Religion

In the days when many Americans were first becoming aware of the larger religious world, Sailer introduced them to Islam. Reaching for an understanding of how the two religions relate, he begins this study with an introduction to the Muslim world. Sailer approaches the subject with a respect for Islam and its believers. Aiming to prepare missionaries for Muslim regions, he writes for a general readership. Understanding, he believes, begins with an overview of Muslim life and the character and influences on Islam. Designed as a short adult course on the subject, this booklet has instructions for the leader of an adult group on the topic. Interested in the impact of Christianity on Islam, Sailer explores what churches might do. Taken all together, this little booklet spells out a plan of action for what the author saw as a missionary opportunity.

From one of the leading scholars of Islam in the last century comes this exploration of Christianity and Islam. Right from the beginning Becker notes that there are different points of view on the subject. Examining the nature of the subject and the historical connections between the religions, he turns to the meeting of the two faiths. Emerging outlooks at the time demonstrated just how much these religions affected each other. Those interested in the history of western religions will find this a refreshing resource. Also useful to students, this informative booklet is a welcome find.

Among the many issues that plague Christian sensibilities, perhaps none is as stressful as the virgin birth. Since the advent of higher criticism the concept itself the concept had grown increasing untenable to the point that an anonymous cleric decided to take action in this booklet. Scientific study of the Bible had revealed that what had appeared to have been predictions were often mistranslations, and many were shaken by such revelations. Succinct and irenic, this treatment will be appreciated by Christians who are still concerned over the implications that serious biblical study raises.

One of the issues consistently plaguing New Testament scholars is the date of the Gospel of John. No consensus exists on this thorny dilemma. Looking at the world around the Bible, extrabiblical testimony often provides evidence for such questions. Insights drawn from Irenaeus are used by Lewis to help shed light on the topic. Noting the extent to which Irenaeus bears on the fourth Gospel, Lewis discusses the potential authors of John that could have been known by Irenaeus. Ending with modern conclusions to the issue, Lewis provides a useful summary of state of Irenaeus studies around the beginning of the twentieth century.

Designed as a primer for Catholic children, this booklet became an historic fixture in American Catholic literature. Dividing the Bible into episodes easily understood by children, the author, Bishop Gilmour, explained in easy language, the Roman Catholic understanding of these stories. Wonderfully illustrated with classic woodcuts, this beguiling book also undertook to introduce the general overlay of church history to young readers.

This classic account of the missionary life of James Hannington has delighted generations of readers. Written by an enthusiastic exponent of the mission field, this account has stood the test of time to become a recognized icon of the genre. The first Anglican Bishop of Eastern Equatorial Africa, Hannington was reared in a not untypical English setting, eventually being schooled at Oxford. His remarkable accomplishments and savage martyrdom are narrated with poignancy and empathy. A moving account of a man willing to risk all for his convictions, this missionary story appeals to popular readers and those interested in the European presence in Africa.

In this theological exposition on the concept of the Logos in the writings of Philo of Alexandria, Réville offers a probing piece of research. Beginning with the historical milieu of Philo’s time, he moves on to his main focus, playing out what the doctrine of the Logos is. Theologians who wish to know turn-of-the-century ideas concerning the Logos will find this irresistible reading.

This pamphlet is designed to help guide Churchmen and women in their reading on the Muslim world. At a time when, as Addison pointed out, Islam was throwing off the inertia of centuries and actively seeking to adopt the ways of the West, it was especially necessary to understand the beginnings, developments, and trends in that faith. Addison, who was one of the leading students of Islam in the Episcopal Church of his day, wrote this brief essay and appended it to descriptions of a few well selected books intended to give readers an understanding of the world of Islam.

Hasting’s Great Texts of the Bible was a massive, twenty volume set of Bible Studies. Under each biblical book comments were added to the lections in order to provide homiletical support. Conscientious about the difficulty of locating material in a resource of about 10,000 pages, Hastings had an index prepared. Knowing that clergy and biblical scholars tend to seek subjects for study, the index was prepared as an alphabetical index rather than a simple scriptural one. Such a resource retains its value for those who continue to use the extensive commentary that Hastings edited. This little index will be helpful to anyone following in Hasting’s impressive footsteps.

In his zeal to convert Muslims to Christianity, Zwemer was unmatched and this book helps to explain why. Not shy about admitting that the three major monotheistic religions share the concept of one God, he begins an examination of Islamic ideas about God, from a Christian perspective. Starting with the premise of the singularity of Allah, Zwemer discusses the Muslim ideas of the divine essence. In a chapter about the ninety-nine names of Allah he explores the similarity to the rosary and Islamic ideas of divine justice. Passing next to the attributes of Allah, Zwemer examines and analyzes what Muslims assert regarding God. In further chapters he deals with how Allah interacts with the world, the concept of the Trinity, and predestination. Determining that the completed idea of God in Islam is incomplete, Zwemer concludes with a case for the God of Christianity.

Wishing to educate the western world to the wonders of Islam, Lord Headley penned several books on the religion. In the present volume he volunteers the various attributes that made Islam a viable option for a western citizen. Understanding the religion would ultimately undermine fears others felt toward the unfamiliar faith. Taking traditional areas of concern to task, he addresses peacefulness, women’s place in Islam, willful misrepresentations, self-control, fear, law and order, converts, praise and thanksgiving, and the continuation of God’s blessings. Such a strong case suggested to his readers that society’s fears stemmed from misunderstanding.

