Richard Crouter
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195379679
- eISBN:
- 9780199869169
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195379679.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This book is a primer on the political prophet and Christian social ethicist Reinhold Niebuhr (1892–1971), who is widely cited for his political realism in the aftermath of George W. Bush’s ...
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This book is a primer on the political prophet and Christian social ethicist Reinhold Niebuhr (1892–1971), who is widely cited for his political realism in the aftermath of George W. Bush’s presidency. His works are on the favorite reading list of Barack Obama. In addition to mapping the “Niebuhr revival” on the political left and right, the book’s seven chapters acquaint readers with the central teachings and ways of thinking behind this fresh interest. The core of Niebuhr’s Christian realism and the role of irony in his thought are made accessible to non-specialists in ways that explain his appeal to secular as well as deeply religious minds. The book begins with an account of the fresh interest in the Protestant thinker and argues for Niebuhr’s sense of history as a prelude to explaining how his view of the human self as sinful and self-preoccupied (individually and in groups) relates to his passion for social justice. Three chapters then examine Niebuhr’s teaching as a preacher and writer with uncommon literary sensitivity, take up his classic 1952 title, The Irony of American History as an expression of his Christian realism, and probe the reasons for his mixed reception in contemporary Christian circles, both popular and academic. A final chapter examines the ways that Niebuhr’s legacy invites levels of self-reflection that judiciously illumine the personal, political, and religious challenges that we face in the contemporary world.Less
This book is a primer on the political prophet and Christian social ethicist Reinhold Niebuhr (1892–1971), who is widely cited for his political realism in the aftermath of George W. Bush’s presidency. His works are on the favorite reading list of Barack Obama. In addition to mapping the “Niebuhr revival” on the political left and right, the book’s seven chapters acquaint readers with the central teachings and ways of thinking behind this fresh interest. The core of Niebuhr’s Christian realism and the role of irony in his thought are made accessible to non-specialists in ways that explain his appeal to secular as well as deeply religious minds. The book begins with an account of the fresh interest in the Protestant thinker and argues for Niebuhr’s sense of history as a prelude to explaining how his view of the human self as sinful and self-preoccupied (individually and in groups) relates to his passion for social justice. Three chapters then examine Niebuhr’s teaching as a preacher and writer with uncommon literary sensitivity, take up his classic 1952 title, The Irony of American History as an expression of his Christian realism, and probe the reasons for his mixed reception in contemporary Christian circles, both popular and academic. A final chapter examines the ways that Niebuhr’s legacy invites levels of self-reflection that judiciously illumine the personal, political, and religious challenges that we face in the contemporary world.
Richard K. Fenn
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195143690
- eISBN:
- 9780199834174
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195143698.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Explores the possibilities for a secular society. Such a society is radically open to its environment, to a wide range of opportunities and dangers, and it is therefore agnostic about the boundaries ...
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Explores the possibilities for a secular society. Such a society is radically open to its environment, to a wide range of opportunities and dangers, and it is therefore agnostic about the boundaries between the possible and the impossible. Its own beliefs and ethics would also be open, evolutionary, procedural, and open to contestation and revision. There would be opportunities for individuals to give their own accounts of their personal experience without seeking recognition and legitimacy from institutionalized sources of authority. The individual's identity would be able to develop with being shaped by ritual or conformed to a society's pantheon of heroes. The present would be open to the past without being controlled or obligated to it, and the future would be an emergent aspect of the present rather than a reservoir of unfulfilled aspiration. Language would be subject to negotiation and contest, even regarding the meanings of sacred speech. The mysterious and the occult, along with other aspects of the sacred, would be subject to discourse rather than veneration. The political and cultural center would lose its monopoly on the sacred, and the periphery would become more assertive in defining is own forms of the sacred against those of the center. Religious institutions would become less successful in reducing the sacred to particular interpretations, times, and places.Less
Explores the possibilities for a secular society. Such a society is radically open to its environment, to a wide range of opportunities and dangers, and it is therefore agnostic about the boundaries between the possible and the impossible. Its own beliefs and ethics would also be open, evolutionary, procedural, and open to contestation and revision. There would be opportunities for individuals to give their own accounts of their personal experience without seeking recognition and legitimacy from institutionalized sources of authority. The individual's identity would be able to develop with being shaped by ritual or conformed to a society's pantheon of heroes. The present would be open to the past without being controlled or obligated to it, and the future would be an emergent aspect of the present rather than a reservoir of unfulfilled aspiration. Language would be subject to negotiation and contest, even regarding the meanings of sacred speech. The mysterious and the occult, along with other aspects of the sacred, would be subject to discourse rather than veneration. The political and cultural center would lose its monopoly on the sacred, and the periphery would become more assertive in defining is own forms of the sacred against those of the center. Religious institutions would become less successful in reducing the sacred to particular interpretations, times, and places.
