Books - eBooks - Religion - Atlantic Cape Community College Libraries at Atlantic Cape Community College

Print Collection

The libraries of Atlantic Cape use the Library of Congress classification system to organize materials. Call numbers tell you where a book is shelved.

These call number ranges will help you locate books on world religions

BL Religions. Mythology. Rationalism.

BM Judaism

BP Islam. Bahaism. Theosophy, etc.

BQ Buddhism

BR Christianity

BS The Bible

BT Doctrinal Theology

BV Practical Theology

BX Christian Denominations

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Print Reference books

Reference books offer general information of topics. Here are some of our reference books on world religions. Need help to find books. Ask a librarian.

Religions of the Ancient World by Sarah Iles Johnston Religious beliefs and practices, which permeated all aspects of life in antiquity, traveled well-worn routes throughout the Mediterranean: itinerant charismatic practitioners journeying from place to place peddled their skills as healers, purifiers, cursers, and initiators; and vessels decorated with illustrations of myths traveled with them. New gods encountered in foreign lands by merchants and conquerors were sometimes taken home to be adapted and adopted. A full understanding of this complex spiritual world unfolds in Religions of the Ancient World, the first basic reference work that collects and organizes available information to offer an expansive, comparative perspective. At once sweeping in scope and groundbreaking in format, the Guide eschews the usual encyclopedic approach, instead presenting, side by side, materials from ten cultures and traditions. Thus specific beliefs, cults, gods, and ritual practices that arose and developed in Mediterranean religions--of Egypt, Anatolia and the Near East, Mesopotamia, Iran, Greece, and the Roman world, from the third millennium to the fourth century C.E.--are interpreted in comparison with one another, and with reference to aspects that crisscross cultural boundaries, such as Cosmology, Myth, Law and Ethics, and Magic. Written by leading scholars of ancient religion, the essays in this guide sketch the various religious histories, raise central theoretical issues, and examine individual topics such as Sacred Times and Spaces; Prayers, Hymns, Incantations, and Curses; Sin, Pollution, and Purity; Death, the Afterlife, and Other Last Things; Divination and Prophecy; Deities and Demons; and Sacred Texts and Canonicity. Clearly and stylishly written, grandly illustrated, this comprehensive work welcomes readers as never before into the diversity and interconnections of religion in the ancient world.
Call Number: BL687 .R47 2004 (Cape May, Mays Landing campus)
ISBN: 9780674015173
Publication Date: 2004-11-30
Religious Rites, Rituals, and Festivals by Frank A. Salamone (Editor) Many rituals and festivals take place in public, meaning that such expressions of faith are societal as well as individual forms of human behaviour. The similarity in the general patterns of rituals and festivals across cultures and religions is striking. For example, most cultures and religions mark major life-course transitions such as birth, marriage, and death with public ritual expressions, and numerous festivals are tied to food-producing activities such as planting and harvesting. Where religions and societies vary is in the meanings associated with ritual behaviour and the specific forms those behaviours take. The Encyclopedia of Religious Rites, Rituals and Festivalsexplores this complex topic through articles covering the following general categories of information: general concepts and ideas such as communitas, inversion, purity and pollution, and pilgrimages major forms of ritual and festival such as rites of passage, devotional rites, sacrifice, calendrical rites, carnival, and fasting religious rites and festivals of major religions, including Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Catholicism and Judaism rites and festivals in cultural regions such as China, sub-Saharan Africa, and the Pacific islands life-cycle rites, including those associated with birth, coming of age, marriage and death specific rites and festivals, such as Divali, Easter, Ramadan, snake handling and Yom Kippur. The Encyclopedia of Religious Rites, Rituals, and Festivalscontains 130 entries contributed and signed by scholars