A Christian Reading of the Qurʾān (original) (raw)
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Editorial: Some Thoughts on Interreligious Dialogue
Neotestamentica 49(2):227-234, 2015
In both the comparative study of religion and interreligious dialogue there is ambivalence about the so-called search for common ground. On the one hand, there are those who use commonality as heuristic device, as starting point: something (seemingly) similar is identified in order for the comparative enterprise of the two exempla to be warranted or the dialogue between the two partners in interreligious relations to be engaged in. In this regard, LeDonne, for example, notes that "Jesus research now represents something of a common ground between Jewish and Christian scholarship." In the same vein, Jorgensen asks: Is it possible that the notion of Jesus as "Word of God" and as guided by the "Spirit of God" -concepts common to both Christian and Islamic theology might serve as a starting point for dialogue and deeper appreciation between Christianity and Islam? Naturally, in such cases one's own framework or tradition functions as the basis from whic...
Reading 'your' Scripture through the eyes of 'the other': case study in inter-religious dialogue
Theology and Practice, 2024
This paper applies Martin Buber's philosophy of dialogue, specifically focusing on the process of reading the sacred Scriptures of others alongside one's own. The dialogue process in this study is promoted as a means of mutual understanding and spiritual enrichment. An exercise in dialogue is framed as an exercise in listening, encompassing active listening to 'the other' and self-reflection to understand one's prejudices and strengths. Themes covered in this article include the stories of religious communities and their prophets, as well as different perspectives from Jewish, Christian, and Muslim scriptures describing the dynamics of the God-human relationship. The didactics of various sacred scriptures are brought to light, whether to their own religious communities or to humanity due to their universal appeal. The study examines the Qur'an, Torah, Halachah: Talmud and Mishna, Midrash, Gospels, and Christian exegesis. Overall, this study offers an opportunity and a fruitful way of studying the scriptures of others for personal benefit in cultural, religious, social, and theological spheres.
Controversies in Interreligious Dialogue and the Theology of Religions
This book provides an introduction to the current state of the field for those new to interreligious dialogue and the theology of religions, as well as providing insights and new concepts that will be of interest to specialists. In particular, the current deadlock between pluralist and particularist approaches is re-imagined, and a strong argument for radical openness to the religious Other is advanced, based upon the resources of the Christian heritage. Also explored are many issues pertaining to debates in this area which are not always addressed, such as religious identity and definitions of religion. The book draws inspiration from many sources including intercultural theology, feminist theologies of religions, comparative theology, postcolonial identity theory, scholarly debates on the nature of religion, and biblical concepts of hospitality to outline its new approach. It concludes that we must seek mutual fulfilment with religious Others while maintaining Christian integrity. It also addresses the problems this involves when seeking ethical partnership across religious boundaries. No easy answers are given, however, a vision for radical openness based on Jesus’ example, the Christian heritage, and contemporary scholarship is endorsed.
Reading Religion, 2017
There are two kinds of academic writing, if we classify the work by the nature of the author’s expertise. The first one, the most prevalent, is the kind of writing that is born out of the scholarly work of the author and is primarily based on research and teaching experience. The second kind, comparatively harder to come by, is the writing of a scholar that is the result of an entire lifetime of study, research, teaching, understanding, and more importantly, dialogue. Interreligious Encounters is a rare gem of the second kind of academic writing. When the reader lays their hands on it, and sees the name of the author, they are already overawed with great expectation and tremendous reverence. Michael Amaladoss is a rare theologian and practitioner, who has long critically examined his own faith tradition in order to have meaningful dialogue with other faiths.
