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Nonreligion in Late Modern Societies: Institutional and Legal Perspectives (Boundaries of Religious Freedom: Regulating Religion in Diverse Societies)
by Anne-Laure Zwilling Helge ÅrsheimThis volume presents results from new and ongoing research efforts into the role of nonreligion in education, politics, law and society from a variety of different countries. Featuring data from a wide range of quantitative and qualitative studies, the book exposes the relational dynamics of religion and nonreligion. Firstly, it highlights the extent to which nonreligion is defined and understood by legal and institutional actors on the basis of religions, and often replicates the organisation of society and majority religions. At the same time, it displays how essential it is to approach nonreligion on its own, by freeing oneself from the frameworks from which religion is thought.The book addresses pressing questions such as: How can nonreligion be defined, and how can the “nones” be grasped and taken into account in studies on religion? How does the sociocultural and religious backdrop of different countries affect the regulation and representation of nonreligion in law and policymaking? Where and how do nonreligious individuals and collectives fit into institutions in contemporary societies? How does nonreligion affect notions of citizenship and national belonging? Despite growing scholarly interest in the increasing number of people without religion, the role of nonreligion in legal and institutional settings is still largely unexplored.This volume helps fill the gap, and will be of interest to students, researchers, policymakers and others seeking deeper understanding of the changing role of nonreligion in modern societies.
Nonreligious Imaginaries of World Repairing
by Lori G. Beaman Timothy StaceyThe world is confronted with multiple intersecting crises including exploitation, inequality, political polarization and climate change. World-repairing work is vitally needed. But just at a time when humans most obviously require robust moral imaginaries on which to draw, it is no longer clear what kinds of beliefs, meanings, stories and encounters inspire them to act. We know that nonreligious identities are on the rise in numerous countries throughout the world. But with so much focus on the “non” part of nonreligion, what we don’t know is what nonreligious imaginaries actually look, sound and feel like. What do nonreligious people believe in? What stories inspire them? In what moments do they find meaning? This book seeks to answer these questions through a series of short essays exploring the nonreligious imaginaries that emerge in a range of world-repairing practices, including ethical consumption, community organizing, eating habits, and environmental activism. In so doing, the book provides a crucial contribution to two areas of increasing social and political concern: First, the need to understand not only what nonreligious people are rejecting but also their sources of meaning and action. Second, the urgent need for cultural tools for mobilizing people towards more compassionate and sustainable practices.
Nonviolence: The Revolutionary Way of Jesus
by Dr. Preston M. SprinkleIn a unique narrative approach, Sprinkle begins by looking at how the story of God as a whole portrays violence and war, drawing conclusions that guide the reader through the rest of the book. With urgency and precision, he navigates hard questions and examines key approaches to violence, driving every answer back to Scripture. Ultimately, Sprinkle challenges the church to "walk in a manner worthy of our calling" and shape our lives on the example of Christ. Nonviolence: The Revolutionary Way of Jesus is biblically rooted, theologically coherent, and prophetically challenging. It is a defining work that will stir discussions for years to come.
Nonviolence before King: The Politics of Being and the Black Freedom Struggle (Justice, Power, and Politics)
by Anthony C. SiracusaIn the early 1960s, thousands of Black activists used nonviolent direct action to challenge segregation at lunch counters, movie theaters, skating rinks, public pools, and churches across the United States, battling for, and winning, social change. Organizers against segregation had used litigation and protests for decades but not until the advent of nonviolence did they succeed in transforming ingrained patterns of white supremacy on a massive scale. In this book, Anthony C. Siracusa unearths the deeper lineage of anti-war pacifist activists and thinkers from the early twentieth century who developed nonviolence into a revolutionary force for Black liberation.Telling the story of how this powerful political philosophy came to occupy a central place in the Black freedom movement by 1960, Siracusa challenges the idea that nonviolent freedom practices faded with the rise of the Black Power movement. He asserts nonviolence's staying power, insisting that the indwelling commitment to struggle for freedom collectively in a spirit of nonviolence became, for many, a lifelong commitment. In the end, what was revolutionary about the nonviolent method was its ability to assert the basic humanity of Black Americans, to undermine racism's dehumanization, and to insist on the right to be.
