How can one explain the resurgence of religion, even in a western context of rationality, postmodernity and scientific endeavor? The persistence of religious expression has compelled even diehard secularists, or proponents of the "secularization thesis," to rethink their positions. Jonathan Benthall explains precisely why societies are not bound to embrace western liberal rationality as an evolutionary inevitability. He shows that the opposite is true: that where a secular society represses the religious imagination, the human predisposition to religion will in the end break out in surprising, apparently secular, modes and outlets. Concentrating on what he calls "para-religion," a kind of secular spirituality that manifests itself within movements and organizations who consider themselves motivated by wholly rational considerations, Benthall uncovers a paradox: despite themselves, they are haunted by the shadow of irrationality. Arguing that humanitarianism, environmentalism, the animal rights movement, popular archaeology and anthropology all have "religiod" aspects, his startling conclusion is that religion, rather than coming "back," in fact never went away. A human universal, the "religious inclination" underlies the fabric of who we are, and is essential for the healthy functioning of any society.

As a pervasive occurrence in the contemporary world, wars and their economic sources are defining social and political processes in a variety of national and transnational contexts. Rebel Economies: Warlords, Insurgents, Humanitarians explores historical, anthropological and political dimensions of war economies by non-state actors across different periods and regions, while presenting their multiple manifestations as a unified, congruent phenomenon. Through a variety of conceptual and disciplinary approaches, the authors investigate, in the past and present and across three continents, the nexuses between economy, war, social transformation and state-building, revealing in the process differences and similarities that would otherwise remain hidden. Through this broad-gauge approach, the book aims, first, to rethink much of the debate around "non-state war economies," and, secondly, to expand the conversation by consciously treating this theme as a conspicuous and distinct aspect of both economy and war. This is not just a different approach but a fundamental departure from the ways in which current discussions over the economy of wars, civil conflicts, and revolutions, have informed research orientations over several decades.

The journal Anthropology Today has been, and remains, extremely Influential in anthropological studies. Between 1974 and 2000, its articles plced it in the thick of a turbulent period for anthropology. Reacting to current research interests and launching what were often heated debates,the journal set the agenda for disciplinary change and new research.
Jonathan Benthall argues that the discipline's greatest strength and potential lies in testing and refining the ideas of other disciplines. A vast array of topics are covered from both well established anthropologists and young scholars, including:
*feminine power
*indigene's rights
*fieldwork as intervention
*anthropology and the mass media
*war and civil strife.
This collection will be essential for teachers and students as well as for all those with an interest in anthropology.

This book is the fruit of twenty years' reflection on Islamic charities, both practically and as a key to understand the crisis in contemporary Islam. On the one hand Islam is undervalued as a moral and political force whose admirable qualities are epitomised in its strong tradition of charitable giving. On the other hand, it suffers from a crisis of authority that cannot be blamed entirely on the history of colonialism and stigmatisation to which Muslims have undoubtedly been subjected - most recently, as a result of the "War on Terror". The book consists of seventeen previously published chapters, with a general introduction and new prefatory material for each chapter. Part one reviews the current situation of Islamic charities from many different viewpoints. Part two expands the coverage to explore the potential for a twenty-first century global "Islamic humanism" devised by Muslims. This means addressing contentious topics such as religious toleration. -- .

Written at a time when disasters both natural - drought, famine - and manmade - the war in Yugoslavia, civil strike in South Africa - fill our TV screens and newspapers, and when politicians are arguing over how many refugees Britain should accept, this book examines the way in which relief agencies and the media interact, and illustrates many of the organizational, moral and political problems facing them. Dr Benthall considers the different styles and "marketing techniques" of the different agencies, with particular attention paid to the power of television. There are also accounts of two modern calamities: the Nigerian civil war of the late 1960s and the Armenian earthquake of 1988.

This book is the fruit of twenty years' reflection on Islamic charities, both practically and as a key to understand the crisis in contemporary Islam. On the one hand Islam is undervalued as a moral and political force whose admirable qualities are epitomised in its strong tradition of charitable giving. On the other hand, it suffers from a crisis of authority that cannot be blamed entirely on the history of colonialism and stigmatisation to which Muslims have undoubtedly been subjected - most recently, as a result of the "War on Terror". The book consists of seventeen previously published chapters, with a general introduction and new prefatory material for each chapter. Part one reviews the current situation of Islamic charities from many different viewpoints. Part two expands the coverage to explore the potential for a twenty-first century global "Islamic humanism" devised by Muslims. This means addressing contentious topics such as religious toleration. -- .

As a pervasive occurrence in the contemporary world, wars and their economic sources are defining social and political processes in a variety of national and transnational contexts. Rebel Economies: Warlords, Insurgents, Humanitarians explores historical, anthropological and political dimensions of war economies by non-state actors across different periods and regions, while presenting their multiple manifestations as a unified, congruent phenomenon. Through a variety of conceptual and disciplinary approaches, the authors investigate, in the past and present and across three continents, the nexuses between economy, war, social transformation and state-building, revealing in the process differences and similarities that would otherwise remain hidden. Through this broad-gauge approach, the book aims, first, to rethink much of the debate around "non-state war economies," and, secondly, to expand the conversation by consciously treating this theme as a conspicuous and distinct aspect of both economy and war. This is not just a different approach but a fundamental departure from the ways in which current discussions over the economy of wars, civil conflicts, and revolutions, have informed research orientations over several decades.