Book Read Free

God Is Not One

Page 42

by Prothero, Stephen


  Interfaith Dialogue 2.0, 335–36

  Interfaith Youth Core (IFYC), 336

  International Federation of Secular Humanistic Jews, 271

  International Monetary Fund, 63

  International Society of Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON, or the Hare Krishnas), 51, 151–52

  InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, 86

  Introduction to the Devout Life (Francis de Sales), 78

  Iranian hostage crisis (1979–81), 25

  Iranian Revolution (1979), 10, 25

  Islam: “clash of civilizations” between Christianity and, 12, 54, 56, 98; demographics of followers of, 18–19; Five Pillars of, 31–34, 57–58, 60, 199; Islamism ideology of, 52–54; jihad (struggle) and, 34–36; making the case for preeminence of, 18–20; as missionary religion, 19; origins of, 39–40; Progressive Islam movement of, 20, 54–57; relationship between Christianity and, 96–97; Shariah (law) and, 49–50; Shia and Sunni divisions of, 12, 50–52; justice in, 42, 56–57; Sufism, 57–63, 109; Wahhabism theology of, 53–54; Western images of, 25–26. See also Muhammad; Muslims; Quran

  Islamism ideology, 52–54

  Israel: founding of modern state of (1948), 256; Zionism movement leading to modern state of, 268, 271–72

  iyalawo (mother of secrets), 204

  Jackson, Phil, 176

  Jade Emperor (Lord Heaven), 306–7

  Jahannam (hell) [Islam], 47

  Jainism, 15, 172

  Jakes, T. D., 93

  Jantzen, Grace, 106, 286

  Jefferson, Thomas, 84

  Jehovah’s Witnesses, 82

  Jennings, Ken, 203

  Jerusalem: First Temple destruction in, 254, 261; Muslim-Christian struggles over, 97; Second Temple built in, 255; Second Temple destruction in, 255, 256, 261

  Jesus Christ: biblical description of, 70, 71–73; Book of Mormon on, 41, 83; on casting sinners to hell, 47–48; comparing the Quran to, 39; “Great Commission” of, 85; Islamic beliefs related to, 37; number of books written about, 70–71; portrayed as Asian, African, or female, 94; questions raised by, 339; as transformer, 115; Trinity doctrine on, 36, 68–70, 84. See also God

  Jesus (film), 67

  Jesus of the People (McKenzie), 94

  The Jewish Catalog, 276

  Jewish with Feeling (Schachter-Shalomi), 277

  Jewish Renewal, 276–78

  Jewish Renewal (Lerner), 277

  Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS), 269, 270

  The Jew in the Lotus (Kamenetz), 276

  Jews: Ashkenazi, 247; covenants made between God and, 257–58; Ethiopian, 247; exile and return of, 253–57; global demographics of, 245; Holocaust and the, 10, 17, 256–57, 258, 272; death of Jesus used to justify persecution against, 35; Kaddish prayers for the dead by, 106, 252; kippah (Jewish head covering), 56, 268; as “people of the book,” 26, 57, 256; Quran on relations with Muslims, Christians, and, 48–49; Sephardic, 247, 250; Zionism and, 268, 271–72

