Pitman - Twentieth century Christian responses to religious pluralism : difference is everything

TWENTIETH CENTURY CHRISTIAN RESPONSES TO RELIGIOUS PLURALISM

This is a highly competent, well written and very readable survey of the key players in the Christian debate on religious pluralism. It not only provides an important introduction to the field, but makes its own valuable contribution to the Christian theology of religions.

Philip C. Almond, The University of Queensland, Australia

Twentieth Century Christian Responses to Religious Pluralism begins with the recognition that the traditional three-fold typology adopted by Christians in responding to other living world religions is no longer adequate and offers a much more sophisticated and developed approach. This is accomplished with particular reference to ten key twentieth century theologians, each of whom had significant influence in the field of inter-religious studies, both during their lifetime and beyond. The author rejects the exclusivism and triumphalism of traditional Christian approaches and argues strongly and persuasively that the future for inter-religious relationships lies in what he describes as classical pluralism, and in an understanding of the importance of difference for inter-faith dialogue.

Presenting an accessible introduction to the contemporary issues and challenges facing all those engaged in the further development of inter-faith relationships, dialogue and partnership between the world religions, Pitman argues that the future of world peace and prosperity depends on the outcome.

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Difference is Everything

DAVID PITMAN
University of Queensland, Australia

First published 2014 by Ashgate Publishing

Published 2016 by Routledge
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Copyright 2014 David Pitman

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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

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ISBN 9781472410900 (hbk)
ISBN 9781315549521 (ebk)

This book is dedicated to all those who helped to open my eyes to see the world in a new way and especially to Marcia for sharing the journey.

I was nurtured from an early age within the Australian Methodist Church and became an accredited Lay Preacher by the time I was 17 years old. At teachers college and university I joined the Evangelical Union (IVF) and felt very comfortable in the conservative understanding and interpretation of the Christian scriptures in which I was immersed during those years. I had a strong sense of my own personal salvation won for me by Christ through his death and resurrection. It never occurred to me that there was any other way in which eternal life could be secured, and I believed, with the utmost sincerity, that only Christians like me could be the subjects of Gods grace and forgiveness. The adherents of other religious traditions, about which I knew almost nothing, were pagans and idolaters, whose only hope lay in embracing the same faith I held. Christian missionaries were, therefore, Gods gift to unbelievers and were to be held in high esteem and fervently prayed for.

After some years as a teacher I entered the Methodist ministry and was ordained in 1970. Three years later I responded to an invitation from Australian Methodist Overseas Missions to go and work amongst the Indian people in Fiji, only 2 per cent of whom were Christian. I went with enthusiasm and high expectations, and the experience changed my life in ways I never expected. As with so many others who have walked a similar path to my own, it was the relationships I developed with people of other faiths, and with Hindu people in particular, that made all the difference. I was humbled, and frequently inspired, by their faith and devotion and the way in which what they believed influenced every area of their daily lives.

Though I did not realise it at the time, this book had its beginning in that experience. I write as a Christian insider, deeply committed to my own faith tradition, yet very conscious of the diversity of faiths alive and at work in the world around me, each with its own authentic and vital history and contemporary significance. I have chosen to use the personal pronoun on occasions understanding and accepting that not everyone will agree with the stance I have adopted or the conclusions I have reached. However, it is my hope that there will be others who will discover that where the living religious traditions of the world are concerned, difference is everything and in that reality there is good reason for celebration!

I want to acknowledge with gratitude those Christian pluralists whose enormous and influential contributions to the field of religious studies I have, however inadequately, addressed in this book: Hans Kng, Raimundo Panikkar, John Hick and Wilfred Cantwell Smith. I am also particularly indebted to the powerfully imaginative and provocative thought of Alan Race and Paul Knitter. Notwithstanding any criticisms I have made of any of them, all of these scholars have inspired me with their willingness to challenge established boundaries, to embrace new ways of thinking and to envision the possibility of a better world.