Author Description

This book introduces students to five of the world's great religions--Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam--with a special emphasis on each religion's philosophy of service and call to serve. With excerpts regarding service and social responsibility from the sacred writings of each tradition, followed by questions for study and reflection, Visions of Service gives students a framework for considering the differences and commonalities among the religions on the subject of serving those in need and reflecting on their own experience of service. Visions of Service is ideal for religion courses in which service is a corequisite, and will be a useful guide to reflection for volunteers, service-learning students, and those in service professions. It will also be of interest to those in religious organizations who wish to contemplate their own tradition of service and learn more about other religions and their philosophies of service. Contributors: John Butt (Buddhism), Elliot N. Dorff (Judaism), Carool Kersten (Islam), Kalyan Ray (Hindusim), David Kwang-sun Suh (Christianity)