  jihad (struggle) [Islam], 34–36

  Jim Crow legislation, 11

  jnana yoga (Hindu discipline of wisdom), 137

  Jodo Shu (Pure Land) Buddhist school, 191

  John the Baptist, 75

  John of the Cross, St., 5

  Jones, Regina, 273

  Jordan, Michael, 13

  Joshua, 254

  Judah (southern kingdom), 254–55

  Judaism: on “arguing for the sake of God,” 4, 248–50; birth of, 239; community and memory as central to, 252–53; Conservative, 269; covenants made in, 257–58; demographics of modern, 245; dietary laws of, 259, 260; divisions within, 12, 251; exile and return narrative of, 253–57; feminist theology and role of women in, 272–73; filial piety importance in, 116; God of, 252–53; Hasidism, 268–69; Jewish Renewal movement of, 276–78; “Judaism of the dual Torah,” 262; Kabbalah, 217, 273–75; Kaddish prayer of, 106, 252, 266; Levitical codes and commandments of, 258–59; liberation and law traditions of, 257–60; life cycle rituals of, 266–67; Modern Orthodox, 268; narrative and law elements of, 243–45, 257–60; Neviim and Ketuvim text of, 244; Orthodoxy, 256, 266, 267, 268; Passover and major holidays of, 263–66; Reconstructionist and Humanistic, 270–71; Reform, 266, 267–68, 270; Sabbath and minor holidays of, 260, 262–63; Shema formula of, 251–52; worldwide influence of, 245–48

  Judaism text: Haggadah reading, 265; Mishnah, 244, 267; read during Seders, 265–66; scriptures of, 244; Shulchan Aruch, 250; Talmud, 244, 249–50, 251, 262, 273, 275; Tanakh, 244, 249, 253, 254, 257, 261–62, 275; Torah, 41, 140, 244, 258–59

  Judeo-Christian-Islamic notion, 26–27

  Judeo-Christian tradition, 26–27

  Jude, St., 80

  Julian of Norwich, 99

  junzi (exemplary person) [Daoism], 110

  justice: Gita on dharma, 161; Progressive Muslims on the struggle for, 54–55; Quran’s social themes concerning, 42, 56–57

