Fields of Blood: Religion and the History of Violence
Posted: Sun Nov 30, 2014 8:55 pmFields of Blood: Religion and the History of Violence
[ http://www.amazon.com/Karen-Armstrong/e ... dp_epwbk_0 ]
by Karen Armstrong (Oct 28, 2014)
More About the Author
Visit Amazon's Karen Armstrong Page
[ http://www.amazon.com/Karen-Armstrong/e ... dp_epwbk_0 ]
Biography
Karen Armstrong is the author of numerous other books on religious affairs-including A History of God, The Battle for God, Holy War, Islam, Buddha, and The Great Transformation-and two memoirs, Through the Narrow Gate and The Spiral Staircase. Her work has been translated into forty-five languages. She has addressed members of the U.S. Congress on three occasions; lectured to policy makers at the U.S. State Department; participated in the World Economic Forum in New York, Jordan, and Davos; addressed the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington and New York; is increasingly invited to speak in Muslim countries; and is now an ambassador for the UN Alliance of Civilizations. In February 2008 she was awarded the TED Prize and is currently working with TED on a major international project to launch and propagate a Charter for Compassion, created online by the general public and crafted by leading thinkers in Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism, to be signed in the fall of 2009 by a thousand religious and secular leaders. She lives in London.
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
An Amazon Best Book of the Month, November 2014: Does religion lead to violence? This is the question that Karen Armstrong, the erudite former nun, asks in Fields of Blood: Religion and the History of Violence. Her answer is “no”—or more specifically, that religion is not itself a source of violence and the problem lies more deeply in “our human nature and the nature of the state.” To prove her point, she covers roughly five thousand years of religious history, from Gilgamesh to the present day. Along the way, she builds the case against those who state, often without much context, that “religion has been the cause of all the major wars in history.” This is both an apologia and a wide-ranging and very readable lesson in the history of religion. It may not completely change the mind of everyone who reads it; but like everything Armstrong writes, it will leave them more enriched. –Chris Schluep
Reviews
“In a lucid and fleet prose . . . Armstrong argues that religion has been made a scapegoat for wars and violence . . . [She is] one of the keenest minds working on understanding the role religion plays in cultures around the globe.” – Graydon Royce, Minneapolis Star Tribune
“Armstrong comes out swinging . . . [Her] prose is crisp and lucid, her command of fact encyclopedic, and her insights often brilliant.” – David Laskin, The Seattle Times
“So important . . . [Fields of Blood] has been widely acclaimed for its scholarship, and deservedly so.” – Maureen Fiedler, National Catholic Reporter
“Thought-provoking . . . a tour-de-force of the history of the world’s major religions.” – Rebecca Denova, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
“[A] bold new book . . . Armstrong makes a powerful case that critics like Dawkins ignore the lessons of the past and present in favor of a ‘dangerous
oversimplification’ . . . [Her argument] is strong enough to change minds.” - Randy Dotinga, The Christian Science Monitor
“With exquisite timing, religious historian Karen Armstrong steps forth with Fields of Blood . . . Laden with example . . . [Armstrong’s] overall objective is to call a time-out. Think before you leap to prejudice, she says . . . Among the most interesting stuff in [her] book is her deconstruction of the modern Islamic stereotype . . . In the end, the point Armstrong feels most adamant about is that by blaming religion for violence, we are deliberately and disastrously blinding ourselves to the real, animating issues in the Middle East and Africa.” – Patricia Pearson, The Daily Beast
MORE:
[ http://www.amazon.com/Karen-Armstrong/e ... dp_epwbk_0 ]
[ http://www.amazon.com/Karen-Armstrong/e ... dp_epwbk_0 ]
by Karen Armstrong (Oct 28, 2014)
More About the Author
Visit Amazon's Karen Armstrong Page
[ http://www.amazon.com/Karen-Armstrong/e ... dp_epwbk_0 ]
Biography
Karen Armstrong is the author of numerous other books on religious affairs-including A History of God, The Battle for God, Holy War, Islam, Buddha, and The Great Transformation-and two memoirs, Through the Narrow Gate and The Spiral Staircase. Her work has been translated into forty-five languages. She has addressed members of the U.S. Congress on three occasions; lectured to policy makers at the U.S. State Department; participated in the World Economic Forum in New York, Jordan, and Davos; addressed the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington and New York; is increasingly invited to speak in Muslim countries; and is now an ambassador for the UN Alliance of Civilizations. In February 2008 she was awarded the TED Prize and is currently working with TED on a major international project to launch and propagate a Charter for Compassion, created online by the general public and crafted by leading thinkers in Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism, to be signed in the fall of 2009 by a thousand religious and secular leaders. She lives in London.
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
An Amazon Best Book of the Month, November 2014: Does religion lead to violence? This is the question that Karen Armstrong, the erudite former nun, asks in Fields of Blood: Religion and the History of Violence. Her answer is “no”—or more specifically, that religion is not itself a source of violence and the problem lies more deeply in “our human nature and the nature of the state.” To prove her point, she covers roughly five thousand years of religious history, from Gilgamesh to the present day. Along the way, she builds the case against those who state, often without much context, that “religion has been the cause of all the major wars in history.” This is both an apologia and a wide-ranging and very readable lesson in the history of religion. It may not completely change the mind of everyone who reads it; but like everything Armstrong writes, it will leave them more enriched. –Chris Schluep
Reviews
“In a lucid and fleet prose . . . Armstrong argues that religion has been made a scapegoat for wars and violence . . . [She is] one of the keenest minds working on understanding the role religion plays in cultures around the globe.” – Graydon Royce, Minneapolis Star Tribune
“Armstrong comes out swinging . . . [Her] prose is crisp and lucid, her command of fact encyclopedic, and her insights often brilliant.” – David Laskin, The Seattle Times
“So important . . . [Fields of Blood] has been widely acclaimed for its scholarship, and deservedly so.” – Maureen Fiedler, National Catholic Reporter
“Thought-provoking . . . a tour-de-force of the history of the world’s major religions.” – Rebecca Denova, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
“[A] bold new book . . . Armstrong makes a powerful case that critics like Dawkins ignore the lessons of the past and present in favor of a ‘dangerous
oversimplification’ . . . [Her argument] is strong enough to change minds.” - Randy Dotinga, The Christian Science Monitor
“With exquisite timing, religious historian Karen Armstrong steps forth with Fields of Blood . . . Laden with example . . . [Armstrong’s] overall objective is to call a time-out. Think before you leap to prejudice, she says . . . Among the most interesting stuff in [her] book is her deconstruction of the modern Islamic stereotype . . . In the end, the point Armstrong feels most adamant about is that by blaming religion for violence, we are deliberately and disastrously blinding ourselves to the real, animating issues in the Middle East and Africa.” – Patricia Pearson, The Daily Beast
MORE:
[ http://www.amazon.com/Karen-Armstrong/e ... dp_epwbk_0 ]