from international universities and institutes, with expertise in such fields as Asian and Pacific studies, archaeology, communication studies, cultural anthropology, cultural studies, international studies, philosophy, psychological anthropology, religious studies, social anthropology, sociology and theology. An unprecedented resource, this new encyclopedia provides in-depth coverage of a vast array of worldwide practices with entries that draw on the latest research available, offering fresh insights while maintaining a connection with established scholarship. The cross-cultural coverage will help foster interfaith understanding as well as present and explain unfamiliar behaviours and rituals.
Call Number: BL31 .E47 2004 (Mays Landing campus)
ISBN: 9780415941808
Publication Date: 2004-06-25
The Complete Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt by Richard H. Wilkinson Worshiped for over three-fifths of recorded history, ancient Egypt's gods and goddesses are among the most fascinating of human civilization. The lives of pharaohs and commoners alike were dominated by the need to honor, worship, and pacify the huge pantheon of deities. From lavish tomb paintings and imposing temple reliefs to humble household shrines, countless tributes throughout Egypt reflect the richness and complexity of their mythology. This book examines the evolution, worship, and eventual decline of the numerous gods and goddesses--from minor household figures such as Bes and Taweret to the all-powerful deities Amun and Rethat made Egypt the most completely theocratic society of the ancient world, and made Egyptians, according to Herodotus, "more religious than any other people."      * "Rise and Fall of the Gods" considers the origins of Egypt's deities, their struggles to control cosmic forces, and their eventual decline.      * "Nature of the Gods" examines the forms, appearances, and manifestations of the deities, as well as the transcendence of preeminent deities such as Amun.      * "Worship of the Gods" introduces the rituals and mysteries of formal Egyptian worship, including the importance of temples and festivals.      * "Kingship and the Gods" discusses the all-important position of the king, who served as a bridge between the gods and humanity.      * "The Many Faces of the Divine" is a unique catalogue of Egypt's gods and goddesses grouped according to their primary forms, discussing their iconography, mythology, and worship, and their influence over time. With hundreds of illustrations and specially commissioned drawings, this is a comprehensive and authoritative guide to the deities that lay at the heart of Egyptian religion and society.
Call Number: BL2450.G6 W56 2003 (Cape May, Mays Landing campus)
ISBN: 9780500051207
Publication Date: 2003-05-26
The Oxford Dictionary of Classical Myth and Religion by Simon Price (Editor); Emily Kearns (Editor) The Oxford Dictionary of Classical Myth and Religion offers a fully rounded (and highly authoritative) point of access to all aspects of ancient religious life and thought.Dr Simon Price and Dr Emily Kearns, area advisers for the third edition of The Oxford Classical Dictionary, have come together to select, revise, edit, and in some cases wholly recast, a large number of key entries from OCD to create this handy, accessible reference work on mythology and religion inthe Graeco-Roman world. Bringing to the attention of a wider audience the authority and scholarly rigour of OCD, The Oxford Dictionary of Classical Myth and Religion provides students, teachers, and general readers with an affordable comprehensive, and wide-ranging A-Z reference source.The Dictionary is unique in that in addition to Greek myths and Roman festivals it covers Greek and Roman religious places, monuments, religious personnel, divination, astrology, magic, and it also contains many entries on Judaism and Christianity in Greek and Roman times.A-Z entries include:AUTHORSGeneral: Aeschylus, Aesop, Cicero, Euripides, Homer, Ovid, Pindar, VirgilChristian: Ambrose, Cassian, Irenaeus, Jerome, Origen, TatianJewish: Ezechiel, Jason, PhilonMythographers: Apollodorus, Hesiod, PalaephatusPhilosophers: Anaxagoras, Aristotle, Epicurus, Plato, Socrates, XenophanesTEXTSGeneral: Acts of the Pagan Martyrs, epic, fable, libri pontificales, tragedyChristian: Epistle to DiognetusJewish: Dead Sea Scrolls, Mishnah, TalmudCHRISTIANITYGeneral: Acts of the