Respected Baptist historian and theologian Bill Leonard takes readers through the theological and practical questions that are important to Baptists. In a clear style and with great sensitivity to the varieties of beliefs among Baptist bodies, Leonard considers the big questions of faith. These include Baptist beliefs about God, Jesus Christ, the Bible, salvation, and the Christian life, among others. Drawing on historic statements of Baptist belief, contemporary history, and his own background and deep scholarship, Leonard provides reliable and accessible discussions of these issues. His work will be highly illuminating for Baptists of all denominational groupings as well as for others interested in the core of Baptist theological convictions and their various expressions. Leonard's is a strong and trusted voice, and this book will be a welcome resource.

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'.

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'.

This is the first volume of a unique collection of essays in memory of David A Kerr, offering insights into current trends in Local Theology and Missions."Global Christianity in Local Context" is the first volume of a unique collection of essays in honour of David A. Kerr, well-known for his contributions in the areas of Christian-Muslim dialogue, Ecumenical Studies and Missions. With contributions from recognized experts in these fields, the book provides a platform for examining contemporary Christian-Muslim relations and critical issues facing twenty-first century Christianity.In Volume 1, scholars and Church leaders offer insights into current trends in Local Theology and Missions from the contexts of Asia, Africa, Latin America and Europe.

This is volume 2 of a unique collection, offering a veritable Who's Who of renowned Christian and Muslim scholars that have shaped the course of Christian-Muslim dialogue."Global Christianity in Local Context and Muslim Encounter" is a unique collection of essays in honour of David A. Kerr, well-known for his contributions in the areas of Christian-Muslim dialogue, Ecumenical Studies and Missions. With contributions from recognized experts in these fields, the book provides a platform for examining contemporary Christian-Muslim relations and critical issues facing twenty-first century Christianity.Volume 2 is a veritable Who's Who of renowned Christian and Muslim scholars that have shaped the course of Christian-Muslim dialogue over the last half century. Their contributions in this volume address contemporary and pivotal issues facing Christians and Muslims today, such as Islamophobia, Islamism, Religious Freedom, Inter-religious Challenges and Urbanism, Mission and Economic Globalisation, Suffering and Social Responsibility, and others.

During the cold-war years, Western Christians basked in a sense that they were living on the right side of the ideological divide, harboring humane values, freedom, democracy and the right to irrationality, belief and non-belief. The atheist Communist world was seen as intellectually and politically oppressive, dishonest, impoverished and dangerous. After the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, however, the old division gave way to the spectacle of religious believers vying for ascendancy with skeptics and with each other. In formerly Communist countries, the sense of sacred identity among newly powerful religious communities has never been stronger. New Russian artists experimenting with religious imagery have faced legal action and been forced to remove their work from public display. In Poland, over 90 per cent of the population is Roman Catholic and smaller communities of believers -- Protestant or Jewish, for example -- have been exposed to a range of symbolic attacks. In parts of the U.S., books by Golding, Twain and Conrad have been banned after interventions by the new Christian right. Meanwhile, in the U.K., a screening of the musical "Jerry Springer: The Opera" led to street protests and attempts to prosecute the BBC for blasphemy. With a look at notions of the sacred, and how Christianity takes offence and gives it, this essay explores what outrages and challenges Christians most in the new world order.

"World Christianity in Local Context and Muslim Encounter" is a unique collection of essays in honour of David A. Kerr, who was well-known for his contributions in the areas of Christian-Muslim dialogue, Ecumenical Studies and Missions. With contributions from recognised experts in these fields, the book provides a platform for examining critical issues facing twenty-first century Christianity, with a special emphasis on contemporary Christian-Muslim relations.In Volume 1, scholars and church leaders offer insights into current trends in Local Theology and Missions from the contexts of Asia, Africa, Latin America and Europe. Contemporary themes explored in this volume include the mission for the Church in the context of economic globalization, post-Christendom and pluralism in the West, a Chinese theology of suffering and social responsibility, Latin America as an emerging mission base, and others.Volume 2 is a veritable Who's Who of renowned Christian and Muslim scholars that have shaped the course of Christian-Muslim dialogue over the last half century. Their contributions in this volume address the pivotal issues facing Christians and Muslims today, such as Islamism, Islamophobia, Dialogue and Religious Truth Claims in Christianity and Islam, Religious Freedom, Inter-Religious Challenges to Urban Multiculturalism and others.

