List of Figures and Maps xiii
Timeline xvi
Acknowledgments xxii
Credits xxiii
1 Introduction: Prepare to Be Surprised 2
Part I The Tools 15
2 An Overview of Religion: Making Sense of Life 16
Explaining Suffering and Evil 18
Explaining Death 22
Ghosts 23
Resurrection 24
Souls 25
Reincarnation 26
The Importance of Order 26
Order Out of Chaos 27
Order and Predictability: Eschatology, Prophecy, Divination 27
Social Order 30
Group Identity 31
Ethics/Morality and Law 34
Authority and Power 37
The Role of Ritual 39
Conclusion 41
3 The Early Development of Religious Studies 44
Philosophy, Theology, and Religious Studies 47
The Relationship between Philosophy and Theology 48
Two Kinds of Christian Theology 50
Scriptural (Biblical) Studies and the Impact of the Printing Press 52
Baruch Spinoza (d. 1677): The Beginnings of Source Criticism 53
William Robertson Smith (d. 1894): Historical Criticism 54
The Rise of Modernity and New Academic Disciplines: Oriental Studies, Anthropology, Sociology, and Psychology 55
Max Müller (d. 1900): Oriental Studies and Religion 57
Edward Burnett Tylor (d. 1917): Anthropology and Religion 58
James Frazer (d. 1941): Evolution and Religion 61
Negative Views of Religion 65
Karl Marx (d. 1883): Religion as the Opiate of the Masses 65
Sigmund Freud (d. 1939): Religion as Neurosis 68
Sociology of Religion 71
Emile Durkheim (d. 1917): Modernization Theory 71
Max Weber (d. 1920): The Protestant Ethic and the Secularization Thesis 72
Conclusion 74
4 Religious Studies in the 20th Century 76
Back to Philosophy 80
Analytic Philosophy: Antony Flew (d. 2010) 81
Phenomenology and Religious Studies 82
Rudolf Otto (d. 1937) 82
Mircea Eliade (d. 1986) 83
Philosophy of Religion 85
John Hick (b. 1922) 85
William Lane Craig (b. 1949) 87
Anthropology of Religion 89
Clifford Geertz (d. 2006) 89
Mary Douglas (d. 2007) 91
Sociology of Religion 94
Peter L. Berger (b. 1929) 94
Robert N. Bellah (b. 1927) 95
Psychology of Religion 96
William James (d. 1910) 96
Carl Jung (d. 1961) 98
Conclusion: Theories and Methods 99
Philosophical Theories 99
Genetic/Historical Theories 100
Functionalist Theories 100
Part II Using the Tools: Surveying World Religions 103
5 Early Traditions 104
Prehistoric Religions? 107
Animism and Anthropomorphism 108
Death Rituals 112
Fertility Goddesses 113
Hunting Rituals 114
Shamans 114
Ancient Traditions, Oral Traditions, and Religion 115
The Neolithic Revolution and the Rise of Historic Religions 118
Conclusion 121
6 The Family of Western Monotheisms: Jewish, Christian, and Islamic Traditions 124
Unit I Judaism 126
The Torah, the Hebrew Bible, the Old Testament 127
The History and Teachings of Judaism 135
The First Five Centuries 135
The Middle Ages (500-1500 CE) 137
The Modern Period (1750 to the present) 141
The Enlightenment 141
The Development of Reform Judaism 142
Conservative Judaism 148
Reconstructionist Judaism 148
The Rituals of Judaism 149
Judaism Today 150
Unit II Christianity 151
The History and Teachings of Christianity 151
Origins 151
The Development of Christian Doctrine 154
The Institutionalization and Politicization of Christianity 157
Eastern and Western Christians 159
The Western/Roman Church 160
The Eastern Orthodox Churches 163
The Protestant Reformation 164
Christian Rituals 166
Christianity Today 166
Unit III Islam 167
The History and Teachings of Islam 167
Core Teachings 167
Early History: The Life of Muhammad and the Rashidun Caliphs 174
The Dynastic Caliphates 176
The Modern Period: Reform and Recovery 179
Islamic Rituals 180
Major Divisions Today 182
Unit IV The Impact of Religious Studies on the Western Monotheisms 183
Biblical Studies 184
Rudolf Bultmann (d. 1976): "Demythologizing" Scripture 185
John Dominic Crossan (b. 1934): The Historicity of Scripture 186
Theology 192
Liberation Theology 192
Gustavo Gutierrez (b. 1928) 192
Farid Esack (b. 1959) 194
Feminist Theology 196
Judith Plaskow (b. 1947) 198
Rosemary Radford Ruether (b. 1936) 199
Amina Wadud (b. 1952) 201
Conclusion 203
7 330 Million Gods - or None: Two Traditions from India 206
Hinduism and Buddhism 208
Hinduism 209
History and Teachings of Hinduism 211
Indus Valley Civilization (3000-1500 BCE) 211
The Aryans and the Vedas (1500-600 BCE) 211
The Mystical Worldview of the Upanishads 213
Classical Hinduism (3rd century BCE-7th century CE) 216
The Ramayana 216
The Mahabharata 217
The Puranas 221
The Laws of Manu 223
Hinduism Today 226
Rituals 226
Buddhism 229
History and Teachings of Buddhism 230
Understanding the Four Noble Truths 233
The Ethics of "Awakening" 235
The Core of All Buddhist Traditions 235
The Development of the Three Main Traditions 237
Theravada (Hinayana) 238
Mahayana 238
Vajrayana 240
Buddhism Today 242
Rituals 243
Conclusion: Religious Studies and Indian Traditions 244
8 Balancing and Blending: Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism in China 246
The Tao, Yin and Yang 248
The History of Chinese Religious Thought 251
The Shang Period (18th-11th centuries BCE) 251
The Zhou Period (11th-3rd centuries BCE) 253
Confucius (551-479 BCE) 255
Taoism 258
Buddhism in China 260
Pure Land Buddhism 262
Chan (Zen) Buddhism 262
Chinese Folk Traditions 265
Rituals in Chinese Traditions 266
Weddings 267
Funerals 267
Chinese Traditions Today 269
Conclusion: Religious Studies and the Traditions of China 271
9 Zoroastrianism, Shinto, Baha'i, Scientology, Wicca, and Seneca Traditions: What Makes a "World Religion"? 274
What Makes a "World Religion"? 276
Zoroastrianism 278
History and Teachings of Zoroastrianism 278
Zoroastrian Rituals 281
Shinto 283
History and Teachings of Shinto 283
Shinto Rituals 285
Baha'i 287
History and Teachings of Baha'i 287
Baha'i Rituals 289
Scientology 291
History and Teachings of Scientology 291
Scientology Practices 292
Scientology Rituals 293
Wicca 294
History and Teachings of Wicca 294
Wiccan Rituals 296
The Traditions of the Seneca 298
History and Teachings of the Seneca 298
Seneca Rituals 302
Conclusion: To Be or Not to Be a Religion? 304
10 Closing Questions 308
Can We Define Religion? 310
Secularization? 311
Contemporary Atheist Views 311
Contemporary Opposition to Secularization Theory 313
Resurgent Islam 313
Resurgent Religion in the U.S.? 315
Secularization in Europe 318
Religion Revisited 319
Other Issues 322
The Range of Research Areas in the American Academy of Religion 322
Medical Science and Religion 326
Religion and Physical Health 327
Religion and Mental Health 329
Does Prayer Work? 330
Brain Science and Mystical Experience: Neurotheology 330
Conclusion: Another Surprise? 335
Glossary 338
Index 344
