Series in Comparative Religion
Books in Comparative Religion
Miracles
Jesus turned water into wine, Mohammad split the moon into two, and Buddha walked and spoke immediately upon birth. According to recent statistics, even in the present age of advanced science and technology, most people believe in miracles. In fact, newspapers and television regularly report alleged miracles, such as recoveries from incurable diseases, extremely unlikely coincidences, and religious signs and messages on unexpected objects. In this book the award-winning author and philosopher Yujin Nagasawa addresses some of our most fundamental questions concerning miracles. What exactly is a miracle? What types of miracles are believed in the world's great religions? What do recent scientific findings tell us about miracles? Can we rationally believe that miracles have really taken place? Can there be acts that are more religiously significant than miracles? Drawing on a vast variety of fascinating examples from across the major religions, Nagasawa discusses the lively debate on miracles that ranges from reported miracles in ancient scriptures in the East and West to cutting-edge scientific research on belief formation. Throughout, he drives us to ask ourselves if and how we can still believe in in miracles in the twenty-first century. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
My Thesis Being...
Laurie R. King's early academic work forms the basis for several of her novels. "My Thesis Is..." includes both her 1977 BA thesis ("Foolish Wisdom") and 1984 MA thesis ("Feminine Aspects of God"), along with a new introduction.
The Masque of Africa
Like all of V. S. Naipaul’s “travel” books, The Masque of Africa encompasses a much larger narrative and purpose: to judge the effects of belief (in indigenous animisms, the foreign religions of Christianity and Islam, the cults of leaders and mythical history) upon the progress of civilization. From V. S. Naipaul: “For my travel books I travel on a theme. And the theme of The Masque of Africa is African belief. I begin in Uganda, at the center of the continent, do Ghana and Nigeria, the Ivory Coast and Gabon, and end at the bottom of the continent, in South Africa. My theme is belief, not political or economical life; and yet at the bottom of the continent the political realities are so overwhelming that they have to be taken into account. “Perhaps an unspoken aspect of my inquiry was the possibility of the subversion of old Africa by the ways of the outside world. The theme held until I got to the South, when the clash of the two ways of thinking and believing became far too one-sided. The skyscrapers of Johannesburg didn’t rest on sand. The older world of magic felt fragile, but at the same time had an enduring quality. You felt that it would survive any calamity. “I had expected that over the great size of Africa the practices of magic would significantly vary. But they didn’t. The diviners everywhere wanted to ‘throw the bones’ to read the future, and the idea of ‘energy’ remained a constant, to be tapped into by the ritual sacrifice of body parts. In South Africa body parts, mainly of animals, but also of men and women, made a mixture of ‘battle medicine.’ To witness this, to be given some idea of its power, was to be taken far back to the beginning of things. “To reach that beginning was the purpose of my book.” The Masque of Africa is a masterly achievement by one of the world’s keenest observers and one of its greatest writers.
Women of Color Pray
A celebration of the voices of women of color in prayer Women of color pray and have prayed out of necessity for survival, out of love for the Divine and because we believe in the power of prayer. Prayer has been the prevailing force behind the education of our children, protection and courage for our men, hope for our daughters and the balm that heals sorrows. —from the Introduction Prayers by women around the world—from China and Japan, to Syria and Ghana—to African American, Asian American, Native American and Hispanic women in the United States including: Teresa Palomo Acosta Yolanda Adams Rabi’a Al-Adawiyya Paula Gunn Allen Savitri Bess Mary McLeod Bethune Irene I. Blea Sandra Cisneros Marian Wright Edelman Rachelle Ferrell Monique Greenwood Joy Harjo Linda Hogan Patricia Locke Janice Mirikitani Toni Morrison Naomi Quinonez Della Reese Cathy Song Susan L. Taylor Sojourner Truth Harriet Tubman Iyanla Vanzant Phillis Wheatley CeCe Winans Empress Yamatohime ... and many others This beautiful collection of prayers will take you on a journey into the spiritual walk of women of color around the world—including Asia, the Middle East and Africa—as well as Native American, African American, Asian American and Hispanic women in the United States. Through these prayers, poetry, lyrics, meditations and affirmations, you will share in the strong and undeniable connection that women of color share with God. As you delve into the words of unwavering faith, perseverance, resistance, celebration and communion with God and family that fill each page, you will find your ideas about prayer challenged and your own prayer life inspired and renewed.
Women of Color Pray
A celebration of the voices of women of color in prayer Women of color pray and have prayed out of necessity for survival, out of love for the Divine and because we believe in the power of prayer. Prayer has been the prevailing force behind the education of our children, protection and courage for our men, hope for our daughters and the balm that heals sorrows. —from the Introduction Prayers by women around the world—from China and Japan, to Syria and Ghana—to African American, Asian American, Native American and Hispanic women in the United States including: Teresa Palomo Acosta Yolanda Adams Rabi’a Al-Adawiyya Paula Gunn Allen Savitri Bess Mary McLeod Bethune Irene I. Blea Sandra Cisneros Marian Wright Edelman Rachelle Ferrell Monique Greenwood Joy Harjo Linda Hogan Patricia Locke Janice Mirikitani Toni Morrison Naomi Quinonez Della Reese Cathy Song Susan L. Taylor Sojourner Truth Harriet Tubman Iyanla Vanzant Phillis Wheatley CeCe Winans Empress Yamatohime ... and many others This beautiful collection of prayers will take you on a journey into the spiritual walk of women of color around the world—including Asia, the Middle East and Africa—as well as Native American, African American, Asian American and Hispanic women in the United States. Through these prayers, poetry, lyrics, meditations and affirmations, you will share in the strong and undeniable connection that women of color share with God. As you delve into the words of unwavering faith, perseverance, resistance, celebration and communion with God and family that fill each page, you will find your ideas about prayer challenged and your own prayer life inspired and renewed.