What are the spiritual consequences of abuse and trauma? Where is God? How and why does such senseless suffering occur? What is the relationship between loss and hope? What are the benefits of examining loss and hope from an interreligious focus? These are some of the questions addressed in this volume, written by leading international scholars and which also includes contributions by those who have suffered: survivors of genocide and state terror. Case studies of loss and hope from around the world are discussed, including from the United States, Ireland, Sri Lanka, India, Iran, Iraq, Argentina, China, and Chile. Religions examined include Buddhism, Islam, Christianity, Judaism and Hinduism. Three interconnected lenses are used to explore new perspectives on loss and hope: survivors and victims' testimony; interfaith studies; and ethical approaches. The book highlights the need for responses to atrocity that transcend differences within gender, class, religion, race and ethnicity. The authors stress the need for partnership and dialogue from an interfaith perspective, and while neither hiding not unduly minimizing the extent of losses in the world, attempt to establish an ethics of hope in the face of destabilizing losses in the realms of human rights and post-conflict resolution. Loss and Hope is the first book to bring together this high level and diversity of scholars living and working all over the world from different faith, cultural and ethnic backgrounds examining the universal themes of loss and hope.

This book offers a creative and accessible exploration of two comic book series: Y: The Last Man and Saga It examines themes pertinent to the 21st century and its challenges, such as those of diversity and religious pluralism, issues of gender and war, heroes and moral failures, and forgiveness and seeking justice Through close interdisciplinary reading and personal narratives, the author delves into the complex worlds of Y and Saga in search of an ethics, meaning, and a path resonant with real world struggles Reading these works side-by-side, the analysis draws parallels and seeks common themes around four central ideas: seeking and making meaning in a meaningless world; love and parenting through oppression and grief; peacefulness when surrounded by violence; and the perils and hopes of diversity and communion This timely, attentive, and thoughtful study will resonate with scholars and students of comic studies, media and cultural studies, philosophy, theology, literature, psychology, and popular culture studies

Theology and Spider-Man provides a look at the religious themes present in one of the most popular heroes of the past half-century, Spider-Man. In order to create a systematic theology of Spider-Man, the contributors delve into themes of sin, salvation, and creedal theology, while also addressing liberation theology, Black theology, bioethics, and hermeneutics. This volume balances theological depth with discussion of the comics and films, which makes it a perfect collection for those interested in theology, Spider-Man, or both.

This book offers a creative and accessible exploration of two comic book series: Y: The Last Man and Saga It examines themes pertinent to the 21st century and its challenges, such as those of diversity and religious pluralism, issues of gender and war, heroes and moral failures, and forgiveness and seeking justice Through close interdisciplinary reading and personal narratives, the author delves into the complex worlds of Y and Saga in search of an ethics, meaning, and a path resonant with real world struggles Reading these works side-by-side, the analysis draws parallels and seeks common themes around four central ideas: seeking and making meaning in a meaningless world; love and parenting through oppression and grief; peacefulness when surrounded by violence; and the perils and hopes of diversity and communion This timely, attentive, and thoughtful study will resonate with scholars and students of comic studies, media and cultural studies, philosophy, theology, literature, psychology, and popular culture studies

What are the spiritual consequences of abuse and trauma? Where is God? How and why does such senseless suffering occur? What is the relationship between loss and hope? What are the benefits of examining loss and hope from an interreligious focus? These are some of the questions addressed in this volume, written by leading international scholars and which also includes contributions by those who have suffered: survivors of genocide and state terror. Case studies of loss and hope from around the world are discussed, including from the United States, Ireland, Sri Lanka, India, Iran, Iraq, Argentina, China, and Chile. Religions examined include Buddhism, Islam, Christianity, Judaism and Hinduism. Three interconnected lenses are used to explore new perspectives on loss and hope: survivors and victims' testimony; interfaith studies; and ethical approaches. The book highlights the need for responses to atrocity that transcend differences within gender, class, religion, race and ethnicity. The authors stress the need for partnership and dialogue from an interfaith perspective, and while neither hiding not unduly minimizing the extent of losses in the world, attempt to establish an ethics of hope in the face of destabilizing losses in the realms of human rights and post-conflict resolution. Loss and Hope is the first book to bring together this high level and diversity of scholars living and working all over the world from different faith, cultural and ethnic backgrounds examining the universal themes of loss and hope.

Synopsis: It is hubris to claim answers to unanswerable questions. Such questions, however--as part of their burden and worth--must still be asked, investigated, and contemplated. How there can be a loving, all-powerful God and a world stymied by suffering and evil is one of the unanswerable questions we must all struggle to answer, even as our responses are closer to gasps, silences, and further questions. More importantly, how and whether one articulates a response will have deep, lasting repercussions for any belief in God and in our judgments upon one another. Throughout this wide-ranging, interdisciplinary work, Peter Admirand draws upon his extensive research and background in theology and testimonial literature, trauma and genocide studies, cultural studies, philosophy of religion, interreligious studies, and systematic theology. As David Burrell writes in the Foreword: ." . . T]he work's intricate structure, organization, and development will lead us to appreciate that the best one can settle for is a fractured faith built on a fractured theodicy, expressed in a language explicitly fragmented, pluralist, and broken." Endorsements: "Peter Admirand has made a significant contribution to one of the most difficult topics for theologians and philosophers--the problem of evil. Amidst Mass Atrocity and the Rubble of Theology is essential reading for anyone interested in exploring theodicy. What makes his book particularly important is his exploration of the testimony of survivors (as well as perpetrators). Admirand explains convincingly why it is essential to take seriously witness testimony and commends Christians in particular to immerse themselves in the writings of post-Shoah Jewish thinkers such as Elie Wiesel and Emil Fackenheim. Highly recommended." -Edward Kessler Director of the Woolf Institute of Abrahamic Faiths Cambridge University "Amidst Mass Atrocity and the Rubble of Theology is a rich and compelling foundational work towards renewing post-Holocaust Christian theology for the future. Its interdisciplinary focus demands attention and care by scholars and students in a range of academic disciplines and fields and within the wider church communities. The work can also provide deep pastoral meaning for people in situations of concrete suffering. Admirand's argument of a fractured faith built upon a fractured theodicy identifies a key component for the possibility of a viable faith in our post-Shoah world, which is inundated by questions, gaps, and doubt and so must be open to interfaith learning and profound theological humility." -Didier Pollefeyt Vice Dean of the Faculty of Theology Katholieke Universiteit Leuven "Peter Admirand does not even begin to discuss the attempts of theology to address apparently meaningless suffering until he has given vivid testimonies of endurance, not only by believers but by other- and non-believers. Only then does he set about facing the problems these raise for theology, not neglecting objections to theodicy itself from both theologians and secular thinkers. The book is profoundly moving and challenging and is itself a testimony to a passionate faith and hope. It will reopen intractable questions long thought to be dormant." -John D'Arcy May FTCD emer. and Senior Research Fellow, Irish School of Ecumenics, Trinity College Dublin Author Biography: Peter Admirand is a Lecturer in the School of Theology, Mater Dei Institute, Dublin City University, and a Research Associate and Adjunct Lecturer in Intercultural Theology and Interreligious Studies at the Irish School of Ecumenics, Trinity College Dublin. He is the author of a wide range of articles in interreligious studies; testimonial literature; postcolonial and postmodern theology; and moral theology.