What becomes of the wicked? Hell—exile from God, subjection to fire, worms, and darkness—for centuries the idea has shaped the dread of malefactors, the solace of victims, and the deterrence of believers. Although we may associate the notion of hell with Christian beliefs, its gradual emergence depended on conflicting notions that pervaded the Mediterranean world more than a millennium before the birth of Christ. Asking just why and how belief in hell arose, Alan E. Bernstein takes us back to those times and offers us a comparative view of the philosophy, poetry, folklore, myth, and theology of that formative age. Bernstein draws on sources from ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, Greece, Rome, and Israel, as well as early Christian writings through Augustine, in order to reconstruct the story of the prophets, priests, poets, and charismatic leaders who fashioned concepts of hell from an array of perspectives on death and justice. The author traces hell's formation through close readings of works including the epics of Homer and Vergil, the satires of Lucian, the dialogues of Plato and Plutarch, the legends of Enoch, the confessions of the Psalms, the prophecies of Isaiah, Ezechiel, and Daniel, and the parables of Jesus. Reenacting lively debates about the nature of hell among the common people and the elites of diverse religious traditions, he provides new insight into the social implications and the psychological consequences of different visions of the afterlife. This superb account of a central image in Western culture will captivate readers interested in history, mythology, literature, psychology, philosophy, and religion.
Type: BOOK - Published: 2020-06-30 - Publisher: Cornell University Press
What becomes of the wicked? Hell—exile from God, subjection to fire, worms, and darkness—for centuries the idea has shaped the dread of malefactors, the solace of victims, and the deterrence of believers. Although we may associate the notion of hell with Christian beliefs, its gradual emergence depended on conflicting notions
Type: BOOK - Published: 1982-01-01 - Publisher: Univ of California Press
Important changes have occurred in the composition of forest, woodland, and riparian vegetation in the Creede area since the Oligocene. The evidence for this is based on fossil samples from several sites in each of 4 areas in the northern part of the Creede basin. All of them are rich
Type: BOOK - Published: 1997-10-06 - Publisher: Elsevier
This book is the most authoritative encyclopedia ever prepared on dinosaurs and dinosaur science. In addition to entries on specific animals such as Tyrannosaurus, Triceratops, and Velociraptor, the Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs covers reproduction, behavior, physiology, and extinction. The book is generously illustrated with many detailed drawings and photographs, and includes
Authors: Manuela Marín, Julio Samsó, María Isabel Fierro
Categories: History
Type: BOOK - Published: 1998 - Publisher: Routledge
The two volumes of The Formation of al-Andalus present a conspectus of current research on the history and culture of early medieval Spain and Portugal, from the time of the Arab conquest in 711 up to the fall of the caliphate. They trace the impact of Islamisation on the pre-existing
Authors: Erwin Fahlbusch, Jan Milic Lochman, Geoffrey William Bromiley, John S. Mbiti, Jaroslav Pelikan, David B. Barrett, Lukas Vischer
Categories: Religion
Type: BOOK - Published: 1999 - Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing
"The Encyclopedia of Christianity is the first of a five-volume English translation of the third revised edition of Evangelisches Kirchenlexikon. Its German articles have been tailored to suit an English readership, and articles of special interest to English readers have been added. The encyclopedia describes Christianity through its 2000-year history