This article responds to Middle Eastern Christian positions concerning the Other, which have been dominant in most Christian–Muslim relations in the past, through the centuries , and is still prevailing in the Middle East through several Christian voices. As these positions, directly or indirectly, endeavor to appropriate the tradition of the Other and make it fit within the boundaries of one's own theological heritage, the present article suggests the need for a genuine turn to the Other, in order to make the true perception and the understanding of the tradition of the Other possible. Hence, a method of rejuvenation is proposed, which implies first a critical consideration of one's own tradition and then a genuine turn to the Other, making the meeting and the reading of the holy texts together possible with the Other in terms clarified through the post-critical method of scriptural reasoning.
Today, few would disagree that interreligious dialogue is an indispensable tool (or medium) for mutual coexistence, acceptance and peace. In recent times, the importance of such dialogue has been highlighted by the revival and the resurgence of religion (de-secularisaton), relevant in variety of contexts – e.g. in the context of democratic politics, the context of political extremism and terrorism, or that of integration or non-integration of immigrants who are often of different faith and/or culture than that of the host communities. At the same time, we should also ask critically whether interreligious dialogue has indeed been as beneficial and useful as the dialogue activists claim it has and as they want it to be. While dialogue between the religions can be understood as a pressing step in the modern development of intercultural relations, it can only work when it is founded on careful investigation of their foundations. At this conference, we want to reconceptualize the question of the importance of an active and well informed interreligious dialogue. The focus will be on in-depth, philosophical-theological conversation between Christians and Muslims. We will explore new ways in which philosophical theories can foster Christian-Muslim understanding. Examples of the questions to be addressed are: • Can Christian and Muslim theologies as equal partners in conversation, and as comparative theologies, help us foster better intercultural understanding? • What are best philosophical models and theories of dialogue for framing the theological conversation between European Christians on one hand and Iranian and other Middle Eastern Muslims on the other? • Is it the Aristotelian, Platonist, one of the modern philosophical foundations (Continental, Analytical, Witgensteinian, Phenomenological, Deconstructivist, Pragmatist, or other), or a combination of these? • How can the experiences and perspectives of the relevant “in-house” minorities (Muslim minorities in Europe, Christian minorities in the Middle East), as well as those of Christians and Muslims in special social and political circumstances (refugees, migrants, displaced persons), inform contemporary philosophical-theological dialogue between Christianity and Islam? • And, how should philosophical and comparative theologies address the contemporary criticisms of interreligious dialogue, which brand it as a failed tool for better understanding between cultures, or as a Western invention and tool for cultural domination, or as a cover-up for power-relations between groups in power, as opposed to empowering those who are ofen voiceless and excluded from interreligious dialogue (“heretical” sects, secularists, women, sexual and other minorities, migrants)? At the conference, we will address these and related questions in carefully prepared lectures, delivered in pairs during thematically ordered 1,5 hour sessions of two speakers, with ample time for responses and discussions. Lecture Titles: Mohsen Javadi: The Primacy of Justice in Islamic Social Ethics: a Solution for Religious and Cultural Conflicts Janez Juhant: Religion, Society and Mystics: The Spiritual Ground(s) of Societal Life Carool Kersten: Of Double Genealogies and West-East Investigations: Resetting The Christian-Muslim Encounter Elmar Kuhn: Is the Clash of Religions the Future of Our World? Saida Mirsadri: Process Islam: Towards a Metaphysical Foundation for Interreligious Dialogue Jafar Morvarid: Language-Games Philosophy as a Philosophical Foundation for Interreligious Dialogue Joshua Ralston: Comparative Political Theology: a Framework for Christian-Muslim Dialogue Rasoul Rasoulipour: Philosophy of Religion: An Existential Approach Mohammad Saeedimehr: Islamic Mysticism and Muslim-Christian Dialogue Klaus von Stosch: Comparative Theology and Christian-Muslim Dialogue: A Relationship of Mutual Foundation Lenart Škof: A New Temporality of Religion: On Political Theology and its Ethical Core Javad Taheri: Possibility of a Comparative Theology According to Allamah Sayyed Muhammad Hossein Tabataba’i’s Philosophy Bojan Žalec: Religious Exclusivism, Dialogue and Coexistence