John Kekes
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199588886
- eISBN:
- 9780191595448
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199588886.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Moral Philosophy, Philosophy of Religion
This book is a response to the growing disenchantment in the Western world with contemporary life. It provides rationally justified answers to questions about the meaning of life, the basis of ...
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This book is a response to the growing disenchantment in the Western world with contemporary life. It provides rationally justified answers to questions about the meaning of life, the basis of morality, the contingencies of human lives, the prevalence of evil, the nature and extent of human responsibility, and the sources of values we prize. It offers a realistic view of the human condition that rejects both facile optimism and gloomy pessimism; acknowledges that we are vulnerable to contingencies we cannot fully control; defends a humanistic understanding of our condition; recognizes that the values worth pursuing are plural, often conflicting, and that there are many reasonable conceptions of well‐being. It emphasizes the importance of facing the fact that man's inhumanity to man is widespread. It rejects as simple‐minded both the view that human nature is basically good and that it is basically bad, and argues that our well‐being depends on coping with the complex truth that human nature is basically complicated. It argues that the scheme of things is indifferent to our fortunes and that we can rely only on our own resources to make what we can of our lives.Less
This book is a response to the growing disenchantment in the Western world with contemporary life. It provides rationally justified answers to questions about the meaning of life, the basis of morality, the contingencies of human lives, the prevalence of evil, the nature and extent of human responsibility, and the sources of values we prize. It offers a realistic view of the human condition that rejects both facile optimism and gloomy pessimism; acknowledges that we are vulnerable to contingencies we cannot fully control; defends a humanistic understanding of our condition; recognizes that the values worth pursuing are plural, often conflicting, and that there are many reasonable conceptions of well‐being. It emphasizes the importance of facing the fact that man's inhumanity to man is widespread. It rejects as simple‐minded both the view that human nature is basically good and that it is basically bad, and argues that our well‐being depends on coping with the complex truth that human nature is basically complicated. It argues that the scheme of things is indifferent to our fortunes and that we can rely only on our own resources to make what we can of our lives.
John Kekes
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199588886
- eISBN:
- 9780191595448
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199588886.003.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Moral Philosophy, Philosophy of Religion
The aim of the book is to present and defend a secular view of the human condition. This view is pluralist, not absolutist; rationalist, not relativist; fallibilist, not skeptical or dogmatic; ...
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The aim of the book is to present and defend a secular view of the human condition. This view is pluralist, not absolutist; rationalist, not relativist; fallibilist, not skeptical or dogmatic; realist, not optimist or pessimist; particular and concrete, not general and abstract. Its perspective is humanistic, neither religiously, nor scientifically oriented.Less
The aim of the book is to present and defend a secular view of the human condition. This view is pluralist, not absolutist; rationalist, not relativist; fallibilist, not skeptical or dogmatic; realist, not optimist or pessimist; particular and concrete, not general and abstract. Its perspective is humanistic, neither religiously, nor scientifically oriented.
Roman Cholij
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199566976
- eISBN:
- 9780191701993
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199566976.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Early Christian Studies
This is the first modern study in English of the life and thought of the ninth-century Byzantine theologian and monastic reformer, Theodore the Stoudite. The book provides a guide to and a complete ...
