I was recently asked by a reporter to discuss why it is that Christians, Muslims, and Jews have so much tension between them. A complex question – but one for which at least one answer is emerging. We do not speak one another’s language, and indeed increasingly refuse to do so. Christians learn about Muslims and Jews. We gather all sorts of facts and information. But we don’t speak Jewish, and really we don’t even try. We speak in English (or... Read more
I decided to spend my Christmas holidays exploring a mystery. What, I wondered, is the Higgs boson about which we’ve heard so much? Having studied physics and astronomy seriously in the University, and having subsequently kept up with developments at a lay level as a lifelong reader of Scientific American I thought I knew a lot of it. Enough to know that somewhere between Schrödinger and Gell-Mann I had lost the narrative. So with the help of Wikipedia and its links I’ve... Read more
In which I take a break from inter-religious relations to consider a breakdown in a different kind of dialogue. . . I met an old friend recently. He allowed as how he no longer attended church accept to receive Holy Communion, coming in only after the sermon. His reason was simply. He was tired of hearing sermons (from churches all over his city) predicated on the denial that the scripture had any basis in history. Or as often sermons that... Read more
We need to get small to get real. . . . Flying back from Jerusalem one time I met an American Jewish leader of some repute, with whom I had a slight acquaintance. In casual conversation he referred to the Jews as “the most hated people in the world.” I was taken aback. There is something vastly egotistical to take on an identity that begins with “the most,” even when followed by an attribute like “hated.” Of course Jews can... Read more
Jesus comes with more baggage than Santa Clause. On my flight to Vienna Lufthansa offered, among other really small screen shows, a Christmas Oratorio in some fabulous German church setting. Behind the choir was a large nativity scene, with one (to a modern American) surprising feature. Overseeing it all was Moses, identifiable by his “horns,” a priestly breastplate, and a Hebrew inscription on a kind of crown. Wild! But not really surprising. Medieval depictions of the nativity often surrounded the scene with... Read more
A few days ago I received a number of emails concerning the speech the President of Israel gave at Kafr Qasim. These were emails from Jews both in Israel and the US. They saw his willingness to acknowledge injustices against Israeli Arabs and pledge to protect their rights as equal citizens of Israel as a hopeful sign for the future. I didn’t read it that way. Because where my eye focused was on his assertion that the whole of the... Read more
When I think of ISIS I’m more inclined to think of “Political extremism and the religious justifications for terror.” Because I really don’t think Religious Extremism is a root cause of the ISIS phenomenon. On September 23rd I spoke on a panel about ISIS – my notes are found below. If we look across history, ancient and modern, we find that terror as an approach to gaining and maintaining political control is not uncommon. We might think, for example, of... Read more
In a previous blog I suggested that the idea that the human relationship to religion is of questioner to provider of answers may ultimately destroy both religion and our humanity. If theological education is intended primarily to form leaders in Christian ministry, then within mainline denominations dominated by post-Schleiermachian liberal theology it may need to undergo dramatic changes away from its current model. That model, shaped by modernity, assumes that Christianity is an answer to a human question, the solution... Read more
The obvious must sometimes be said: for inter-religious dialogue to be of any value those involved must know what they are talking about. And not just expertise. They must know what they have in common, what this “religion” thing is that they supposedly share. In conversation with a long-time Muslim partner in dialogue the issue of gay marriage came up. He dismissed it as a topic for inter-religious dialogue: “Religious people all agree that it is absolute forbidden by God.... Read more
The idea that the human relationship to religion is of questioner to provider of answers may ultimately destroy both religion and our humanity. One of my colleagues recently circulated an exam question from a textbook in world religions. The exam asked “What is the most important question human beings must answer? Choose your question wisely, and then examine how Islam, Buddhism, and Christianity attempt to answer it.” This exam assumes that the student can learn something important about religion if he... Read more
Robert Hunt: Interfaith Encounters
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