Sensing Sacred Texts

Sensing Sacred Texts PDF Author: James Washington Watts
Publisher: Equinox Publishing (UK)
ISBN: 9781781795767
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
All the human senses become engaged in ritualizing sacred texts. These essays focus especially on ritualizing the iconic dimension of texts through the senses of sight, touch, kiss, and taste, both directly and in the imagination. Ritualized display of books engages the sense of sight very differently than does reading. Touching gets associated with reading scriptures, but touching also enables using the scripture as an amulet. Eating and consuming texts is a ubiquitous analogy for internalizing the contents of texts by reading and memorization. The idea of textual consumption reflects a widespread tendency to equate humans and written texts by their interiority and exteriority: books and people both have material bodies, yet both seem to contain immaterial ideas. Books thus physically incarnate cultural and religious values, doctrines, beliefs, and ideas. These essays bring theories of comparative scriptures and affect theory to bear on the topic as well as rich ethnographic descriptions of scriptural practices with Jewish, Sikh, Muslim, Christian, Buddhist and modern art and historical accounts of changing practices with sacred texts in ancient and medieval China and Korea, and in ancient Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cultures.

Sensing Sacred Texts

Sensing Sacred Texts PDF Author: James Washington Watts
Publisher: Equinox Publishing (UK)
ISBN: 9781781795767
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Get Book Here

Book Description
All the human senses become engaged in ritualizing sacred texts. These essays focus especially on ritualizing the iconic dimension of texts through the senses of sight, touch, kiss, and taste, both directly and in the imagination. Ritualized display of books engages the sense of sight very differently than does reading. Touching gets associated with reading scriptures, but touching also enables using the scripture as an amulet. Eating and consuming texts is a ubiquitous analogy for internalizing the contents of texts by reading and memorization. The idea of textual consumption reflects a widespread tendency to equate humans and written texts by their interiority and exteriority: books and people both have material bodies, yet both seem to contain immaterial ideas. Books thus physically incarnate cultural and religious values, doctrines, beliefs, and ideas. These essays bring theories of comparative scriptures and affect theory to bear on the topic as well as rich ethnographic descriptions of scriptural practices with Jewish, Sikh, Muslim, Christian, Buddhist and modern art and historical accounts of changing practices with sacred texts in ancient and medieval China and Korea, and in ancient Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cultures.

The Message and the Book

The Message and the Book PDF Author: John Bowker
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 0300179294
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 434

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Book Description
Grand in its sweep, this survey of the sacred writings of the major religions of the world offers a thoughtful introduction to the ideas and beliefs upon which great faiths are built. Under the expert guidance of John Bowker, a religious scholar and author of international stature, readers explore the key texts of Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Jain, Sikh, Buddhist, Parsi, Confucian, Daoist, and Shinto traditions. The author discusses some 400 books, among them such well-known sacred texts as the Bible and the Quran, but also spiritual writings by theologians, philosophers, poets, and others. Bowker provides clear and illuminating commentary on each text, describing the content and core tenets of the work and quoting pertinent passages. He also sets the writings in religious and historical contexts, showing how they have influenced—and in many cases continue to influence—artistic, musical, literary, and political traditions. The Message and the Book is essential reading for anyone who wishes to understand the meaning and the deep significance of primary religious texts of civilizations around the globe.

A Modern Translation of the Kebra Nagast

A Modern Translation of the Kebra Nagast PDF Author: Miguel F. Brooks
Publisher: The Red Sea Press
ISBN: 9781569020326
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 244

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Book Description
Lost for centuries, the Kebra Nagast (The Glory of Kings) is a truly majestic unveiling of ancient secrets. These pages were excised by royal decree from the authorized 1611 King James version of the Bible. Originally recorded in the ancient Ethiopian language (Ge'ez) by anonymous scribes, The Red Sea Press, Inc. and Kingston Publishers now bring you a complete, accurate modern English translation of this long suppressed account. Here is the most startling and fascinating revelation of hidden truths; not only revealing the present location of the Ark of the Covenant, but also explaining fully many of the puzzling questions on Biblical topics which have remained unanswered up to today.

