Unearthly Powers: Religious and Political Change in World History

ISBN-13: 9781108701952 / Angielski / Miękka / 2019 / 404 str.

Alan Strathern

Opis

Using examples from Rome to Tahiti, Strathern sets out a new way of thinking about religion and its changing relationship with political authority throughout history. Exploring phenomena including sacred kingship, conversion, and the rise of the world religions, this is a major intervention in our understanding of the pre-modern world.

Recenzje

'… Strathern has with considerable brilliance opened up a rich field for debate and reflection.' Brian Stanley, Journal of Ecclesiastical History

Spis treści

Introduction; 1. The two forms of religion: being and nothingness; 2. Religion as the fabric of the state; 3. The two forms of sacred kingship: divinization and righteousness; 4. The economy of ritual efficacy and the empirical reception of Christianity; 5. The conversion of kings under the conditions of immanentism: Constantine to Cakobau; 6. Dreams of state: conversion as the making of kings and subjects; Conclusion; Glossary of theoretical terms.