PHILOSOPHER Friedrich Nietzsche might have killed God when he boldly wrote all those years ago that "God is dead. God remains dead," but the notion of the divine remains one of the most enduring.
Title: 50 Ideas You Really Need to Know: Religion
Author: Peter Stanford
Publisher: Quercus
The belief in a supreme deity has persevered throughout millennia and has been both a source of conflict and strife.
Author of 50 Religion Ideas You Really need To Know Peter Stanford writes that though the "numbers of believers have dropped", religion "shows no sign of fading away".
It would seem that scientists, such as Richard Dawkins, who regard religion as a delusion, have done little to dissuade believers from their conviction, if fundamentalism and the mushrooming churches are anything to go by.
As long as the need for human beings to explain the "otherwise inexplicable" and the "randomness of suffering", religion is bound to endure for many more years, argues Stanford.
Though Stanford touches on Rastafarianism and the popularity of Baptist churches among African Americans, he completely avoids traditional African religions.
Nifty and not too preachy, Stanford's book is a useful guide to some of the world's religions and will do much to keep the debate on religion and spirituality alive.
A useful guide to world's religions
PHILOSOPHER Friedrich Nietzsche might have killed God when he boldly wrote all those years ago that "God is dead. God remains dead," but the notion of the divine remains one of the most enduring.
Title: 50 Ideas You Really Need to Know: Religion
Author: Peter Stanford
Publisher: Quercus
The belief in a supreme deity has persevered throughout millennia and has been both a source of conflict and strife.
Author of 50 Religion Ideas You Really need To Know Peter Stanford writes that though the "numbers of believers have dropped", religion "shows no sign of fading away".
It would seem that scientists, such as Richard Dawkins, who regard religion as a delusion, have done little to dissuade believers from their conviction, if fundamentalism and the mushrooming churches are anything to go by.
As long as the need for human beings to explain the "otherwise inexplicable" and the "randomness of suffering", religion is bound to endure for many more years, argues Stanford.
Though Stanford touches on Rastafarianism and the popularity of Baptist churches among African Americans, he completely avoids traditional African religions.
Nifty and not too preachy, Stanford's book is a useful guide to some of the world's religions and will do much to keep the debate on religion and spirituality alive.
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