The Challenge of Religious Pluralism

Abstract

In contemporary society with its multiplicity of faiths, there has been an increasing interest in the relationship between the world’s religions. Within Judaism only a few thinkers have grappled with the issue of religious pluralism, yet in Christian circles there has been considerable debate about the relationship between the Christian faith and other traditions. A number of conservative Christian theologians have espoused a traditional form of Exclusivism based on the assumption that Christianity contains the one true and final revelation from God. Other thinkers however have criticised such a doctrine for its narrowness. Disenchanted with Exclusivism, they have formulated a modified Christo-centric approach — Inclusivism — which affirms the salvific presence of God in non-Christian religious while still maintaining that Christ is the definitive revelation of God. Although such a model of religious diversity is more liberal than the traditional Exclusivist stance, other Christian theologians have argued for an even greater tolerance of non-Christian religions. On their view, what is now required is a Copernican revolution in which the Divine, rather than Christ, is placed at the centre of the universe of faiths. This reflection about religious diversity can serve as the basis for a theoretical framework for assessing the Jewish response to other faiths over the centuries.