Interpreting and Explaining Transcendence

Interpreting and Explaining Transcendence PDF Author: Robert A. Yelle
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
ISBN: 3110688336
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 363

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Book Description
In this volume, an interdisciplinary group of scholars uses history, sociology, anthropology, and semiotics to approach Transcendence as a human phenomenon, and shows the unavoidability of thinking with and through the Beyond. Religious experience has often been defined as an encounter with a transcendent God. Yet humans arguably have always tried to get outside or beyond themselves and society. The drive to exceed some limit or condition of finitude is an eduring aspect of culture, even in a "disenchanted" society that may have cut off most paths of access to the Beyond. The contributors to this volume demonstrate the humanity of Transcendence in various ways: as an effort to get beyond our crass physical materiality; as spiritual entrepreneurship; as the ecstasy of rituals of possession; and as a literary, aesthetic, and semiotic event. These efforts build from a shared conviction that Transcendene is thoroughly human, and accordingly avoid purely confessional and parochial approches while taking seriously the various claims and behavioral expressions of traditions in which Transcendence has been understood in theological terms.

Interpreting and Explaining Transcendence

Interpreting and Explaining Transcendence PDF Author: Robert A. Yelle
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
ISBN: 3110688336
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 363

Get Book Here

Book Description
In this volume, an interdisciplinary group of scholars uses history, sociology, anthropology, and semiotics to approach Transcendence as a human phenomenon, and shows the unavoidability of thinking with and through the Beyond. Religious experience has often been defined as an encounter with a transcendent God. Yet humans arguably have always tried to get outside or beyond themselves and society. The drive to exceed some limit or condition of finitude is an eduring aspect of culture, even in a "disenchanted" society that may have cut off most paths of access to the Beyond. The contributors to this volume demonstrate the humanity of Transcendence in various ways: as an effort to get beyond our crass physical materiality; as spiritual entrepreneurship; as the ecstasy of rituals of possession; and as a literary, aesthetic, and semiotic event. These efforts build from a shared conviction that Transcendene is thoroughly human, and accordingly avoid purely confessional and parochial approches while taking seriously the various claims and behavioral expressions of traditions in which Transcendence has been understood in theological terms.

Interpreting and Explaining Transcendence

Interpreting and Explaining Transcendence PDF Author: Robert A. Yelle
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG
ISBN: 3110688271
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 330

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Book Description
In this volume, an interdisciplinary group of scholars uses history, sociology, anthropology, and semiotics to approach Transcendence as a human phenomenon, and shows the unavoidability of thinking with and through the Beyond. Religious experience has often been defined as an encounter with a transcendent God. Yet humans arguably have always tried to get outside or beyond themselves and society. The drive to exceed some limit or condition of finitude is an eduring aspect of culture, even in a "disenchanted" society that may have cut off most paths of access to the Beyond. The contributors to this volume demonstrate the humanity of Transcendence in various ways: as an effort to get beyond our crass physical materiality; as spiritual entrepreneurship; as the ecstasy of rituals of possession; and as a literary, aesthetic, and semiotic event. These efforts build from a shared conviction that Transcendene is thoroughly human, and accordingly avoid purely confessional and parochial approches while taking seriously the various claims and behavioral expressions of traditions in which Transcendence has been understood in theological terms.

Transcendence and Non-Naturalism in Early Chinese Thought

Transcendence and Non-Naturalism in Early Chinese Thought PDF Author: Alexus McLeod
Publisher: Bloomsbury Academic
ISBN: 1350082538
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 257

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Book Description
Contemporary scholars of Chinese philosophy often presuppose that early China possessed a naturalistic worldview, devoid of any non-natural concepts, such as transcendence. Challenging this presupposition head-on, Joshua R. Brown and Alexus McLeod argue that non-naturalism and transcendence have a robust and significant place in early Chinese thought. This book reveals that non-naturalist positions can be found in early Chinese texts, in topics including conceptions of the divine, cosmogony, and apophatic philosophy. Moreover, by closely examining a range of early Chinese texts, and providing comparative readings of a number of Western texts and thinkers, the book offers a way of reading early Chinese Philosophy as consistent with the religious philosophy of the East and West, including the Abrahamic and the Brahmanistic religions. Co-written by a philosopher and theologian, this book draws out unique insights into early Chinese thought, highlighting in particular new ways to consider a range of Chinese concepts, including tian, dao, li, and you/wu.

Explaining, Interpreting, and Theorizing Religion and Myth

Explaining, Interpreting, and Theorizing Religion and Myth PDF Author: Nickolas P. Roubekas
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004435026
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 405

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Book Description
Taking its cue from Robert A. Segal’s work, Explaining, Interpreting, and Theorizing Religion and Myth: Contributions in Honor of Robert A. Segal offers a set of essays by renowned scholars addressing the persisting question of how to approach religion and myth as academic categories.

In Search of Transcendence

In Search of Transcendence PDF Author: Jerry H. Gill
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004349715
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 171

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Book Description
This book explores the philosophical/religious thought of Soren Kierkegaard, Ludwig Wittgenstein, and Nikos Kazantzakis in relation to the concept of transcendence. Each of these thinkers has made a strong impact on Western religious and philosophical thought, but each from a nearly completely different angle as well as from a different national background. This comparative study therefore crosses both national and perspectival boundaries. Each of the three thinkers struggled with the notion of transcendence but in uniquely distinct fashion. The conclusion offers yet a third model, the author’s, for understanding transcendence focusing on the concept of “mediation”.