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This is the first modern study in English of the life and thought of the ninth-century Byzantine theologian and monastic reformer, Theodore the Stoudite. The book provides a guide to and a complete analysis of all the primary source material attributed to Theodore. If the monastic leader is considered in the context of the tradition to which he belonged, it is clear that his religious formation occurred within a widely established school of Basilian and Palestinian Christian thought. This encourages a fresh engagement with the subtleties in Theodore's behaviour towards the Byzantine religious and secular leaders of his time and provokes new conclusions concerning the religious and secular issues which involved Theodore in controversy. The book refutes the established view of Theodore as a breaker of the traditional Byzantine church and state relationship, and provides new insights into Theodore's true understanding of the involvement of the Emperor in church affairs. In this analysis of the rites of holiness that belonged to Theodore's church, the book identifies a false tradition of sacramental mysteries in a misreading of Pseudo-Dionysios the Areopagite and so offers a new definition of the origins of the Orthodox sacramental tradition.Less
This is the first modern study in English of the life and thought of the ninth-century Byzantine theologian and monastic reformer, Theodore the Stoudite. The book provides a guide to and a complete analysis of all the primary source material attributed to Theodore. If the monastic leader is considered in the context of the tradition to which he belonged, it is clear that his religious formation occurred within a widely established school of Basilian and Palestinian Christian thought. This encourages a fresh engagement with the subtleties in Theodore's behaviour towards the Byzantine religious and secular leaders of his time and provokes new conclusions concerning the religious and secular issues which involved Theodore in controversy. The book refutes the established view of Theodore as a breaker of the traditional Byzantine church and state relationship, and provides new insights into Theodore's true understanding of the involvement of the Emperor in church affairs. In this analysis of the rites of holiness that belonged to Theodore's church, the book identifies a false tradition of sacramental mysteries in a misreading of Pseudo-Dionysios the Areopagite and so offers a new definition of the origins of the Orthodox sacramental tradition.
H. A. Hellyer
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- September 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780748639472
- eISBN:
- 9780748671342
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9780748639472.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Islam
The interchange between Muslims and Europe has a long and complicated history, dating back to before the idea of ‘Europe’ was born, and the earliest years of Islam. There has been a Muslim presence ...
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The interchange between Muslims and Europe has a long and complicated history, dating back to before the idea of ‘Europe’ was born, and the earliest years of Islam. There has been a Muslim presence on the European continent before, but never has it been so significant, particularly in Western Europe. With more Muslims in Europe than in many countries of the Muslim world, they have found themselves in the position of challenging what it means to be a European in a secular society of the twenty-first century. At the same time, the European context has caused many Muslims to re-think what is essential to them in religious terms in their new reality. This work analyses the prospects for a European future where pluralism is accepted within unified societies, and the presence of a Muslim community that is of Europe, not simply in it.Less
The interchange between Muslims and Europe has a long and complicated history, dating back to before the idea of ‘Europe’ was born, and the earliest years of Islam. There has been a Muslim presence on the European continent before, but never has it been so significant, particularly in Western Europe. With more Muslims in Europe than in many countries of the Muslim world, they have found themselves in the position of challenging what it means to be a European in a secular society of the twenty-first century. At the same time, the European context has caused many Muslims to re-think what is essential to them in religious terms in their new reality. This work analyses the prospects for a European future where pluralism is accepted within unified societies, and the presence of a Muslim community that is of Europe, not simply in it.
Timothy Larsen
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- January 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199287871
- eISBN:
- 9780191713422
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199287871.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Theology
John Henry Gordon wrote for G. J. Holyoake’s Reasoner. Gordon became the first full-time Secularist lecturer in Britain when he was appointed by the Leeds Secular Society. After a dramatic ...
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John Henry Gordon wrote for G. J. Holyoake’s Reasoner. Gordon became the first full-time Secularist lecturer in Britain when he was appointed by the Leeds Secular Society. After a dramatic reconversion, he eventually became a Baptist minister and a lecturer in favour of disestablishment for the Liberation Society.Less
John Henry Gordon wrote for G. J. Holyoake’s Reasoner. Gordon became the first full-time Secularist lecturer in Britain when he was appointed by the Leeds Secular Society. After a dramatic reconversion, he eventually became a Baptist minister and a lecturer in favour of disestablishment for the Liberation Society.