Apostles, Clement of Rome, Gnosticism, martyrs, Priscillianists, VulgateGODS AND HEROESGeneral: angels, epiphany, river gods, wind-godsAnatolian: Men, SandasEgyptian: Apis, Isis, PtahEtruscan: Nortia, VoltumnaGreek: Aesepus, Alastor, Apollo, Chloe, Demeter, Eros, Hebe, Iacchus, Nemesis, Pan, Phanes, Themis, ZeusMesopotamian: IshtarPersian: Anahita, ZoroasterRoman: Anna Perenna, Bona Dea, Concordia, Diana, Flora, Hercules, Janus, Libertas, Neptunus, Ops, Pax, Rumina, Sol, Tellus, VictoriaSyrian: Jupiter DolichenusHEROESGreek: Oebalus, PhytalusIDEASReligious concepts: Aither, asceticism, atheism, chastity, eunomia, fasting, fate, invulnerability, monotheism, pneuma, sin, soulDeath: catacombs, cemeteries, Hades, imagines, ThanatosPhilosophy: Neoplatonism, Peripatetic school, StoicismIMAGERYIconography: attitudes to art, pottery, Greek sculpture, Roman sculptureJUDAISMapocalyptic literature, Dead Sea Scrolls, Jewish-Greek literature, Maccabees, rabbis, synagogue, ZealotsLOCAL AND REGIONAL RELIGIONSIncludes: Anatolian, Arcadian, Argive, Attic, Boeotian, British, Celtic, Corinthian, Cretan, Egyptian, Etruscan, Greek, Italic, Macedonian, Magna Graecia, Mesopotamian, Messenian, Minoan and Mycenaean, Mycenae, Oriental, Persian, Phoenician, Phrygian, Rhodian, Roman, Scythian, Sicilian, Spartan,Theban, Thracian, TrojanMAGICamulets, curses, iynx, pharmacology, theurgyMYTHSGeneral: genealogy, golden age, nymphsEtruscan: TagesGreek: Acarnan, Aganippe, Baucis, Callisto, Calypso, Codrus, Daphnis, Echidna, Erysichthon, Ganymedes, Hector, Hermione, Iapetus, Laomedon, Marsyas, Molossus, Odysseus, Palladium, Paris, Penelope, Phoebe, Salmoneus, sphinx, Telephus, Tityus, XuthosRoman: Aeneas, Dido, Mezentius, Tarpeia, VerginiaORGANIZATIONReligious groups: amphictiony, collegium, orgeones, thiasosReligious officials: archontes, Divitiacus, heralds, temple officialsGreek religious officials: Diotima, exegetes, kanephoroi, PolyeidusRoman religious officials: aedituus, Flamines, haruspices, SaliiSocial organization: children, genos, patricians, phratriesPEOPLEHistorical: Apollonius of Tyana, Augustus, Decius, Herod the Great, Maccabees, Melito, Polycarp, Symmachus, ThrasyllusPLACESGeneral: Achelous, Alpheus, Argos, Claros, Cythera, Delphi, Dodona, Eryx, Helicon, Ithaca, Masada, Pelion, Styx, ThermumMythological: Arimaspeans, Eridanus, Symplegades, TartarusReligious: churches, forum, Greek houses, Isthmia, Mona, mundus, Olympia, Palici, Phidias, sanctuaries, stoa, templumAthens: Dipylon, ParthenonAttica: Brauron, Colonos, is, SuniumItaly: Alba Longa, Ardea, Lavinium, PyrgiRome: Ara Pacis, Atrium Vestae, Palatine, Pantheon, Tiber, VaticanRITUALSDivination: Albunea, Bacis, Claros, Dodona, eclipses, oracles, portents, Siwa, TrophoniusFESTIVALSGeneral: athletics, dancing, pantomime, wrestlingGreek: Apaturia, Carnea, Dorian festivals, Isthmian Games, Olympian Games, tragedyRoman: Equirria, Fornacalia, Ludi, Parentalia, Secular GamesReligious objects: cakes, fig, fire, honey, ivory, lead, olive, relics, waterRites: ritual, birthday, cookery, gestures, marriage ceremonies, menstruation, milk, oaths, prayer, transvestism, travel, wineGreek rites: aparche, first-fruits, maschalismos, Paean, sacrifice, titheRoman rituals: apex, consecratio, epulum, lustration, triumphTIMEapophrades, fasti, time-reckoningThere are many extra features in this volume: a substantive introduction on the study of the religious history of antiquity, which includes an annotated bibliography; key texts flagged at the end of individual entries; three maps; and five genealogical tables.
Call Number: BL715 .O94 2003 (Mays Landing campus)
ISBN: 9780192802880
Publication Date: 2003-12-18
Encyclopedia of African and African-American Religions by Stephen D. Glazier (Editor) This important new reference covers African and African-American religion in sub-Saharan Africa, North America, South America, and the Caribbean, and provides vital insights into its growing worldwide influence in Europe, Asia and the South Pacific. Entries encompass individuals, concepts, specific religions, religious movements and churches, and include: Akan, Aladura, AzusaStreet Mission, Black theology, candomble, Dominicanvodun, the Harrist movement, Jamaa, Macumba, Mission desNoirs, Mt. Sinai Holy Church, Nuer, Pentecostalism,Pocomania, Santería, Southern Christian LeadershipConference, Unification Church, Yoruba,and many more. Photos, illustrations, and source material round out the package.
