Faiths in Conflict?

Faiths in Conflict?
Author: Vinoth Ramachandra
Publisher: IVP Academic
Total Pages: 200
Release: 2000-08-28
Genre: Religion
ISBN:

In this fascinating and ground-breaking study, Vinoth Ramachandra explores the complex nature of conflict among the major world religions of Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and Christianity, and also between them and the rising tide of secularism.

Multiculturalism and the Convergence of Faith and Practical Wisdom in Modern Society

Multiculturalism and the Convergence of Faith and Practical Wisdom in Modern Society
Author: Pascal, Ana-Maria
Publisher: IGI Global
Total Pages: 425
Release: 2016-12-21
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1522519564

Religion is considered by many to be something of the past, but it has a lasting hold in society and influences people across many cultures. This integration of spirituality causes numerous impacts across various aspects of modern life. Multiculturalism and the Convergence of Faith and Practical Wisdom in Modern Society is a pivotal reference source for the latest scholarly research on the cultural, sociological, economic, and philosophical effects of religion on modern society and human behavior. Featuring extensive coverage across a range of relevant perspectives and topics, such as social reforms, national identity, and existential spirituality, this publication is ideally designed for theoreticians, practitioners, researchers, policy makers, advanced-level students and sociologists.

Regardless Of Person

Regardless Of Person
Author: Rev. Andre E. Keeley
Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
Total Pages: 85
Release: 2019-10-03
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1645158470

It has been said that the eleven-o'clock hour on Sunday morning is the most segregated hour of the week. In churches that tout Christian unity as the one quality essential to accomplishing God's will in the world, division still remains, the one quality that defines the place of the Church in the world today. That division is not limited to the varied members of the worshiping community but in leadership as well. Scripture, the record of our faith, tells the faithful that regardless of person, the varied gifts and talents that exist among us are the tools essential for building the beloved kingdom Those tools have been dispersed to the faithful who understand the importance of identifying the kingdom of heaven and pointing the way to it. In short, as Scripture describes it, "To make the path straight." Using the eight parables of Jesus that begin with the words "the kingdom of heaven is like" to describe heaven's nature and our place in it is the central focus of the book. The faithful of the Church over ages past understood the work to be carried out if God's will is to be done, on earth as it is in heaven. That work is given to those, regardless of person, who acknowledge heaven as a place of eternal oneness and divine presence. Pointing to that place is the task given to the faithful that all humanity may know the reaches of a loving God. The God of creation has given gifts to the faithful to identify divine presence. The God of divine guidance has given talents to the faithful to illumine the way to that presence. The God of eternal salvation has given blessing to the faithful to help make the way a blessing to all, regardless of person!

Faith and Power

Faith and Power
Author: Lesslie Newbigin
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
Total Pages: 197
Release: 2005-06-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1597522287

"The issue . . . in the multicultural millennium is not so much the 'Islamization' of a once-Christian culture as the emergence, with state collusion, of discrete territories where vastly different norms prevail, shut off and resentful, a breeding ground for ferment and a target for hostility." In the aftermath of the London suicide bombings, this unusual book seems more prophetic than ever. Begun six years before 9/11, it examined the roots of political Islam and its offshoots in Britain. In describing the indifference of policy makers and government officials to religion, it warned of extremism taking root among disaffected young Muslims -- and offered a vision of hope tempered with realism that might have helped avert tragedy had it been more widely heeded. The book's timely republication offers another -- and a way out of it. Lamin Sanneh, himself a former Muslim, explores the history of Islam's always controversial accommodations with the West. Jenny Taylor's debut engages contribution critically at the grassroots level, looking in detail at Islam in Britain, its mission and tactics, and the State's inadequate response to them. "Neglect would appear to have been government policy." Lesslie Newbigin describes the loss of a sense of direction in the West as bankrupt secular ideologies confront fundamentalism with politically correct platitudes or coercive legislation that is destroying the West's historic freedoms. All three authors call for a radical Christian critique to replace the false and evidently failed policies of neutrality of the State.

Interreligious Learning

Interreligious Learning
Author: Carl Sterkens
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 292
Release: 2021-10-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9004497307

The increasing plurality of religions and world-views in western society has major implications for religious communication in both public and private settings. This study is an important step in an exploration of the consequences of this religious plurality for religious education in primary education. The chief concern of this study is the following question: To what extent is a pedagogic model in which pupils are encouraged to participate in an interreligious dialogue adequate for coping with this religious plurality? To address this question, the author discusses the following research questions: what are the cognitive, the affective and the attitudinal effects of the interreligious model for religious education, and can this model be legitimised? These questions are considered in the context of a discussion of the meaning of religion and an elaboration of the aim of religious education within the context of a secularized and multicultural society.

