Religion and the Western Mind

Download or read book Religion and the Western Mind written by Ninian Smart and published by SUNY Press. This book was released on 1987-01-01 with total page 160 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Ninian Smart believes that the modern study of religion should occur in the context of a radical reappraisal of our educational system. This is a worldview analysis of religion appropriate to today's global city. It attacks narrowness whether found in Western philosophy or Christian theology, and argues for a disestablishmentarian stance. Religion and the Western Mind presents the explosive possibilities of religions -- of world views that have the power to shape history. It offers a theory regarding the need of nations for religious justifications. It examines three fundamental backlashes: the Moral Majority, the Muslim Brotherhood, and Gush Emunim. It looks at the contrasting Indian and Sri Lankan responses to Western influence and delineates the Indian tradition in a new way. And finally it diagnoses the future, exploring the ethical inferences of the worldview and supporting a position that runs like a thread through this book.