Profound reflection on lament and hope arising out of Africa's immense suffering. There is no more urgent theological task than to provide an account of hope in Africa, given its endless cycles of violence, war, poverty, and displacement. So claims Emmanuel Katongole, a recognised, innovative theological voice from Africa. In the midst of suffering, Katongole says, hope takes the form of "arguing" and "wrestling" with God. Such lament is not merely a cry of pain-it is a way of mourning, protesting, and appealing to God. As he unpacks the rich theological and social dimensions of the practice of lament in Africa, Katongole tells the stories of courageous Christian activists working for change in East Africa and invites readers to enter into lament along with them.

Today the world is confronted with many religious wars and the migrations of millions of persons due to these conflicts. There is a need for informed dialog as to the roots of the conflicts and ways of addressing these in ways that speak to peoples' minds and hearts. This is what this book attempts to do from the viewpoint of major religious and ethical thinkers. The book relies on Bernard Lonergan's foundational method to address problems systematically with a view to achieve breakthroughs in our openness to one another. The book appeals to the teachings of the Buddha, Jesus, and Mohammad, relying on the mystical and insights of these religious founders as well as those of dozens of their followers so as to find commonalities that can build bridges of mercy. A global secularity ethics plays a leading role in this book's bridging efforts.

This collaborative effort by a number of the world's leading experts on the Holocaust examines the question: how should Vatican policies during World War II be understood? Specifically, could Pope Pius XII have curbed the Holocaust by vigorously condemning the Nazi killing of Jews? Was Pius XII really 'Hitler's Pope', as John Cornwell suggested? Or has he unfairly become a scapegoat when he is really deserving of canonization as a saint? In Pope Pius XII and the Holocaust, scholars including Michael Marrus, Michael Phayer, Richard L. Rubenstein and Susan Zuccotti wrestle with these questions. The book has four main themes: (1) Pope Pius XII must be understood in his particular historical context. (2) Pope Pius XII put the well-being of the Roman Catholic Church, as he understood it, first and foremost. (3) In retrospect, Pope Pius XII's priorities, understandable though they are, not only make him a problematic Christian leader but also raise important questions about post-Holocaust Christian identity. (4) Jewish and Christian memories of the Holocaust will remain different, but reconciliation can continue to grow. On all sides, relations between Christians and Jews can be improved by an honest engagement with history and by continuing reflection on what post-Holocaust Christian and Jewish identities ought and ought not to mean.

Rita Gross and Rosemary Radford Ruether have long been known for their feminist contributions to Buddhism and Christianity, respectively. In this book, they talk candidly about what these traditions mean to them in both their liberating as well as problematic aspects. Throughout the book, their life stories provide the rich soil, perhaps even the rationale, for their theological and spiritual development. Despite the marked differences in their life histories and their respective religious faiths, Gross and Radford Ruether achieve surprising unanimity on the paramount issue: what engaged Buddhism and enlightened Christianity can offer in the struggle to create a new future for the planet.

The concept of "vocation" or "calling" is a distinctively Christian concern, grounded in the long-held belief that we find our meaning, purpose, and fulfillment in God. But what about religions other than Christianity? What does it mean for someone from another faith tradition to understand calling or vocation? In this book contributors with expertise in Catholic and Protestant Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism and Daoism, and secular humanism explore the idea of calling in these various faith traditions. The contributors each search their respective tradition's sacred texts, key figures, practices, and concepts for wisdom on the meaning of vocation. By seeking comparative insights from diverse faith traditions, say Kathleen Cahalan and Douglas Schuurman, we can all increase and improve our efforts to build a better, more humane world.

This volume sheds light on the transformed post-Holocaust relationship between Catholics and Jews. Once implacable theological foes, the two traditions have travelled a great distance in coming to view the other with respect and dignity. Responding to the horrors of Auschwitz, the Catholic Church has undergone a "reckoning of the soul," beginning with its landmark document Nostra Aetate and embraced a positive theology of Judaism including the ongoing validity of the Jewish covenant. Jews have responded to this unprecedented outreach, especially in the document Dabru Emet. Together, these two Abrahamic traditions have begun seeking a repair of the world. The road has been rocky and certainly obstacles remain. Nevertheless, authentic interfaith dialogue remains a new and promising development in the search for a peace.

