Religion in Five Minutes
Second Edition
Aaron W Hughes editor Russell T McCutcheon editor
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Equinox Publishing Ltd
Published:10th Nov '25
Should be back in stock very soon
Religion in Five Minutes provides an accessible and lively introduction to the questions about religious beliefs, behaviours, and institutions that interest many of us, whether or not we personally identify with a religion. The book offers brief essays on a wide range of fascinating questions about religion and its study, such as: How did religion start? What religion is the oldest? Who are the Nones? Why do women seem to play lesser roles in many religions? What’s the difference between a religion and a cult? Is Europe less religious than North America? Is Buddhism a philosophy? How do scholars study religions of groups that no longer exist? All entries are written by an international team of scholars who work on the topics covered; each of its short essays offers readers succinct but also insightful answers along with providing suggestions for further reading.
The second edition of Religion in Five Minutes—the lead volume in a series of more focused books on the religions of the world—includes all of the entries from the first but enlarges that volume by 25%—now with 100 answers to common questions, focusing much of the new material on issues of relevance to religion in Europe, from the presence of crucifixes in public government offices in Germany and controversies around Muslim women’s head coverings in France to the role played by Religious Education in the UK. Because each chapter can be read in about five minutes, the book is an ideal supplementary resource for classes but also an engaging read for those curious about the world around them.
Religion in Five Minutes is an excellent collection of the questions so many people have but never dare to ask—journalists, policymakers, practitioners, and, yes, also students of religion. The answers given by well-known experts in the field are straight to the point, candid, and accessible. Browsing through this book will make readers eager to spend more than five minutes on the fascinating and enigmatic thing we call 'religion'.
Kocku von Stuckrad, Professor of Religious Studies, University of Groningen, the Netherlands
Religion in 5 Minutes presents a new way to gain a comprehensive grasp of the complex and fascinating field of Religious Studies. By answering 81 sincere and direct questions of students in short, eloquent texts devoid of jargon, the book makes decades of academic research and theory accessible to everyone. Here is a text that will not only be very useful to beginning students but will also help scholars and researchers explain their work more precisely and effectively.
Naomi Goldenberg, Professor of Classics and Religious Studies, University of Ottawa
At last! At last! The perfect resource I never dreamed of having in one convenient place has come along. I get dozens of these questions each time I teach a class, and now I have an informative, scholarly, reliable source that also happens to be thoroughly inviting to students. I plan to assign this book in both introductory and more advanced courses. This is hands down a ‘must-have’ for every Religious Studies department but, more importantly, every school, hospital or healthcare center, government office and definitely newsroom should have a copy on hand. Beautifully executed and brilliantly conceived, this is so much more than simply a handbook. Each article also provides a robust springboard into higher-level meta-conversations about why students are asking these particular questions and how and why they (and many others) frame ‘religion’ in the manner that they do.
Sarah McFarland Taylor, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, Northwestern University
ISBN: 9781800506756
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: 372g
348 pages
2nd New edition