Interreligious Dialogue
Interreligious Dialogue with respect to theological pluralism
Statistics show that most of the world’s population is affiliated with some type of religion, with Christianity and Islam encompassing slightly over 50% of the population. Though interreligious dialogue is beneficial in gaining a better understanding of another’s religion, is it possible to hold one’s religion as being the absolute truth while engaging in an open interreligious dialogue with another religion? Many spiritual people will tend to be theological exclusivists, because a lot of the religions are divided and differ in many ways from one another, but they must accept the values and beliefs of other people if they are to remain truly faithful to the conviction of their traditions.
Interreligious dialogue in a broad sense is being in communication with someone of a different religion to increase the understanding of one’s own religion or tradition as well as others. Since half of the world’s population is either Christian or Muslim, we will take a look into the differences these religions shares. One of the main issues is developed in Klostermaiers book, In the Paradise of Krishna. It exemplifies some of the differences religions tend to hold, such as the discussion between Muslims and Christians on where the role of Jesus stands in
Senestant 2 connection to God. Muslims agree that Jesus was an important figure and served a purpose as a great teacher of righteousness, but fail to see his true connection with God the Father. They claim that he is only a prophet sent by God but not equal to God. The position Klostermaier takes on Jesus, or ‘Son of Man’, is that he is the movement towards God in every being. He is what ultimately allows for us to have a relationship with God. The Son of Man only makes use of two basic distinctions: My Father on the one side --- everything else on the other. He doesn’t judge people based off of other people’s judgment or the rules set by man, rather he
Statistics show that most of the world’s population is affiliated with some type of religion, with Christianity and Islam encompassing slightly over 50% of the population. Though interreligious dialogue is beneficial in gaining a better understanding of another’s religion, is it possible to hold one’s religion as being the absolute truth while engaging in an open interreligious dialogue with another religion? Many spiritual people will tend to be theological exclusivists, because a lot of the religions are divided and differ in many ways from one another, but they must accept the values and beliefs of other people if they are to remain truly faithful to the conviction of their traditions.
Interreligious dialogue in a broad sense is being in communication with someone of a different religion to increase the understanding of one’s own religion or tradition as well as others. Since half of the world’s population is either Christian or Muslim, we will take a look into the differences these religions shares. One of the main issues is developed in Klostermaiers book, In the Paradise of Krishna. It exemplifies some of the differences religions tend to hold, such as the discussion between Muslims and Christians on where the role of Jesus stands in
Senestant 2 connection to God. Muslims agree that Jesus was an important figure and served a purpose as a great teacher of righteousness, but fail to see his true connection with God the Father. They claim that he is only a prophet sent by God but not equal to God. The position Klostermaier takes on Jesus, or ‘Son of Man’, is that he is the movement towards God in every being. He is what ultimately allows for us to have a relationship with God. The Son of Man only makes use of two basic distinctions: My Father on the one side --- everything else on the other. He doesn’t judge people based off of other people’s judgment or the rules set by man, rather he
Cited: 1) Goring, Rosemary, Frank Whaling, John Marshall, and David Brogan. Larousse Dictionary of Beliefs and Religions. Edinburgh: Larousse, 1994. Print. 2) Lopresti, Matthew. "INTER-RELIGIOUS DIALOGUE AND RELIGIOUS PLURALISM: A Philosophical Critique of Pope Benedict XVI and the Fall of Religious Absolutism (Matthew LoPresti) - Academia.edu." Hawaii Pacific University - Academia.edu. Hawaii Pacific University. Web. 14 Dec. 2011. . 3) Marbaniang, Domenic. "Theology Of Religions: Pluralism, Inclusivism, Exclusivism « Earthpages.org." Earthpages.org. Web. 14 Dec. 2011. . 4) Bhagavadgita. Lewiston, N.Y.[u.a.: Edwin Mellen Pr., 2010. Print. 5) Klostermaier, Klaus, and Antonia Fonseca. In the Paradise of Krishna: Hindu and Christian Seekers. Philadelphia: Westminster, 1969. Print. 6) Hick, John. God and the Universe of Faiths : Essays in the Philosophy of Religion. Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1988. Print. 7) NIV Bible. London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1997. Print.