Globalization and high-speed communication put twenty-first century
people in contact with adherents to a wide variety of world religions,
but usually valuable knowledge of these other traditions is limited at
best. On the one hand, religious stereotypes abound, hampering a serious
exploration of unfamiliar philosophies and practices. On the other hand,
the popular idea that all religions lead to the same God or the same
moral life fails to account for the distinctive origins and radically
different teachings found across the world's many religions.
Understanding World Religions Video Lectures features 26 lessons (on 3
DVDs), exploring various religions under the broad categories of African
Religions, the Yogic Traditions (including Buddhism), and the Abrahamic
traditions.
A companion to the textbook Understanding World Religions by Irving
Hexham, these lectures presents religion as a complex and intriguing
matrix of history, philosophy, culture, beliefs, and practices. With the
understanding that a certain degree of objectivity and critique is
inherent in the study of religion, Hexham guides students in responsible
ways of carrying this out. Of particular note is Hexham's inclusion of
African religions, which have frequently been absent from major religion
texts. He surveys these in addition to varieties of Hinduism, Buddhism,
Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
Useful for formal students and independent learners alike,
Understanding World Religions Video Lectures provides an accessible
introduction for anyone wanting to better understand the world's many
religions and the people who follow them.
Session Titles and Runtimes:
1 - Introductory Issues in the Study of Religion (16 min)
2 - A Biased Canon (13 min)
3 - African Religious Traditions (16 min)
4 - Witchcraft and Sorcery (16 min)
5 - God in Zulu Religion (13 min)
6 - The Case of Isaiah Shembe (23 min)
7 - The Origins of Yogic Religions (19 min)
8 - The Richness of the Hindu Tradition (18 min)
9 - Rethinking the Hindu Tradition (20 min)
10 - Gandhi the Great Contrarian (16 min)
11 - Buddhism (21 min)
12 - The Development of Buddhist Belief and Practice (19 min)
13 - The Moral Quest of Edward Conze (17 min)
14 - Other Yogic-Type Traditions (18 min)
15 - Early Judaism (18 min)
16 - Rabbinic and Other Judaisms (21 min)
17 - Jewish Faith and Practice (17 min)
18 - Martin Buber's Zionist Spirituality (11 min)
19 - Christianity (12 min)
20 - Christian History (19 min)
21 - Christian Faith and Practice (17 min)
22 - Christian Politics According to Abraham Kuiper (19 min)
23 - The Challenge of Islam (20 min)
24 - Muslim Beliefs and Practices (23 min)
25 - Muslim Piety (18 min)
26 - Sayyib Qutb and the Rebirth of Contemporary Islam (11 min)
27 - Conclusion (16 min)
