Inter-religious Dialogue

Breaking Up with Bad Stories by Sarah Sentilles

by Feminism and Religion

Posted on the Feminism and Religion project - - -
Note: This post is part of  a Religion Roundtable where the authors of three prominent faith memoirs were asked to write about their views on—and experience of—female spirituality. Check http://www.patheos.com to read the discussion between Jana Riess, Lauren Winner, and Sarah Sentilles on the unique religious questions facing women today.

Writing a memoir meant denying stories about myself that are no longer true.

Dear Jana and Lauren,
more Writing a memoir meant denying stories about myself that are no longer true.

Dear Jana and Lauren,

Jana writes that “Mormon women don’t yet have the luxury of taking their own voices for granted,” and while I recognize that Mormon women are in a different political/theological position than other women, especially in denominations that ordain women, I would like to expand her statement: No woman—anywhere, in any tradition, or on the outside of any tradition—has the luxury of taking her own voice for granted.

Jana worries that writing with a political agenda in mind could make our work smack of propaganda, and I think she is right, but I want to propose that all language is propaganda. Especially theological language. Our words about God are shot through with intentions and agendas; they convey people’s purposes and hopes and fears; and they have real effects.

Modesty Codes in Pentecostalism and Mormonism by Amanda Pumphrey

by Feminism and Religion

Originally posted on the Feminism and Religion project

“You look like a lesbian.” “Why do you want to look like a man?” “Hey, boy head!” These were just some of the... more “You look like a lesbian.” “Why do you want to look like a man?” “Hey, boy head!” These were just some of the responses I got from friends and family when I decided to cut off my hair. The gendered connotations that come with how one decides to wear one’s hair are an overarching signifier of the dominant culture’s obsession with normative appearances. Many religious institutions and congregations uphold normative understandings of appearance and dress. Growing up in a conservative town in rural South Georgia and being raised within a Pentecostal tradition came with many challenges regarding gender, sexuality, and dress.

The Holy Rite of Disagreement: Hospitality and Theological Discourse from an Abrahamic Perspective

by Jayme Reaves

“Frequently Asked Questions: Protestant versus Catholic Bibles.”

by Sara Parks Ricker

article in "Comme un Livre Ouvert" (Volume 127, no.1 of Haute Fidélité (2009): 15-16.

The author summarises for non-specialists the differences between Catholic and Protestant canons and the history of... more The author summarises for non-specialists the differences between Catholic and Protestant canons and the history of how they came about.

Charles de Foucauld a-t-il été un pionnier du dialogue islamo-chrétien ?

by Dominique Casajus

Published in Écrivains et intellectuels français face au monde arabe, Catherine Mayaux, Paris, Honoré Champion, 2011 : 209-218

The man the Catholic Church solemnly beatified on November 13th 2005 was a controversial figure. Charles de Foucauld... more The man the Catholic Church solemnly beatified on November 13th 2005 was a controversial figure. Charles de Foucauld was slaughtered at Tamanrasset on December 1st 1916, at the height of the Senoussist insurrection. For a long time, he was held to be a figurehead of colonialisation. At present, some see him as a pioneer of Islamic-Christian dialogue. This article confronts this new image of Foucauld with what we know of his relationship with Islam.
–
(L'homme que l'Église catholique a solennellement béatifié le 13 novembre 2005 fut longtemps une figure controversée. Charles de Foucauld avait été abattu à Tamanrasset le 1er décembre 1916, au plus fort d'une insurrection où se préfiguraient les luttes anti-coloniales qui allaient jalonner le siècle. En 1927, l'évêque de Ghardaïa avait ouvert le procès destiné à statuer sur ses vertus et sa renommée de sainteté, puisque c'est par là que doit s'entamer le processus au terme duquel un homme peut éventuellement être admis au nombre des bienheureux. Ce processus est en général semé d'embûches, mais dans ce cas-là il l'avait été particulièrement. En 1956, les évêques d'Afrique du Nord avaient même demandé qu'il soit interrompu, jugeant inconvenant qu'on envisage en pleine guerre d'Algérie de béatifier un homme qui leur paraissait avoir été compromis dans la colonisation. De fait, Foucauld avait été jusque-là, selon le mot d'un biographe de l'époque, le " saint de la colonisation ". Aujourd'hui, certains veulent voir en lui un pionnier du dialogue islamo-chrétien. L'article met en regard ce nouveau visage de Foucauld et ce qu'on sait de son rapport à l'islam.)

