Don S. (EDT) Browning

Spanning thousands of years, this new collection brings together writings and teachings about sex, marriage, and family from the Jewish, Christian, Islamic, Hindu, Buddhist, and Confucian traditions. The volume includes traditional texts as well as contemporary materials showing how the religions have responded to the changing conditions and mores of modern life. It reveals the similarities and differences among the various religions and the development of ideas and teachings within each tradition. Selections shed light on each religion's views on a range of subjects, including sexuality and sexual pleasure, the meaning and purpose of marriage, the role of betrothal, the status of women, the place of romance, grounds for divorce, celibacy, and sexual deviance. Separate chapters devoted to each religion include introductions by leading scholars that contextualize the readings. The selections are drawn from a variety of genres including ritual, legal, theological, poetic, and mythic texts.The volume contains such diverse examples as the Zohar on conjugal manners, a contemporary Episcopalian liturgy for same-sex unions, Qur'anic passages on the equality of the sexes, the Ka-masu-tra on husbands, wives, and lovers, Buddhist writings on celibacy, and Confucian teachings on filial piety. Contributors include: Michael S. Berger, Emory University; Azizah Y. al-Hibri, Richmond School of Law; Alan Cole, Lewis and Clark College; Paul B. Courtright, Emory University; Patricia Buckley Ebrey, University of Washington; Raja M. El-Habti, Muslim Women Lawyers for Human Rights; Luke Timothy Johnson, Emory University; Mark D. Jordan, Emory University

According to the authors of this powerfully reasoned book, only a serious commitment to the Christian ideas of forgiveness and reconciliation can meet the needs of today's troubled world -- and the church must take the lead in this process. Partly a survey of existing attitudes and partly a how-to manual for the development of an active, public church, this book highlights the importance of forgiveness in both congregational life and society, and it traces out the intricacies of making it happen. After discussing common views of human nature and exploring the concepts of forgiveness and reconciliation as found in Scripture and throughout church history, the authors introduce a four-pronged approach to fostering forgiveness that includes education, community involvement, political advocacy, and strategies for developing the moral courage required to confront secular society.Bold and constructive, this book offers a powerful vision of the relation of Christianity and culture.