Religious Diversity-What's the Problem?

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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. "Let me dare say that no Christian theologian of religions is going to be able to carry on her/his work without dealing with this book. It's a conversation-starter and changer. With her penetrating critique of exclusive truth claims and of traditional Western understandings of otherness and identity, Gross will both disturb and enrich the ongoing discourse on how to understand and deal with religious diversity. I found it challenging, enlightening, and inspiring." --Paul F. Knitter, Emeritus Paul Tillich Professor of Theology, World Religions and Culture, Union Theological Seminary "Rita Gross personifies religious diversity. She grew up in a religiously exclusive Christian church, was disfellowshipped, converted to another religion, and then another. In the meantime, she became one of the world's leading religious scholars. Drawing on both personal experience and scholarly expertise, she has written the best book on religious diversity I have ever read." --Terry C. Muck, Executive Director, Louisville Institute "Today the 'growing tip' for every religion is its inevitable encounter with other religions. We can cling ever harder to conventional dogmas or we can open up to the new perspectives and possibilities that other traditions offer. But how does one actually embark on the challenging path of genuine dialogue and engagement? The fruit of Rita Gross's many years participating in interreligious dialogue, Religious Diversity--What's the Problem?, applies the psychological insights and spiritual wisdom of the Buddhist tradition to a task that is becoming increasingly necessary in our globalizing world." --David R. Loy, author of Money Sex War Karma "In this timely, engaging, and provocative work, Rita Gross takes up the issue of religious diversity in the modern world and--from her longtime studies and experience as a feminist, theologian, and Buddhist practitioner--offers us creative and insightful ways to live with, appreciate, and even flourish with it." --Jan Willis, author of Dreaming Me 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).