Does Religion Cause War ?
Does Religion Cause War ? If so, How ? The sociologist David Martin, in his book Does Christianity Cause War? (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1997), investigates the empirical evidence from “Europe as a whole” for Richard Dawkin’s assertion that “religion causes wars by generating certainty” (5,22). He concludes that Religious certainty does not cause war, but a religion’s [...]
After Auschwitz, What?
After Auschwitz, no theology: From the chimneys of the Vatican, white smoke rises — a sign the cardinals have chosen themselves a Pope. From the crematoria of Auschwitz, black smoke rises — a sign the conclave of Gods hasn’t yet chosen the Chosen People.1 –Yehuda Amichai On Yom HaShoah, the Jewish day to mourn [...]
The Israeli Chroniclers and the Am Ha’Aretz of Palestine
He only says, ‘Good fences make good neighbors’. Spring is the mischief in me, and I wonder If I could put a notion in his head: ’Why do they make good neighbors? Isn’t it Where there are cows? But here there are no cows. Before I built a wall I’d ask to know What I [...]
From Redemption to Revelation: how do we get there, together?
The period of Counting the Omer (we count 49 days from the second day of Passover to Shavuot) in which we currently find ourselves is a reminder of the road between redemption and revelation. It seems only fitting, then, that two of the most contentious days in our calendar occur in this period between Passover and Shavuot. Just as soon as we’ve put our matzah away and finished the last of the macaroons, Yom Ha Zikaron (Israeli Remembrance Day) and Yom Ha Atzmaut (Israeli Independence Day) are just around the corner. For many North American Jewish communities, how to observe these days has become a topic of heated debate. We find ourselves on the same journey from freedom to revelation, but with very different ideas of how to get from the Sea to the Mountain.
What I Learned From Elie Wiesel
Every once in a while, maybe even once in a lifetime, someone comes into your life, unexpectedly, and changes it forever. That happened to me in the Fall of 2001. By this time, I had already gone back to school with my ultimate destination being theological school. A friend of mine was already in school [...]
“Abrahamic Partnerships in Pursuit of Peace” By Yehezkel Landau
Yehezkel Landau is a Faculty Associate in Interfaith Relations at Hartford Seminary. In June, 2002, I spent six days at a place that is holy for me: the Community of Grandchamp, a convent of Protestant nuns in Areuse, Switzerland. It may seem odd that a deeply committed Jew finds a Christian monastic community a sacred [...]
Crime & Punishment: Are There Evil People?
Why does our current prison system exist? Why do we continue to support a punitive approach that blames the individual rather than putting the bulk of our resources into rehabilitation and reform? Perhaps what underlies our criminal justice system is our desire to believe that we are essentially different from “evil doers.” If only we could weed out those bad apples, we think, society could run smoothly and safely. Perhaps if each of us was willing to acknowledge the infinite potential—encompassing both “good” and “evil”—within ourselves, we would not see ourselves as so separate from those we label “criminals.”
The Loser Letters?
A Place for Satire, Humor, and Polemics in Interreligious (and a-religious) Dialogue
Why a war with Iran is the real threat
The war drums are beating. Yesterday’s announcement that the EU has formally adopted an oil embargo against Iran follows the news that Britain, America, and France are sending six warships led by a 100,000 ton aircraft carrier through the highly sensitive waters of the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran had threatened to close in response [...]
Statehood, Selfhood, and the Importance of Boundaries
A few years ago I was going through a very hard time. I said to my father, “I just want my dignity back!” My father, a Navy survival instructor, replied, “Jenny, no one can take away your dignity! Even if you are hanging by your toes in a prisoner of war camp, your dignity is [...]
Contributing Scholars
Victoria LarsonVictoria is a student at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg, and a candidate for ordination in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America. Her sermons, vocational reflections, and occasional harassed anecdotes about her German Shepherd mix can be read at lutheranmoxie.wordpress.com.
Gretchen KochGretchen recently received her PhD in the Study of Religion from the University of Aarhus in Denmark. She currently lives in Plano, Texas and is working on forming her dissertation into a book, and she serves on the Cognitive Science of Religion Consultation for the American Academy of Religion.
Ian BurzynskiIan Burzynski served as the first Assistant Director of Operations for State of Formation. He is a non-profit worker, intercultural communication practioner, and secular advocate for intertraditional engagement. He has worked with Pathways for Mutual Respect and the Cordoba Initiative and now serves as Chief Development Officer at Distressed Children & Infants International.