This is an analytical and reflective look at the contribution that Christian-Muslim partnerships can make to community cohesion.In "Religious Cohesion in Times of Conflict" Andrew Holden presents the results and analysis of the key findings of a sociological investigation which seeks to establish the contribution that Christian-Muslim partnerships can make to community cohesion.Beginning with a historical and sociological overview of faith relations, a description of the empirical methodology and a discussion of the evolution of Christian-Muslim partnerships, Andrew Holden goes on to highlight how the fieldwork data demonstrates the challenges of uniting young people in segregated towns and cities. He considers the implications of the findings for education policy, examining some of the ways in which schools and colleges can promote faith cohesion, and further addresses the issue of faith leadership, considering how the changing faith landscape affects the work of Christian and Muslim clerics.He concludes by considering possible ways forward for Christian-Muslim relations both in Britain and in the international context and for the development of new partnerships between faith and secular organizations.

When Englishman and Turk fell side by side in the killing fields of the Crimea, it was not the first time that Christian and Muslim blood was shed, and intermingled, in the cause of battling a common foe. It is fashionable today to talk of a 'clash of civilizations', and of an unbridgeable chasm between the Islamic world and Christendom. But in this bold and iconoclastic book Ian Almond demonstrates that in Europe, the heart of the west, Muslims and Christians were often comrades-in-arms, repeatedly forming alliances to wage war against their own faiths and peoples. As we read of savage battles, deadly sieges and many acts of individual heroism, we learn of Arab troops rallying in their thousands to the banner of a Christian emperor outside the walls of Verona. Of Spanish Muslims standing shoulder to shoulder with their Christian Catalan neighbours in opposition to Castilians. Of Greeks and Turks forming a steadfast bulwark against Serbs and Bulgarians, their mutual enemy. And of tens of thousands of Hungarian Protestants assisting the Ottomans in their implacable and terrifying march on Christian Vienna. As the author shows, any notion that 'Christian Europe' has long been opposed by a 'Muslim non-Europe' grossly misrepresents the facts of a rich, complex and - above all - shared history. The motivations for these interfaith alliances were dictated by shifting diplomacies, pragmatic self-interest and realpolitik, not by jihad or religious war. This insight has profound ramifications for our understandings of global politics and current affairs, as well as of religious history and the future shape of Europe.

For centuries Christians and Muslims have engaged with each other in manifold ways, peaceful and otherwise, be it in scholarly study, or in war and colonization. Today, Christians represent an influential body of opinion that largely perceives Islam, post 9/11, as a threat. Yet Muslims represent approximately one third of the world's population. Improved understanding between Christians and Muslims is therefore crucial and a prerequisite for universal peace and justice. This book aims to investigate Islam's place in the world, Muslim aspirations vis-a-vis non-Muslims and the realities of how Muslims are perceived and how they perceive others. Each chapter analyses accessible texts from central thinkers and commentators, broadly split into two camps: confrontational or conciliatory. Christian-Muslim relations are set in the wider context of civilizational, geo-political and economic interaction between the Muslim world and the historically Christian West.

The Universal Principles of the Reform Bahai Faith collects many of the early writings of Baha'u'llah and Abdu'l-Baha, published in the West, seeking to restore and preserve their vision of the oneness of God, humanity, and all religions. In addition to all of the 1912 Universal Principles of the Bahai Movement, the book includes Baha'u'llah's Hidden Words, selections known as the Spirit of the Age, an address by Abdu'l-Baha at the Friends' Meeting House in London in 1913, and many Bahai prayers for community and individual worship and meditation. Though beginning in 2004, the Reform Bahai Faith traces its origin to the early Bahais Ruth White, Mirza Ahmad Sohrab, and Julie Chanler, who sought to preserve the Teachings of Abdu'l-Baha after his passing in 1921. They and other early American Bahais understood the Bahai Faith was being turned into an oppressive organization, under what the British Museum document expert Dr. C. Ainsworth Mitchell judged to be a fraudulent will and testament. Baha'u'llah, the Founder of the Bahai Faith, believed in and taught a moderate, universal religion, grounded in a separation of church and state, not a theocracy, and members of the Reform Bahai Faith seek to recover and renew that saving vision for all humanity. The newcomer to the Bahai Teachings will find here a brief but eloquent and inspiring introduction to the Faith of Baha'u'llah, while people already familiar with it will find a refreshing breeze has returned to revivify and uplift the spirit. This book marks the first publication of the Reform Bahai Press, which will publish several more titles during the next few years.

In this book eminent Jewish and Christian scholars come together to illuminate the Ten Commandments. Roger Van Harn has arranged the volume so that writers from both traditions dialogue over each of the Ten Words. A Christian or a Jew writes a penetrating essay about one of the commandments, followed by a shorter response from a member of the other tradition ? all done, remarkably, without sacrificing either Jewish or Christian identity.

