This new volume offers enlightening new perspectives on the roles of love, sex, and gender in different faiths and covers issues from gender politics to religious ecstasy.

A unique exploration of sex and religion, covering a wide range of issues from marriage and celibacy, passion and love, to veiling, mystical union, and symbolism.

This is the first comprehensive resource on the subject of love in the teachings of the world's major religions, cultures, and philosophies. Encyclopedia of Love in World Religions is the first reference work to offer a comprehensive portrait of love in the context of the classic and contemporary literature of Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism, as well as other cultures and philosophies. Like no volume published to date, it reveals the full richness of religious teachings on love in all its many forms, exploring an extensive range of topics that offer philosophical, psychological, and religious perspectives to guide the quest for the meaning of love. Encyclopedia of Love in World Religions features approximately 300 subject entries, as well as insightful biographic sketches of preeminent thinkers, all written by a multidisciplinary team of some of the foremost scholars on the subject. Entries examine both general and culture-specific interpretations of love: not just the dichotomy of spiritual and physical love, but the full emotional spectrum of love in relationships and practices. Collectively, they encompass love's integral—and sometimes conflicting—role in shaping beliefs and behavior in a vastly diverse world.

Exploring one of the most controversial topics in contemporary theology, this scholarly volume reveals what the world's great faiths—East and West—preach about sexuality, with a special emphasis on American religion. What do the world's most important religious texts have to say about one of humanity's favorite activities? Editors David W. Machacek and Melissa M. Wilcox have brought together top scholars in the field of religious studies to ask and answer these critical questions. Carefully researched, elegantly written, and respectfully presented, Sexuality and the World's Religions explores the intersection of the spiritual and the carnal in Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, Daoism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, and African and Native American spiritual traditions. A separate section explores critical religious and sexual topics in American society, including the role of spirituality in gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender communities; the role of sex in the modern witchcraft community; and the ever thorny problem of religion and sexual liberty. Reconciling sexuality and spirituality in every human soul is one of religion's most important tasks. Students and other readers will find this timely and comprehensive volume of interest in exploring these issues.

"Offers a collection of diverse and authoritative viewpoints on the ... relationship between spirituality and sexuality in the world's major religions ... Each chapter explores the teachings and practices of a particular religion regarding sex and sexuality, explains controversial issues, and describes the diverse responses to those issues that exist within that traditions. This collection is perfect for courses in religion and sexuality, religion and gender, world religions, or the social aspects of religion"--Page 4 of cover.

The Oxford Handbook of Theology, Sexuality, and Gender presents an unrivalled overview of the theological study of sexuality and gender. These topics are not merely contentious and pervasive: they have escalated in importance within theology. Theologians increasingly agree that even the very doctrine of God cannot be contemplated without a prior grappling with each. Featuring 41 newly-commissioned essays, written by some of the foremost scholars in the discipline, this authoritative collection presents and develops the latest thinking in these areas. Divided into eight thematic sections, the Handbook explores: methodological approaches; contributions from neighbouring disciplines; sexuality and gender in the Bible, and in the Christian tradition; controversies within the churches, and within four of the non-Christian faiths; and key concepts and issues. The final, extended section considers theology in relation to married people and families; gay and lesbian people; bisexual people; intersex and transgender people; disabled people; and to friends. This volume is an essential reference for students and scholars, which will also stimulate further research.

Winner of the 2008 Grawemeyer Award in Religion This long-awaited book by one of American Christianity's foremost ethicists proposes a framework for sexual ethics whereby justice is the criterion for all loving, including love that is related to sexual activity and relationships. It begins with historical and cross-cultural explorations, then addresses the large questions of embodiment, gender, and sexuality, and finally delineates the justice framework for sexual ethics. Though Just Love's particular focus is Christian sexual ethics, Farley's framework is broad enough to have relevance for multiple traditions. Also covered are specific issues in sexual ethics, including same-sex relationships, marriage and family, divorce and second marriage.