Timothy Larsen
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- January 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199287871
- eISBN:
- 9780191713422
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199287871.003.0007
- Subject:
- Religion, Theology
John Bagnall Bebbington, in addition to writing and lecturing in favour of Secularism, was also a patron of freethinking endeavours. He was the chairman of the Temple Secular Society and the editor ...
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John Bagnall Bebbington, in addition to writing and lecturing in favour of Secularism, was also a patron of freethinking endeavours. He was the chairman of the Temple Secular Society and the editor of the Propagandist. He was particularly influenced by the thought of David Hume. He gave the reasons for his reconversion in Why I Was An Atheist and Why I Am Now A Christian.Less
John Bagnall Bebbington, in addition to writing and lecturing in favour of Secularism, was also a patron of freethinking endeavours. He was the chairman of the Temple Secular Society and the editor of the Propagandist. He was particularly influenced by the thought of David Hume. He gave the reasons for his reconversion in Why I Was An Atheist and Why I Am Now A Christian.
Gareth Lloyd
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- May 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199295746
- eISBN:
- 9780191711701
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199295746.003.0010
- Subject:
- Religion, Church History
By the time of Charles Wesley's death in 1788 his public and Methodist profile outside London and Bristol was greatly diminished. His relationship with his brother had been strained since the ...
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By the time of Charles Wesley's death in 1788 his public and Methodist profile outside London and Bristol was greatly diminished. His relationship with his brother had been strained since the beginning of the 1750s, while some important preachers expressed little sadness at his death. Charles Wesley's Church‐Methodist viewpoint did not, however, die with him; many lay people and some preachers retained a dual loyalty to both Methodism and the Church of England and carried on the struggle into the 1790s and after. The legacy of Church Methodism was an inclusive 19th century Wesleyan denomination whose members were at liberty also to regard themselves as Anglicans if they wished. Also, as late as the 1880s, important features of Wesleyan Methodist polity and worship referred back to the movement's origins within the Church of England.Less
By the time of Charles Wesley's death in 1788 his public and Methodist profile outside London and Bristol was greatly diminished. His relationship with his brother had been strained since the beginning of the 1750s, while some important preachers expressed little sadness at his death. Charles Wesley's Church‐Methodist viewpoint did not, however, die with him; many lay people and some preachers retained a dual loyalty to both Methodism and the Church of England and carried on the struggle into the 1790s and after. The legacy of Church Methodism was an inclusive 19th century Wesleyan denomination whose members were at liberty also to regard themselves as Anglicans if they wished. Also, as late as the 1880s, important features of Wesleyan Methodist polity and worship referred back to the movement's origins within the Church of England.
Harvey Cox
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691158853
- eISBN:
- 9781400848850
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691158853.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Since its initial publication in 1965, this book has been hailed as a classic for its nuanced exploration of the relationships among the rise of urban civilization, the decline of hierarchical, ...
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Since its initial publication in 1965, this book has been hailed as a classic for its nuanced exploration of the relationships among the rise of urban civilization, the decline of hierarchical, institutional religion, and the place of the secular within society. Now, half a century later, this international best seller remains as relevant as when it first appeared. The book's arguments—that secularity has a positive effect on institutions, that the city can be a space where people of all faiths fulfil their potential, and that God is present in both the secular and formal religious realms—still resonate with readers of all backgrounds. This brand-new edition includes a substantial and updated introduction. The author reflects on the book's initial stunning success in an age of political and religious upheaval and makes the case for its enduring relevance at a time when the debates that the book helped ignite have caught fire once again.Less
Since its initial publication in 1965, this book has been hailed as a classic for its nuanced exploration of the relationships among the rise of urban civilization, the decline of hierarchical, institutional religion, and the place of the secular within society. Now, half a century later, this international best seller remains as relevant as when it first appeared. The book's arguments—that secularity has a positive effect on institutions, that the city can be a space where people of all faiths fulfil their potential, and that God is present in both the secular and formal religious realms—still resonate with readers of all backgrounds. This brand-new edition includes a substantial and updated introduction. The author reflects on the book's initial stunning success in an age of political and religious upheaval and makes the case for its enduring relevance at a time when the debates that the book helped ignite have caught fire once again.
