A scholarly, in-depth look at Mary’s purpose and place in modern religion.
Theologians explore the many facets of the Virgin Mary in this series of multidenominational essays.
True to its name, the Ecumenical Society of the Blessed Virgin Mary focuses on promoting ecumenical study and, in particular, the understanding of Jesus’ mother Mary’s place within the Christian church. Here, editors Hearden and Kimball, in their debut, collect several essays presented at the ESBVM’s 2008 International Congress in Pittsburgh. The collection, after a few opening words about Marian-related doctrine and the concept of the Immaculate Conception, spans various Christian denominations and intersects with Judaism and Islam as it explores the role of Mary in the life of today’s church. The collection includes a tribute to Robert Andrews, “America’s only Byzantine mosaic iconographer,” and uses Andrews’ 23-foot mosaic on the ceiling of San Francisco’s Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church as a springboard to the book’s contents. Many spiritual concepts become visible through iconography—just as the divine promise of salvation through Christ became present on Earth through Mary, according to Christian doctrine. The collection includes discussions of Judaism’s “divine daughter,” Mary’s place in Islam as the “propagator of prophets,” and several explorations of Mary’s role among Protestants, including Methodist and United Church of Christ congregations. The book also touches on Orthodox traditions which depict Mary as a theologian in her own right. Many contributors are well-known for their work on Mariology, and it shows, but their essays may sometimes confuse readers who lack solid backgrounds in Christian thought. For others, however, the book will likely provide deeply thoughtful illuminations. It builds on a millennia-long tradition of Marian veneration and helps develop it into a potentially workable concept for the modern church, including for Protestants, who have long looked askance at Mary-centered prayer. For readers interested in the Virgin Mary specifically or in images of the feminine within the Judeo-Christian-Islamic tradition, these essays may provide much food for thought.
A scholarly, in-depth look at Mary’s purpose and place in modern religion.Pub Date: March 25, 2011
ISBN: 978-1456756673
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Xlibris
Review Posted Online: April 4, 2013
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.
A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.
This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is “How We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005
ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This a book of earlier, philosophical essays concerned with the essential "absurdity" of life and the concept that- to overcome the strong tendency to suicide in every thoughtful man-one must accept life on its own terms with its values of revolt, liberty and passion. A dreary thesis- derived from and distorting the beliefs of the founders of existentialism, Jaspers, Heldegger and Kierkegaard, etc., the point of view seems peculiarly outmoded. It is based on the experience of war and the resistance, liberally laced with Andre Gide's excessive intellectualism. The younger existentialists such as Sartre and Camus, with their gift for the terse novel or intense drama, seem to have omitted from their philosophy all the deep religiosity which permeates the work of the great existentialist thinkers. This contributes to a basic lack of vitality in themselves, in these essays, and ten years after the war Camus seems unaware that the life force has healed old wounds... Largely for avant garde aesthetes and his special coterie.
Pub Date: Sept. 26, 1955
ISBN: 0679733736
Page Count: 228
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Sept. 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1955
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
