In religious studies, theory and method research has long been embroiled in a polarized debate over scientific versus theological perspectives. Ronald L. Grimes shows that this debate has stagnated, due in part to a manner of theorizing too far removed from the study of actual religious practices.

A worthwhile theory, according to Grimes, must be practice-oriented, and practices are most effectively studied by field research methods. The Craft of Ritual Studies melds together a systematic the...

Brian Tracy, one of the top professional speakers and sales trainers in the world today, found that his most important breakthrough in selling was the discovery that it is the "Psychology of Selling" that is more important than the techniques and methods of selling.

This is an essential introductory to liturgy for both ordinands and trainee lay readers - indeed for anyone who finds themselves having to plan or lead public worship. Well-known worship writer and speaker Mark Earey has written this book both for lovers and loathers of liturgical worship - and for those who want to discover it for the first time. This updated and enlarged second edition now includes:* How liturgy works as ritual;* The use of liturgy in different traditions; * The shape of th...

From handshakes and toasts to chant and genuflection, ritual pervades our social interactions and religious practices. Still, few of us could identify all of our daily and festal ritual behaviors, much less explain them to an outsider. Similarly, because of the variety of activities that qualify as ritual and their many contradictory yet, in many ways, equally legitimate interpretations, ritual seems to elude any systematic historical and comparative scrutiny.

In this book, Catherine Bell off...

One of the best ways of introducing theology is through direct student engagement with the most exciting works of contemporary religious reflection. We can learn to think theologically from the giants. Gregory Higgins' work, a fresh edition of his earlier The Tapestry of Christian Theology, does just that. Loosely arranging his work around ten key biblical themes, Higgins catches the spirit and verve of ten contemporary theologians. In successive chapters he introduces these important thinker...

This leading textbook for world religion is designed to help students in their study and research of the world's religious traditions. Known and valued for its balanced approach and its respected board of consulting editors, this text addresses ways to study religion, provides broad coverage of diverse religions, and offers an arresting layout with rich illustrations. Introductory sections on understanding religion and the religions of antiquity lay the foundation for the study of the numerou...

Ibn Sina - Avicenna in Latin - (980-1037) played a considerable role in the development of both eastern and western philosophy and science. His contributions to the fields of logic, natural science, psychology, metaphysics and theology and even medicine are difficult to overstate. The great Islamic philosopher al-Ghazali thought that if one could show the incoherence of Avicenna's thought, then one would have shown the incoherence of philosophy in general.

No other author is directly cited by...

You'll find everything you need to know about being Jewish in this indispensable, revised and updated guide to the religious traditions, everyday practices, philosophical beliefs, and historical foundations of Judaism. What happens at a synagogue service? What are the rules for keeping kosher? How do I light the Hanukah candles? What is in the Hebrew Bible? What do the Jewish holidays signify? What should I be teaching my children about being Jewish? With the first edition of Essential Judais...

Gives an account of the emergence of progressive religious thinkers and organisations on the 'religious left'. This book offers an analysis of the cultural roots, key ideas and organisational structures of this faith, assessing its significance in the changing moral and religious landscape of contemporary western society.