5 stars (Thoroughly enjoyed) - Wonderful audio presentation of the Bill Moyer interview with Joseph Campbell. We originally checked it out from the library for a road trip, but just had to have our own copy. Listened to it twice on a recent cross-country road trip. 3 stars (Amazing Mythological Comparisons) - This is written in an "interview" form. I probably would get more out of the DVD format. It has very interesting comparisons of our life to mythology. Although very interesting, some ideas seem a little far-fetched. 4 stars (Intriguing, important but sometimes contradictory) - In our current secular culture where everything is de-mythologized, this is an important work. Campbell shows how the existential angst and meaninglessnes of modern toil is inextricably linked with our devaluation of mythology in the 21st century. From a philosophical point of view I especially admired the colourful way in which Campbell accounted for the dualism of the human predicament eg. In the Garden of Eden fall from unity into the knowledge of "good and evil". Buddhist conceptions of duality were also well integrated. However, in parts I found Campbell's message somewhat contradictory. Especially concerning the gnostic view that the material world is "bad", and the eternal world of the spirit, our real home. In some instances he seems to support this gnostic view, in others he wants us to embrace the tactile reality we find ourselves in, submerging ourselves in its goodness. Perhaps I just misunderstood. I would welcome enlightenment from fellow readers. Perhaps the greatest "take-away" for me was the value of investing myth into your everday world. As the Postmodern philosopher Rorty said: there is no true view of the world (even the scientific one), only a view which is the most useful. Personally I often find the meaninglessness of the materialist view pretty useless (for me, anyway), and a view rich with myth and mystical connotation might be infinitely more livable.... Anchor :: Philosophy & General :: Campbell :: Joseph :: United States :: Sociology of Religion :: Sociology :: Religious :: Religion historians :: Religion :: Philosophy :: Mytholo :: The Power of Myth
5 stars ( A C lassic for All Times) - Weber's "Protestant Ethic" was originally published in 1904-1905 and later in a second, revised edition (1920). This edition is the second edition, and the translator is Talcott Parsons. In "The Protestant Ethic" Weber famously attempts to explain how the spirit of modern rational capitalism emerged; and he essentially argues that an important part in this process was played by what he termed ascetic protestantism or different types of Protestantism that were activistic and ascetic (most famously Calvinism). Ascetic Protestantism energized businessmen and workers, and valorized a new type of capitalism: rational capitalism which is much more methodical and dynamic in nature than the type of capitalism that existed in Europe in the 1500s ("traditional capitalism"). Today rational capitalism has conquered society and turned it into an iron cage (to use Parsons' famous translation of two words in German that are more accurately - and less imaginatively - translated as "steelhard casing"). "The Protestant Ethic" is by far the most famous sociological study and is unsurpassed in theoretical boldness and creativity. Parsons said that he found it as exciting to read as a detective novel. Most of us have to struggle quite a bit with it - but it is definitely worth it! 4 stars (Not a determinist: someone who pays attention to culture... ) - The main point in Weber's *The Protestant ethic and the spirit of capitalism* is that the Protestant ethic helped to shape values favorable to the birth of capitalism. Despite that, the author isn't a cultural determinist because he takes care to point out that values help to shape an outcome, but don't produce it for certain. This book is quite interesting, and includes lots of interesting observations regarding Weber's main premise, despite not being overly long. For instance, the author says that due to the fact that Protestant ethic viewed hard work as a duty and looked down on ex... Routledge :: Protestantism & Protestant Churches :: Ethics & moral philosophy :: Sociology of Religion :: Sociology :: Social Science :: Religious aspects :: Protestant work e :: The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism (Routledge Classics) (Routledge Classics)
5 stars (A Non-Christian Nation) - Christian Smith and Melinda Denton have produced a wonderful analysis of the religious condition of teenagers (ages 13-17) in the USA. They collected survey data on 3290 teenagers and then followed up with more extended interviews of 267 of those surveyed. The initial survey gave an over all picture of the religious character of these teenagers including their affiliations, participation, beliefs and experiences. The interviews provided an in-depth exposure of what these teens really believe. As it turns out, the seeming wide-spread acceptance of religious life by teens (only 16% were "not religious") is largely to a vague, self-defined religion which the authors defined as: Moralistic Therapeutic Deism. The teens believed in a generally disinterested divine power who supervised a system to provide personal peace and prosperity for nice people, or perhaps to help them them be nice. They adhered to a religion that is helpful, but not entirely necessary. While there were those who could be described as believers in Christianity as defined by the Bible, and also those who denied any religion, the clear majority favored MTD. The book is a "must read" for any who would like to better understand the status of the spiritual interests of youths. It also is valuable for all who would generally understand American culture. While the authors make no such claim, it is likely that the youths' view of religion is likely the common view of our age. At the least, it surely will be the increasingly dominant religion as these youths enter adult life. For parents and youth workers who are interested in true spiritual life for their children, it shows the arena in which their own youths reside. It should stimulate good thinking and discussion of how properly to intervene in what turns out to be a huge spiritual void in the lives of professing spiritual/religious youths. This is an excellent book. 5 stars (The Best Resource Available T... Oxford University Press :: Spirituality :: Adolescents :: United States :: Teenagers :: Spiritual life :: Sociology of Religion :: Sociology :: Social Science :: Religious life :: Children's Stud :: Soul Searching- The Religious And Spiritual Lives Of American Teenagers
3 stars (Here's my problem with it so far...) - Here's my problem with the book: It presents an unfavorable view of certain types of magick and religions. True, I have not finished the book yet, but all you hav to do is read the negative definitions for the words "withcraft: An EVIL power inhert in certain individuals that permits them...to do HARM or cause others MISFORTUNE;" "New Age: a loosley used term describing a combination of spirituality and superstition, a FAD and FARCE, that SUPPOSEDLY helps believes gain knowledge of the unknown;" and two of the four definitions involving the word magick end with the words "intended victim." Granted, the book was originally written in 1985 when withcraft, magick and Wicca weren't as accepted, but it was reprinted in 2001, so you'd think some of the definitions could have been changed. It just doesn't seem like an objective view of the supernatural and magick, but rather a negatively jaded one. It's getting 3 stars becasue I haven't finished it, and there's always a chance it could redeem itself at the end. ~Koppur 4 stars (good summary of religion) - This book is used by Butte college as well as Chico State. The book consists of independent articles, or exerpts, that illustrate the topics of each chapter. Some of the articles are difficult to read, but in general it does provide useful information. 4 stars (Magic, Witchcraft, & Religion) - I currently use this book as the text for a class I teach at California State University, Chico (Anthropology 40: Magic, Witchcraft, & Religion). I was fortunate enough to have taken this and other courses from the authors Arthur C. Lehmann and James E. Myers. This book serves as a good reader for comparative religions and focuses on non-western societies. Articles on western belief systems are used for comparison and contrasting with the non-western examples. Although targeted for the freshman level, the text assumes the reader have some understanding of anthropology. ... McGraw-Hill Humanities-Social Sciences-Languages :: Social Science & Anthropology & General :: Sociology of Religion :: Religion :: Occultism :: New Age :: General :: Body :: Mind & Spirit :: Archaeology & Anthropology :: Magic- Witchcraft- and Religion - An Anthropological Study of the Supernatural
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