The Invention of God in Indigenous Societies
Indigenous societies around the world have been historically disparaged by European explorers, colonial officials and Christian missionaries. Nowhere was this more evident than in early descriptions of indigenous religions as savage, primitive, superstitious and fetishistic. Liberal intellectuals, b...
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U.K., Acumen
2014
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ftunivwestsyd:oai:researchdirect.westernsydney.edu.au:uws_37867 2023-05-15T18:46:02+02:00 The Invention of God in Indigenous Societies Cox, James L. (R17621) 2014 print 195 http://handle.uws.edu.au:8081/1959.7/uws:37867 https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315729473 http://site.ebrary.com/lib/sydney/detail.action?docID=10831978 eng eng U.K., Acumen XXXXXX - Unknown indigenous peoples religion book Text 2014 ftunivwestsyd https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315729473 2020-12-05T18:33:13Z Indigenous societies around the world have been historically disparaged by European explorers, colonial officials and Christian missionaries. Nowhere was this more evident than in early descriptions of indigenous religions as savage, primitive, superstitious and fetishistic. Liberal intellectuals, both indigenous and colonial, reacted to this by claiming that, before indigenous peoples ever encountered Europeans, they all believed in a Supreme Being. The Invention of God in Indigenous Societies argues that, by alleging that God can be located at the core of pre-Christian cultures, this claim effectively invents a tradition which only makes sense theologically if God has never left himself without a witness. Examining a range of indigenous religions from North America, Africa and Australasia - the Shona of Zimbabwe, the "Rainbow Spirit Theology" in Australia, the Yupiit of Alaska, and the Maori of New Zealand - the book argues that the interests of indigenous societies are best served by carefully describing their religious beliefs and practices using historical and phenomenological methods - just as would be done in the study of any world religion. Book Yupiit Alaska University of Western Sydney (UWS): Research Direct New Zealand |
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University of Western Sydney (UWS): Research Direct |
op_collection_id |
ftunivwestsyd |
language |
English |
topic |
XXXXXX - Unknown indigenous peoples religion |
spellingShingle |
XXXXXX - Unknown indigenous peoples religion Cox, James L. (R17621) The Invention of God in Indigenous Societies |
topic_facet |
XXXXXX - Unknown indigenous peoples religion |
description |
Indigenous societies around the world have been historically disparaged by European explorers, colonial officials and Christian missionaries. Nowhere was this more evident than in early descriptions of indigenous religions as savage, primitive, superstitious and fetishistic. Liberal intellectuals, both indigenous and colonial, reacted to this by claiming that, before indigenous peoples ever encountered Europeans, they all believed in a Supreme Being. The Invention of God in Indigenous Societies argues that, by alleging that God can be located at the core of pre-Christian cultures, this claim effectively invents a tradition which only makes sense theologically if God has never left himself without a witness. Examining a range of indigenous religions from North America, Africa and Australasia - the Shona of Zimbabwe, the "Rainbow Spirit Theology" in Australia, the Yupiit of Alaska, and the Maori of New Zealand - the book argues that the interests of indigenous societies are best served by carefully describing their religious beliefs and practices using historical and phenomenological methods - just as would be done in the study of any world religion. |
format |
Book |
author |
Cox, James L. (R17621) |
author_facet |
Cox, James L. (R17621) |
author_sort |
Cox, James L. (R17621) |
title |
The Invention of God in Indigenous Societies |
title_short |
The Invention of God in Indigenous Societies |
title_full |
The Invention of God in Indigenous Societies |
title_fullStr |
The Invention of God in Indigenous Societies |
title_full_unstemmed |
The Invention of God in Indigenous Societies |
title_sort |
invention of god in indigenous societies |
publisher |
U.K., Acumen |
publishDate |
2014 |
url |
http://handle.uws.edu.au:8081/1959.7/uws:37867 https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315729473 http://site.ebrary.com/lib/sydney/detail.action?docID=10831978 |
geographic |
New Zealand |
geographic_facet |
New Zealand |
genre |
Yupiit Alaska |
genre_facet |
Yupiit Alaska |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315729473 |
_version_ |
1766237265663623168 |