  Kabah shrine (Mecca), 34

  Kabbalah Centre (Los Angeles), 274

  Kabbalistic Judaism, 217, 273–75

  Kaddish prayer (Judaism), 106, 252, 266

  kali yuga (degenerate age) [Hinduism], 11

  Kallen, Horace, 249

  Kamenetz, Rodger, 276

  Das Kapital (Marx), 125

  Kaplan, Mordecai, 270, 271

  The Karate Kid (film), 282

  karma (action), 147

  karma yoga (Hindu discipline of action), 137

  Kennedy, John F., 126

  Kerouac, Jack, 176, 192, 282

  Ketuvim (Judaism), 244

  Khadijah, 39

  Khomeini, Ayatollah, 25, 50

  Kierkegaard, Søren, 81

  Kimbanguist Church of Congo, 67

  King James Bible, 79

  King, Martin Luther, Jr., 54, 81

  Kingsway International Christian Centre (KICC), 93

  King, Walter, 228

  kippah (Jewish head covering), 56, 268

  The Kitchen God’s Wife (Tan), 307

  “knights of faith,” 81, 99

  Knox, John, 79

  kosher dietary laws (Judaism), 259, 260

  Koufax, Sandy, 246

  Koyaanisqatsi (out of balance life), 11–13

  Ku Klux Klan, 11, 70

  Kundun (film), 29

  Kung Fu (TV show), 282

  Küng, Hans, 6

  Kurien, Prema, 168

  Kuti, Fela Amkulapo, 229

  Lady of Great Mystery (Daoism immortal), 315

  Lalli, Nica, 327

  Lamaism, 197

  Laozi (Lao-Tzu), 281, 290, 293–94, 296, 298–99, 314, 315

  Laozi (Lao-Tzu), 219–93, 281, 292. See also Daodejing

  Last Supper, 81

  Last Supper (Leonardo da Vinci), 9

  Latin American liberation theology, 54

  Lawrence of Arabia (film), 29

  Leaving Church (Taylor), 301

  Lee, Bruce, 283

  Lenin, Vladimir, 317, 324

  Leo IX, Pope, 75

  Leonardo da Vinci, 9

  Leon, Moses de, 275

  Lerner, Michael, 277

  Letting Go of God (Sweeney), 327

  Let Us Now Praise Famous Men (Agee), 294

  Libeskind, Daniel, 246

  li (Confucianism), 113, 116–17, 118, 124

  Lincoln, Abraham, 87–88

  Little Buddha (film), 176

  Lobdell, William, 327

  Losing My Religion (Lobdell), 327

  Lost (TV series), 103

  Lotus Sutra, 191

  Lu Dongbin, 282

  Luther, Martin, 76, 77, 78, 83, 90, 93, 272

  Lu Xun, 125, 126

  McKenzie, Janet, 94

  Mahabharata epic (Hinduism), 153, 159–62

  Mahayana Buddhism: compassion of, 42; conventional truth versus Absolute Truth of, 195, 200–201; description of, 176–77, 186–90; shunyata (emptiness) teaching of, 193–96, 199

  Maimonides, 252, 266

  Mair, Victor, 280

  Malcolm X, 29

  Mao Zed
ong, 122, 290

  Marsden, George, 86

  Marx Brothers, 247

  Marx, Karl, 125, 180, 218, 317, 320, 323–24

  masjid (place of prostration) [Islam], 27

  The Matrix (film), 176

  Mecca: Kabah shrine of, 34; Muhammad’s “night journey” from, 26–27, 40; pilgrimage to, 34

  meditation practices (Buddhism), 178–79

  megachurches, 93–94

  Meir, Golda, 273

  Mencius, 119–20, 123, 124, 126, 299

  Mencius (Confucianism), 104, 121

  Mencken, H. L., 319

  Methodism, 87

  Metta meditation, 178–79

  Meyer, Stephenie, 84

  Miami Vice (TV show), 217

  “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God” (Lutheran hymn), 78

  Milosevic, Slobodan, 317

  Mishnah (Judaism text), 244, 267

  Modern Orthodox Jews, 268

  Mohists, 116

  moksha (spiritual liberation) [Hinduism], 136–37, 138, 147–48, 150, 151, 152–53, 161–62

  monasticism: Benedictines, 66; Buddhism, 174, 176, 180

  monotheism: Christian Trinity doctrine and, 36, 68–70, 84; Islam on nature of Allah, 36–37, 45–46; Judaism, 248–250, 217, 252–53, 257–58, 275

  Mormonism: early history of LDS Church and, 82–84; growing quickly, 12; members from Latin America and South Pacific, 91–92; split over successor of Joseph Smith, 51. See also Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

  Morrison, Toni, 226–27

  Moses: biblical story of, 73, 244, 254, 255, 257; as Jew by adoption, 262; as liberator and lawgiver, 258; Torah delivered through, 244; transmitting the Law, 114–15

  Moyers, Bill, 6

  Mo-zi, 116

  Muhammad: accomplishments and influence of, 38–39; Hadith recording of words and deeds of, 49–50; life of, 39–40; “night journey” of, 26–27, 40; on questioning for learning, 23; questions raised by, 339; Quran revealed to, 28; as transformer, 114, 115. See also Islam

  Muhammad Ali, 29, 187, 283

  Müller, Max, 16, 133

  Murphy, Joseph, 224

  Muslim feminism, 55–56

  Muslims: adhan (call to prayer), 27–28, 30–31; global demographics of, 28–29; growing political power of American, 20; Mecca pilgrimage required of, 34; Progressive Islam movement of, 20, 54–57; Quran on relations with Jews, Christians, and, 48–49; Ramadan observance by, 33–34; relationships between Christians and, 96–97; required to give charity to the poor, 32; rise of Islamism ideology among some, 52–54; Shariah (law) adhered to by, 49–50; Western popular culture portrayal of, 29–30. See also Islam; Shias; Sunnis

  mysterium tremendum (fear of God), 48

  mysticism: Christian, 98–99; Kabbalistic Judaism, 217, 273–75; Sufism, 58–59, 60, 109, 199

