Theory of Religion

The collection "Art and Religion of Ancient Societies" is a continuation of the series of the scientific publications which is devoted to the problems of study of the spiritual culture in the primitive societies. The previous edition "Art and Ritual of Ice Age", that was published in 2005, covered a circle of questions directly connected with the theory and practice of study of the Paleolithic Art. In this collection we also address to the same problematic. However, taking into account that the understanding of the most ancient culture stages of the human society is connected to a wide circle of questions of the study of the traditional communities, we think it is necessity to expand the edition’s subjects. Therefore we have tried to capture not only questions directly connected with field and basic study of the ancient art, but also practical analysis of the cultural and ethnographic facts. The questions of the aesthetics and theory of development of the early forms of art are considered as separately subjects in works. The published materials enable the reader to familiarize with the questions and methods of their analysis more in details, which are submitted in works of the researchers from Ukraine, Russia, Kazakhstan, Hungary, Germany, Canada, USA, Australia.

In the mid-90s, Lebanon’s Hezbollah movement and the Iranian Ayatollah Khamene’i both banned bloody forms of self-flagellation such as tatbir (cutting the forehead with a sword), calling them backward and un-Islamic. They argued that Shi‘a Muslims ought to imitate Husayn by actively fighting against oppressors rather than passively mourning Husayn’s martyrdom. This prohibition has not been unanimously applied in all Muslim
countries, including Syria, where such practices persisted until the Arab Spring (when virtually all Shi‘a Muslims left the shrine-town where these practices were performed). By closely reading the linguistic, conceptual, and juridical discourses that circulated in Syria in order to justify this position, the paper shows that the performers of tatbir conceived of these rituals in revolutionary, rather than reactionary, terms. By examining the performance and reception of flagellation processions in terms of differing modalities of affect, the paper opens up spaces for rethinking ‘revolution’ and ‘redemption’ in contemporary Twelver Shi‘ism.

I am still on the first stretch of this nomadic exploration, but I think I can begin to answer the question that is guiding this exploration—'how can the Natural-Indigenous Worldview support our understandings of the potential for an anarchist society (i.e. for social order without hierarchical domination)?' The key of Natural-Indigenous Worldview that opens the lock of an anarchist society, of a society without hierarchical domination, comes in the Natural-Indigenous Worldview's spiritual ecology. When we develop the four R's (responsibility, reciprocity, respect, relationships [Young 2015]) through relating to the world in a manner that is facilitated by the spiritual ecology that rises from the Natural-Indigenous Worldview and thus ascribes spirit to all things without regard for the Colonial Modernist Worldview's distinction between 'animate' and 'inanimate', we come to see the world as a single, living, conscious being. The illusion of a discrete distinction between self and other breaks down and we come to see the self (and other selves) as strands in the unified, conscious web of creation. We come to care for all of creation as we would care for our children, for our partners, for our parents and for our self. Transcending the illusion of discrete individuality we develop a lovingly reciprocal, responsible, respectful and relational orientation to the world that begets virtuous thought, feeling, behavior and being without recourse to hierarchical authority (to punishment and fear of punishment). Engaging with the world through the spiritual ecology that rises from the Natural-Indigenous Worldview allows the sprouts of human nature to grow to fruition without recourse to hierarchical domination (i.e. without recourse to attempts to 'help sprouts grow' by pulling on them and the death of the sprouts of human nature portended by such hierarchical folly [Meng Zi 2016, 2A2]).

Throughout history, the Druids have always been seen as sorcerers who had a strong bond with nature. Ancestral knowledge holders within Celtic society, directed all religious activity as the highest authority linked to the gods, practiced human sacrifices and festivals organized as Imbolc, Beltaine, Lugnasad or Samain, etc.. all aspects of which are discussed in this article.

