The Origins of Religions - Hardcover

Ries, Julien

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0802837670 ISBN 13: 9780802837677

Publisher: Eerdmans Pub Co, 1994

Synopsis

This attractively illustrated volume is the first comprehensive work for general readers on the origins of humankind's religious nature. By examining the footprints along the course of humanity's religious journey, Julien Ries is able to effectively counter attempts to root the origins of religion in evolutionary, ethnological, and sociological causes. His study uncovers the presence of a religious sense in humankind from our very first appearance on earth and shows that an inner religious structure is in fact an essential characteristic of our being human: homo religiosus.
The Origins of Religions opens with a look at prehistoric man's first steps on the planet, then moves on to examine the cultic rituals, artistic expression, and expanding mythology that developed throughout the Paleolithic and Neolithic epochs. In these simple yet immensely meaningful religious practices we find the precursors to the development of systematic religion in the cultures of Sumero-Babylonia, pharaonic Egypt, China, Indo-Europe, and India, which in turn culminates in the birth of the three great monotheistic religions - Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

About this title

About the Author

Julien Ries is professor emeritus at the University of Louvain-la-Neueve, Belgique, and is the founder and director of that school's Homo Religiosus Institute, an important center for congresses and seminars on the history of religions.

Reviews

Ries (Univ. of Louvain-la-Neueve, Belgium) provides a sumptuously illustrated and authoritative thumbnail sketch of current research and theories on the religious urge of humankind from the earliest Homo to the present day. After surveying outmoded systems for explaining the development of a religious sense, Ries presents the current evidence for human religiosity from the origins of humanity to the rise of the great monotheistic religions. Finally, he summarizes the modern efforts at interpretation of these facts. The abundant, well-chosen illustrations include excellent color photographs, interpretative paintings, and line drawings. A helpful glossary of fundamental terms and concepts is given at the beginning of the book, but the bibliography includes predominantly non-English titles and therefore will be little use to likely users of this book: educated adults seeking orientation in an unfamiliar field or those looking for a beautiful book for their coffee table.
Eugence O. Bowser, Univ. of Northern Colorado, Greeley
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Eerdmans Pub Co
• Publication date: 1994
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0802837670
• ISBN 13: 9780802837677
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 158