Gareth Lloyd
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- May 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199295746
- eISBN:
- 9780191711701
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199295746.003.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Church History
Charles Wesley was a complex man in terms of his denominational identity and this ambiguity is reflected in the Methodist movement that he helped to found. Some of the keys to understanding Charles ...
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Charles Wesley was a complex man in terms of his denominational identity and this ambiguity is reflected in the Methodist movement that he helped to found. Some of the keys to understanding Charles Wesley and his relationship with Methodism, the wider Evangelical Revival, and the Church of England can be found in a childhood shaped by a difficult environment and parents whose own denominational identities were a rich mix of Puritan and High Church Anglican tempered by influences from other Christian traditions. These same ingredients proved to be of fundamental importance in the making of Methodism.Less
Charles Wesley was a complex man in terms of his denominational identity and this ambiguity is reflected in the Methodist movement that he helped to found. Some of the keys to understanding Charles Wesley and his relationship with Methodism, the wider Evangelical Revival, and the Church of England can be found in a childhood shaped by a difficult environment and parents whose own denominational identities were a rich mix of Puritan and High Church Anglican tempered by influences from other Christian traditions. These same ingredients proved to be of fundamental importance in the making of Methodism.
Lisa Sowle Cahill
David E. Guinn (ed.)
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780195178739
- eISBN:
- 9780199784943
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195178734.003.0003
- Subject:
- Religion, Philosophy of Religion
For at least two decades, the role of theology in public matters has been governed by what might be termed a “liberal consensus”. This consensus, shared by policymakers, theologians, philosophers, ...
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For at least two decades, the role of theology in public matters has been governed by what might be termed a “liberal consensus”. This consensus, shared by policymakers, theologians, philosophers, and the public, has two parts. First, that law and public policy need to be considered in terms of individual liberties and rights. Second, that the only appropriate “public” language in which to justify, qualify, and reconcile liberties and rights should be neutral, secular, and rational. The thesis of this chapter is that such a framing of the issues is outmoded. To begin with, the “secular” sphere is not neutral, since all participants inevitably come from communities which have identity. Therefore, it is appropriate to use religious narratives and language, or those of any moral tradition (which includes liberalism), as long as they are not propounded dogmatically or in a way that undermines democratic process and participatory politics.Less
For at least two decades, the role of theology in public matters has been governed by what might be termed a “liberal consensus”. This consensus, shared by policymakers, theologians, philosophers, and the public, has two parts. First, that law and public policy need to be considered in terms of individual liberties and rights. Second, that the only appropriate “public” language in which to justify, qualify, and reconcile liberties and rights should be neutral, secular, and rational. The thesis of this chapter is that such a framing of the issues is outmoded. To begin with, the “secular” sphere is not neutral, since all participants inevitably come from communities which have identity. Therefore, it is appropriate to use religious narratives and language, or those of any moral tradition (which includes liberalism), as long as they are not propounded dogmatically or in a way that undermines democratic process and participatory politics.
Timothy Fitzgerald
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- January 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780195300093
- eISBN:
- 9780199868636
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195300093.003.0010
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Literature
Ambiguities in North American debates were the result of an unresolved conflict between two logically and theologically contradictory discourses, both claiming to be about “religion.” One is of a ...