Call Number: BL2462.5 .E53 2001 (Mays Landing campus)
ISBN: 9780415922456
Publication Date: 2001-01-16
New Historical Atlas of Religion in America by Edwin Scott Gaustad; Philip L. Barlow; Richard W. Dishno (As told to) In two editions over 40 years, Edwin Gaustad's Atlas of American Religion has been an essential guide to the American religious experience. Now the New Historical Atlas of Religion in America takes the story into the new millennium.Expanded, reorganized, and now in full color, the new edition of this classic reference work is an arresting visual and narrative portrait of the growth, development, and diversity of America's communities of faith across nearly 400 years.Here is a vastly more complex American religious life--from the decline of mainstream Protestantism to the emergence of evangelical churches and the growing influence of Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, and other faiths. Parts One and Two are a history--in maps and text--of American religions. Part Threefocuses in-depth on Lutherans, Mormons, and Roman Catholics. Part Four examines the political, cultural, and social aspects of religion in American public life.Lavishly illustrated with full-color maps, charts, and diagrams, the new Atlas is an essential resource for all readers--students, teachers, scholars, and everyone seeking to understand the remarkable religious history of the United States.
Call Number: G1201.E4 N4 2000 (Mays Landing campus)
ISBN: 9780195091687
Publication Date: 2001-01-18
Scientology Theology and Practice of a Contemporary Religion by Church of Scientology International Staff
Call Number: BP605.S2 S335 1998 (Mays Landing campus)
ISBN: 9781573181457
Publication Date: 1998-01-01
Man, Myth and Magic by Richard Cavendish (Editor)
Call Number: BF1407 .M34 1997 (Mays Landing)
ISBN: 9781854357311
Publication Date: 1994-12-01
Encyclopedia of Religion by Mircea Eliade (Editor); Charles J. Adams (Editor) Through 2734 articles by international scholars, the world's major religions of Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism, and Islam are explained in hundreds of articles that are almost like small encyclopaedias themselves. It provides a Who's Who of religious history - the gods and goddesses, the deities and demons, of world mythology, as well as the men and women who have affected the course of religion - and human history - as priests, popes, and prophets; saints, scholars and shamans; reformers and revolutionaries; teachers and theologians.
Call Number: BL31 .E46 1995 V.01-02 (Mays Landing campus)
ISBN: 9780028971353
Publication Date: 1905-06-01
Myth & religion in European painting, 1270-1700; the stories as the artists knew them
Call Number: ND1288 .B47 1973 (Mays Landing campus)
Geography of Religion by Desmond Tutu; John L. Esposito; Susan Tyler Hitchcock; Mpho Tutu From its introduction by Nobel Laureate Desmond Tutu to the epilogue by the Dalai Lama, Geography of Religion encourages new understanding of the world's great religions and of their evolution from ancient roots to vital roles in modern life. With a text as fascinating as it is authoritative; vivid photographs that evoke the reverence, rituals, and rewards of each spiritual tradition; and a rich variety of essays, sidebars, and maps, this magnificent book charts the many paths that guide us to God. Chapters on each of the 5 major religions--Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam--explore the landscapes and cultures where they took hold and flourished. Eminent scholars share the faiths they live and study, revealing their sacred scriptures and rites. Every page offers new insights into religious history and doctrine, along with stunning images of believers at prayer, the holy places they cherish, and their houses of worship--from soaring cathedrals and magnificent mosques to humble shrines infused with a blessed simplicity. Fittingly, each chapter closes with a photo-essay on pilgrims and their devotional journeys--a wonderful visual reminder that no matter which faith we may embrace, we are all fellow travelers in our search for the truth. "The 200 photographs demonstrating the diversity of architecture, people, and terrain, are stunning in their beauty and simplicity." --Publishers Weekly From the Trade Paperback edition.
Call Number: BL65.G4 H58 2004 Mays Landing
ISBN: 9780792273134
Publication Date: 2004-12-01

