Tanner

In this volume from the Evangelical Exegetical Commentary, Paul Tanner argues that the book of Daniel is the Old Testament blueprint of the Bible's overarching eschatological narrative. Tanner examines key aspects of the book of Daniel such as the revelation of Israel's future in relation to gentile kingdoms, God's exaltation of Daniel as a channel through whom he reveals his will and God's sovereign control of the nations under whom Israel is being disciplined. Tanner provides exegetical insight to help readers better understand not only how God worked in Israel's history through Daniel, but how he sovereignly directs all of world history—for all time.

What effect does the Islamic attitude to abortion have upon the family size and growth of Muslim populations? How do the Sukuma people of Tanzania react to the birth of an abnormal child, and why do their reactions differ so radically from those of Roman Catholics in Pennsylvania? Why were one sixth of all brides in English rural parishes between the late sixteenth and early nineteenth centuries pregnant at marriage, and what does this tell us about Christian practices during that period? No society exists in which religion does not play a significant part in the lives of ordinary people. Yet the functions of the world's diverse religions for human beings have never been fully described and analysed, nor has the impact of adherence to those religions on the health and survival of the populations that practice them. A completely updated and revised edition of "The Biology of Religion", published in 1983, this extraordinary text reveals how religions in all parts of the world meet the needs of ordinary people and frequently play an important role in helping them to manage their affairs. Reynolds and Tanner show that religions have down-to-earth functions in the control and management of the main events of the human life-cycle - birth, marriage, death, and the events in between. Surveying the beliefs and practices of Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Shintoism and many others, and how these religions concern themselves with major issues such as abortion, sex in and outside marriage, divorce, and sickness, the authors demonstrate a world wide concern by religions for these important issues. They attribute this concern to the need all human beings have for guidelines to behaviour during the most important times of life. Supported by a wealth of scientific data and examples, and generously illustrated throughout, this unique text makes a vital contribution to courses in anthropology and comparative religion. ABOUT THE AUTHORS: Vernon Reynolds teaches Biological Anthropology at Oxford University and is a Fellow of Magdalen College, Oxford. He is the author of The Biology of Human Action (Second Edition, 1980), Primate Social Behavior (with D. Quiatt, 1993), and Survival and Religion (edited with E. L. Jones, 1995). Ralph Tanner, now retired, for many years taught religious sociology at Makerere University, Uganda, and at London University. He is the author of Transition in African Beliefs (1967), Homicide in Uganda (1970), and Three Studies in East African Criminology (1970).

First published in 1981, On Becoming Human presents a unique theory of human origins, an original explanation of how early hominids evolved from their ape-like primate ancestors. Professor Nancy M. Tanner's book integrates the data on chimpanzee behaviour with the available information on early phases of human evolution. The result is a model by which we can more accurately reconstruct the lifeways of the early hominids and better understand the rapid transition from ape to early human. By an innovative use of conventional data and a fresh perspective on traditional anthropological approaches, Professor Tanner, in her first book, has developed a powerful new theory of human origins by which we can understand the actual dynamics of becoming human.