Social Origins Of Religion

This wide-ranging study takes the story of Kenneth Jackson's Language and History in Early Britain on from the 12th century to the end of the 20th century, mainly by using written and oral recordings of place-names. The main emphasis is on the place-names of Cardiganshire (now Ceredigion) but place-names in other parts of Wales are also considered and they are all discussed in the context of historical dialectology."

Explores the genesis of Islam for insight into the nature of ideological transformation.

Excerpt from The Social Evolution of Religion In this volume have been stated the final results of fifty years devoted to the study of religion in its varied manifestations. Accepting for many years the generally accredited interpretations of Christianity, I have gradually diverged from them as the result of a growing interest in anthropology, ethnology, psychology, and comparative religion. These chapters were originally read to a small group of persons meeting in a private parlor in Boston, under the auspices of the local branch of The Free Religious Association of America. Not all which was written was read at any of these meetings, but often many pages were omitted in order that the lecture might be followed by questions and discussions. The lectures have been carefully corrected, many pages excised, many more pages added, and the whole rewritten and thoroughly revised. My friend, John Haynes Holmes, minister of the Community Church in the city of New York, has read the whole of the manuscript, given me the benefit of his suggestions and corrections, and written the foreword, which states briefly and pertinently that at which I have aimed in my book. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

This comprehensive survey of religion and its profound effects on history provides a historical context for in-depth analysis of theological, social, and political themes in which religion plays a major role. George Walsh first traces the rise and impact of primitive religions. He looks at Indian traditions, including Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism and analyzes the Semitic tradition of Judaism and Christianity and the evolving conception of a personal God. He discusses the history and chief doctrines of Islam as well, with its fundamental respect for desert tribal values and its emphasis on both the authority of God and the brotherhood of believers. Walsh then compares Judaism and Christianity. He sees Judaism as marked by a profound ambivalence between the values of tribal, nomadic desert life and the values of urban civilization, individualism, and collectivism. Judaism is "this-worldly," but the Christian worldview is "other-wordly." Walsh closes with a timely discussion of the ethical, political, and economic teachings of the Judeo-Christian tradition, focusing specifically on their differing attitudes toward sex, reproduction, and marriage; their basic views of mind and body; and man's relation to God.

Excerpt from The Social Evolution of Religion These chapters were originally read to a small group of persons meeting in a private parlor in Boston, under the auspices of the local branch of The Free Religious Association of Amer ica. Not all which was written was read at any of these meet ings, but often many pages were omitted in order that the lecture might be followed by questions and discussions. The lectures have been carefully corrected, many pages excised, many more pages added, and the whole rewritten and thoroughly revised. My friend, John Haynes Holmes, minister of the Community Church in the city of New York, has read the whole of the manuscript, given me the benefit of his suggestions and cor rections, and written the foreword, which states briefly and pertinently that at which I have aimed in my book. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

The revolutionary classical scholar Jane Ellen Harrison pieces together the origins of early Greek religion in this seminal 1927 work.