God's Rule: The Politics of World Religions

by Suzanne Neusner (Editor), William Scott Green (Contribution by), Bruce Chilton (Contribution by), Charles E. Curran (Contribution by), Petros Vassiliadis (Contribution by)

Overview

Resisting the tendency to separate the study of religion and politics, editor Jacob Neusner pulls together a collection of ten essays in which various authors explain and explore the relationship between the world's major religions and political power. As William Scott Green writes in the introduction, "Because religion is so comprehensive, it is fundamentally about power; it therefore cannot avoid politics."

Beginning with the classical sources and texts of Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism, Islam, Confucianism and Hinduism, God's Rule begins to explore the complex nature of how each religion shapes political power, and how religion shapes itself in relation to that power. The corresponding attention to differing theories of politics and views towards non-believers are important not only to studies in comparative religion, but to foreign policy, history and governance as well. From early Christianity's relationship to the Roman Empire to Hinduism's relationship to Gandhi and the caste system, God's Rule provides a basis of understanding from which undergraduates, seminarians and others can begin asking questions of relationships "both unavoidable and systematically uneasy."

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780878409105
Publisher:	Georgetown University Press
Publication date:	05/28/2003
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	288
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.81(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Jacob Neusner is Senior Fellow at the Institute of Advanced Theology at Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson, New York. He is the author of several books on Judaism, including Judaism's Theological Voice: The Melody of the Talmud, A History of Jews in Babylonia and numerous analytical translations of Jewish texts.

Table of Contents

Introduction: Religion and Politics—A Volatile MixWilliam Scott Green

1. JudaismJacob Neusner

2. Primitive and Early ChristianityBruce Chilton

3. Catholic ChristianityCharles E. Curran

4. Orthodox ChristianityPetros Vassiliadis

5. Reformation ChristianityMartin E. Marty

6. Classical IslamJohn L. Esposito and Natana J. De Long-Bas

7. Modern IslamJohn L. Esposito and Natana J. De Long-Bas

8. HinduismBrian K. Smith

9. ConfucianismMark A. Csikszentmihalyi

10. BuddhismTodd Lewis

ConclusionTodd Lewis

Editorial Reviews

This book will be valuable for those at more advanced levels studying religious theories of political order.

Choice

"This book will be valuable for those at more advanced levels studying religious theories of political order."—Choice

From the Publisher