"Cause us trouble Keith, but not too much trouble," these were final words of advice from a bishop to a new curate the day before his ordination. This book is the result of much reflection on that advice. Keith Hebden, parish priest and spiritual activist brings action and theory together with ideas that are as practical, accessible and exciting as the activism they underwrite. Beginning with the conviction that Jesus was an activist who was deeply committed to community, this book seeks t...

A second generation of emerging Dalit theology texts is re-shaping the way we think of Indian theology and liberation theology. This book is a vital part of that conversation. Taking post-colonial criticism to its logical end of criticism of statism, Keith Hebden looks at the way the emergence of India as a nation state shapes political and religious ideas. He takes a critical look at these Gods of the modern age and asks how Christians from marginalised communities might resist the tempta...

Across the world, grassroots movements for change are growing in number, skill, and impact on society. Finding a place at the intersect between spirituality and politics, these emerging activists are grounded in a deeper understanding of the world they wish to change, and act out of a deep sense that their simple acts can make a difference. With moving first-hand accounts, priest and community organiser Keith Hebden demonstrates what it means to be an engaged and alive human being in a wor...

“This book could well be the most highly readable, accurate, and up-to-date introduction to the world’s major religions.” - Harvey Cox, Hollis Research Professor of Divinity, Harvard University, and author of The Future of FaithIn God is Not One: The Eight Rival Religions That Run the World, New York Times bestselling author of Religious Literacy and religion scholar Stephen Prothero argues that persistent attempts in modern theo...

It has been suggested that 'spirituality' has become a word that 'can define an era'. Why? Because paradoxically, alongside a decline in traditional religious affiliations, the growing interest in spirituality and the use of the word in a variety of contexts is a striking aspect of contemporary western cultures. Indeed, spirituality is sometimes contrasted attractively with religion, although this is problematic and implies that religion is essentially dogma, moralism, institutions, buildi...

A comprehensive survey of how religions understand death, dying, and the afterlife, drawing on examples from Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist, and Shamanic perspectives.Considers shared and differing views of death across the world's major religions, including on the nature of death itself, the reasons for it, the identity of those who die, religious rituals, and on how the living should respond to deathPlaces emphasis on the varying concepts of t...

Though he lived in the thirteenth century, Meister Eckhart’s deeply ecumenical teachings were in many ways modern. He taught about what we call ecology, championed artistic creativity, and advocated for social, economic, and gender justice. All these elements have inspired spiritual maverick Matthew Fox and influenced his Creation Spirituality. Here, Fox creates metaphorical meetings between Eckhart and Teilhard de Chardin, Thich Nhat Hanh, Carl Jung, Black Elk, Rumi, Adrienne Rich, and ot...

This popular textbook has been thoroughly revised and updated to reflect recent global developments, whilst retaining its unique and compelling narrative-style approach. Using ancient stories from diverse religions, it explores a broad range of important and complex moral issues, resulting in a truly reader-friendly and comparative introduction to religious ethics.A thoroughly revised and expanded new edition of this popular textbook, yet retains the unique narrative-style ap...

"Each . . . religion . . . is described by someone who is committed to that religion . . . but who is at the [also] fully at home in the . . . academic study of religion." — John Hick, author of An Interpretation of Religion: Human Responses to the TranscendentLeading experts in the great living religions present their own faith traditions. The volume surveys the history and teachings of Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, Judaism, Christianity, and I...

The ways in which religious communities interact with one another is an increasing focus of scholarly research and teaching. Issues of interreligious engagement, inclusive of dialogue more specifically and relations more generally, attract widespread interest and concern. In a religiously pluralist world, how different communities get along with each other is not just an academic question; it is very much a focus of socio-political and wider community attention. The study of religions and ...

More than almost anything else, globalization and the great world religions are shaping our lives, affecting everything from the public policies of political leaders and the economic decisions of industry bosses and employees, to university curricula, all the way to the inner longings of our hearts. Integral to both globalization and religions are compelling, overlapping, and sometimes competing visions of what it means to live well.   In this perceptive, deeply personal, and bea...

A dynamic chapter of church history is now being written in Asia. But the theological inflections at its heart are not well understood by outsiders. The published voices of elite academic theologians have drowned out the cadences of Christian faith as it is spoken, lived and prayed in the homes and churches of Tokyo or Shanghai or Madras. Now, in Grassroots Asian Theology, Simon Chan examines Asian Christianity at its daily, sustaining level. There he uncovers a vibrant theology t...