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Ambiguities in North American debates were the result of an unresolved conflict between two logically and theologically contradictory discourses, both claiming to be about “religion.” One is of a profane, fallen world of native “Indian” paganism judged against the canons of Christian Truth; and the other the Enlightenment discourse on a Constitutionally defined secular state which is neutral to “religions” but which guarantees freedom of worship as a private right. This same ambiguity can also be found in the preaching of European and American missionaries who oscillate between a vision of the non‐European world as profane in the sense of being Fallen, and a vision of the non‐European world as lacking scientific secular rationality. Underlying this ambiguity lies a more consistent discursive substratum of rhetoric on civility and barbarity. Modern Euro‐American discourses wobble between these two different paradigms, at one moment representing the civility of encompassing Christian Truth which offers salvation from the profanities of pagan darkness, but at another moment offering scientific rationality and liberal capitalism as secular economic salvation from evolutionary backwardness.Less
Ambiguities in North American debates were the result of an unresolved conflict between two logically and theologically contradictory discourses, both claiming to be about “religion.” One is of a profane, fallen world of native “Indian” paganism judged against the canons of Christian Truth; and the other the Enlightenment discourse on a Constitutionally defined secular state which is neutral to “religions” but which guarantees freedom of worship as a private right. This same ambiguity can also be found in the preaching of European and American missionaries who oscillate between a vision of the non‐European world as profane in the sense of being Fallen, and a vision of the non‐European world as lacking scientific secular rationality. Underlying this ambiguity lies a more consistent discursive substratum of rhetoric on civility and barbarity. Modern Euro‐American discourses wobble between these two different paradigms, at one moment representing the civility of encompassing Christian Truth which offers salvation from the profanities of pagan darkness, but at another moment offering scientific rationality and liberal capitalism as secular economic salvation from evolutionary backwardness.
Antony Black
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199533206
- eISBN:
- 9780191714498
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199533206.003.0008
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
The papalist revolution of the 11th century led to greater divergence between the political thought of the West and of Islam and Byzantium. Pope Gregory VII's views on papal sovereignty provided a ...
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The papalist revolution of the 11th century led to greater divergence between the political thought of the West and of Islam and Byzantium. Pope Gregory VII's views on papal sovereignty provided a prototype for the modern Western state. He and his supporters desacralized kingship. Their attempt to subordinate the state to the church provoked a reaction which led to secular theories of the state. This ‘first European revolution’ coincided with the rise of city republics and economic development. Sunni Islam was consolidated through a firmer alliance between the sultans and the 'ulama. But the Mongol invasions hastened economic and cultural decline. The Shi'ite revolution in 16th-century Iran resulted in social dominance for the Shi'ite 'ulama. This laid a basis for their rise to political power in the 20th century. These changes in the relationship between religion and politics had the opposite results in the West and in Islam.Less
The papalist revolution of the 11th century led to greater divergence between the political thought of the West and of Islam and Byzantium. Pope Gregory VII's views on papal sovereignty provided a prototype for the modern Western state. He and his supporters desacralized kingship. Their attempt to subordinate the state to the church provoked a reaction which led to secular theories of the state. This ‘first European revolution’ coincided with the rise of city republics and economic development. Sunni Islam was consolidated through a firmer alliance between the sultans and the 'ulama. But the Mongol invasions hastened economic and cultural decline. The Shi'ite revolution in 16th-century Iran resulted in social dominance for the Shi'ite 'ulama. This laid a basis for their rise to political power in the 20th century. These changes in the relationship between religion and politics had the opposite results in the West and in Islam.
Avi Max Spiegel
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691159843
- eISBN:
- 9781400866434
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691159843.001.0001
- Subject:
- Society and Culture, Middle Eastern Studies
Today, two-thirds of all Arab Muslims are under the age of thirty. This book takes readers inside the evolving competition for their support—a competition not simply between Islamism and the secular ...
