Christianity and Other Religions: Selected Readings

by Brian Hebblethwaite and John Harwood Hick

Book Overview

Edited by two of the most prominent names in interfaith dialogue, this is an introduction to the complex relationships between Christianity and the other world faiths. Featuring essays from some of... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0800614445
• ISBN13: 9780800614447
• Release Date: March 1981
• Publisher: Augsburg Fortress Publishing
• Length: 253 Pages

Customer Reviews

Confronting the Exclusiveness of Christianity

This book considers, from the perspective of Christianity,the salvation of souls who are religious, but whose religions arenot Christian. Are these people damned, because of the accidentof birth, geography, or other condition, rendering them shut offfrom the saving grace of Jesus Christ? Or are they, somehow,saved because of a genuine, though misguided, faith in whatevertheir religions happen to be? The world contains many more of God's creatures adhering toother religions than there are Christians. How, then, can wereconcile the Cross of Christ as the source of all grace with thelove of God who loves all creatures with an equal and unlimitedlove? One way is to agree that other religions are conditionallytrue so far as they do not contradict the Christian message ondecisive points. Another is to recognize that there are grace-filled elementsin other religions that lead the people to act like Christians,worshipping the divine and loving their neighbors. Such personsmanifest the direct influence of the Spirit of Christ, and can bereckoned as true Christians, even though they don't know it. But is it not presumptuous to suppose that the only ways toaccommodate people of other religions are to impose conditions orinclude them in ours as anonymous Christians? The will of thosewho are, after all, not Christians, and do not want to beChristians, is not respected. Although Christ taught us humility,we have approached them with arrogance. Indeed, rather than insisting that other people must attaintheir salvation through Christ, can't we find something thatother religions have in common with Christianity whereby we canaccept their attainment of salvation on their own terms? Perhaps we can find common ground in the religious urge torelieve the pain and suffering of the countless poor anddowntrodden of the world? That is the basis of LiberationTheology. Rather than Christ, or even God, if we center ourreligious impulse on that kind of human salvation, especially forthose who, because of injustice are most in need of it, could wenot consider those religions which share that impulse to be on anequal footing with us? Another common ground could be the element found in mostmajor religions in which salvation consists of a radicaltransformation from natural self-centeredness to a neworientation centered in the divine or the transcendent. Just asthe Christian is saved by denying himself and following Christ,other religions, to the extent that they have the same type ofsalvific transformation, can be equally valid traditions whichstand between the individual and the divine. If you envisageChrist as the lens through which we attain our awareness of God,so the other religions are the lenses through which theirfollowers attain their awareness of the divine by whatever namehe or it is known. These are some of the views presented in this volume whichis a revised edition of the book that was first published in1980. Only four of the original eleven selections have beenreta