Nonviolence in the Mahabharata: Siva’s Summa on Rishidharma and the Gleaners of Kurukshetra (Routledge Hindu Studies Series)
by Alf HiltebeitelIn Indian mythological texts like the Mahābhārata and Rāmāyaṇa, there are recurrent tales about gleaners. The practice of "gleaning" in India had more to do with the house-less forest life than with residential village or urban life or with gathering residual post-harvest grains from cultivated fields. Gleaning can be seen a metaphor for the Mahābhārata poets’ art: an art that could have included their manner of gleaning what they made the leftovers (what they found useful) from many preexistent texts into Vyāsa’s “entire thought”—including oral texts and possibly written ones, such as philosophical debates and stories. This book explores the notion of non-violence in the epic Mahābhārata. In examining gleaning as an ecological and spiritual philosophy nurtured as much by hospitality codes as by eating practices, the author analyses the merits and limitations of the 9th century Kashmiri aesthetician Anandavardhana that the dominant aesthetic sentiment or rasa of the Mahābhārata is shanta (peace). Mahatma Gandhi's non-violent reading of the Mahabharata via the Bhagavad Gita are also studied. This book by one of the leaders in Mahābhārata studies is of interest to scholars of South Asian Literary Studies, Religious Studies as well as Peace Studies, South Asian Anthropology and History.
Nonviolence in the World’s Religions: A Concise Introduction
by Jeffery D. Long Michael G. LongThe twenty-first century began with the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Much has been written and debated on the relationship between faith and violence, with acts of terror at the forefront. However, the twentieth century also gave rise to many successful nonviolent protest movements. Nonviolence in the World’s Religions introduces the reader to the complex relationship between religion and nonviolence. Each of the essays delves into the contemporary and historical expressions of the world’s major religious traditions in relation to nonviolence. Contributors explore the literary and theological foundations of a tradition’s justification of nonviolence; the ways that nonviolence has come to expression in its beliefs, symbols, rituals, and other practices; and the evidence of nonviolence in its historic and present responses to conflict and warfare. The meanings of both religion and nonviolence are explored through engagement with nonviolence in Hindu, Buddhist, Chinese, Sikh, Jewish, Christian, Islamic, Jain, and Pacific Island religious traditions. This is the ideal introduction to the relationship between religion and violence for undergraduate students, as well as for those in related fields, such as religious studies, peace and conflict studies, area studies, sociology, political science, and history.
The Nonviolent Alternative
by Thomas MertonFrom the Trappist monk and author of The Seven Storey Mountain, reflections on the way to moral and social change in a violent world.The writings in this work were precipitated by a variety of events during the last decades of Thomas Merton’s life—the civil rights and peace movements of the 1960s among them. His timeless moral integrity and tireless concern for nonviolent solutions to war are eloquently expressed. A revised edition of the previously published Thomas Merton on Peace, The Nonviolent Alternative addresses such topics as Christianity and defense in the nuclear age; the Danish nonviolent resistance to Hitler; civil disobedience; wartime atrocities; passivity and abuse of authority; and more. It is a meaningful and thought-provoking read for anyone concerned with maintaining faith and making ethical, effective decisions in a world filled with conflict and injustice.Praise for the first edition“These articles represent a radically spiritual breakthrough beyond the ‘self-enclosed . . . beautiful, narcissistic tautology of war’ to a certainty of a peace without limit and time.” —Kirkus Reviews
The Nonviolent God
by J. Denny WeaverThis bold new statement on the nonviolence of God challenges long-standing assumptions of divine violence in theology, the violent God pictured in the Old Testament, and the supposed violence of God in Revelation. In The Nonviolent God J. Denny Weaver argues that since God is revealed in Jesus, the nonviolence of Jesus most truly reflects the character of God.According to Weaver, the way Christians live -- Christian ethics -- is an ongoing expression of theology. Consequently, he suggests positive images of the reign of God made visible in the narrative of Jesus -- nonviolent practice, forgiveness and restorative justice, issues of racism and sexism, and more -- in order that Christians might live more peacefully.