Interfaith Moments

by Jalees Rehman

Published in the Harvard Divinity Bulletin August 2011

Interfaith dialogue is challenging because we often begin to "perform" for each other to meet pre-existing... more Interfaith dialogue is challenging because we often begin to "perform" for each other to meet pre-existing expectations. This article touches on new ways to approach interfaith dialogue by remembering Martin Buber's "Ich und Du". 

Inter-Religious Dialogue in Syria: Politics, Ethics and Miscommunication

by Edith Szanto

Political Theology 9 no. 1 (2008): 93-113.

The Muslim Doctrine of Prophethood In the Context of Buddhist‐Muslim Relations In Japan: Is the Buddha a Prophet?

by Kieko Obuse

الدراسات الدينيّة والتنشئة على التعارف والحوار

by Georges NAHAS

نحّاس، ج. ن. (2008). الدراسات الدينيّة والتنشئة على التعارف والحوار. سلسلة محاضرات الأديان والعنف. مركز الدراسات المسيحيّة-الإسلاميّة . جامعة البلمند.

تهدف هذه المداخلة إلى طرح موضع العلاقة بين الدراسات الدينيّة والتنشئة على التعارف والحوار. يكمن أساس الإشكالية في... more تهدف هذه المداخلة إلى طرح موضع العلاقة بين الدراسات الدينيّة والتنشئة على التعارف والحوار. يكمن أساس الإشكالية في تحديد ماهيّة الدراسات الدينيّة وعلاقاتها بتحديد هويّة المجموعة، وعلاقة المجموعة (ولاحقًا الأفراد) بالمجموعات الأخرى والأفراد الآخرين. فهل الدراسات الدينيّة الهادفة إلى بناء المعرفة تؤدي إلى الانغلاق، أم أنها باب مفتوح لمعرفة الآخر؟ هل من رؤية، وشروط ومعايير ليكون للدراسات الدينيّة دور في بناء الشخصيات الحوارية؟ ما هي الأفاهيم التي تحتاج إلى إعادة نظر جذريّة في هذا الاتجاه؟ ما هي الوسائل الممكنة لبلوغ قناعات فأفعال تقود إلى مجتمع متحاور؟

تسعى هذه المداخلة إلى الإجابة عن هذه الأسئلة من منطلق رؤية للدين، وللوطن، وللإنسان في آن معًا.

Les Chrétiens en Terre d’Orient, Une Exception?

by Georges NAHAS

Nahas, G.N. (février 2011). Les Chrétiens en Terre d'Orient, Une Exception? In Service Orthodoxe de Presse (SOP), No 355, France.

Religious Pluralism In Analytic, Process, and South Asian Philosophies of Religion: An Essay Towards a Comparative Metaphysics of Religion

by Matthew LoPresti

Dissertation.

This study examines the plausibility of a genuine religious pluralism in the form of John B. Cobb, Jr.’s Deep... more This study examines the plausibility of a genuine religious pluralism in the form of John B. Cobb, Jr.’s Deep Religious Pluralism. Working through a variety of conceptions of religious pluralism in analytic, process, and South Asian philosophies of religion the dissertation argues in favor of the authenticity of a plurality of the world’s major religious traditions. Cobb’s Whiteheadian-based hypothesis is argued to offer a plausible explanation of the compossibile veridicality of different religious traditions because the ontological pluralism he employs functions as a generic schema that serves to inform a sensible narrative of compossible religious ultimates, heretofore thought to be mutually exclusive. By shifting to a process metaphysics our horizons of pluralistic understanding shifts as well, because a Whiteheadian metaphysics allows for a multiplicity of efficacious religious praxes, soteriologies, and ontological cum religious ultimates—such as God, Dao, Brahman, and śūnyatā—to obtain simultaneously. What is more, these ultimates can co-exist in a non-hierarchical relationship, thereby avoiding inclusivist tendencies and enabling the claim that one’s own religion is a true tradition, rather than the true tradition.
After arguing that neither ontological nor religious ultimates are axiomatically singular, the dissertation argues for the viability of Cobb’s Whiteheadian religious pluralism as a middle-path between relativist resignations and absolutist “solutions” to the philosophical challenges of religious diversity. Relevant aspects of process philosophy and process theology are then explained in detail in order to demonstrate how a Whiteheadian schema of multiple ultimates can serve as an adequate framework for a genuine religious pluralism. Pluralistic meta-theologies from classical and contemporary South Asian philosophy are also critiqued, and non-dualism is argued to be just as problematic a basis for a genuine religious pluralism as previously discredited Western attempts at formulating a viable pluralistic hypothesis. Within the context of the first English language philosophical critique of Pope Benedict XVI’s writings (as Joseph Ratzinger) in opposition to religious pluralism, an argument against religious absolutism is made by way of the need for faithful adherents of religious absolutisms to engage in open inter-religious dialogue, which, in turn, is argued to necessitate an assumed meta-theological position of religious pluralism.