  Nagarjuna, 193

  Narayana (Vishnu) poem, 152

  Naropa Institute (Colorado), 276

  National Council of Ex-Muslims, 325

  Nation of Islam (NOI), 29

  Nazism, 10, 256–57

  Neo-Confucianism movement, 104,

  120–21, 285

  Neusner, Jacob, 255

  Neviim (Judaism), 244

  Neville, Robert, 124

  New Atheists: attacks against religion by, 9, 66, 317–26; crossroads facing, 328–29; debate over creed of, 323–26; ethics of, 325; Godthink, 9, 322–23, 336

  New Confucianism, 123–24

  Newdow, Michael, 323

  New Testament. See Bible

  Nicene Creed (Christianity), 67, 68, 69, 70, 74, 199, 251

  Nichiren, 191

  Nietzsche, Friedrich, 176, 317, 325

  Nigeria: independence (1960) of, 218; Islam and Christianity religions in, 221. See also Africa

  Night (Wiesel), 9

  9/11: Engaged Buddhism criticism of

  racial profiling following, 180; Judeo-Christian-Islamic reconception following, 26–27; need to understand religions following, 17; public power of religion influenced by, 320; reading the Quran following, 45; Muslims’ rejection of terrorism and, 10; religious role in terrorism of, 8, 11; U.S. postage stamp issued prior to, 34. See also

  terrorism; United States

  nirvana (Buddhism): no distinction between samsara and, 200; overcoming suffering to goal of, 177–80, 182–83

  Nixon, Richard, 127

  Noah’s Ark, 73, 246

  Noble Eightfold Path (Buddhism), 14, 172, 181, 200, 201

  Noll, Mark, 95

  Obama, Barack, 117, 317

  Obatala (Yoruba orisha), 215–16

  O’Connor, Flannery, 300

  Ogun (Yoruba orisha), 216–18

  Olcott, Henry Steel, 173

  Olodumare (Yoruba Supreme Being), 211–12

  Olupona, Jacob, 221

  The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History, 38

  Onfray, Michel, 9, 318, 319, 326

  On the Jews and Their Lies (Luther), 272

  OPEC nations, 63

  Orishas (DC Comics series), 229

  orishas. See Yoruba orishas

  Orthodox Jews, 256, 266, 267, 268

  orthodoxy (right thought) vs. orthopraxy (right practice), 32, 70, 157, 252

  Orunmila (Yoruba orisha), 214, 234

  Osanyin (Yoruba orisha), 218

  Osborne, Joan, 68

  Oshun (Yoruba orisha), 214–15

  Osteen, Joel, 93

  Ottoman Empire fall (1918), 19, 40

  Otto, Rudolf, 48

  Oudil, 273

  Oya (Yoruba orisha), 218

  Oyotunji African Village, 227–28

  pacifism, of Sermon on the Mount, 11

  Paradise: as goal of Muslims, 32; Quran on the path to, 32, 42–43

  Paradise (Morrison), 227

  Passover (Jewish festival), 258, 263–66

  Patel, Eboo, 336

  Patriarch of Constantinople, 75

  Paul, 93

  Pearl of Great Price (Mormonism), 83

  Pentecostalism, 87–91, 92

  “people of the book” (Ahl al-Kitab), 26, 57, 256

  The Perennial Philosophy (Huxley), 5

  perennial philosophy, 6–7

  Perfect Realization Daoism, 309–10

  Peter, St., 75

  Petersham, Maud and Mishka, 65

  philosophical Daoism, 311–12

  philosophical Hinduism, 144–50

  Pink Floyd, 103

  Pinker, Steven, 318

  Pitt, Brad, 292

  Pittsburgh Platform (1885), 268

  Plato, 123

  Platonism, 172

  Pledge of Allegiance lawsuit, 323

  politics: Jewish influence in American, 246; Bible used in American, 18; Christianity and modern divisions of, 95–96; Hindutva (Hinduness) movement in Indian, 8, 167–68; Islamism ideology of Muslim extremists, 52–54; religious role in, 6–11; Religious Right impact on, 8, 320, 338

