Nickolas P. Roubekas is Adjunct Professor of Religious Studies as the University of Vienna, Austria.Dimitris Xygalatas is Associate Professor of Anthropology and Head of the Experimental Anthropology Lab at the University of Connecticut, USA.Luther H. Martin is Professor of Religion Emeritus at the University of Vermont, USA.Donald Wiebe is Professor of Philosophy of Religion at Trinity College, University of Toronto, Canada.

"Bringing together a great line-up of international scholars, the volume honors Professor Pachis’ long career in the study of religions. From historical to the cognitive study of religion, readers will find more than just specialized studies in this excellent volume."

• List of IllustrationsNotes on ContributorsAcknowledgementsIntroduction, Luther H. Martin( University of Vermont, USA) and Donald Wiebe (Trinity College, University of Toronto, Canada)Part I: Religion(s) and The Ancient World 1. From Nergal to Heracles: Methodological Problems in the Study of Intercultural Influences Between the Ancient Near East and the Mediterranean, Asterios – Evangelos Kechagias (North-West University, South Africa)2. Slaves and Religions in the Ancient World: A Comparative Approach, Kostas Vlassopoulos (University of Crete, Greece)3. The Scientific Study of Graeco-Roman Religions, Luther H. Martin (University of Vermont, USA)4. Greek Mythology in European Religious History, Ulrich Berner (University of Bayreuth, Germany)5. On Definition, Theories, and Disciplinary Cooperation: Towards a Modern Study of Ancient Greek and Roman Religion, Nickolas P. Roubekas (University of Vienna, Austria)Part Ii: New Approaches to Ancient Ideas and Practices6. The History of Graeco-Roman Religions in the Light of Cultural Evolution: A Computational Text Analysis of Ancient Greek Inscriptions, Vojtech Kaše (University of Western Bohemia, Czech Republic) and Tomáš Glomb (Masaryk University, Czech Republic)7. What Neurocognitive Theories May Offer to History and the Study of Religion: The Paradigm of the Plague of Athens, Olympia Panagiotidou 8. Monarch to God to Devil: The Many Lives of King Faunus Through the Ages, Leonardo Ambasciano (Independent Scholar, Italy) 9. Jesus and Asklepios: Cognitive Perspectives on the Miraculous, Jennifer Larson10.Macrohistorical Aspects of the Constantinian Shift: Climatic Change, Pandemics, and the Rise of Christianity, Aleš Chalupa (Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic)Part 3: The Study of Religion, Past and Present11.Critical Theory of Religion: From Antiquity and the Graeco-Roman Period to Modernity, Ioannis S. Petrou (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece)12.From Pettazzoni to Bianchi: The felix tempus of the History of Religions in Italy Ennio Sanzi (Independent Scholar, Italy)13.Much Ado About Nothing: The Concept of “Religion” Yet Again, Anders Klostergaard Petersen(Aarhus University, Denmark)14.Mysticism in Four Dimensions: Neurological, Physiological, Psychological, and Cultural Expectation-Modulation, Armin W. Geertz (Aarhus University, Denmark)15.Did the “New Atheists” Contribute to or Undermine the Scientific Study of Religion, Donald Wiebe (Trinity College, University of Toronto, Canada)16.Why We Need an Integrative Approach to the Study of Religion, Dimitris XygalatasAddendum: The Planets in Mithraism, Roger Beck Index