This work offers an exploration of the formation of the conception of 'catastrophic messianism' in the Gabriel Revelation. It features the first discussion of the recently discovered text "The Gabriel Revelation" - an apocalyptic text written on stone at the turn of the Common Era. This tablet provides revolutionary paths to the understanding of the historical Jesus and the birth of Christianity. It explores the formation of the conception of 'catastrophic messianism' in the Gabriel Revelation. According to this conception, the death of a messianic leader and his resurrection by the angel Gabriel after three days is an essential part of the redemptive process. This conception is a new key which enables us for the first time to understand the messianic vision of the historical Jesus.This important and fascinating book will thus shed new and revolutionary light on our basic view of Christianity. The Robert and Arlene Kogod Library of Judaic Studies publishes new research which provides new directions for modern Jewish thought and life and which serves to enhance the quality of dialogue between classical sources and the modern world. This book series reflects the mission of the Shalom Hartman Institute, a pluralistic research and leadership institute, at the forefront of Jewish thought and education. It empowers scholars, rabbis, educators and layleaders to develop new and diverse voices within the tradition, laying foundations for the future of Jewish life in Israel and around the world.

Islam is a very mysterious and complex faith, one of intellectual depth in prayer and practice. It is unfortunate that the teachings of Islam have been marred by centuries of intellectual malaise, political misdirection, extremism, and disunity, leaving many spiritual wanderers-both Muslim and non-Muslim-to ponder a plethora of unaddressed questions about these sacred teachings. In his newest book, The Muslim Book of Why: What Everyone Should Know about Islam, author, scholar, and leading jihad theorist Warithudeen Umar highlights the concept of ijtihad in an attempt to help answer many of today's most pressing questions about Islam.

Ijtihad is described as a creative and disciplined intellectual effort to derive legal rulings from Islamic sources while taking into consideration the variables brought on by the fluctuating circumstances of the Muslim world. Though the world has changed and expanded, humanity's need for these teachings viewed through the clarifying concept of ijtihad has not.

To right these wrongs of gross misguidance within Muslim society, we must deconstruct history in order to discern what went wrong after the revelation of the Qur'an was shared with the world. The Muslim Book of Why seeks to do so, refocusing Muslim thought on a life of faith, family development, and worship.

For thousands of years, the Jewish people have endured many atrocities. Some may wonder why the Jewish people have been subjected to this treatment instead of those from other races. In The Sacrificial Lamb, author Joey Kiser explains that God has not forsaken Jewish followers, but instead has named them His chosen people.

Using historical biblical examples, Kiser shares his experience and ideas about the history of the Jewish people and his ideas about Islam and the Christian faith. "The Sacrificial Lamb" shows why the Jewish people were chosen to be sacrificed so the world would not perish-a sacrifice to ward off the Devil's plan to destroy mankind.

"The Sacrificial Lamb" illustrates that now is the time to understand-a time to open the minds and hearts of all of mankind so the truth will lead us all to a better place to create a new world full of love and people caring for one another. It makes way for a world ready for kindness, joy, and understanding so we can live in peace for a thousand years.

Molinism, named after the sixteenth-century Spanish Jesuit Luis de Molina, re-emerged in the 1970s after it was unwittingly assumed in versions of Alvin Plantinga's Free Will Defense against the Logical Argument from Evil. The Molinist notion of middle knowledge--and especially its main objects, so-called counterfactuals of (creaturely) freedom--have been the subject of vigorous debate in analytical philosophy of religion ever since. Is middle knowledge logically coherent? Is it a benefit or a liability overall for a satisfying account of divine providence? The essays in this collection examine the status, defensibility, and application of Molinism. Friends and foes of Molinism are well represented, and there are some lively exchanges between them. The collection provides a snap-shot of the current state of the Molinism Wars, along with some discussion of where we've been and where we might go in the future. More battles surely lie ahead; the essays and ideas in this collection are likely to have a major impact on future directions. The essays are specially written by a line-up of established and respected philosophers of religion, metaphysicians, and logicians. There is a substantive Introduction and an extensive Bibliography to assist both students and professionals.

This collection of essays analyzes a >traditiona (TM) as a category in the historical and comparative study of religion. The book questions the common assumption that tradition is simply the a oepassing downa or imitation of prior practices and discourses. It begins from the premise that many traditions are, at least in part, social fabrications, often deliberately serving particular ideological ends. Individual chapters examine a wide variety of historical periods and religions (Congolese, Buddhist, Christian, Confucian, Cree, Esoteric, Hawaiian, Hindu, Islamic, Jewish, New Religious Movement, and Shinto). Different sections of the book consider tradition's relation to three sets of issues: legitimation and authority; agency and identity; modernity and the West.

This is an introduction to the problems of reading Irenaeus of Lyons (c. 130-200), known as 'the first great Catholic theologian'. This book is a fully revised and extended edition of Denis Minns' standard introduction to the theology of Irenaeus. Readers will find it comprehensive, informative, lucid, and elegantly written. The book is chiefly aimed at those approaching him for the first time, but it is based on the most recent scholarship and provides much help for those who wish to work on him as a more advanced level. Irenaeus of Lyons (c. 130-200) has been called 'the first great Catholic theologian'. As this book explains, the description is accurate, since the Christianity represented by Irenaeus is recognizably that of the Catholic Church, though unfamiliar in its primitiveness. The thought of Irenaeus represents an important stage in the development of Christian orthodoxy. Denis Minns explains why Irenaeus, the 2nd-century theologian, deserves his place in history. He explains why, though unfamiliar in its primitiveness, the Christianity represented by Irenaeus is recognizably that of the Catholic Church. Minns takes account of the recent scholarly work on Irenaeus and his period which has been done in recent years, but this book is principally an introduction to the problems of reading him. It is aimed mainly at those approaching Irenaeus for the first time.

For Kierkegaard the most important thing in life is to become a single individual or a true self. We are all born as human beings, but this makes us only members of a crowd, not true selves. To become a true self, we must transcend what we are at any given time and orient ourselves to the possible and to the actuality of the possible, to which all that is possible owes itself. True selves exist only in becoming, they are fragile, and that is their strength. They are not grounded by their own activities, but in a reality extra se, the flip side of which is a deep passivity that underlies all their activity and allows them to continually leave themselves and move beyond their respective actualities toward the new and the possible. Therefore, without the passion of possibility, there is no truly single individual. This study of Kierkegaard's post-metaphysical theology outlines his existential phenomenology of the self by exploring in three parts what Kierkegaard has to say about the sense of self (finitude, uniqueness, self-interpretation, and alienation), about selfless passion (anxiety, trust, hope, and true love), and about how to become a true self (a Christian in Christendom and a neighbor of God's neighbors).

This is a major reference work on all aspects of theology in the reformation period. This book will introduce the main theological topics of Reformation theology in language that is clear and concise. Theology in the Reformation era can be complicated and contentious. This volume aims to cut through the theological jargon and explain what people believed and why. The volume will begin with an essay aimed at explaining to students how one can approach the study of sixteenth century theology. It will include a guide to major events, persons, doctrines, and movements. Finally, in-depth essays by noted scholars will complete the volume.