The Practice of Altruism: Caring and Religion in Global PerspectiveCambridge Scholars Press, 2006 - 209 pages The study of altruism and altruistic behavior has caught the attention of social scientists especially in recent years. What motivates individuals to cultivate attitudes and actions that promote the wellbeing of others at the expense of, or at the risk of negative consequences for their own? In our contemporary global society marked by conflict and violence among different sectors of the population in various regions of the world, and wherein religion can be a factor that exacerbates such conflict and violence, harnessing the power of religion towards directions of reconciliation, creativity, and altruistic action, remains a crucial task for humankind. This volume addresses a question especially relevant in our day: do people who profess religious commitment or affiliation in a particular religious community tend to nurture altruistic kinds of attitude and action more than others? Social scientists present results of their empirical studies on Japanese society, as well as on North American, European, Indian, and Thai societies, to focus on this issue and offer insightful reflections on the relationship between religion and society. |
From inside the book
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... donation of his first kidney to a stranger is a rare charitable act in the US ( the New York Times article in which the Kravinsky story appeared documented only 134 such donations since 1998 ) . For Mr. Kravinsky , he was simply ...
... donation ; instead it explores expectations of return in philanthropic practice . Mr. Kravinsky's example is an unusual one , and this is precisely why I include it — to emphasize what is taken for granted and to highlight what is not ...
... donation directly , the receiver is responsible for justifying the moral worthiness of the donation and for demonstrating how funds were used . I will give another example . The school where I sent my three year old son in New Delhi is ...
Contents
Altruism in New Religions in Japan | 12 |
Kamagasaki Ecumenical Network | 43 |
Japanese Buddhist Responses to Terrorism | 60 |
Copyright | |
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Other editions - View all
The Practice of Altruism: Caring and Religion in Global Perspective Ruben Lf Habito,Keishin Inaba No preview available - 2008 |