The Babylonian Akitu festival has played a pivotal role in the development of theories of religion, myth and ritual; yet the purpose of the festival remains a point of contention among both historians of religion and Assyriologists. The historian of religion J. Z. Smith has suggested that the festival functioned as a piece of nationalreligious propaganda. He argues that the rite asserted the legitimacy of the foreigners who ruled Babylon during the Hellenistic age. 1 Smith thus rejects an older consensus, associated with scholars such as A. J. Wensink, M. Eliade, I. Engnell, H. Frankfort, T. H. Gaster, and W. G. Lambert, according to whom the Akitu rituals exemplify an archaic ideology of the center; through its ceremonies primeval chaos was again subdued, and the world was renewed. 2 In spite of Smith's stimulating challenge to the older consensus, several features of the Babylonian Akitu do show that the festival was intended to destroy and subsequently renew the cosmos. Oddly, the earlier scholars failed to cite these features and instead focused on extremely dubious data. A revised version of the older consensus best accounts for the Akitu festival described in Neo-Babylonian texts. The festival indeed exalts a sacred center, but its worldview cannot be portrayed as archaic, since it stems from a highly developed urban culture.

For know the controversial history of the Druids in the Celtic world, will investigate the sources of its origin, through stories of classic texts and medieval legends of Gaul, Britain and Ireland. His role in Celtic society surpassed the religious sphere, covering war, politics, medicine and the law. Almost unknown is the participation of women in this institution.

Scholars of ancient cultures are increasingly speaking of the "embeddedness" of ancient religion — arguing that the practices modern investigators group under the heading of "religion" did not compose a well-defined category in antiquity; instead, they claim that "religion was embedded" in other aspects of ancient culture. These writers use this notion of "embeddedness" to help us see that categories post-Enlightenment thinkers often regard as distinct (such as politics, economics, and religion) largely overlapped in antiquity. The trope of "embedded religion" can, however, also produce the false impression that religion is a descriptive concept rather than a redescriptive concept for ancient cultures (i.e., that there really is something "out there" in antiquity called "Roman religion" or "Mesopotamian religion," which scholars are simply describing rather than creating). By allowing this slippage between descriptive and redescriptive uses of "religion," the rhetoric of "embedded religion" exacerbates the very problem it is meant to solve.

The quest for the 'Origins of Religion', which so characterised early scholarship in the field of religious studies as opposed to Theology, has, on the whole, become outdated and, seemingly, destined to fail under scrutiny fed by an exponentially growing library of anthropological data and independent human experience; theories of origins claiming universality do not stand up to the test of modern scholarly practice. Yet the ideas of the early theorists concerning the development of religion in man still hold considerable power. Such theories are inherently bound up with the post-Darwinian age, informed by the knowledge that all life on Earth is connected to a primordial originating form coupled with philological advances concerning the ancestry of the Indo-European language family. Thus religion, as an observable human phenomena, was thought to be reducable to a primal state or a necessary, universal, characteristic of humanity. As Stark and Bainbridge noted, "Available 'theories' about religion remain largely the product of 19 th century social thought and the tradition of grand theory… but… close scrutiny reveals that these theories are not so grand… classics such as Emile Durkheim's 'The Elementary Forms of the Religious Life' [and Sigmund Freud's Totem and Taboo] could be excerpted on a few printed pages. The rest is illustration and digression." 1

In this engaging and detailed study, ancient near eastern tendencies concerning the conception of the nature of a god's body as corporeal, fluid and multiple are situated in conversation with biblical sources, rabbinic thought, mystical speculation and Christian reflection. In doing so, the work explores the inadequacy of the monotheist-polytheist dichotomy by exploring the legacy and impact of the conception of divine fluidity in Judaism and Christianity. Given the extent to which the work raises critical issues concerning how contemporary scholars read ancient texts, especially when considering whether a text is to be read literally or metaphorically, this highly readable tour de force of biblical scholarship deserves to have a significant impact on many aspects of the study of religion. In accomplishing this, Sommer's works meets all the criteria for the AAR book award in textual studies: well organized, clear writing style, engaging to the reader, and with a clear demonstration of the significance of the work undertaken.

This essay considers the Ugaritic Baal Cycle in light of Mircea Eliade’s ideas about history and primordial archetypes. Unlike the Babylonian poem Enuma elish with which it is so often compared, the Baal Cycle does not depict a primordial combat and so does not root the political rule of today in the overcoming of a prior chaos. The Ugaritic poem adopts an attitude towards politics that is at odds with the one taken by the Babylonian creation narrative and championed by Eliade in his celebration of what he called “archaic ontology.” Instead of providing a means to overcome the contingency of historical becoming, the Baal Cycle embraces the historical aspect of political rule.

