Spirituality

A Very Short Introduction
1. Auflage 2012
ISBN: 978-0-19-958875-6
Verlag: Oxford University Press

Buch, Englisch, 160 Seiten, Format (B × H): 111 mm x 172 mm, Gewicht: 119 g

Reihe: Very Short Introductions

It has been suggested that 'spirituality' has become a word that 'can define an era'. Why? Because paradoxically, alongside a decline in traditional religious affiliations, the growing interest in spirituality and the use of the word in a variety of contexts is a striking aspect of contemporary western cultures. Indeed, spirituality is sometimes contrasted attractively with religion, although this is problematic and implies that religion is essentially dogma, moralism, institutions, buildings, and hierarchies.

The notion of spirituality expresses the fact that many people are driven by goals that concern more than material satisfaction. Broadly, it refers to the deepest values and sense of meaning by which people seek to live. Sometimes these values are conventionally religious. Sometimes they are associated with what is understood as 'the sacred' in a broader sense - that is, of ultimate rather than merely instrumental importance. This Very Short Introduction, written by one of the most eminent scholars and writers on spirituality, explores the historical foundations of the thought and considers how it came to have the significance it is developing today.

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Zielgruppe

General readers; professionals; students and academics in the fields of spirituality, religion, and theology as well as philosophy and anthropology.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Sheldrake, Philip

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Religionswissenschaft Sonstige Religionen Sonstige Religionen: Spiritualität, Mystik

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Introduction
1: Types and traditions
2: Spirituality as experience
3: Spirituality as way of life
4: Spirituality in society
5: Spirituality versus religion?
Conclusion

Über Autor(innen)

Sheldrake, Philip
Professor Philip Sheldrake is currently the Joseph Visiting Professor in the Department of Theology at Boston College, Massachusetts. He is also Honorary Professor at University of Wales Lampeter and Moulsdale Fellow of St Chad's College Durham University. Philip Sheldrake co-founded and directed (1984-94) the Institute of Spirituality, Heythrop College University of London. He is on the editorial boards of three international academic journals. For the last twenty five years he has been a leading figure in the field of spirituality as an interdisciplinary area of study.

Professor Philip Sheldrake is currently Senior Research Fellow in the Cambridge Theological Federation (Westcott House), Honorary Professor of the University of Wales, and a regular visiting professor in the United States. He is also a member of the Guerrand-Hermès Forum for the Interreligious Study of Spirituality. Philip Sheldrake co-founded and directed (1984-94) the Institute of Spirituality, Heythrop College University of London. He is on the editorial boards of three international academic journals. For the last twenty five years he has been a leading figure in the field of spirituality as an interdisciplinary area of study.