Beyond the Threshold

Christopher M. Moreman is professor and chair of the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at California State University, East Bay. He has edited several volumes, including Oxford’s Teaching Death and Dying and The Routledge Companion to Death and Dying, among other publications.

• Part One: An Overview of Beliefs in an Afterlife from Major World ReligionsChapter 1: Ancient ConceptionsChapter 2: JudaismChapter 3: ChristianityChapter 4: IslamChapter 5: HinduismChapter 6: BuddhismChapter 7: Chinese ReligionsChapter 8: African ReligionsPart Two: An Overview of the Research into Experiences of an AfterlifeChapter 9: MediumshipChapter 10: Apparitions and HauntingsChapter 11: Near-Death and Out-of-Body ExperiencesChapter 12: Past-Life MemoriesPart Three: Beliefs and Experiences: An Attempt at a SynthesisChapter 13: Comparison of BeliefsChapter 14: Comparison of PhenomenaEpilogue: Speculations on Mysticism and the Afterlife

Moreman (philosophy and religious studies, California State Univ., East Bay), editor of Routledge Companion to Death and Dying (2018), provides an accessible overview of different spiritual traditions' beliefs about the state of the human body and soul after death. The book covers the major world religions—Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism—but Moreman expands this second edition (the first edition appeared in 2008) to include African traditions. In addition, he includes the beliefs and practices of individuals such as mediums and those who have had near-death experiences, looking at how they have shaped cultural views of the afterlife. What is most helpful about this book is that it presents these traditions in a fair, informative, and balanced way without getting lost in more technical debates or theological questions that might be of more concern to specialists. Moreman's inclusiveness makes the book relevant for those interested in cultural studies as well as those studying religion and dying. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates; general readers; professionals.