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Other Books

Turning Points by Mark A. Noll; David Komline; Han-luen Kantzer Komline Now in its fourth edition, this bestselling textbook (over 125,000 copies sold) isolates key events that provide a framework for understanding the history of Christianity. The book presents Christianity as a worldwide phenomenon rather than just a Western experience.This popular textbook is organized around 14 key moments in church history, providing contemporary Christians with a fuller understanding of God as he has revealed his purpose through the centuries. The new edition includes a new preface, updates throughout the book, revised "further readings" for each chapter, new sidebar content, and study questions. It also more thoroughly highlights the importance of women in Christian history and the impact of world Christianity.Turning Points is well suited to introductory courses on the history of Christianity as well as study groups in churches. Additional resources for instructors are available through Textbook eSources.
Call Number: eBook
ISBN: 9781540964885
Publication Date: 2022-10-18
Protestants by Alec Ryrie On the 500th anniversary of Luther's theses, a landmark history of the revolutionary faith that shaped the modern world.  "Ryrie writes that his aim 'is to persuade you that we cannot understand the modern age without understanding the dynamic history of Protestant Christianity.' To which I reply: Mission accomplished." -Jon Meacham, author of American Lion and Thomas Jefferson Five hundred years ago a stubborn German monk challenged the Pope with a radical vision of what Christianity could be. The revolution he set in motion toppled governments, upended social norms and transformed millions of people's understanding of their relationship with God. In this dazzling history, Alec Ryrie makes the case that we owe many of the rights and freedoms we have cause to take for granted--from free speech to limited government--to our Protestant roots. Fired up by their faith, Protestants have embarked on courageous journeys into the unknown like many rebels and refugees who made their way to our shores. Protestants created America and defined its special brand of entrepreneurial diligence. Some turned to their bibles to justify bold acts of political opposition, others to spurn orthodoxies and insight on their God-given rights. Above all Protestants have fought for their beliefs, establishing a tradition of principled opposition and civil disobedience that is as alive today as it was 500 years ago. In this engrossing and magisterial work, Alec Ryrie makes the case that whether or not you are yourself a Protestant, you live in a world shaped by Protestants.
Call Number: BX 4805.3 .R97 2018 (ML)
ISBN: 9780735222823
Publication Date: 2018-04-03
The First Thousand Years by Robert Louis Wilken An authoritative and poignant account of the first millennium of Christian history How did a community that was largely invisible in the first two centuries of its existence go on to remake the civilizations it inhabited, culturally, politically, and intellectually? Beginning with the life of Jesus, Robert Louis Wilken narrates the dramatic spread and development of Christianity over the first thousand years of its history. Moving through the formation of early institutions, practices, and beliefs to the transformations of the Roman world after the conversion of Constantine, he sheds new light on the subsequent stories of Christianity in the Latin West, the Byzantine and Slavic East, the Middle East, and Central Asia. Through a selected narration of particularly noteworthy persons and events, Wilken demonstrates how the coming of Christianity set in motion one of the most profound revolutions the world has known. This is not a story limited to the West; rather, Christian communities in Ethiopia, Nubia, Armenia, Georgia, Persia, Central Asia, India, and China shaped the course of Christian history. The rise and spread of Islam had a lasting impact on the future of Christianity, and several chapters are devoted to the early experiences of Christians under Muslim rule. Wilken reminds us that the career of Christianity is characterized by decline and attrition as well as by growth and expansion.  Ten years in the making and the result of a lifetime of study, this is Robert Louis Wilken's summa, a moving, reflective, and commanding account from a scholar at the height of his powers.
Call Number: BR162.3 .W55 2012 (ML)
ISBN: 9780300198386
Publication Date: 2013-11-12

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