The Nonviolent Life
by John DearNonviolence Toward Ourselves, Nonviolence Toward All Others, Joining the Global Grassroots Movement of Nonviolence.
Nonviolent Soldier Of Islam: Badshah Khan - A Man to Match His Mountains
by Eknath EaswaranThe progeny of a Muslim tribe steeped in a tradition of blood revenge, Badshah Khan raised history's first nonviolent army and joined Mahatma Gandhi in civil disobedience to British rule in India. His story of hard-won victory offers inspiration for nonviolent solutions to today's world struggles.
Nooit Weer Nie!
by Gabriël Agbo"Die Here sê: “Ek sal herstel wat julle deur die stropersprinkane, die snysprinkane, die swermsprinkane en die jong sprinkane verloor het. Ek het hierdie groot, vernietigende leër teen julle gestuur. “Julle sal weer al die kos kry wat julle begeer. Julle sal die Here julle God loof wat hierdie wonders vir julle moontlik maak. My volk sal nooit weer so in die skande kom nie. Julle sal weet dat Ek onder my volk Israel teenwoordig is. Net Ek is die Here julle God, niemand anders nie! My volk sal nooit weer so in die skande kom nie.” Joël 2: 25-27 Dit is tyd om die dinge wat jou wil stop, te stop, Dit is God se wil om alles te stop wat jou van Sy plan vir jou lewe wil verwyder. En jy weet alreeds dat Sy plan vir jou is om die beste van vreugde, vrede, voorspoed, genade, goeie gesondheid en om al jou eiendom te besit. Selfs as jy onder oordeel staan, kan dit omgedraai word vandag en jy kan weer begin om in Sy genade te swem. Ons kyk ook na ander se ondervindings en die moderne Israel se weergawe van Nooit Weer nie. Hoekom hulle hierdie slagspreuk aangeneem het en hoe vêr hulle gekom het om dit toe te pas? Sekerlik, Israel het vandag een van die mees magtigste nasies op aarde geword, (Dit het die beste intelligensie agentskap, Mossad en die derde beste weermag in die wêreld) nie net omdat God met hulle is nie, maar omdat hulle belowe het om nooit weer toe te laat dat die Jode weer deur daardie mees onmenslik, vermybare gebeurtenis van die laaste eeu. Vandag lei hulle nie net in verdediging nie maar ook in landbou, ICT, wetenskap en medisyne. Ja, ons kan vandag sê nooit weer nie. Hierdie boek is verseker 'n interessante lees.
The Noonday Devil: Acedia, The Unnamed Evil Of Our Times
by Dom Jean-Charles Nault Michael J. Miller Marc OuelletThe noonday devil is the demon of acedia, the vice also known as sloth. The word “sloth”, however, can be misleading, for acedia is not laziness; in fact it can manifest as busyness or activism. Rather, acedia is a gloomy combination of weariness, sadness, and a lack of purposefulness. It robs a person of his capacity for joy and leaves him feeling empty, or void of meaning <P><P> Abbot Nault says that acedia is the most oppressive of demons. Although its name harkens back to antiquity and the Middle Ages, and seems to have been largely forgotten, acedia is experienced by countless modern people who describe their condition as depression, melancholy, burn-out, or even mid-life crisis. <P><P> He begins his study of acedia by tracing the wisdom of the Church on the subject from the Desert Fathers to Saint Thomas Aquinas. He shows how acedia afflicts persons in all states of life— priests, religious, and married or single laymen. He details not only the symptoms and effects of acedia, but also remedies for it.
Nor The Moon By Night: Across The Treacherous Tatra Mountains, The Bobov Chassidim Seek A Haven From The War
by Devora GliksmanIn Nor the Moon by Night, the author of A Sun and a Shield chronicles the dramatic history of the Halberstam family of Bobov, torn apart by war and tragedy yet determined to renew their glorious past. Their struggle for survival carried them across treacherous mountain trails to freedom; they endured persecution and deprivation, but their faith impelled them onward.
