Rita M. Gross is Professor Emerita of Comparative Studies of Religion at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and a Senior Dharma Teacher in the Nyingma Lineage of Vajrayana Buddhism. A past president of the Society for Buddhist-Christian Studies, she has participated in many forums for interreligious exchange. Gross is the author of many books and articles. Her major work is Buddhism after Patriarchy: A Feminist History, Analysis, and Reconstruction of Buddhism (1993).
摘要
Once upon a time, on grounds of both religion and common sense, people assumed that the earth was flat and that the sun literally rose and set each day. When newly developing knowledge made those beliefs untenable, giving them up was difficult.
Today the belief that only one of the world's various religions is true for all people on earth is equivalent to the belief in a flat earth. Both notions have become untenable, given contemporary knowledge about religion.
Even though many people are still troubled by the existence of religious diversity today, that diversity is a fact of life. Religious diversity should be no more troubling to religious people than the fact that the earth is round and circles the sun.
This provocative book, based on the author's longtime practice of Buddhism and comparative study of religion, provides tools with which one can truly appreciate religious diversity as a gift and resource rather than as a deficiency or a problem to be overcome. After we accept diversity as inevitable and become comfortable with it, diversity always enriches life--both nature and culture.
目次
I: Getting Started
1: The Book’s Vision, the Author’s Standpoint, and a Synopsis
II: Useful Information for Those Thinking about Flourishing with Religious Diversity
2: Does Everyone Believe their own Religions is Best for all? Four Models from the Cross Cultural Study of Religion Regarding How People Think about Belonging to a Religion 3: Does Religion Help or Hurt? When Religion and Politics Mix in the Wrong Ways
III: Others, Especially Religious Others
4: Religious Others: The Received Tradition of Christian Theologies of Religion 5: Excuse Me But What’s the Question? Isn’t Religious Diversity Natural? 6: Of Fingers, Moons, and Rafts: The Limits of Religious Language 7: Do Others Exist? Beyond the Duality of Self and Other 8: Beyond Unity and Universalism: Appreciating Uniqueness and Diversity
IV: Identity, Especially Religious Identities
9: Who am I? Hyphenated Identities and the Composite Self in a Diverse World 10: Training the Mind: The Role of Contemplative Practices and Spiritual Disciplines in Becoming Comfortable with Religious Diversity 11: Women, Feminism, and Religious Diversity 12: Religious Diversity and National Identity: Pluralistic Republic or “Christian Nation?” 13: Changing Religious Identity: Conversion Versus Missions
V: Integrity: Relating with Religious Others
14: Studying Religious Others: The Virtues and Joys of the Comparative Mirror 15: Talking with Religious Others: Inter-religious Dialogue and Interchange 16: Ministry in a Multi-faith World: Training and Responsibilities of Leaders of (Majority) Religions 17: Going Forward Together and Separately: Buddhist Proposals for Creating Enlightened Society Amidst Religious Differences
VI: Conclusion: Flexibility and Comfort
18: From Religious Chauvinism to Flourishing with Religious Diversity: a Developmental Model