Learning from the Stranger

Learning from the Stranger
Author: David I. Smith
Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing
Total Pages: 195
Release: 2009-06-09
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1467423475

Cultural differences increasingly impact our everyday lives. Virtually none of us today interact exclusively with people who look, talk, and behave like we do. David Smith here offers an excellent guide to living and learning in our culturally interconnected world. / Learning from the Stranger clearly explains what "culture" is, discusses how cultural difference affects our perceptions and behavior, and explores how Jesus' call to love our neighbor involves learning from cultural strangers. Built around three chapter-length readings of extended biblical passages (from Genesis, Luke, and Acts), the book skillfully weaves together theological and practical concerns, and Smith’s engaging, readable text is peppered with stories from his own extensive firsthand experience. / Many thoughtful readers will resonate with this insightful book as it encourages the virtues of humility and hospitality in our personal interactions — and shows how learning from strangers, not just imparting our own ideas to them, is an integral part of Christian discipleship.

The Sacred Secular

The Sacred Secular
Author: Dottie Escobedo-Frank
Publisher: Abingdon Press
Total Pages: 94
Release: 2016-10-18
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1501810456

The Sacred Secular examines cultural spaces where people are experiencing something sacred. These places are not in the church. They’re in yoga studios, neighborhood potlucks, and TED Talks. Dottie Escobedo-Frank and Rob Rynders see lessons for the church in these spaces. They see new ways we can convey to people that the church is uniquely sacred and significant and that Jesus is for them. These glimpses into the sacred-secular will inspire creative church leaders to set aside their assumptions about what church looks like. The Sacred Secular nurtures empowerment, creativity, spiritual movement, and the courage to embody the sacredness and substance of our faith. “Many of us in the church (including clergy) feel we have more in common with the ‘spiritual but not religious’ than we have with lots of church folks these days. We are just as spiritually hungry and thirsty as ever, but we’re open to finding God in surprising places and spaces . . . including ‘secular’ ones. This beautifully written book is all about that phenomenon. I think you’re going to love it.” —Brian D. McLaren, author/speaker, brianmclaren.net “Be prepared to hear contemporary stories akin to the Apostle Peter discovering God in an ‘outsider’—Cornelius—in twenty-first–century urban America. This book is a jewel from two missional church practitioners in The United Methodist Church. It offers wisdom, vision, creativity, and humility that will mark the gospel-bearing church of the future. I highly recommend The Sacred Secular to pastors, church planters, and laity who want their congregations to know how to develop culturally connected faith communities in our rapidly changing world.” —Elaine A. Heath, Dean, Duke Divinity School, Duke University, Durham, NC

The Gospel in a Pluralist Society

The Gospel in a Pluralist Society
Author: Lesslie Newbigin
Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing
Total Pages: 276
Release: 1989-10-30
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1467419508

How does the gospel relate to a pluralist society? What is the Christian message in a society marked by religious pluralism, ethnic diversity, and cultural relativism? Should Christians encountering today's pluralist society concentrate on evangelism or on dialogue? How does the prevailing climate of opinion affect, perhaps infect, Christians' faith? These kinds of questions are addressed in this noteworthy book by Lesslie Newbigin. A highly respected Christian leader and ecumenical figure, Newbigin provides a brilliant analysis of contemporary (secular, humanist, pluralist) culture and suggests how Christians can more confidently affirm their faith in such a context. While drawing from scholars such as Michael Polanyi, Alasdair MacIntyre, Hendrikus Berkhof, Walter Wink, and Robert Wuthnow, The Gospel in a Pluralist Society is suited not only to an academic readership. This heartfelt work by a missionary pastor and preacher also offers to Christian leaders and laypeople some thoughtful, helpful, and provocative reflections.

Justification in a Post-Christian Society

Justification in a Post-Christian Society
Author: Carl-Henric Grenholm
Publisher: James Clarke & Company
Total Pages: 267
Release: 2015-03-26
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0227904451

Since the Reformation in the sixteenth century, Lutheran traditions have impacted culture and politics in many societies. At the same time, Lutheran belief has had an effect on personal faith, morality, and ethics. Modern society, however, is quite different from that at the time of the Reformation. How should we evaluate Lutheran tradition in today's Western multicultural and post-Christian society? Is it possible to develop a Lutheran theological position that can be regarded as reasonable in a society that evidences a considerable weakening of the role of Christianity? What are the challenges raised by cultural diversity for a Lutheran theology and ethics? Is it possible to develop a Lutheran identity in a multicultural society, and isthere any fruitful Lutheran contribution to the coexistence of diff erent religious and non-religious traditions in the future?