In Search of the Sacred Book

In Search of the Sacred Book PDF Author: Aníbal González
Publisher: University of Pittsburgh Press
ISBN: 0822983028
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 324

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Book Description
In Search of the Sacred Book studies the artistic incorporation of religious concepts such as prophecy, eternity, and the afterlife in the contemporary Latin American novel. It departs from sociopolitical readings by noting the continued relevance of religion in Latin American life and culture, despite modernity's powerful secularizing influence. Analyzing Jorge Luis Borges's secularized "narrative theology" in his essays and short stories, the book follows the development of the Latin American novel from the early twentieth century until today by examining the attempts of major novelists, from María Luisa Bombal, Alejo Carpentier, and Juan Rulfo, to Julio Cortázar, Gabriel García Márquez, and José Lezama Lima, to "sacralize" the novel by incorporating traits present in the sacred texts of many religions. It concludes with a view of the "desacralization" of the novel by more recent authors, from Elena Poniatowska and Fernando Vallejo to Roberto Bolaño.

Praying with Jane Eyre

Praying with Jane Eyre PDF Author: Vanessa Zoltan
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0593538498
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 273

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Book Description
“In these soaring, open-hearted essays, Vanessa Zoltan writes with fierce brilliance about suffering, survival, and the kind of meaning in life that can withstand real scrutiny.”—John Green, bestselling author of The Fault in Our Stars and The Anthropocene Reviewed A deeply felt exploration of the ways our favorite books can shape and heal us, from the host of Harry Potter and the Sacred Text. Our favorite reads keep us company, give us hope, and help us find meaning in a chaotic world. In this fresh and relatable work, atheist chaplain Vanessa Zoltan blends memoir and personal growth as she grapples with the notions of family legacy and identity through the lens of her favorite novel, Jane Eyre. Informed by her training at the Harvard Divinity School and filtered through the pages of Jane Eyre as well as Little Women, Harry Potter, and The Great Gatsby, Zoltan explores topics ranging from the trauma she has inherited as the granddaughter of four Holocaust survivors to finding hope, meaning, and even magic in our deeply fractured times. Brimming with a love of classic literature and the tenderness of self-reflection, the book also reveals simple techniques for reading any work as a sacred text--from Virginia Woolf to Anne of Green Gables to baseball scorecards. Whether you're an avowed "Eyrehead" or a voracious reader and pop culture fan, this deeply felt and inspiring book will light the way to a more intimate appreciation for whatever books you love to read.

The Sacred Texts

The Sacred Texts PDF Author: Kharlo
Publisher: Kharlo
ISBN: 1482384973
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 259

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Book Description
The Sacred Texts, a set of books created by the archangels of Heaven, have been kept locked away by the Creator since the early times of human history: the Book of Water crafted by Gabriel/Gabrielle, the Book of Fire forged by Michael, the Book of Earth made by Uriel, and the Book of Language created by Azrael. It is said that the last of those books, the one created by the very hands of Death Himself, is one of two keys to deciphering the language of the angels and with it the ability to control God and all in known existence. For the past two hundred years, the Fallen Angel Lucifer has waited for the proper moment to strike, the proper moment to invade Avalon and take control of the Book of Azrael in hopes of defeating the Creator once and for all. Aware of the imminent danger, Azrael tasks a single magic wielding mortal with entering Hell itself and destroying his Sacred Text. After becoming weakened in his determination to complete the task given to him by the Archangel of Death, Raven the Archmage finds that he must pass on the responsibilities of destroying The Book of Azrael to his insecure and often difficult apprentice, Jaguar. Follow Jaguar's arduous journey alongside his best friend Lion, and a mysterious earth wielding mage and his werewolf sister, as they travel through the halls of Perdition in hopes of keeping evil from gaining victory and throwing off the balance of all of Creation.The Sacred Text Series is a coming of age story that seamlessly weaves many ancient archetypes into a cohesive whole. Enter a world where vampires, angels, demons, werewolves, magic, and human myths from a myriad of cultures collide.

