Christians do not often seriously discuss Asherah. Therefore, a more extensive introduction precedes the dialogue here. Insight into the phenomenon of a deity pair within the Israelite heritage enriches efforts to name and understand the One God. Jews, Muslims, and Christians strongly endorse monotheism, each with distinct emphases and results. Hindus also believe in one […]
Earlier appeared in Mission Focus Annual Review, vol. 18, 2010, 100-23 Appears here by permission. Writers about historic times choose contexts for reflecting on events. In addition to presenting details of the missionary gathering of a century ago, this article focuses several aspects of Commission IV. Among eight Commissions, the fourth focused “The Missionary Message […]
Water, an element common to religions Upon arrival in India in 1962, I was taught the Hindi word for water—pani. Not only concerned about water generally, the Indian taught me peena ka pani, which means boiled water. For physical survival, a person needs water that is safe to drink. For spiritual well being, the imagery […]
World Religions/Workshop “Crossing the Line” Conference at Eastern Mennonite University, Harrisonburg, VA – June 2017 On hearing that the theme for this conference focused on meeting or crossing borders and boundaries, I knew that engagement with diverse religions applies. Borders might appear where or how people worship, as before a sacred symbol. They may also […]
A Possible Expression of Hindu-Muslim Conflict Characters: Arvind, Raffat, Tom, Bailey, Harris (pronounced Ha-rish), Shaku, Ellen Setting: Arvind, Raffat, Tom, and Bailey have settled into their space in a university dormitory suite in the United States. Arvind, a Hindu from south India, and Raffat, a Muslim from New Delhi, each unpacked two suitcases, including some […]
This article appears in Anabaptist Witness, 2/1, April 2015, 77-98. This article highlights a few entries from my two-hundred-page book titled Mennonites Encounter Hinduism An Annotated Bibliography, self-published in 2015. John and I first lived in India for three years from 1962-65 when teaching at Woodstock School in the Himalayan foothills. I have returned to […]
As a new century begins, the framework for my interest in and commitment to plurality builds on foundations like the following. I have a poster that states in eighteen languages, “There will be peace on earth when there is peace among the world religions.” Diana L. Eck, director of the Pluralism Project: World Religions in […]
(Initially requested to be written for a possible interfaith resource in Europe which never materialized. Instead of full footnotes, page numbers of sources in the bibliography appear in parentheses.) Through the centuries many Mennonites have presumed a traditional, evangelical stance toward other religions, promoting an exclusivist view that Jesus alone is the prime channel to […]
This lecture was first given at New Perspectives on Faith, Goshen, IN, March 2, 2008 It appears in my self-published book Multifaith Musing: Essays and Exchanges, 2010, 19-38. Religious Exchange: Personal and Others’ A word about this essay’s title informs. (Friedrich) Max Mueller (1823-1900), the source of the quote, is called the founder of the […]