The Illustrated World's Religions--Chapter I
Chapter I ("Point of Departure") Questions to Guide Your
Study:
- Do you have any comments on what
Smith lists as not the aims or purpose of his book--not about
religious history, not an inclusive overview, not a balanced coverage,
not a book on comparative religions--from the standpoint of comparing
worth (page 10-12)? Do you agree with this approach? Does it meet your
needs as you study world religions?
- As Smith defines what his book is
(embraces the world, takes religion seriously, seeks to communicate and
translate the world's great religious traditions for the reader), he says
"We need to see their adherents as men and women who face problems much
like our own...we must rid our minds of preconceptions that would dull
our sensitivity to fresh insights" (page 14). Do you agree? Disagree? Too
early to tell?
- Consider Smith's comment that
"authentic religion is the clearest opening through which the
inexhaustible energies of the cosmos pour into human life" (page 14). Do
you agree? If so, what would you define as "inauthentic religion?"
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