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Abstract
The Japanese new religious movement Kōfuku no kagaku (literally, ‘the science of happiness;’ presenting itself internationally as Happy Science), founded in 1986, is in many ways a typical example of the most recent phase of new religions in Japan. Amongst its many features the interest in several ufological topics is a major aspect, particularly when it comes to their view of the history of humankind with the ancient astronauts theory as the most prominent element. The contribution is an attempt to place these teachings within the frame of the history and development of the movement, but also in the wider context of the recent history of Japanese religions.
Abstract
It is not recently that the discussion of antisemitism in the Islamic world and in the Islamic tradition has become an object of academic research. This article gives an overview of the major issues that need to be taken into consideration and deals with the topic from two basic perspectives: 1.) antisemitism as a recent phenomenon in Islamic countries (i.e., over the past two centuries), and 2.) the relationship between Islam and Judaism as central to understanding the development of this phenomenon.