Unique for its authentic interfaith dialogue on dogmatic matters, The Ten Commandments for Jews, Christians, and Others offers pertinent guidelines for believing Jews and Christians today, with the goal of stimulating deeper conversation between the two groups. As Van Harn says, ???Listening to one another may hold pleasant surprises that open us to new possibilities.???

Contributors: Carl E. Braaten
Roger Brooks
Shalom Carmy
James A. Diamond
Elliot N. Dorff
Jean Bethke Elshtain
Rochelle L. Millen
Richard John Neuhaus
David Novak
Peter W. Ochs
David Patterson
Daniel Polish
Anathea E. Portier-Young
R. R. Reno
John K. Roth
Byron L. Sherwin
Marguerite Shuster
R. Kendall Soulen
Linn Tonstad
Leanne Van Dyk
Calvin P. Van Reken
Allen Verhey
Miroslav Volf
Sue Ann Wasserman

Religious Communities in Byzantine Palestina: The Relationship Between Judaism, Christianity and Islam AD 400-700 Aby Eliya Ribak This study is an archaeological analysis of the relationship between religious communities in Byzantine Palestina (AD 400700), based on a catalogue of excavated Byzantine sites in the region (forming an appendix to the work). After outlining the historical, archaeological and environmental contexts of the study, the identification and dating of excavated synagogues and churches are re-evaluated. This shows that, although there are clear-cut examples of Jewish and Samaritan synagogues and Christian churches, these buildings are often so similar that it is difficult to differentiate between them. It is also shown that Jewish and Christian burial practices were so similar that, unless accompanied inscriptions or symbols, the religious identity of burials is often difficult to recognize. This suggests that different communities shared similar material cultures of religious practice, probably resulting from peaceful inter-communal interaction, and highlights chronological problems in the archaeology of Byzantine Palestina. Spatial analysis of reliably identified religious buildings is then used to show that different religious communities frequently occupied the same landscapes, and even the same settlements. The credibility of using symbols on portable artefacts to indicate religious identity is assessed, and supported, by examining their association with other religious indicators. Spatial analysis of these artefacts supports the patterns already established, strengthening the interpretation that different religious communities lived in close proximity. This evidence is used to argue for closer and more peaceful co-existence between religious communities in Byzantine Palestina than is usually supposed.

In a strongly worded notification, in February of 2005, the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith denounced Jesuit Roger Haights award-winning, best-selling book Jesus Symbol of God as containing grave doctrinal errors. Like a number of theologians before him-Hans Kung, Charles Curran, Anthony de Mello, Tissa Balasuriya, and Jacques Dupuis-Haight has been banned from teaching as a Catholic theologian. In its overall criticism of the book, the Congregation, still under the direction of the then Cardinal Ratzinger, charged that Haight subordinates the contents of the faith to their plausibility and intelligibility in post-modern culture. For his part, Haight says: I look at American Catholicism with a population more and more educated in the faith. Many college and university students are used to religious pluralism, and are asking how they can square it with the Catholic faith. I try to put critical words to their experience and keep their experience in touch with the tradition. My fear is that educated Catholics will walk out if there isnt space for an open attitude to other religions. The Future of Christology covers much the same ground as Jesus Symbol of God, though in a much more accessible and compact format. The earlier book was written as a textbook; this one, with a wider audience in mind. In the final chapter, Haight responds to the numerous reviews Jesus Symbol of God received, both pro and con.

Because of their faith in the crucified Messiah, the Christian nations are indebted to Israel. Yet they have largely marginalized and even rejected God's chosen people. In this volume Cardinal Jean-Marie Lustiger reflects on a number of subjects and concerns common to both Christians and Jews ? the Ten Commandments, fulfillment of biblical prophecy, Christian anti-Semitism, and more.

As a Jewish-born Roman Catholic priest, Cardinal Lustiger has a unique viewpoint. He became Archbishop of Paris and a cardinal while remaining keenly aware of his indelible Jewish identity and of the vital Jewish roots of Christianity. Aware that his reflections may be controversial ? possibly offending Jewish and Christian readers alike ? he nonetheless boldly shares his perspectives in The Promise, hoping that readers will see him as speaking and writing in good faith, in the service of the Word of God given for the happiness and salvation of all.

Presented by an international team of Catholic biblical scholars, Sacra Pagina is a fresh series of translations and expositions of the books of the New Testament. The volumes provide basic information as well as sound, critical analysis in a highly readable manner -- yet remain sensitive to religious meaning. Each author has adopted a specific methodology while focusing on the issues raised by the New Testament compositions themselves. The expression "Sacra Pagina" ("Sacred Page") refers to the text of Scripture. In the Middle Ages it also described the study of Scripture to which the interpreter brought the tools of grammar, rhetoric, dialectic, and philosophy. Thus, Sacra Pagina encompasses both the text and the act of interpretation.

