Within the scope of the English-language literature on Buddhism, the codes of behavior mandated by Buddhist doctrine represent an infrequently discussed topic. The selections here consist of essays on Buddhism by 17 scholars and practitioners, who address the ongoing evolution of Buddhist doctrine as reflected in its cultural, temporal, political, and geographical accommodations from the earliest days, to the present, and into the future. Past precedent is used as a means of clarifying the precise role of the precepts in the modern world as Buddhists face the 21st century and continue to encounter diverse cultural contexts.

Scholars, practitioners, and students alike will find instructive the theoretical as well as practical issues that are covered, including textual criticism, hermeneutics, cross-cultural studies, theories of action, psychology, death and dying, feminism, business management, challenges to the Western scientific paradigm, and religion in popular culture. Three main questions are explored from diverse perspectives: What was and is the significance of the precepts; how can they best be applied, and creatively adapted, to changing social conditions to best fulfill the original intentions of the Buddha; and how are we to determine present upayic demands to avoid violating those intentions? As many argue in these pages, there is much more at stake in the issue of sila/vinaya than simple guidelines for an obsolete lifestyle to be discarded at will. Rather, the case can be made that they represent an intrinsic part of Buddhist cultivation, even a sine qua non of successful, consummate practice.

Ever since its composition in the ninth century, the use of the Veni Creator in the liturgy of Pentecost and in Christian assemblies has been constant, as one continuous, solemn invocation of the Paraclete. Its language, however, is far removed from theological discourse but inspired by symbol, image and song, by poetry and liturgy, by prophecy and living models of holiness. The author is one of the foremost specialists in the theology of the Spirit. He has the master’s art of drawing the reader by communicating his own enthusiasm for the Holy Spirit.

This book is a critical study of the role played by architecture and texts in promoting political and religious ideologies in the ancient world. It explains a palace as an element in royal propaganda seeking to influence social concepts about kingship, and a text about a temple as influencing social concepts about the relationship between God and human beings. Applying the methods of analysis developed in built environment studies, the author interprets the palace and temple building programs of Sennacherib, King of Assyria, and Solomon, King of Israel. The physical evidence for the palace and the verbal evidence for the temple are explained as presenting communicative icons intended to influence contemporary political and religious concepts. The volume concludes with innovative interpretations of the contributions of architectural and verbal icons to religious and political reform.

Human leadership is a multifaceted topic in the Hebrew Bible. This holds true not only for the final form of the texts, but also for their literary history. A large range of distributions emerges from the successive sharpening or modification of different aspects of leadership. While some of them are combined to a complex figuration of leadership, others remain reserved for certain individuals. Furthermore, it can be considered a consensus within the scholarly debate, that concepts of leadership have a certain connection to the history of ancient Israel which is, though, hard to ascertain. Up to now, all these aspects of (human) leadership have been treated in a rather isolated manner. Against this background,the volume focuses on the different concepts of leadership in the Pentateuch and the Former Prophets. Concepts like "priest", "prophet", "judge", and "king" are examined in a literary, (religious-/tradition-) historical and theological perspective. Hence, the volume contributes to biblical theology and sheds new light on the redaction/reception history of the Pentateuch and the Former Prophets. Not least, it provides valuable insights into the history of religious and/or political "authorities" in Israel and Early Judaism(s).

This interdisciplinary volume presents international research and theories focusing on the development of the individual across the life span. Centering on "family" as the key context influencing, and being influenced by the developing person, the contributors to this volume discuss an array of theoretical models, methodological strategies, and substantive foci linking the study of individual development, the family system, and the broader context of human development. The volume presents continuing empirical research and theories in the realm of individual and family development and features a developmental, contextual view from a process-oriented vantage point.

T&T Clark Reader in Kierkegaard as Theologian presents an anthology of Kierkegaard's most influential works. Lee Barrett examines Kierkegaard's explicit reflections on the appropriate passionately engaged way to engage in the theological task, by discussing such key themes as the nature and purpose of human life, sin both as a disease and as a culpable act, faith, and the perception of Christ as the enactment in time of God's eternal self-giving compassion. Never before gathered together in one place, the texts featured in this reader include The Concept of Anxiety, Eighteen Upbuilding Discourses, Philosophical Crumbs and Works of Love. Additional links to further critical Kierkegaardian texts are provided by the Kierkegaard Research Center of the University of Copenhagen, the Howard and Edna Hong Kierkegaard Library of St Olaf College, and the resources of the Soren Kierkegaard Society. With each chapter featuring an introduction, explanatory notes, discussion questions and recommendation for further reading in both the primary and secondary literature, students will be able to fully discern and understand the theological dimensions of Kierkegaard's works.