Norah's Ark (Life, Faith & Getting It Right #14)
by Judy BaerNorah Kent, pet store owner, is single and devoted to animals. She's also gifted at matching kittens and puppies with people and is busy caring for her elderly aunt. She has three suitors. Will one of them win her heart? --- Hi, my name is Bentley. I'm a mutt with a dash of pit bull in the soup, and I have issues. I'm not likely to win any beauty pageants, and I'm afraid of cats. But my human, Norah Kent, thinks I'm the greatest despite all my shortcomings. The problem is Norah won't go out with anyone who doesn't like me. Norah says she's perfectly happy being single, and that in God's time she'll marry Mr. Right. But I think God's time may be right now, and Mr. Right may be Officer Nick Haley-the one guy who's afraid of a kitten-fearing basket case of a dog like me! I'll do just about anything to bring Norah and Nick together, even if I have to...gulp... woof!
Nora's Ark
by Eileen SpinelliThe weatherman predicted rain.So Nora built an ark.Just like Noah.Well….Not just like Noah. Noah welcomed a host of animals two-by-two. Nora’s passenger list includes two backyard spiders, a pair of battery-operated monkeys, and a couple of unimpressed cats. Nora also employs her little brother, some dusty wooden boxes, and a sizeable dose of contagious imagination in her distinctive re-creation of the timeless story. Charming and inventive, Nora’s big voyage, and its stirring conclusion, provide entertainment and inspiration for readers of all ages.
Norbert Elias und der Tod: Eine empirische Überprüfung
by Matthias MeitzlerDer Einfluss von Norbert Elias als soziologischer Klassiker ist unbestritten. Dieser Status verdankt sich in erster Linie seiner Theorie vom Zivilisationsprozess. In dessen Geist steht auch Elias‘ 1982 erschienenes und in mehrere Sprachen übersetztes Buch Über die Einsamkeit der Sterbenden in unseren Tagen. Dort widmet er sich der Frage, wie Menschen der Endlichkeit des Lebens gegenüberstehen, unter welchen Bedingungen sie sterben, sich voneinander verabschieden, umeinander trauern und sich aneinander erinnern. Im Zentrum steht die Einsicht, dass es immerzu die Lebenden sind, die das Sterblichkeitsproblem zu bewältigen haben. Menschen in zivilisierten Gesellschaften tun dies Elias zufolge, indem sie Sterben und Tod verdrängen. Als schambesetztes Thema werde das Lebensende in alltäglichen Gesprächssituationen zumeist ausgeblendet; ferner haben sich Sterbeprozesse im Zuge sozialer Ausdifferenzierung vom heimischen Familienumfeld in Institutionen wie das Krankenhaus verlagert. Diese Entwicklung führe dazu, dass heute anders gestorben werde als früher: steril, geräuschlos, unauffällig – und vor allem einsam. Für die thanatosoziologische Erforschung des Umgangs mit Sterben, Tod und Trauer erwies sich Elias‘ Studie als Meilenstein. Kein anderes deutschsprachiges Buch dürfte in diesem Zusammenhang häufiger zitiert worden sein. Was jedoch fehlt, ist eine systematische Überprüfung der empirischen Aktualität seiner Thesen. Dieses Desiderat bildet den Ansatzpunkt für die vorliegende Untersuchung. Ausgehend von originären qualitativen Forschungen werden zentrale Aspekte der Elias’schen Perspektive aufgegriffen und auf ihre Anschlussfähigkeit hin analysiert. Ein Schwerpunkt liegt auf der Frage, was der soziale Wandel der vergangenen Jahrzehnte für die heutige Situation der Sterbenden bedeutet.