Founded by Charles Colson and Richard John Neuhaus in 1994, Evangelicals and Catholics Together (ECT) has fostered a fruitful conversation on the meaning of the gospel in today's world. Over the course of twenty years, ECT has issued nine statements addressing contemporary topics. This one-volume guide, the first collection of the ECT statements, explores the key accomplishments of this groundbreaking, ongoing dialogue. Introductions and notes provide context and discuss history and future prospects. The book also includes prefaces by J. I. Packer and Cardinal Timothy Dolan, a foreword by George Weigel, and an epilogue by R. R. Reno and Kevin J. Vanhoozer.

This book by Gregg Ten Elshof explores ways of using resources from the Confucian wisdom tradition to inform Christian living. Neither highlighting nor diminishing the differences between Confucianism and Christianity, Ten Elshof reflects on perennial human questions with the teachings of both Jesus and Confucius in mind. In examining such subjects as family, learning, and ethics, Ten Elshof sets the typical Western worldview against the Confucian worldview and considers how each of them lines up with the teachings of Jesus. Ten Elshof points to much that is deep and helpful in the Confucian tradition, and he shows how reflection on the teachings of Confucius can inspire a deeper and richer understanding of what it really means to live the Jesus way.

As Christians, we belong to not only a diverse global Christian family but also a diverse human family. Todd Johnson, a noted expert on global Christianity and world missions trends, and Cindy Wu show how divisions within these families work against our desire to bring about positive change in the world. They provide an overview of global Christian identity, exploring how we can be faithful to our own tradition while engaging Christians across denominations and be better informed as we work with people of other religions. The book utilizes the latest research data on global Christianity and world religions and includes tables, graphs, charts, and end-of-chapter discussion questions.

Communication theory provides a compelling way to understand how people of faith can and should work together in today's tumultuous world. In A Communication Perspective on Interfaith Dialogue, fifteen authors present their experiences and analyses of interfaith dialogue, and contextualize interfaith work within the frame of rhetorical and communication studies. While the focus is on the Abrahamic faiths, these essays also include discussion of Hinduism and interracial faith efforts. Each chapter incorporates communication theories that bring clarity to the practices and problems of interfaith communication. Where other interfaith books provide theological, political, or sociological insights, this volume is committed to the perspectives contained in communication scholarship. Interfaith dialogue is best imagined as an organic process, and it does not require theological heavyweights gathered for academic banter. As such, this volume focuses on the processes and means by which interfaith meaning is produced.

This challenging and provocative book reimagines the justification, substance, process, and study of education in open, pluralistic, liberal democratic societies. Hanan Alexander argues that educators need to enable students to embark on a quest for intelligent spirituality, while paying heed to a pedagogy of difference. Through close analysis of the work of such thinkers as William James, Charles Taylor, Elliot Eisner, Michael Oakeshott, Isaiah Berlin, Martin Buber, Michael Apple and Terrence McLaughlin, Reimagining Liberal Education offers an account of school curriculum and moral and religious instruction that throws new light on the possibilities of a nuanced, rounded education for citizenship. Divided into three parts - Transcendental Pragmatism in Educational Research, Pedagogy of Difference and the Other Face of Liberalism, and Intelligent Spirituality in the Curriculum, this is a thrilling work of philosophy that builds upon the author's award-winning text Reclaiming Goodness: Education and the Spiritual Quest.