Gerotranscendence

Gerotranscendence PDF Author: Lars Tornstam, PhD
Publisher: Springer Publishing Company
ISBN: 0826131352
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 226

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Book Description
Given the 2006 GREAT GERONTOLOGY AWARD for outstanding contribution to gerontological research by the Swedish Gerontological Society Received a VALUE GROUND AWARD from the journal Aldreomsorg (Old Age Care) Expanding upon his earlier writings, Dr. Tornstam's latest book explores the need for new theories in gerontology and sets the stage for the development of his theory of gerotranscendence. This theory was developed to address what the author sees as a perpetual mismatch between present theories in social gerontology and existing empirical data. The development towards gerotranscendence can involve some overlooked developmental changes that are related to increased life satisfaction, as self-described by individuals. The gerotranscendent individual typically experiences a redefinition of the Self and of relationships to others and a new understanding of fundamental existential questions: The individual becomes less self-occupied and at the same time more selective in the choice of social and other activities. There is an increased feeling of affinity with past generations and a decreased interest in superfluous social interaction. The individual might also experience a decrease in interest in material things and a greater need for solitary "meditation.î Positive solitude becomes more important. There is also often a feeling of cosmic communion with the spirit of the universe, and a redefinition of time, space, life and death. Gerotranscendence does NOT imply any state of withdrawal or disengagement, as sometimes erroneously believed. It is not the old disengagement theory in new disguise. Rather, it is a theory that describes a developmental pattern beyond the old dualism of activity and disengagement. The author supports his theory with insightful qualitative in-depth interviews with older persons and quantitative studies. In addition, Tornstam illustrates the practical implications of the theory of gerotranscendence for professionals working with older adults in care settings. A useful Appendix contains suggestions of how to facilitate personal development toward gerotranscendence. For Further Information, Please Click Here!

The Axial Age and Its Consequences

The Axial Age and Its Consequences PDF Author: Robert N. Bellah
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 0674070445
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 524

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Book Description
The first classics in human history—the early works of literature, philosophy, and theology to which we have returned throughout the ages—appeared in the middle centuries of the first millennium bce. The canonical texts of the Hebrew scriptures, the philosophical writings of Plato and Aristotle, the Analects of Confucius and the Daodejing, the Bhagavad Gita and the teachings of the Buddha—all of these works came down to us from the compressed period of history that Karl Jaspers memorably named the Axial Age. In The Axial Age and Its Consequences, Robert Bellah and Hans Joas make the bold claim that intellectual sophistication itself was born worldwide during this critical time. Across Eurasia, a new self-reflective attitude toward human existence emerged, and with it an awakening to the concept of transcendence. From Axial Age thinkers we inherited a sense of the world as a place not just to experience but to investigate, envision, and alter through human thought and action. Bellah and Joas have assembled diverse scholars to guide us through this astonishing efflorescence of religious and philosophical creativity. As they explore the varieties of theorizing that arose during the period, they consider how these in turn led to utopian visions that brought with them the possibility of both societal reform and repression. The roots of our continuing discourse on religion, secularization, inequality, education, and the environment all lie in Axial Age developments. Understanding this transitional era, the authors contend, is not just an academic project but a humanistic endeavor.

Interpreting Literary Texts

Interpreting Literary Texts PDF Author: Michael Giffin
Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing
ISBN: 103641051X
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 393

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Book Description
This book considers how textual interpretation has been influenced by post-Kantian philosophy and aesthetics, particularly the cultural transition from the correspondence theory of knowledge and truth to Nietzschean perspectivism, and the canonical transition from Classicism, to Romanticism, to Modernism, to Postmodernism. It discusses the principles of interpretation, the concept of reason (logos), and how the West’s model of mind evolved. The novels of Jane Austen introduce the concept of Classicism, including her debt to Aristotle’s thinking about Tragedy and Comedy in Poetics. The two trajectories of Romanticism are discussed, the philosophical trajectory through Berlin’s idea of Counter-Enlightenment—the immanent critique of metaphysics—and the aesthetic trajectory through Blake’s vision of what is possible if the doors of perception can be cleansed. The novels of Australia’s Patrick White introduce the concept of Modernism and his attempt to “imagine the real”. The novels of Margaret Atwood introduce the concept of Postmodernism, tracing her literary evolution from an author focused on female identity to one concerned with the future of humanity. The novels of Graham Greene and Muriel Spark are discussed as two different Catholic responses to Modernism. The novels of Marilynne Robinson and Douglas Wilson are discussed as two different Protestant responses to Calvinism.

21st Century Theories of Religion

21st Century Theories of Religion PDF Author: Michael Stausberg
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 1040183271
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 287

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Book Description
What is religion and how does it originate? What are its functions and how does it work? These are some of the key questions addressed by theories of religion. Far from being a past concern, a series of new answers have been proposed since the beginning of our present millennium by evolutionary biologists and psychologists, philosophers, sociologists, and scholars of religion. In 21st Century Theories of Religion, Michael Stausberg is joined by leading scholars from Europe and North America to present and critically discuss fifteen contemporary theories. Contributions introduce the theoreticians, unpack their arguments, review their reception, and engage in critical debates. The volume provides a cutting-edge point of entry into a key conversation that no student and scholar of religion/s can afford to ignore.

Interpreting Neville

Interpreting Neville PDF Author: J. Harley Chapman
Publisher: SUNY Press
ISBN: 9780791441954
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 368

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Book Description
Interpreting Neville provides the first book-length treatment of the thought of Robert Cummings Neville, one of the most important and wide-ranging scholars working across the fields of philosophy, theology, and comparative studies today. Contributors assess the systematic structure and methodological unity of Neville's trilogy Axiology of Thinking provide a postmodern contextualization Neville's philosophy, and evalute the critical relation of Neville history of Western philosophy. Metaphysical questions crucial to Neville's project are critiqued from different vantage points, theological problems are examined, and, the comparative issues outstanding in Neville's understanding of Chinese philosophy are assessed. Enhancing the book is a rich concluding essay written by Neville himself in response to each author.