Norbert Elias’s African Processes of Civilisation: On the Formation of Survival Units in Ghana
by Barbara Mennell Stephen MennellIn 1962 Norbert Elias was invited as a temporary professor at the University of Ghana in Legon, Accra. He taught, employed fieldwork, travelled, and met many people in postcolonial Africa. When Elias left Ghana in 1964, he had laid the basic groundwork for a fundamental sociological argument on human societies.The volume on hand is a selection of his unpublished writings based on these experiences. Together they touch upon not only the well-known criticism of Eurocentrism and a developmental perspective but also what could be considered the core of Elias’s work: the concept of civilisation. In a foreword, Dieter Reicher and Adrian Jitschin have endeavoured to explain and break down the relations of Elias’s African experience to the rest of his work and biography. They also clarified some misleading interpretations of Elias’s time in Africa. Finally, Arjan Post has uncovered the previously unknown fascinating story of Elias’ encounter with Malcolm X in an epilogue.
Norberto Rivera: El pastor del poder
by Bernardo BarrancoMás que una obra anticlerical o anticatólica, éste es un esfuerzo colectivo por conformar una sólida imputación a una fallida aventura de la Iglesia que apostó por la disciplina y la regresión. Alberto Athié - Eugenia Jiménez Cáliz - Guadalupe Loaeza - Fátima Moneta - Marilú Rojas Salazar - Mónica Uribe - Rodrigo Vera - Jenaro Villamil El libro que tiene en sus manos es una colección de ensayos críticos sobre el desempeño del arzobispo Norberto Rivera. No se busca una falsa neutralidad, por el contrario, son textos de denuncia donde intelectuales, periodistas y activistas de derechos humanos sustentan con hechos los excesos y extravíos del cardenal. Los autores documentan la trayectoria de un personaje que en nombre de la ortodoxia moral ha condenado las causas de las mujeres, los homosexuales, los no creyentes y las minorías. Como sedocumenta a lo largo de estas páginas, Norberto Rivera es un claro ejemplo de que la impunidad y el fuero religioso es una regla no escrita de la política mexicana. El prelado es intocable no sólo por su condición de alto clero, sino por su hermandad con el poder. Más que como pastor o líder espiritual, dice Bernardo Barranco, "el cardenal encarna al obispo sinuoso, rodeado de lujos, protector de pederastas, centavero, solapador a conveniencia propia y de sus amigos: actores de doble moral dentro y fuera de la Iglesia". Otros autores han opinado: "Tantas razones para la desilusión con la cúpula de la Iglesia católica y su representante en México, Norberto Rivera. Y este libro enuncia los motivos de este desencanto, persistente y dolorosamente. Marcial Maciel, pederasta. Juan Pablo II, encubridor. Legionarios de Cristo, cómplices. El personaje principal de esta obra, omiso. Difícil reconocerlo, entenderlo, admitirlo. Pero es la verdad que lleva años allí; que algunas víctimas valientes han denunciado; que algunos escritores comprometidos han investigado; que muchos mexicanos deberían saber." -Denise Dresser-
Nordic Neoshamanisms
by Siv Ellen Kraft Trude Fonneland James R. LewisThis book proposes that the drive for religiosity and experiences of the sacred are far from lost in contemporary western societies. The contributors' objective is to explore the myriad of ways late modern shamanism is becoming more vital and personally significant to people, communities, and economies in Nordic countries.
Norito: A Translation of the Ancient Japanese Ritual Prayers - Updated Edition
by Donald L. PhilippiThis volume presents the only English translation of the prayers of Japan's indigenous religious tradition, Shinto. These prayers, norito, are works of religious literature that are basic to our understanding of Japanese religious history. Locating Donald Philippi as one of a small number of scholars who have developed a perceptive approach to the problem of "hermeneutical distance" in dealing with ancient or foreign texts, Joseph M. Kitagawa recalls Mircea Eliade's observation that "most of the time [our] encounters and comparisons with non-Western cultures have not made all the `strangeness' of these cultures evident. . . . We may say that the Western world has not yet, or not generally, met with authentic representatives of the `real' non-Western traditions." Composed in the stately ritual language of the ancient Japanese and presented as a "performing text," these prayers are, Kitagawa tells us, "one of the authentic foreign representatives in Eliade's sense." In the preface Kitagawa elucidates their significance, discusses Philippi's methods of encountering the "strangeness" of Japan, and comments astutely on aspects of the encounter of East and West.