  Pol Pot, 317

  popular Daoism, 310–11

  Prabhavananda, Swami, 6

  Prabhupada, Swami, 51

  prayers: Jewish Kaddish, 106, 252, 266; Muslims called to adhan, 27–28, 30–31; Orthodox Jews three times a day, 256; Progressive Islam’s mixed-gender Friday prayer service (2005), 55

  Presbyterianism, 79

  Progressive Islam movement, 20, 54–57

  Progressive Muslims (Safi), 54

  Protestantism: comparison of Catholicism and, 80–82; evangelicalism, 84–86; Lutherans, Calvinists, Anglicans, and Anabaptists, 78–79; origins of, 76–78; Pentecostalism, 87–91

  Protestant Reformation, 76–78

  puja (worship) [Hinduism], 157–59

  Pullman, Philip, 103

  Purim (Jewish festival), 263

  Puritans, 79

  al-Qaeda: Islamic extremists of, 19; Islamism ideology of, 52–54

  qigong (breathing exercises), 282

  Qin dynasty (China), 120, 122

  Quakers, 68, 276

  Quanzhen (Chuan-ch
en) tradition (Daoism), 309–10

  Queen Mother of the West (Daoism), 307

  Quran: chastisement warnings in the, 46–47; comparing Christian Bible to, 43–45; comparing Jesus to the, 39; content, themes, and organization of, 41–45; descriptions of Allah in the, 36–37; “The Forenoon” sura in the, 45–46; Jahannam (hell) in the, 47; mentions of war in the, 35; on path to Paradise, 32, 42–43; revealed to Muhammad, 28; justice in the, 42, 56–57; “sword verses” in the, 97; written by Allah and the word of God, 40–41. See also Islam

  Qutb, Sayyid, 53

  Rabin, Yitzhak, 9

  Rahner, Karl, 6

  Ramadan (Islam fasting month), 33–34

  Ramakrishna, 165–66, 167, 339

  Ramakrishna Vedanta Society, 6

  Ramayana epic (Hinduism), 153, 159, 162–64

  Ramayan (comic book series), 164

  Ram Lila (weeklong performance), 163

  Rand, Ayn, 324

  Rastafarianism movement, 15

  Reagan Revolution (1980s), 10

  Reconstructionist Judaism, 270–71

  Reconstructionist Rabbinical College (Philadelphia), 270

  rectification of names (Confucianism), 112

  Reform Jews, 266, 267, 268, 270

  Refuel (New Testament), 75

  religion: American public’s growing concerns about, 320–21; Confucianism debate of philosophy versus, 105–9, 129–30, 186; dual toxic and tonic nature of, 9–11; examining the influence of, 17–18; “false and your own” categories of, 5–6; futile search for essence of, 12–13; Harvard University atheism rally (2009) protesting, 327–28; making the case for preeminence for a specific, 18–20; metamorphosis promise of, 331–32; New Atheists’ attacks on, 9, 66, 317–18, 319, 320–26; perennial philosophy on, 6–7; seven dimensions of, 49; social, economic, political, and military importance of, 7–11. See also beliefs

  religious Daoism, 312–13

  religious differences: “argument allergy” reluctance to discuss, 4–5; blind men examining elephant story demonstrating, 338–39; different paths metaphor of, 1–2; fairness in examining, 20–22; “false and your own” categories of, 5–6; four-step approach to problems/solutions/techniques/exemplars, 13–16; Interfaith Dialogue 2.0 for exploring, 335–36; overview of the multitudes of, 1–3; revelations of examining, 333–40; sports analogy of, 22; on what is wrong with the world, 11–13

  Religious Literacy: What Every American Needs to Know—and Doesn’t (Prothero), 13

  religious literacy: 20–24, 337

  Religious Right, 8, 320, 338

  religious rivalries: “clash of civilizations” as, 12, 54, 56, 98; social, economic, political, and military impact of, 7–8

  religious tolerance: “all religions are one” mantra of, 3, 4, 8; attacks on ideal of, 321

 

‹ Prev