The "very soul of sacred theology" (Dei Verbum 24). That's how the Second Vatican Council described the study of the "sacred page". These volumes open up the riches of the New Testament and invite all Christians to study seriously the "sacred page".

Matthew wrote his Gospel from his perspective as a Jew. It is with sensitivity to this perspective that Father Harrington undertakes this commentary on the Gospel of Matthew.

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.

The teacher who uses this book in a course... has a great opportunity here to bring history to life and to show nuances concerning religious stereotypes which are not based on historic fact --Tijdschrift voor Theologie, (Journal for Theology) 2008: 48, 117 The SCM Core Text Religious Syncretism provides a persuasive account of the principle that syncretism is an important and widespread expression of religious belief and practice. Each chapter concludes with a useful summary and questions that might be considered for seminar or class discussion.... there is much to commend the book. Those of us who work in education can be accustomed to think of religion in terms of creeds and doctrines and to teach the subject along those lines. Such an approach is to ignore the importance of syncretistic experience as a defining factor in religion. --Elliot Shaw, Senior Lecturer, Religious Education at St. Martin's College, in the journal World Religions in Education, XXVIII, 2007-8. Even a quick scan of today's headlines makes clear that the growth of fundamentalist versions of Islam is having a vast impact on our world. For Americans the rise of Christian fundamentalism, especially the Evangelical movement, is also socially and politically shaping the country, as debates about abortion, stem cell research and other important issues are often driven by fundamentalist notions. In profound ways, orthodox versions of Judaism have altered the fabric of Middle Eastern politics through the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, especially regarding settlements in Gaza and the West Bank, making peace there all the more difficult, and further destabilizing an already unstable region. The rise of fundamentalism in the three monotheistic faiths is fully examined in this textbook. It is not about fundamentalism however, it is about its opposite trend: religious syncretism. Syncretism describes the phenomenon of one religion borrowing elements from another, and it is part of religion that fundamentalists will seldom acknowledge. This textbook explores Judaism, Christianity and Islam, using compelling examples of how syncretism works and looks, to show how these three religions have adopted customs and conceptions of other religions, most often acquiring practices from pagan predecessors and neighbours. The book shows how these three faiths - despite how modern media would have us believe - have been willing, at various times and places, to borrow.

In Where the Edge Gathers, Flunder uses examples of persons most marginalized by church and society to illustrate the use of "village ethics"--knowing where the boundaries are when all things are exposed--and "village theology"--giving everyone a seat at the central meeting place or welcome table. She focuses on the following marginalized groups: 1) samesex couples, to convey the need to re-examine sexual and relational ethics; 2) transgendered persons, to illustrate the importance of radical inclusivity; 3) and gay persons living with AIDS, to emphasize the need to de-stigmatize society's view of any group of people. The book, which combines both Flunder's personal experiences with marginalized people and theological and pastoral literature on the topic, will appeal to denominational leaders and clergy who minister to the marginalized and/or the inner city.

Furthering his contribution to the science and religion debate, David Ray Griffin draws upon the cosmology of Alfred North Whitehead and proposes a radical synthesis between two worldviews sometimes thought wholly incompatible. He argues that the traditions designated by the names "scientific naturalism" and "Christian faith" both embody a great truth--a truth of universal validity and importance--but that both of these truths have been distorted, fueling the conflict between the visions of the scientific and Christian communities. Griffin contends, however, that there is no inherent conflict between science, or even the kind of naturalism that it properly presupposes, and the Christian faith, understood in terms of the primary doctrines of the Christian good news.

William Paden's classic exploration in religious studies, with a new introduction
In the current climate, Interpreting the Sacred provides a fresh, thorough way to consider and compare various religious belief systems. Paden puts forth the idea that our understanding of religion influences our understanding of ourselves and our world. Updated with a new introduction, this book is for anyone who wants to consider and discuss religious beliefs.
"To appreciate the fascinating, forbidding landscape of current religious theory, one needs a clear map annotated by an observant guide. Interpreting the Sacred qualifies on both counts." --Christian Century
William Paden is professor and chair of the department of religion at the University of Vermont.

Drawing on the words of over one hundred theologians and philosophers of religion, this anthology addresses the vital question of how the world faiths relate to one another in a plural society.The readings in this volume are drawn from all the world religions and their key thinkers; they cover the entire spectrum of views from traditional to radical, as well as providing a comprehensive overview of the interfaith debate and all its major themes. All the significant voices are included, including Karl Barth, Mahatma Gandhi, Ingrid Shafer, Ursula King and the Dalai Lama, in a collection that also traces the development of the discipline from the early 20th century to the present day.