The Normal Christian Birth: How to Give New Believers a Proper Start in Life
by David PawsonBasing his study on the New Testament, David Pawson advocates a synthesis of the 'liberal' emphasis on repentance, the 'evangelical' on faith, the 'sacramental' on baptism and the 'pentecostal' on the Spirit. He then relates these 'spiritual dooes' to the concepts of conversion and regeneration.The Normal Christian Birth looks at crucial and controversial texts, challenging traditional interpretations. The final section on evangelistic counselling questions the adequacy of the typical 'sinner's prayer' approach. Drawing from scripture and experience, David Pawson gives many practical tips on helping potential discipes to repent, believe, be baptised and receive the Spirit.
The Normal Christian Life
by Watchman NeeThis classic work unfolds the path of faith and presents the eternal purpose of God in simple terms.
Normative Reasons and Theism (Palgrave Frontiers in Philosophy of Religion)
by Gerald K. HarrisonNormative reasons are reasons to do and believe things. Intellectual inquiry seems to presuppose their existence, for we cannot justifiably conclude that we exist; that there is an external world; and that there are better and worse ways of investigating it and behaving in it, unless there are reasons to do and believe such things. But just what in the world are normative reasons? In this book a case is made for believing normative reasons are favouring relations that have a single, external source, filling this significant gap in the literature in an area within contemporary philosophy that has quickly grown in prominence. Providing a divine command metanormative analysis of normative reasons on entirely non-religious grounds, its arguments will be relevant to both secular and non-secular audiences alike and will address key issues in meta-ethics, evolutionary theory - especially evolutionary debunking threats to moral reasons and the normative more generally - and epistemology.
Normative Theorien autoritärer Herrschaft
by Dietmar BraunWährend die normative Begründung von Demokratie seit der Antike ein zentrales Thema der politischen Ideengeschichte darstellt, erhält die Rechtfertigung autoritärer Herrschaft bisher relativ wenig Aufmerksamkeit. Diese Diskrepanz soll mit diesem Buch beseitigt werden. Übersichtsweise werden die relevanten Beiträge politischer Philosophen und Vertreter religiöser und ideologischer Strömungen abgehandelt und zu sieben Autoritätstypen zusammengefasst: den sittlichen, religiösen, schützenden, vernünftigen, ideologischen, elitären und populistischen Autoritarismus.
Norse Goddess Magic: Trancework, Mythology, and Ritual
by Alice KarlsdóttirA practical guide to the magic of the feminine side of the Norse pantheon • Provides invocations and rituals to call each goddess forth for personal and group spirit work • Details the author’s trancework to discover the personalities and powers of Frigg the Allmother, wife of Odin, and the 12 lesser-known Aesir goddesses associated with her • Offers a comprehensive guide to tranceworking to connect with the deities Combining traditional research on folklore and the Eddas with trancework and meditation techniques, Alice Karlsdóttir was able to rediscover the feminine side of the Norse pantheon and assemble working knowledge of 13 Norse goddesses for both group ritual and personal spirit work. Detailing her trancework journeys to connect with the goddesses, the author reveals the long-lost personalities and powers of each deity. She explores the Norse goddess Frigg the Allmother, wife of Odin, along with the 12 Asynjur, or Aesir goddesses, associated with her, such as Sjofn the peacemaker, Eir the Healer, and Vor the Wisewoman. She shares their appearances in the Eddas and Germanic mythology and explains the meanings of their names, their relationships to each other, and their connections to the roles of women in Old Norse society. She provides detailed instructions for invocations and rituals to call each goddess forth for personal and group spirit work. She also offers a comprehensive guide to ritual tranceworking to allow anyone to directly experience deities and spiritual beings and develop spirit-work relationships with them.