The Message and the Book
Sacred Texts of the World's Religions
Book
Hardback
416 pages
978-1-84354-999-4 (ISBN)
Description
Most people alive today - more than three-quarters of the world's population - belong to one of the great religious traditions. These faiths are built on the foundation-stones of their sacred texts, to which their adherents go for spiritual inspiration and moral guidance.
But what are these texts and what do they mean? In The Message and the Book, John Bowker explores the content and core principles of the sacred literature of the Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Parsi, Vedic, Sikh, Jain, Buddhist, Chinese, Korean and Japanese religious traditions. From the Jewish Torah to the Christian gospels, and from the Hadith of Islam to the Sikh Adi Granth, The Message and the Book will help believers and unbelievers alike understand why these sacred writings matter so much to so many people. It is essential reading for anyone who wants to explore religious belief in a globalized, multi-faith world.
But what are these texts and what do they mean? In The Message and the Book, John Bowker explores the content and core principles of the sacred literature of the Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Parsi, Vedic, Sikh, Jain, Buddhist, Chinese, Korean and Japanese religious traditions. From the Jewish Torah to the Christian gospels, and from the Hadith of Islam to the Sikh Adi Granth, The Message and the Book will help believers and unbelievers alike understand why these sacred writings matter so much to so many people. It is essential reading for anyone who wants to explore religious belief in a globalized, multi-faith world.
More details
Edition
Main
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Illustrations
12 black and white integrated illustrations for section openers
Dimensions
Height: 210 mm
Width: 148 mm
ISBN-13
978-1-84354-999-4 (9781843549994)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Persons
John Bowker is an academic expert on world religions with a global reputation. He was formerly Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Lancaster and was Dean of Trinity College, Cambridge, from 1984 to 1991. He is the editor of The Oxford Dictionary of World Religions and author of the award-winning God: A Brief History; What Muslims Believe; The Cambridge Illustrated History of Religions; The Sacred Neuron: Discovering the Extraordinary Links Between Science and Religion and The Meanings of Death. He lives with his wife in Cambridge.