He is perhaps most famous as the promoter of the philosophy of “pragmatism” founded by his friend Charles S. James (1842–1910) is often considered the most important philosopher that America has produced. The book and its claims have been highly controversial. In this book, Aslan advances the claim that Jesus of Nazareth’s proclamation of the kingdom of God, as narrated in the Gospels, ought to be seen as primarily a political challenge to the powers-that-be in first-century Palestine-namely, the Roman Empire and the hereditary Jewish priesthood. Aslan’s family’s religious background was Twelver Shi’ism, but the author converted to evangelical Christianity as a child. He holds a Master of Theological Studies (MTS) degree from Harvard Divinity School and a PhD in sociology from the University of California, Santa Barbara. He was born in Iran, but his family was forced to flee to the US in 1979 after the fall of the Shah and the establishment of the Islamic Republic under the Ayatollah Khomeini.Īslan was raised in the San Francisco Bay area in California. 1972) is a religious studies scholar, author, and television host. Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of NazarethĪslan (b. Read on for a look at The 25 Most Influential Books in Religious Studies.ĪD 25 Most Influential Books in Religious Studies 1. What Can I Do With a Master’s Degree in Religious Studies?.Most Influential Scholars in Religious Studies of All Time.Rather, our list provides you with the 25 books on religious studies that have had the greatest combined academic and popular impact over the past decade. Such a list would have a very different look and feel to it. Nevertheless, ours is not a list of the most influential religious studies books of all time. Several of the works included on the list are classics in the field, dating to the early twentieth century. Moreover, we have omitted religious studies textbooks, technical reference works, and fictional works which may contain religious studies-related material. Note that our list does not necessarily represent the most popular religious studies books overall published during the past ten years, nor is it a straightforward list of religious studies bestsellers during that time frame-for several reasons.įor one thing, we have excluded the sacred texts themselves. We have assigned an objective measure of “influence” to each book on the basis of the number of references it has received in both the academic literature and the popular media. With these considerations in mind, we have compiled a list of the most influential books in religious studies of the past decade (2011–2021). The field also includes the study of the cultural context and literary genre of sacred texts, as well as their influence on the subsequent historical development of religious ideas, practices, and institutions around the globe. As such, religious studies is a wide-ranging subject, encompassing the historical, philological, philosophical, and sociological analysis of the world’s various religious institutions, practices, and sacred texts.
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