Written by a well-known convert to Islam, this little study traces the connections between the major prophets of each of the monotheistic faiths. Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad. He discusses the moral influences of these founders on their followers and the impact they had on their world. Headley next considers the way that these founders died or left the world and also what they had taught about the next world. Special attention is given, naturally, to the advent of Islam and what happened after the founding of the faith. Headley ends with a brief sketch of the life of Muhammad. A compact study written from the Islamic point of view, this book will be of interest to anyone concerned with the relations between the three monotheistic religions.

This brief study entails a reconstruction of the metrical pieces of the book of the prophet Jeremiah. Laid out in poetic stanzas, various sections of this noteworthy prophetic book are presented in a form intended to facilitate analysis. Segments of several chapters are included, scanned according to the analytical parameters of Cornill. Noting that Jeremiah differs from the other major prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel in the reduced amount of poetry, Cornill nevertheless seeks a metrical pattern in the work of the prophet and lays it out in the original Hebrew. An informative foreword explains the method and layout choices used. Students of Hebrew metrics or ancient poetry in general will find these insights useful.

The aim of this booklet is to given an account of the nature of the religion of the Old Testament, especially those aspects that differentiate it from other ancient religions. Fitting with the emerging historical-critical Zeitgeist, Marti follows the usual division of Israelite religion into nomadic, peasant, prophetic, and legal religions. Various accoutrements and components of the religious life of antiquity are considered throughout this somewhat contrived course of Israel’s religious development. Written when Assyriology was just beginning to come into its own, Marti still finds the Graf-Wellhausen hypothesis a compelling explanation for the form of the biblical material.

La Religion a Rome sous les Sévères is a classic work on third century Roman religion, ranging from the stoicism of Marcus Aurelius to the syncretism of Severus. Reville's knowledge of religion in the late antique world is considerable, and his analysis draws together Eastern mystery cults, Baal worship, and Neopythagorean philosophy as well as classical pagan religion. Yielding lasting results, Reville's study will be welcomed by readers interested in the history of religions.

A modern classic, Modern Religious Cults and Movements has continued to garner citations even after further investigation has continued to add to the literature on the subject. Atkins begins with the forms and backgrounds of what he considered the inevitable Catholic and Protestant traditions. This portrayal of non-traditional religions in its own day is a period piece that will be of interest to students of American religion and historians of religion in general.

Written in the period affected by the Neo-Scholastic movement in philosophy, Perrier’s well-known treatment of the subject is still ubiquitously cited. This handy resource lays out the premises of Scholasticism and traces its development up to the author’s time.

A sympathetic account of how Islam has historically viewed Jesus, this little book sets out to present material from the Quran and other major sources that directly reference Jesus. Passages are presented in the order that they occur rather than being arranged in any artificial, chronological order. Selections from Thalabi’s Stories of the Prophets and one passage from Abu al Fida’s Universal History are included as well.

In this influential book, Ely produced an impact outside his own field of economy that was felt in the world of theological study. Still timely and sensible, this treatment of a layman’s view of the social obligations of Christianity maintains its ability to challenge convention and urge for progress. A significant treatment of an essential aspect of ethical religious principles, this book would be profitably read by all who are interested in a fair society.

This edition of Mar Jacob of Sarug's (d. 521) homilies on the prophet Elisha deals with some of the more difficult stories in the Old Testament, how to understand the story of the bears who ravage the children who made fun of the prophet and why the sacrifice by the King of Moab of his son to his pagan god was seemingly successful. The volume constitutes a fascicle of The Metrical Homilies of Mar Jacob of Sarug, which, when complete, will contain the original Syriac text of Jacob's surviving sermons, fully vocalized, alongside an annotated English translation.

A conversation between James D. Nogalski and Ehud Ben Zvi on the question of The Twelve, its implications for the historically oriented study of the prophetic books in the Hebrew Bible, and for the reconstruction of the intellectual history of ancient Israel.

Moving away from his usual interest in Egyptian mummies, Pettigrew here addresses another morbid interest in antiquities: the epitaphs and inscriptions of ancient sepulchers. The majority of this study focuses on the epitaphs of England and surrounding regions that fall into several categories ranging from devotional to untruthful, from rhetorical to ridiculous. Laid out catalogue style with an index, this book was among the first of its genre and retains its value for readers interested in the perceptions of death as left in the monuments of the departed.

Undertaking the classic question of the relationship of Islam to Judaism, Geiger begins his treatment with the intertwined questions of what Islam wishes to do, is able to do, and is permitted to do with Judaism. Concepts and opinions such as faith beliefs, moral and legal regulations, and concepts of life are all considered as they moved from Judaism to Islam. A well-regarded early work in the field of comparative religions, Geiger’s work is not to be missed by anyone with an interest in Judaism and its relationship to Islam.

Les Calligraphes et les Miniaturistes de l’Orient Musulman is a highly regarded exploration of the Islamic art of calligraphy. Compiled by the noted Orientalist Clément Huart, the main body of the work is dedicated to the exploration of various schools of the art form throughout history.

Considered one of the greatest works of the Sufi writers, Saadi’s Bostan (The Orchard) is an astounding poetic collection of wisdom that includes anecdotes, proverbs, and quotations that engage the rules of life and psychological observations of individual behavior. Saadi (or Abu Muslih bin Abdallah Shirazi, 1184 – 1283/1291?) was a Persian poet and traveler. Here Bostan is presented in German translation, the work of one of Germany’s great poets, Friedrich Rückert, who also had the distinction of being a professor of oriental languages. The lover of medieval poetry will find this supreme accomplishment of Persian poetry irresistible.