This essay explores the political implications and historical basis of noted Egyptologist Jan Assmann’s assertion—based on a distinction made canonical by Carl Schmitt—that the Biblical prohibition of images polarizes the world into friend and enemy. The focus is on two aspects of Assmann’s position: his claims regarding how the Bible represents Egypt and how he reads the first two commandments of the Decalogue. The essay concludes that Assmann relies more on the reception history than on the biblical text itself and ends with a suggestion regarding how to get at an alternative view of the Bible’s political understanding of idolatry.

In Euro-American Islamic Studies, the terms orthodox and orthodoxy have a history of imprecision and collusion in theological axe-grinding. Yet despite their oft-noted inadequacies, scholars continue to invoke and retool the terms with a perplexing persistence. The resilient reworking of the term has resulted in a marked indeterminacy which renders orthodoxy a liability rather than an asset in scholarly nomenclature. This paper examines the trajectory of orthodoxy in scholarly works on Islam, outlines its conceptual problems, and probes its place within the conceptual "religionization" of Islam. Special attention is paid to Talal Asad's influential usage and revival of the term. Despite its newfound life, this paper concludes that orthodoxy remains as problematic as ever.

Imperio sasánida SUMARIO Si bien el Imperio romano sería siempre el enemigo tradicional y más importante del Imperio sasánida, éste nunca fue el único y, en determinados momentos, tampoco el más importante ni el que, a la postre, acabaría con tan importante imperio iranio. Sobre los menos conocidos enemigos que, a lo largo de su historia, supusieron un serio problema para el Imperio sasánida, tratará este breve texto que pretende mostrar cómo los sasánidas se vieron casi permanentemente acosados, a lo largo de sus extensas fronteras, contra poderosos enemigos a los que tuvieron que hacer frente con mayor o menor éxito, contribuyendo a debilitar el poderío militar de este imperio hasta provocar su desaparición.

In Syria, interfaith dialogue constitutes a public practice that speaks to ethical, social and political imaginaries. As an official practice, it helps to provide the regime with religious legitimacy, though unofficially it often functions as a euphemism for missionary efforts. On a more abstract level, a careful analysis of Syrian interfaith dialogue reveals that different ethical traditions inform the participants' vision of "good." The Muslim sheikhs in this case-study follow an Aristotelian model of ethics that presupposes pious individuals for the creation and preservation of a moral society. Accordingly, they aim at fostering inter-communal harmony by teaching people how to perform virtues, rather than teaching them about other religions. Conversely, the Christian priests share a model that combines post-Enlightenment rationalism with "Christian love," and thus they strive to advance tolerance by encouraging unconditional affection, intellectual and experiential awareness of others. Together, these discrepancies facilitate miscommunication among the participants of dialogue.

["THE MYTH OF DISENCHANTMENT" INCLUDES AN UPDATED VERSION OF THIS ARTICLE] There is already a standard narrative in place about the birth of religious studies as an academic discipline. It is generally imagined by scholars as emerging from the encounter between the trajectory of Enlightenment rationalism and non-European culture. Comparative religion is represented as a self-conscious reaction to theology from which it differentiates itself in the same moment that it is relying on a Protestant conception of religion. It is often regarded as secularizing and Protestant in the same breath. In what follows, I invert much of this narrative and show religious studies as emerging from a very different milieu and in a very different context.I show that the discipline emerged in relation to a Counter-Enlightenment impulse and was connected to a vibrant tradition very different from mainstream Protestantism, namely, Western esotericism.The double of religious studies turns out not to be philology but theosophy.