Theological reflection - connecting real life, ministry, and religious traditions - is a core component of most pastoral training. It is also a hallmark of practical theology and a common spiritual exercise among ordinary Christians trying to discern how their beliefs might influence daily living. Yet, our society is increasingly pluralistic, with growing numbers of people from varying belief systems - from Islam to Buddhism - as well as an increasing number of atheists. In this book, Edward Foley reimagines theological reflection in interfaith contexts and with those of no faith tradition. The book addresses and celebrates diverse beliefs, and envisions the practice of theological reflection in such contexts. Theological Reflection Across Religious Traditions introduces readers to the basics of traditional forms of theological reflection, then considers how it might be reconceived in different contexts - from interfaith ministers working together to reduce poverty and homelessness to people of diverse or no faith traditions strategizing to secure the dignity of undocumented immigrants. Beyond suggestions for collaborative social action, the book offers tools for productive interfaith conversation through a process Foley calls "reflective believing." This is a groundbreaking rethinking of theological reflection for today's world, proposing that people across the religious landscape can participate in reflective believing for personal and communal benefit without sacrificing their own integrity.

Thomas Aquinas and Karl Barth are often taken to be two of the greatest theologians in the Christian tradition. This book undertakes a systematic comparison of them through the lens of five key topics: (1) the being of God, (2) Trinity, (3) Christology, (4) grace and justification, and (5) covenant and law. Under each of these headings, a Catholic portrait of Aquinas is presented in comparison with a Protestant portrait of Barth, with the theological places of convergence and contrast highlighted. This volume combines a deep commitment to systematic theology with an equally profound commitment to mutual engagement. Understood rightly and well, Aquinas and Barth contribute powerfully to the future of theology and to an ecumenism that takes doctrinal confession seriously while at the same time seeking unity among Christians. Contributors: John R. Bowlin Holly Taylor Coolman Robert W. Jenson Keith L. Johnson Guy Mansini, O.S.B. Amy Marga Bruce L. McCormack Richard Schenk, O.P. Joseph P. Wawrykow Thomas Joseph White, O.P.

With every passing day, the stakes grow higher in the escalating conflict between Iran and Israel. What can we expect next? That's the subject of a riveting new book from bestselling prophecy author Mark Hitchcock.

Iran has repeatedly declared its intention to wipe Israel off the map. And the moment Iran becomes a nuclear threat, not only the Middle East but the whole world will be in danger. A war against Iran holds frightening implications: global economic chaos, increasing Islamic tensions, and sky-high oil prices, among other things.

In Iran and Israel, Mark Hitchcock brings a strong biblical perspective to these current events, answering these questions and more:

• Will this put us on the road to Armageddon?
• What can we expect in the days to come?
• Will there ever be peace in the Middle East?

An eye-opening survey of where things stand, and how it all ties in with Bible prophecy.

This volume highlights points of agreement and disagreement on the subject of religious pluralism. The dialogue partners in the discussion are Paul F. Knitter, Paul Tillich Professor of Theology, World Religions, and Culture at Union Theological Seminary, and Harold A Netland, professor of Mission and Evangelism and director of Intercultural Studies at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois.

In an age when "collisions of faith" among the Abrahamic traditions continue to produce strife and violence that threatens the well-being of individuals and communities worldwide, the contributors to "Encountering the Stranger"--six Jewish, six Christian, and six Muslim scholars--takes responsibility to examine their traditions' understandings of the stranger, the "other," and to identify ways that can bridge divisions and create greater harmony.

Leonard Grob is Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at Fairleigh Dickinson University. John K. Roth is Edward J. Sexton Professor Emeritus of Philosophy, Claremont McKenna College. The other contributors are Rachel N. Baum, Margaret Brearley, Britta Frede-Wenger, Henry Greenspan, Peter J. Haas, Riffat Hassan, Zayn Kassam, Henry F. Knight, Hubert G. Locke, Rochelle L. Millen, Khaleel Mohammed, David Patterson, Didier Pollefeyt, B lent Senay, Sana Tayyen, and Bassam Tibi.