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Today, two-thirds of all Arab Muslims are under the age of thirty. This book takes readers inside the evolving competition for their support—a competition not simply between Islamism and the secular world, but between different and often conflicting visions of Islam itself. Drawing on extensive ethnographic research among rank-and-file activists in Morocco, the book shows how Islamist movements are encountering opposition from an unexpected source—each other. In vivid detail, the book describes the conflicts that arise as Islamist groups vie with one another for new recruits, and the unprecedented fragmentation that occurs as members wrangle over a shared urbanized base. Looking carefully at how political Islam is lived, expressed, and understood by young people, the book moves beyond the top-down focus of current research. Instead, it makes the compelling case that Islamist actors are shaped more by their relationships to each other than by their relationships to the state or even to religious ideology. By focusing not only on the texts of aging elites but also on the voices of diverse and sophisticated Muslim youths, the book exposes the shifting and contested nature of Islamist movements today—movements that are being reimagined from the bottom up by young Islam. This book, the first to shed light on this new and uncharted era of Islamist pluralism in the Middle East and North Africa, uncovers the rivalries that are redefining the next generation of political Islam.Less
Today, two-thirds of all Arab Muslims are under the age of thirty. This book takes readers inside the evolving competition for their support—a competition not simply between Islamism and the secular world, but between different and often conflicting visions of Islam itself. Drawing on extensive ethnographic research among rank-and-file activists in Morocco, the book shows how Islamist movements are encountering opposition from an unexpected source—each other. In vivid detail, the book describes the conflicts that arise as Islamist groups vie with one another for new recruits, and the unprecedented fragmentation that occurs as members wrangle over a shared urbanized base. Looking carefully at how political Islam is lived, expressed, and understood by young people, the book moves beyond the top-down focus of current research. Instead, it makes the compelling case that Islamist actors are shaped more by their relationships to each other than by their relationships to the state or even to religious ideology. By focusing not only on the texts of aging elites but also on the voices of diverse and sophisticated Muslim youths, the book exposes the shifting and contested nature of Islamist movements today—movements that are being reimagined from the bottom up by young Islam. This book, the first to shed light on this new and uncharted era of Islamist pluralism in the Middle East and North Africa, uncovers the rivalries that are redefining the next generation of political Islam.
Seyyed Vali Reza Nasr
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195144260
- eISBN:
- 9780199833931
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195144260.003.0005
- Subject:
- Political Science, International Relations and Politics
The 1970s was a period of Islamic resurgence in Malaysia and Pakistan. In Malaysia, ABIM and dakwah movements, and in Pakistan, the Jama`at‐i Islami spearheaded Islamist challenge to the secular ...
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The 1970s was a period of Islamic resurgence in Malaysia and Pakistan. In Malaysia, ABIM and dakwah movements, and in Pakistan, the Jama`at‐i Islami spearheaded Islamist challenge to the secular state. These movements grew in popularity, and became the voice of the disgruntled political elements. They also floated new and powerful political concepts and ideas that quickly gained in popularity and framed public debates and influenced political culture.Less
The 1970s was a period of Islamic resurgence in Malaysia and Pakistan. In Malaysia, ABIM and dakwah movements, and in Pakistan, the Jama`at‐i Islami spearheaded Islamist challenge to the secular state. These movements grew in popularity, and became the voice of the disgruntled political elements. They also floated new and powerful political concepts and ideas that quickly gained in popularity and framed public debates and influenced political culture.
C. John Sommerville
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195306958
- eISBN:
- 9780199850853
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195306958.003.0012
- Subject:
- Religion, History of Christianity
Universities that are incidentally secular in the sense that religion doesn't rule, but not officially secularist in the sense that religion is ruled out, would be the ideal. This would require a ...
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Universities that are incidentally secular in the sense that religion doesn't rule, but not officially secularist in the sense that religion is ruled out, would be the ideal. This would require a different academic culture than that of the universities of the present. This would involve a desire to listen more than a compulsion toward single vision. If universities now occupy the place of an established church in America, they will occasionally betray their disdain for public standards of thought. Generally, one should imagine inviting silenced voices back into the discussion to reverse the kinds of social and intellectual decline that has been happening.Less
Universities that are incidentally secular in the sense that religion doesn't rule, but not officially secularist in the sense that religion is ruled out, would be the ideal. This would require a different academic culture than that of the universities of the present. This would involve a desire to listen more than a compulsion toward single vision. If universities now occupy the place of an established church in America, they will occasionally betray their disdain for public standards of thought. Generally, one should imagine inviting silenced voices back into the discussion to reverse the kinds of social and intellectual decline that has been happening.
