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The foremost historian of Greek religion provides the first comprehensive, comparative study of a little-known aspect of ancient religious beliefs and practices. Secret mystery cults flourished within the larger culture of the public religion of Greece and Rome for roughly a thousand years. This book is neither a history nor a survey but a comparative phenomenology, concentrating on five major cults. In defining the mysteries and describing their rituals, membership, organization, and dissemination, Walter Burkert displays the remarkable erudition we have come to expect of him; he also shows great sensitivity and sympathy in interpreting the experiences and motivations of the devotees.
Were most cults and new religions simply passing fads of the late-twentieth century, or are some of them still growing today? What new sects have emerged, and what dangers do they present? How should Christians respond? Bible teacher and apologetics expert Ron Rhodes has cataloged 40 groups in this concise and easy-to-use handbook. Readers will appreciate Ron's thorough research and his reader-friendly style. His brief examination of each group includes a short history of the sect or new religion an explanation of the group's major doctrines the Christian apologetic response This informative guide includes a list of "Apologetic Power Points," which provides readers with a fast-paced summary of the foundational truths of biblical Christianity.
This book traces the evolution of Sufism from the formative period to the present.
This book is a significant contribution to a much known but less studied subject in the domain of social sciences. Dr. R.M. Sarkar, a well known anthropological researcher,based on his empirical findings has analysed the way of life of rural people through the study of village cults and village deities. The region of study covers a large territory extending from the border regions of Birbhum and Santal Parganas districts and include some parts of Burdwan in West Bengal and is mainly inhabited by the Bagdi,Mal,Lohar,Dom,Bauri,Mochi,Hadi communities and other higher castes of the greater Hindu society. The author has traced the origin from history and mythology of the five principal village deites; viz; Chandi,Manasa,Dharmaraj, Mahadana and Kali and have systematically analysed their pattersn of propitiations,feasts and festivals to illustrate various aspects of life of village folk-inter alia presenting a large number of rural traditions myths and popular beliefs details of numerous rites and rituals right from the starting of the puja festival up to the ceremonial immersion of the deities. In nutshell,the village deities emerge as mechanism for maintaining social solidarity and cultural harmony and cut across high and low segments such as Jal-chal (Castes from which water can be accepted), Jal-achal (Castes from which water cannot be accepted,) Chhut( Touchables ) and Achhut (Untouchables). This interesting work would arouse interest in scholars and researchers of Social Anthropology, Indology Sociology, Folklore, Philosophy and Religion.
The Chalcolithic period was formative in Near Eastern prehistory, being a time of fundamental social change in craft specialization, horticulture and temple life. Gilat - a low mound, semi-communal farming settlement in the Negev desert - is one of the few Chalcolithic sanctuary sites in the Southern Levant. 'Archaeology, Anthropology and Cult' presents a critical analysis of the archaeological data from Gilat. The book brings together archaeological finds and anthropological theory to examine the role of religion in the evolution of society and the power of ritual in promoting change. This comprehensive volume, which includes artefact drawings, photographs, maps and data tables, will be of interest to students and scholars of ancient history, anthropology, archaeology, as well as biblical and religious studies.
Princess Liễu Hạnh, often called the Mother of the Vietnamese people by her followers, is one of the most prominent goddesses in Vietnamese popular religion. First emerging some four centuries ago as a local sect appealing to women, the princess’ cult has since transcended its geographical and gender boundaries and remains vibrant today. Who was this revered deity? Was she a virtuous woman or a prostitute? Why did people begin worshiping her and why have they continued? Cult, Culture, and Authority traces Liễu Hạnh’s cult from its ostensible appearance in the sixteenth century to its present-day prominence in North Vietnam and considers it from a broad range of perspectives, as religion and literature and in the context of politics and society. Over time, Liễu Hạnh’s personality and cult became the subject of numerous literary accounts, and these historical texts are a major source for this book. Author Olga Dror explores the authorship and historical context of each text considered, treating her subject in an interdisciplinary way. Her interest lies in how these accounts reflect the various political agendas of successive generations of intellectuals and officials. The same cult was called into service for a variety of ideological ends: feminism, nationalism, Buddhism, or Daoism.
This group of revised papers, taken from a conference held at the University of Wales in Lampeter in 2000, reflects the diversity of the different forms of saints' cults and hagiography within the Celtic regions of Wales, Scotland, Ireland, Brittany and Cornwall. Written by leading scholars, these fifteen studies focus on evidence from the mid 4th to early 20th century, evidence which includes saints' Lives, poetry and prose narratives referring to saints, holy wells and shrines, songs, relics, church dedications, archaeology and iconograpphy. Among the saints discussed are St Patrick, St David, St Birgit and St Brendan.
" . . . will be of interest not only to those concerned with Pakistan and the new Muslim presence in Europe, but also to those interested in an anthropological study of religion." —Barbara Metcalf, University of California, Davis Pnina Werbner traces the development of a Sufi Naqshbandi order founded by a living saint, Zindapir, whose cult originated in Pakistan and has extended globally to Britain, Europe, the Middle East, and southern Africa. Drawing on 12 years of fieldwork in Pakistan and Great Britain, she elucidates the complex organization of Sufi orders as regional and transnational cults, and examines how such cults are manifested through ritual action and embodied in sacred mythology and global diasporas. A focus of the study is the key event in the order's annual ritual cycle, a celebration in which tens of thousands of people gather at the saint's lodge in Pakistan and in the streets of Britain. Werbner challenges accepted anthropological and sociological truths about Islam and modernity, and reflects on her own role as ethnographic observer. Pilgrims of Love is a major contribution to our understanding of disaporic Islamic practices, highlighting the vitality of Sufi orders in the postcolonial world.