The Death of Sacred Texts

The Death of Sacred Texts PDF Author: Kristina Myrvold
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317036409
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 183

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Book Description
The Death of Sacred Texts draws attention to a much neglected topic in the study of sacred texts: the religious and ritual attitudes towards texts which have become old and damaged and can no longer be used for reading practices or in religious worship. This book approaches religious texts and scriptures by focusing on their physical properties and the dynamic interactions of devices and habits that lie beneath and within a given text. In the last decades a growing body of research studies has directed attention to the multiple uses and ways people encounter written texts and how they make them alive, even as social actors, in different times and cultures. Considering religious people seem to have all the motives for giving their sacred texts a respectful symbolic treatment, scholars have paid surprisingly little attention to the ritual procedures of disposing and renovating old texts. This book fills this gap, providing empirical data and theoretical analyses of historical and contemporary religious attitudes towards, and practices of text disposals within, seven world religions: Judaism, Islam, Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism. Exploring the cultural and historical variations of rituals for religious scriptures and texts (such as burials, cremations and immersion into rivers) and the underlying beliefs within the religious traditions, this book investigates how these religious practices and stances respond to modernization and globalization processes when new technologies have made it possible to mass-produce and publish religious texts on the Internet.

Christian Spirituality

Christian Spirituality PDF Author: Arthur Holder
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1135285403
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 539

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Book Description
Christian Spirituality: The Classics is a unique and comprehensive guide to thirty key Christian spirituality texts. Ranging from Origen and Augustine to Jonathan Edwards, Thérèse of Lisieux and Thomas Merton, it offers a view of the texts which is founded in scholarship, but which also presents them as living documents that invite- even compel -contemplative reflection and existential response. Each chapter briefly describes the classic text’s author and audience, gives a synopsis of its contents, suggests some of its influence in history, and then explores aspects of the text’s meaning for readers today. Key themes include: What is the meaning of life? How can human beings find truth? How can they discover who they really are? How can they live together in peace? How can they live more fully in God’s presence in this world and be united with God in the world to come? The scholars who have written these chapters are all experts on their respective topics, but they wear their learning lightly. Anyone wishing to discover the riches of Christian spirituality will find this the ideal introduction and should be able to progress to a deeper understanding of the texts themselves.

Slavery and Sacred Texts

Slavery and Sacred Texts PDF Author: Jordan T. Watkins
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 110847814X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 399

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Book Description
An analysis of the development of historical consciousness in antebellum America, using the debate over slavery as a case study.

On Repentance And Repair

On Repentance And Repair PDF Author: Danya Ruttenberg
Publisher: Beacon Press
ISBN: 0807010596
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 258

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Book Description
Winner NATIONAL JEWISH BOOK AWARDS in Contemporary Jewish Life & Practice Myra H. Kraft Memorial Award A crucial new lens on repentance, atonement, forgiveness, and repair from harm—from personal transgressions to our culture’s most painful and unresolved issues American culture focuses on letting go of grudges and redemption narratives instead of the perpetrator’s obligations or recompense for harmed parties. As survivor communities have pointed out, these emphases have too often only caused more harm. But Danya Ruttenberg knew there was a better model, rooted in the work of the medieval philosopher Maimonides. For Maimonides, upon whose work Ruttenberg elaborates, forgiveness is much less important than the repair work to which the person who caused harm is obligated. The word traditionally translated as repentance really means something more like return, and in this book, returning is a restoration, as much as is possible, to the victim, and, for the perpetrator of harm, a coming back, in humility and intentionality, to behaving as the person we might like to believe we are. Maimonides laid out 5 steps: naming and owning harm; starting to change/transformation; restitution and accepting consequences; apology; and making different choices. Applying this lens to both our personal relationships and some of the most significant and painful issues of our day, including systemic racism and the legacy of enslavement, sexual violence and harassment in the wake of #MeToo, and Native American land rights, On Repentance and Repair helps us envision a way forward. Rooted in traditional Jewish concepts while doggedly accessible and available to people from any, or no, religious background, On Repentance and Repair is a book for anyone who cares about creating a country and culture that is more whole than the one in which we live, and for anyone who has been hurt or who is struggling to take responsibility for their mistakes.