"The subject is critical. In our pluralistic world, the need to encounter the stranger is not only a question of hospitality. It is a matter of our survival. Given the enormity of our global issues, it is clear that no one nation, culture, or religion can solve the problems. We simply have to co-operate and collaborate." -Imam Jamal Rahman, author of "The Fragrance of Faith: The Enlightened Heart of Islam"

""Encountering the Stranger" is an exciting, rewarding book, a pathbreaking work full of theological treasures, insights, and stimulating ideas." -Martin Rumscheidt, Atlantic School of Theology

"This is an important scholarly event, a teaching tool, and a resource for clergy formation and informal adult religious studies. The prominence of the contributors will help the book reach a wide range of constituencies and the accessible presentation of the divergent perspectives gathered here will grip readers." -George R. Wilkes, University of Edinburgh"

Taking the theme of learning as central to the responsible practice of interfaith dialogue, Michael Barnes discusses a Christian spirituality which builds on virtues of hospitality and the welcoming of other traditions, whilst maintaining the importance of difference and particularity in the search for meaning. Each chapter explores how faith grows as a person crosses a threshold into another religious world and learns sensitivity to echoes of the known in the unknown. Encounters with the religious other, refracted through texts, conversations, artefacts and places, are used to illustrate the ancient Patristic theme of 'seeds of the Word'. Cumulatively they show that faith which learns how to engage imaginatively with another religious world constantly returns to the 'home' tradition, reinvigorated in its appreciation of the other. This book contributes to current comparative theology studies, using a theological approach to interreligious studies complementary to one based on the experience of interpersonal relations.

The Middle East always seems to dominate international news and global politics. For all of the media exposure, however, most of us consider the religious life of that volatile region only in terms of Muslims and Jews. Serving to correct that misperception, Who are the Christians in the Middle East? chronicles the history and current state of the many various Christian communities in that part of the world.Reflecting dramatic changes in the region, including massive population shifts, this second edition of the Baileys' seminal 2003 volume updates their carefully collected data on churches, church leaders, and contacts, making their one-of-a-kind resource an even more useful gold mine of information.

Redemption and Resistance brings together an eminent cast of contributors to provide a state-of-the-art discussion of Messianism as a topic of political and religious commitment and controversy. By surveying this motif over nearly a thousand years with the help of a focused historical and political searchlight, this volume is sure to break fresh ground. It will serve as an attractive contribution to the history of ancient Judaism and Christianity, of the complex and often problematic relationship between them, and of the conflicting loyalties their hopes for redemption created vis--vis a public order that was at first pagan and later Christian. Although each chapter is designed to stand on its own as an introduction to the topic at hand, the overall argument unfolds a coherent history. The first two parts, on pre-Christian Jewish and primitive Christian Messianism, set the stage by identifying two entities that in Part III are then addressed in the development of their explicit relationship in a Graeco-Roman world marked by violent persecution of Jewish and Christian hopes and loyalties. The story is then explored beyond the Constantinian turn and its abortive reversal under Julian, to the Christian Empire up to the rise of Islam.

Using the events surrounding "The Satanic Verses" controversy as a starting point, Paul Weller offers an interesting examination of the twenty-first century challenges posed by living with radical difference, freedom of expression, and mutual respect.26th September 2008 marks the twentieth anniversary of the beginning of "The Satanic Verses" controversy - a controversy that in many ways became paradigmatic for the following two decades.Taking as its starting-point the opening two years of the controversy, Paul Weller uses the events and arguments of those years as a lens through which to view what later developed, both in relation to the controversy itself, but also its wider entails, and the incidents and issues through which aspects of the original controversy were reprised. The anniversary of the controversy presents a good opportunity to review the incidents, issues and debates of the time in some historical perspective, while also connecting them with subsequent incidents that have reprised some of the key themes, such as the 'cartoons' controversy, the terror attacks of 9/11 and 7/7, and the killing of the Dutch filmmaker, Theo Van Gogh.The book holds up a mirror for our times that will be of interest to academics, politicians, students, and religious believers, as well as to all who are engaged with the twenty-first century challenges posed by living with radical difference, freedom of expression, and mutual respect, with exploring the relationship between religion and secularity, and with overcoming the threats posed by religiously informed violence. Paul Weller is Professor of Inter-Religious Relations at the University of Derby and Visiting Fellow in the Oxford Centre for Christianity and Culture at Regent's Park College, University of Oxford, UK. He is editor of "Religions in the UK: Directory 2007-10", the 2001 edition of which won the Shap Working Party on World Religions in Education prize for 'an outstanding contribution to the teaching of world religions'.