Goshen-Goṭshṭain - Sharing wisdom: benefits and boundaries of interreligious learning

LEXINGTON BOOKS

Lanham Boulder New York London

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Goshen-Gottstein, Alon, editor.

Title: Sharing wisdom : benefits and boundaries of interreligious learning / edited by Alon Goshen-Gottstein.

Description: Lanham : Lexington Books, 2016. | Series: Interreligious reflectins | Includes bibliographical references and index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2016032927 (print) | LCCN 2016034120 (ebook) | ISBN 9781498545570 (cloth : alk. paper) | ISBN 9781498545587 (Electronic)

Subjects: LCSH: Religions. | Wisdom.

Classification: LCC BL85.S387 2016 (print) | LCC BL85 (ebook) | DDC 201/.5--dc23

LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2016032927

TM The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.

Printed in the United States of America

For Barry and Connie Hershey

Lovers of wisdom, wherever it is found

Alon Goshen-Gottstein

It is with great pleasure that we present the sixth volume in the Interreligious Reflections series. The discussions in this volume go to the heart of the concerns of this serieswhat it means to be engaging the world of thought and belief of other religions and how sharing of wisdom between religious traditions can enhance relationships between them, the self-understanding of each, the common voice that religions are to have in the world and the spiritual quest that is common to all faith traditions.

The chapters were written initially for the third meeting of the Elijah Board of World Religious Leaders, that was hosted by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and by Bhai Sahib Bhai Mohinder Singh in Amritsar, in 2007. They have been updated for purposes of the present publication.

The Amritsar meeting benefited from the support of several foundations. I recall with gratitude the support of the Von Groeben Foundation as well as the Udo Keller Foundation. The work on Sharing Wisdom was supported in the main by the Fetzer Institute. Our group of scholars held two in person meetings at Fetzers facilities in Kalamazoo. The Fetzer vision finds expression in these chapters in the focus on love and forgiveness as expressions of sharing wisdom. Fetzer warmth and hospitality can only be expressed between the lines, but remains engraved in the memory of all participants. Eric Nelson and David Addiss, who represented Fetzer at that meeting, were deeply engaged in our discussions and contributed much to them.

The primary contributors to the project are the scholars whose work is featured in this volume. They were not the only ones. I recall with gratitude the contributions of several scholars to our conversations. These include (in alphabetical order) Therese Andrevon, Barry Levy, Vanessa Sasson, Kurt Schreiber and Johann Vento. Working together bonded us as a group and the power of those relationships carries over from one project to the next.

The meetings in Kalamazoo and Amritsar are the subject of a short film that was produced on the work of the think tank and of the Elijah Board of World Religious Leaders. Readers of the present volume that are interested in the accompanying visuals and testimonies, are welcome to view these at http://elijah-interfaith.org/video/dialogue-kalamazoo-and-amritsar-meetings.

Preparation of this manuscript for publication relied extensively on the engaged efforts of Peta Pellach Jones and of Natalee Cohen. Both have shown exceptional talent and patience in bringing this publication to the finish line.

Thanks go to Lexington Books staff. First and foremost, I am grateful to our editor, Sarah Craig, whose competence and professionalism are outstanding. Bethany Davis has been helpful in the day to day. To both of them and to the management of Lexington Bookss staff, thank you for your continued vote of confidence in our work.

Let me conclude with the words that served me to conclude my welcome words to the religious leaders gathered in Amritsar. They serve equally to welcome readers to our process of reflection:

Let Wisdom flourish! Let Peace prevail!

Only one of them was published elsewhere by its author in the intervening period. The present version offers in the notes reference to relevant texts, not included in the Brazos version.

Alon Goshen-Gottstein

Sharing Wisdom