Ibn Baṭūṭah (Arabic: أبو عبد الله محمد بن عبد الله اللواتي الطنجي بن بطوطة‎, ʾAbū ʿAbd al-Lāh Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Lāh l-Lawātī ṭ-Ṭanǧī ibn Baṭūṭah), or simply Ibn Battuta (ابن بطوطة) (February 25, 1304 – 1368 or 1369), was a Moroccan explorer of Berber descent. He is known for his extensive travels, accounts of which were published in the Rihla (lit. "Journey"). Over a period of thirty years, Ibn Battuta visited most of the known Islamic world as well as many non-Muslim lands. His journeys included trips to North Africa, the Horn of Africa, West Africa and Eastern Europe in the West, and to the Middle East, South Asia, Central Asia, Southeast Asia and China. Ibn Battuta is considered to be among the great travellers of all time.

The Telepinu Myth is an ancient Hittite myth. Telepinu was the god of agriculture of the Hittites, people of the ancient Near East. According to a Hittite legend, the disappearance of Telepinu caused all fertility to fail, both plant and animal. In order to stop the havoc and devastation, the gods seek Telepinu but fail to find him. Hannahannah, the mother goddess, sent a bee to find him; when the bee did, stinging Telipinu and smearing wax on him, the god grew angry and began to wreak destruction on the world. Finally, Kamrusepa, goddess of magic, calmed Telepinu by giving his anger to the Doorkeeper of the Underworld.

Il tentativo 1 di definire la religione, di individuare una qualche essenza distintiva e possibilmente unica che separi il «religioso» dal resto della vita umana, rappresenta un'esigenza essenzialmente occidentale 2 . Tale tentativo costituisce una naturale conseguenza dello spirito occidentale, che è speculativo, intellettualistico e scientifico; ma è anche un prodotto del modello religioso dominante in Occidente, il modello ebraico-cristiano, o, per meglio dire, dell'eredità teistica che proviene dall'Ebraismo, dal Cristianesimo e dall'Islamismo. In queste tradizioni, infatti, la formulazione teistica della fede, anche quando è di basso profilo culturale, contribuisce ad una visione dicotomica della religione. La struttura di base del teismo, in altri termini, consiste essenzialmente nella distinzione che separa la divinità trascendente da tutto il resto, il creatore dalla sua creazione, Dio dall'uomo.

This paper discusses the applicability of recent theories of religion to the problem of describing and explaining religious transformation in the period between the final Bronze Age and Late Antiquity. Instead of evolutionist and cognitive approaches, it proposes a model of religion that tries to analyze religion in terms of its making by starting from the individual’s appropriation and creation of religious tradition. Religion is understood as a strategy to attribute agency to agents that do not appear immediately plausible. Recent scholarly
discussions on human agency suggest categorizing human religious agency into the three subsets, namely: (1) acting religiously with regards to past, present, and future; (2) collective religious identity; and (3) religious communication.
These subsets are shown to produce fruitful questions for research on historical sources. Against this backdrop, religion is explained as a precarious cultural resource articulated through the agency of individuals and allowing changed attributions of individual agency.

The framing of Islamic law in the first four centuries of Islam is of great significance to scholars. During this period, the Islamic diaspora was in the earliest part of its development, establishing its identity and developing the foundations of its knowledge principles. These times were tumultuous; yet, at the same time, what occurred during these early centuries formed the bedrock upon which a further millennium of growth has taken place in this global religion. Many forces were interplaying during these early years in the context of Islamic law. "Independents," who formed a majority of Islamic theorists, gradually disappeared and gave way to "Muqallidȋn" and there was discourse and allegiance amongst "Rationalists" and "Traditionalists." There was a shift away from early regional schools (of thought) to personal schools and tremendous debate raged about Ijtihȃd and Taqlȋd. In more recent times, over the past century, orientalist commentators on the period, who have painted a picture of these early centuries of the Islamic legal system and jurisprudence as being somewhat cut and dry, have begun to be challenged. Schacht for example, who wrote in the early to mid-twentieth century, later had his views nuanced by scholars such as Hallaq and others. This paper thus examines the early formation of the four schools of Islamic law, recounts brief biographical accounts of their founders, and discusses the challenges faced during those early years of Islamic legal history, which are a source of disagreement among contemporary scholars.

