ABSTRACT
This pioneering handbook proposes an approach to pluralism that is relational, principled, and non-relativistic, going beyond banal calls for mere "tolerance."
The growing religious diversity within societies around the world presents both challenges and opportunities. A degree of competition between deeply held religious/worldview perspectives is natural and inevitable, yet at the same time the world urgently needs engagement and partnership across lines of difference. None of the world’s most pressing problems can be solved by any single actor, and as such it is not a question of if but when you partner with an individual or institution that does not think, act, or believe as you do. The authors argue that religious literacy—defined as a dynamic combination of competencies and skills, continuously refined through real-world cross-cultural engagement—is vital to building societies and states of neighborly solidarity and civic fairness.
Through examination, reflection, and case studies across multiple faith traditions and professional fields, this handbook equips scholars and students, as well as policymakers and practitioners, to assess, analyze, and act collaboratively in a world of deep diversity.
The Open Access version of this book, available at www.taylorfrancis.com, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 license.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
part |18 pages
Introduction
chapter 1|16 pages
Rethinking religious literacy and pluralism
part I|130 pages
What is religious literacy for?
chapter 4|13 pages
Fratelli Tutti, Lessons learned from interreligious action, and the Catholic Church
chapter 5|14 pages
Are Calvinists for pluralism?
chapter 8|13 pages
The elephant in the room
chapter 9|16 pages
Isomorphism, syncretism, and poly-ontological dynamics
chapter 10|13 pages
On neutrality and the nones
part II|120 pages
Who needs religious literacy?
part III|173 pages
Where can religious literacy and covenantal pluralism make a difference? Case studies and practitioner perspectives