Terence Ball
- Published in print:
- 1994
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198279952
- eISBN:
- 9780191598753
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198279957.003.0006
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
This chapter compares and contrasts the schemes for a civil religion advanced by Auguste Comte and James Mill, which contrasts the former's illiberal and priestly views with the latter's liberal and ...
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This chapter compares and contrasts the schemes for a civil religion advanced by Auguste Comte and James Mill, which contrasts the former's illiberal and priestly views with the latter's liberal and low‐church conception of the role of religion in a modern and largely secular society. The purpose of Mill's civil religion is pedagogical: it seeks to impart civically useful knowledge and to instil a sense of civic responsibility and restraint. This stands in stark contrast to Comte's civil religion, which seeks to stifle criticism, manipulate the emotions, and procure assent to an authoritarian and undemocratic system of priestly rule.Less
This chapter compares and contrasts the schemes for a civil religion advanced by Auguste Comte and James Mill, which contrasts the former's illiberal and priestly views with the latter's liberal and low‐church conception of the role of religion in a modern and largely secular society. The purpose of Mill's civil religion is pedagogical: it seeks to impart civically useful knowledge and to instil a sense of civic responsibility and restraint. This stands in stark contrast to Comte's civil religion, which seeks to stifle criticism, manipulate the emotions, and procure assent to an authoritarian and undemocratic system of priestly rule.
Jonathan Kvanvig (ed.)
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199656417
- eISBN:
- 9780191742163
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199656417.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Religion
This book is an annual volume offering a regular snapshot of state-of-the-art work in this longstanding area of philosophy that has seen an explosive growth of interest over the past half century. ...
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This book is an annual volume offering a regular snapshot of state-of-the-art work in this longstanding area of philosophy that has seen an explosive growth of interest over the past half century. Under the guidance of a distinguished editorial board, it publishes work in any area of philosophy of religion. Topics covered include secular belief, theories of analogical predication, nominalism and divine aseity, meticulous providence and gratuitous evil, many-one identity and how it relates to the Trinity, atheism and theistic belief, the Epistemology of the Agape struggle, Wittgensteinian Quasi-Fideism, the semantics for blasphemy, and grounding and omniscience.Less
This book is an annual volume offering a regular snapshot of state-of-the-art work in this longstanding area of philosophy that has seen an explosive growth of interest over the past half century. Under the guidance of a distinguished editorial board, it publishes work in any area of philosophy of religion. Topics covered include secular belief, theories of analogical predication, nominalism and divine aseity, meticulous providence and gratuitous evil, many-one identity and how it relates to the Trinity, atheism and theistic belief, the Epistemology of the Agape struggle, Wittgensteinian Quasi-Fideism, the semantics for blasphemy, and grounding and omniscience.
David Fergusson
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199569380
- eISBN:
- 9780191702051
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199569380.003.0008
- Subject:
- Religion, Theology
The discussion in the previous chapters has sought to offer a response to recent secular criticism of religion but not in an attempt to win all the spoils. A constructive response to criticism can ...
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The discussion in the previous chapters has sought to offer a response to recent secular criticism of religion but not in an attempt to win all the spoils. A constructive response to criticism can yield fresh insight and new ways of approaching one's subject To this extent, faith is an evolving phenomenon albeit one that is shaped by convictions about the significance of past episodes of history. This shows why no one single consideration or argument or insight can settle the issues or defeat one's opponents. Despite centuries of scepticism and critical attack, the curious persistence of faith even amongst philosophers, scientist, and artists, suggests its capacity to order life by a standard and to impart wisdom from earlier ages that can still be achieved today.Less
The discussion in the previous chapters has sought to offer a response to recent secular criticism of religion but not in an attempt to win all the spoils. A constructive response to criticism can yield fresh insight and new ways of approaching one's subject To this extent, faith is an evolving phenomenon albeit one that is shaped by convictions about the significance of past episodes of history. This shows why no one single consideration or argument or insight can settle the issues or defeat one's opponents. Despite centuries of scepticism and critical attack, the curious persistence of faith even amongst philosophers, scientist, and artists, suggests its capacity to order life by a standard and to impart wisdom from earlier ages that can still be achieved today.