In Pilate and Jesus, Giorgio Agamben argues that Pontius Pilate never formally condemned Jesus of Nazareth. “The traditional interpretation of Jesus’ trial … must be revised,” he urges, because “there has not been any judgement in a technical sense.” Pilate’s non-judgement is the original truth of Jesus’ death which has been “covered over and neutralized by tradition.” What would it mean if Jesus’ death had no legal status? If he had not been condemned to the “ultimate punishment” by a Roman prefect, but had merely been killed hors la loi with Pilate’s connivance? These are interesting questions, but Agamben’s use of sources in posing and resolving them is capricious. The present article sets out a critique of the legal and philological argumentation of Pilate and Jesus. In the process, it critically revisits an ancient – and still actual – controversy surrounding the Roman trial of Jesus, and demonstrates that Pilate did sentence Jesus, pro tribunali, to death on a cross.

As part of the Roman religion, the prodigies represented an important role closely linked to the fear they caused to be understood as manifestations of gods with negative character. These were understood to be produced only when humans had taken any action for which they were responsible and that had angered some particular deity, must be atoned for as soon as possible based on rituals perfectly set. The Romans suffered defeats at the hands of Hannibal only understood by them as produced by the loss of the favor of the gods, and in their search to confirm there were reports of numerous miracles which were recorded by Livy.

Berbicara mengenai agama, setiap individu tentu memiliki persepsi atau pemahaman yang berbeda-beda tentang definisi agama itu sendiri. Di antaranya ada yang berpikir bahwa agama merupakan pedoman dalam menjalani kehidupan, agama adalah kepercayaan terhadap sesuatu yang lebih luhur dari manusia, serta berpikir bahwa agama merupakan rangkaian tindakan khas seperti berdoa, beribadah, dan menyajikan sesaji.

Es difícil pensar que la Historia, como disciplina, llegue a ser nunca asimilada a una Ciencia, aunque se intente englobar dentro de las llamadas humanas. ¿Qué profesionales de la Historia pueden surgir cuando la objetividad se sacrifica en pro de la finalidad política, de la política departamental o de una corriente historiográfica excluyente? ¿Qué historiadores podemos tener si se buscan acólitos en lugar de librepensadores?

This book provides an introduction to the current state of the field for those new to interreligious dialogue and the theology of religions, as well as providing insights and new concepts that will be of interest to specialists. In particular, the current deadlock between pluralist and particularist approaches is re-imagined, and a strong argument for radical openness to the religious Other is advanced, based upon the resources of the Christian heritage. Also explored are many issues pertaining to debates in this area which are not always addressed, such as religious identity and definitions of religion. The book draws inspiration from many sources including intercultural theology, feminist theologies of religions, comparative theology, postcolonial identity theory, scholarly debates on the nature of religion, and biblical concepts of hospitality to outline its new approach. It concludes that we must seek mutual fulfilment with religious Others while maintaining Christian integrity. It also addresses the problems this involves when seeking ethical partnership across religious boundaries. No easy answers are given, however, a vision for radical openness based on Jesus’ example, the Christian heritage, and contemporary scholarship is endorsed.

Considerable scholarly discussion has been given to the idea that we are moving toward a state of “posthumanism.” This essay examines some possible implications of a posthuman existence, specifically as it relates to that most basic of human needs—sexuality. I explore the spiritual aspects of sexuality to see what is lost and what is gained in technologically mediated forms of sexuality. To that end, I consider the interplay between sexual behavior and our conceptions of the sacred, how technologies are changing our views of—and realities concerning—our bodies, and the potential for a sacred posthuman sexuality.

Joannes Leo Africanus, (c. 1494 – c. 1554?) (or al-Hasan ibn Muhammad al-Wazzan al-Fasi, Arabic:حسن ابن محمد الوزان الفاسي) was an Andalusian Amazigh Moorish diplomat and author who is best known for his book Descrittione dell’Africa (Description of Africa) describing the geography of North Africa.

