For many centuries, people have been reflecting on issues of religion and discussing faith in the Lord and its role in human life. To convey the accumulated wisdom to descendants, they described their knowledge in sacred, scientific and fiction books.
Books on the history of world religions and their main idea
Books on religion reveal the history of religious teachings that have influenced the minds and worldview of people since ancient times. The purpose of the books presented below is to consider world religions from the moment of their inception, the stages of their development and the main tenets.
The History of Faith and Religious Ideas by M. Eliade is a fundamental study in the history of religion. The book contains chronological religious ideas that the author skillfully united by understanding the diversity of life of different peoples around the world.
The main idea of the monumental work of M. Eliade is that each belief carries in itself the concept of truth, meaning and being. Faith in the Lord is inseparable from human life.
The famous work of the British philosopher and spiritual teacher Douglas Harding is devoted to the description of religious teachings, consideration of their connection with science and human life. The author writes about the commonality of many beliefs, the dogmas and canons of which were borrowed from each other.
Reading a book by Dougras Harding makes the reader think about his spiritual beginning, find his place in this world.
Holy books of world religions
Holy books are the main source of religious knowledge. The central place in them is given to the description of rites and ceremonies, norms of human behavior in everyday life, family life and other areas. Most sacred texts are publicly available. Their reading enriches the inner world and contributes to the spiritual and mental development of the individual.
Books of world religions:
- The revered book in Judaism compiled in Hebrew is TaNaH.
- The basis of Christian doctrine is the Bible, which had a great influence on the culture of countries professing Christianity.
- The holy book of the religion of Islam is the Quran.
- The most revered set of Buddhist texts is Tipitaka.
Judaism
TaNaH consists of three parts: Torah, Neviim, Ketuvim. Finally, the text of the book was framed by masoretes (Jewish scribes) by the 8th century AD. The TaNaH describes the creation of the world and man, gives the Divine covenant and commandments, as well as the history of the Jewish people from the time of its origin until the beginning of the Second Jerusalem Temple period.
The philosophical and religious ideas of Judaism subsequently served as the basis for the formation of world teachings with numerous followers - Christianity and Islam.
Christianity
Scripture is written by the apostles and prophets. The Old Testament and the New Testament are two parts of the Christian Bible, the knowledge of which is constantly expanding, thanks to the scientific studies of linguists, historians and philologists.
The Old Testament is a collection of religious works compiled from the 13th to the 2nd century. BC. The book includes instructive stories for believers and myths, events of the past, restored by modern scholars.
The acts of Jesus and his disciples are written in the New Testament, which was canonized by the Christian Church. They provide key episodes from the life of Christ and talk about the exploits of his disciples.
Islam
The Qur'an is a guide for believers, sent down by Allah. The very existence of this book is one of the evidences of the prophetic mission of Muhammad and the completion of a series of divine messages. Nowadays, the Qur'an remains of great importance as a code of everyday human behavior.
The early texts of the holy book relate to the period of the 7th-8th centuries of our era. According to orthodox Islamic teaching, only the Koran written in Arabic is considered sacred. Keeping the covenants of the Prophet, serving Allah is the main goal of every Muslim. A person must resist the temptations of the world and lead a life pleasing to Allah.
Buddhism
In Sanskrit, Tripitaka means "three baskets." The translation of the name corresponds to the division of the holy book into three sections. Initially, religious and philosophical texts were written on the leaves of palm trees, and scrolls were stored in wicker baskets. Several versions of Tripitaka are known. The most popular among believers is Tipitaka, a collection of Pali texts.
The followers of Buddha realized the value of Tripitaka for future generations, so they made a lot of efforts to convey to the descendants of the teachings of the legendary spiritual teacher. Tripitaka includes community rules, episodes of the Buddha’s life, and information about the history of India. An important place in the book is given to the narrative of the meaning of Buddhist teachings.
Best books about God by The Guardian
In addition to scientific literature and sacred books, there are also fiction and non-fiction works, in the center of the narrative of which is the faith of man in the Lord. The following are the top 5 popular books on religion according to the British edition of The Guardian:
- On the pages of one of F.M. Dostoevsky's “Brothers Karamazov” discusses the eternal struggle between good and evil, the divine and the devil in the soul of man. The author draws the attention of readers to moral and philosophical questions, the answers to which he tries to find during the narration. The book examines the concepts of sin, compassion, and mercy. In reviews of the novel, readers note the gift of Dostoevsky to penetrate the soul of a person and, through the prism of human life, to describe the eternal search for truth and faith.
- John Updike, in Roger's Tales, attempts to prove the existence of God through computer simulations. In the narrative there are dialogues about the emergence of the Universe, the will of chance and the laws of distribution. In their book reviews, readers write that D. Updike was able to reveal the essence of man and without embellishment to describe the fears and vices of modern mankind.
- The book by Iris Murdoch, “The Time of Angels,” is dedicated to man’s attempts to gain faith in God, to find himself in this world. With subtle psychologism, the author tells about the lives of the inhabitants of the English house, revealing to the readers the fears and vices of the literary characters, under the influence of which they committed cruel acts. In the reviews of this novel, A. Murdoch’s high writing skills are noted, thanks to which the reader is completely immersed in the fantasy world and feels himself part of it.
- A special place in the work of Nikos Kazantzakis is occupied by the notorious novel about the life of the Lord, “The Last Temptation of Christ”. This book is the result of religious and philosophical reflections of the author, the main thoughts of which are presented on its pages. The book on religion provoked a negative reaction from the Church and sparked discussion among critics. In general, it should be noted that the novel was positively appreciated by the general public.
- William Howard Hess’s fascinating novel Omensetter’s Luck, which takes place in Ohio in the 90s of the 20th century, reveals to the reader a picture of the confrontation between a sympathetic person with a good heart and a reverend, prone to outbursts of rage. The work received high marks from critics and readers who fell in love with it because it addresses the eternal questions of love, life, good and evil.
The books on religion discussed above help a person to look at the problems of faith from the point of view of the authors' thoughts, who have devoted much time to studying the issues of religion and its place in human life.