Publisher Description

In a world plagued by religious conflict, how can the various religious and secular traditions coexist peacefully on the planet? And, what role does sociology play in helping us understand the state of religious life in a globalizing world? In the Fourth Edition ofGods in the Global Village, author Lester Kurtz continues to address these questions. This text is an engaging, thought-provoking examination of the relationships among the major faith traditions that inform the thinking and ethical standards of most people in the emerging global social order. Thoroughly updated to reflect recent events, the book discusses the role of religion in our daily lives and global politics, and the ways in which religion is both an agent of, and barrier to, social change.

The multicultural interests of today's diverse student population are reflected in this book which, treats classic issues in the sociology of religion in a variety of religious contexts and considers the global interconnections between beliefs and believers. Kurtz thus helps students understand the interplay between social change and religion. As provocative as it is informative, this book will spark discussion and re-examination of our conventional understandings of the role of religion in the postmodern and modern world.

In the long trek of human history, the adage that there will never be peace among the nations until there is peace among the religions has never been truer. The growing trend toward spiritually inspired violence throughout the emerging global village of the twenty-first century has taken a terrible toll on the lives of thousands of innocent victims. The primary purpose of this book is to address this issue head-on by examining the role that the earth's diverse faith communities can play in stopping the needless hatreds and hostilities that all too often arise from the search for spiritual fulfillment. At this stage of human evolution, nothing is more urgent.

David W. Shenk looks at world religions and ideologies from the viewpoint of a Christian experienced in interfaith dialogue. Global Gods explores ten religious or ideoogical options, including African traditional religion, Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, the European Enlightenment, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Marxism, and Platonism. The author honestly assesses the strengths and weaknesses of each major stream. And he interacts with sophisticated currents of thought while keeping his presentation clear and accessible. Global Gods contributes to the growing conversation about the role of religion and ideology in society. In an increasingly pluralistic world, the issues Shenk explores are not only theoretical but have practical urgency. Selected by the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association as one of the top five missions/evangelism books (1996).

Many authors have written on the effects technology, economics, and politics have on globalization, but few have addressed the potential impact of world religions on the future direction of globalization. The Future of Peace and Justice in the Global Village: The Role of the World Religions in the 21st Century is intended to fill this vacuum. It addresses the part the world's major religions will play in bringing either greater peace and justice, or hatred and hostility to the global village.