General Editor:
Dr Paul Hedges, University of Winchester, UK

International Editorial Advisory Board:
James Miller
Khaleel Mohammed
Musa Dube
Eloisa Martin
Marion Maddox
Makarand Paranjape

Table of Contents:

Volume 1: Theoretical and Academic Debates
Introduction
Paul Hedges
Chapter 1: What is Religion? Or, What is it We’re Talking About?
Anna S. King and Paul Hedges
Chapter 2: Is the Study of Religion Religious? How to Study Religion and Who Studies Religion
Paul Hedges and Anna S. King
Chapter 3: Charisma, Scriptures, Revelation, Texts: Sources of Religious Authority
Christina Welch and Paul Hedges
Chapter 4: Religion and Embodiment: Religion and the (Latin-American) Bodies that Practice it
Renée de la Torre
Chapter 5: Religion, Commodification and Consumerism
Vineeta Singh
Chapter 6: Terror/ism and Violence in the Name of God
Lucien van Liere
Chapter 7: Belonging, Behaving, Believing, Becoming: Religion and Identity
Paul Hedges and Angela CoCo
Chapter 8: Why are there Many Gods? Religious Diversity and its Challenges
Paul Hedges
Chapter 9: Is Religion Dying? Secularization and Other Religious Trends in the World Today
Jayeel Serrano Cornelio
Chapter 10: Christian and Hindu, Jewish and Buddhist: Can you have a Multiple Religious Identity?
Rose Drew
Chapter 11: Empires and Religions: Colonialism, Post-colonialism, and Orientalism
Clinton Bennett

Volume 2: Debates in the Public Square and Ethical Issues
Introduction
Paul Hedges
Chapter 1: Women in Religion: Does Gender Matter?
Kayla Wheeler
Chapter 2: Friend or Foe? Current Debates in Science and Religion
Allison P. Coudert
Chapter 3: Sexuality and Religion: Homosexuality and Religious Values
Maria das Dores Campos Machado
Chapter 4: Religion and Human Rights: Conflicts and Connections
Nazila Ghanea and Farrah Ahmed
Chapter 5: The New Atheists
Ian Markham and Chrstine Faulstich
Chapter 6: Censorship, Free Speech and Religion
Christoph Baumgartner
Chapter 7: Is Religion Environmentally Friendly: Connecting Religion and Ecology
James Miller
Chapter 8: Religion and Culture: Religious Artefacts as T-shirts, Toys and Museum Exhibits
Christina Welch
Chapter 9: Are Religions Prejudiced? Religion and Disability
Susannah Cornwall
Chapter 10: Religion, Nationalism, and International Relations
Enzo Pace
Chapter 11: Religion and Politics
Marion Maddox
Chapter 12: Riots, Mass Casualities, and Religious Hatred: Countering Anti-cosmopolitan Terror through Intercultural and Interreligious Understanding
Anna Halafoff

Volume 3: Specific Issues and Case Studies
Introduction
Paul Hedges
Chapter 1: The Rise of Fundamentalisms
Christopher van de Krogt
Chapter 2: Loving the “Enemy”: An alternative Narrative on Jewish-Muslim Relations
Yafiah Randall
Chapter 3: Buddhism, Nationalism, and Violence in Asia
Jude Lal Fernando
Chapter 4: Religion and Bioethics: Human Genetics and Embryo Research
Neil Messer
Chapter 5: What do Americans think of Muslims?: The 9/11 Islamic Community Centre
Khaleel Mohammed
Chapter 6: New Religious Movements, “Cults”, and the State
Ryan J. T. Adams
Chapter 7: Shariah Law and Women in Islam
Adis Duderjia
Chapter 8: Can Christianity take New Forms? Christianity in New Cultural Contexts
James Cox
Chapter 9: New Religious Movements in Global Context
Nobutaka Inoue
Chapter 10: Scandals
Marion Maddox
Chapter 11: Can Christians Engage in non-Christian Practices? Eastern Meditations and Contemplative Prayer
Fabrice Blée

(English below)
    «Propuesta teórica» con que la Comisión Teológica Internacional de la EATWOT lanza el «Nuevo Paradigma Arqueológico-Bíblico», para su estudio académico y su utilización pedagógica y pastoral.
    A short but practical and pedagogical presentation (offprint) of the so called “new archaeological-biblical paradigm,” with an informative purpose, that may become a guide to start studying the theme, both individually or collectively, even as a pastoral instrument of education for the communities. Of course this is just a point of support, what is important is the direct study of the sources.