. The volume offers a comprehensive analysis of these prevalent themes by focusing on five main areas of discussion: Christian and Unitarian Discourses; Indigenous and Decolonizing Spiritual Discourses; Feminist Spiritual Discourses; Buddhist Discourses; and Neo/Pagan Discourses. Sexuality, Religion and the Sacred offers an accessible yet scholarly treatment of these topics through a collection of critical essays by academics of theology, humanities, cultural studies and social sciences, as well as sexology professionals and clergy from various faith and spiritual traditions. It gives readers an insight into the intersection of sexualities and spiritualities, and attempts to disrupt this very dichotomy through its careful consideration of a wide variety of discourses. This book was originally published as a special issue of the Journal of Bisexuality.

Dare to Dream provides the key to making your best future a reality. What's the best future you can imagine? Is it fame? A good job? A happy family? Whatever your idea of personal success, your DREAMS are the key to finding it! With her trademark lively humor and keen insight plus lots of inspiring success stories, Florence Littauer reveals the exciting ways your life can change.