The No-Nonsense Guide to Religion

No-Nonsense Guides

by Symon Hill

Religion is a term that is often used in the media and public life without any clarification. However, it is a word that encompasses hundreds of different beliefs. It is a loaded word that has a different meaning for every person; religion can be seen as a source of war and peace, love and hate, dialogue and narrow-mindedness. Symon Hill’s No-Nonsense Guide to Religion tries to explain what religion means, how we relate to it, how it was created, and how it affects us culturally, politically, and spiritually today. Drawing on a wide range of sources, The No-Nonsense Guide to Religion does not just concentrate on the popular and well-established traditions, which normally over-emphasize powerful figures. The guide also focuses on the diversity within religions as well as the similarities between them. The globalization of communications has made more people aware of religious conversion, with more people than ever before belonging to a different religious community from their parents. The No-Nonsense Guide to Religion considers how religion has shaped our culture as well as how our culture is shaping religion today. Symon Hill is a tutor in practical theology, a writer, a trainer, and an activist. He has written comment pieces for newspapers ranging from the Sunday Herald to The Daily Mail and contributes regularly to the Guardian 's website,  The Friend , and Ekklesia.

Genres: Nonfiction

144 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Kinga · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a concise explanation of religion and the role it plays in today's society. It contains brief descriptions of the major religions in the world (including Jainism and Baha'ism), which are detailed enough to get some understanding of the underlying beliefs of each. The author then goes on to explore religion as a tool of studying the truth, the influence of religion on power and opression, the role of religion in resistance and uprisings, religious freedom and the role that religion often plays in excusing the start of wars. This a lovely and readable book of less than 130 that gives the reader an idea about religion, its past and its future.

[Lucy Whitaker · Rating 4 out of 5]

* would rate 4.5 if I could. It feels unfair to give it a four but I'm holding back from five.

Excellent quality and breadth for such a small book. Definitely worth reading for anyone who has strong opinions on religion or is interested in some common themes / characteristics. Every debate is presented in a way that is so balanced I don't think I would be able to tell the author's own beliefs if the person who gave me the book hadn't told me about him. The highlight for me was the discussion of how there are two sorts of truth (logos and mythos). It is something I have felt for a while and it's nice to finally be able to explain it.

[Annamarie Redding · Rating 3 out of 5]

An extremely unusual book. It details many different faiths and puts forward in a concise and clear way, the core beliefs and traditions of each. This is an amazing feat considering it is such a neat, small little book and I was very impressed. I will definitely be using it as a reference guide for future use and it has inspired me to find further reading on this subject which previously was of little interest to me.

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Looks at religion within its social and political contexts.

[Nicole Froio · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quite dry, but for a good reason. It's pretty much what the title says it is!