Book Review: _Toward a True Kinship of Faiths: How the World’s Religions Can Come Together_. By His Holiness The Dalai Lama.

by Matthew LoPresti

Published in Janua Sophia

The ethics of restraint, compassion, and altruism are intrinsic to the religious teachings and spiritual practices... more The ethics of restraint, compassion, and altruism are intrinsic to the religious teachings and spiritual practices throughout the world. Among these, compassion is the chief commonweal touchstone that, once uncovered in the sacred teachings of these otherwise different traditions, can ground a harmonious bond of inter-religious understanding and kinship. This is the main argument made by His Holiness The Dalai Lama in one of his most recent books, Toward a True Kinship of Faiths: How the World’s Religions Can Come Together.

INTER-RELIGIOUS DIALOGUE AND RELIGIOUS PLURALISM: A Philosophical Critique of Pope Benedict XVI and the Fall of Religious Absolutism

by Matthew LoPresti

“Inter-religious Dialogue and Religious Pluralism: A Philosophical Critique of Pope Benedict XVI and the Fall of Religious Absolutism.” Philosophical Basis of Inter-religious Dialogue: The Process Perspective, edited by Mirosław Patalon. (Cambridge, England: Cambridge 
Scholars Publishing 2009): 66-94.

This paper does not concern itself with a dialogue between those who share, or think they share, a common vision of... more This paper does not concern itself with a dialogue between those who share, or think they share, a common vision of reality. Rather, the focus is on those who generally do not share a common vision of reality. By focusing on this second, more interesting, group we are presented with a challenging philosophical and practical problem in our examination of inter-religious dialogue, specifically, we are faced with the question: is it possible to hold an absolutist view of the truthfulness of one’s own traditions and still engage in an open inter-religious dialogue with other religions? The importance of this question cannot be overemphasized: and this paper is dedicated to framing the question in a way that highlights the need for an agreed upon philosophical basis for this dialogue, and in so doing demonstrates the intimate connectivity of inter-religious dialogue with religious pluralism.

Toward An Adequate Model for the Theology of Religions

by Derek Michaud

(OCLC Number: 282373445)

This paper is an exercise in the Christian (meta)theology of religions. As such, it rests on the idea that systematic... more This paper is an exercise in the Christian (meta)theology of religions. As such, it rests on the idea that systematic theology must take account of the fact of religious pluralism within its articulation of the Christian faith. It might be asked however, despite clear motivations such as the traditional imperative of mission, why we need a theology of religions at all. Why not simply dialogue or engage in a kind of comparative study of the texts and practices of the religions? On the contrary, the fact of religious pluralism requires at least a basic or schematic response in the present, and not only in the alwayspostponed-future that makes true dialogue and comparative theology possible and fruitful. While remaining open to new developments that may arise out of the necessary work of dialogue and comparative theology, the theology of religions can, and should, provide an intellectual resting place, albeit a temporary one, as we shall see.

“Book Profile: A Theology of Engagement ”

by Derek Michaud

Journal for Cultural and Religious Theory 6, no. 1 (2004): 139-145.

Book review of Ian Markham, a Theology of Engagement (Blackwell, 2003). Book review of Ian Markham, a Theology of Engagement (Blackwell, 2003).

Just War, Jihad and the Killing of Non-Combatants

by Jeremiah Bowden

The Tripolar Typology: Revelation and Salvation in Non-Christian Religions

by Jeremiah Bowden

The trinity: Religion, Culture and Identity. The known and unknown

by Julia Maria Koszewska

published in "Coyote" #13 by Council of Europe, 2007.

contributor's note attached:

"Julia Maria Koszewska was born in 1982 in Poland, where she lived for ¼... more contributor's note attached:

"Julia Maria Koszewska was born in 1982 in Poland, where she lived for ¼ of a century. She studied religious studies as well as library and information science. For the years 2006-2007 Julia was a member of the European Team (coordinators) of JECI-MIEC European Coordination. Julia is very active in inter-religious and ecumenical dialogue in Europe. Working as a trainer and being a full-time student for many years, she got into youth reality from two perspectives: as a participant and as a leader. Her life motto is “be brave enough to realise your dreams”, while her hobby is photography.
Online profile: http://www.salto-youth.net/find-a-trainer/801.html"; (p. 64).
keywords: religion, culture, identity, trinity, Europe, youth, dialogue, dialog