The Community of Believers offers the proceedings of the 2013 Building Bridges seminar, a dialogue between leading Christian and Muslim scholars under the stewardship of Georgetown University.
These essays consider such themes as the Church as mystical body of Christ versus the Church as proclamation; the roots and uses of the term ummah and its development over time; Christian desires for communion, experiences of division, and approaches to unity; the history of Muslim disunity; twentieth-century Christian ecclesiology and its responses to a post-Christendom and post-Christian world; and the Arab Spring as a case study for contemplating accommodationism, conservatism, reformism, and fundamentalism as Muslim strategies to address the pressures of modernism. The volume also includes texts and commentaries used in the seminar’s discussions of each topic and a concluding essay summarizing the tone, content, and style of participant exchanges throughout the seminar.
Table of Contents
Participants
Introduction
Part I: The Nature and Purpose of the Community
The Nature and Purpose of the Christian Community (the Church)
The Nature and Purpose of the Community (Ummah) in the Qur’an
Scripture Dialogue I: God’s People Israel and the Church
Scripture Dialogue II: The Umma and Earlier Religious Communities
Scripture Dialogue III: The Nature and Purpose of the Church
Scripture Dialogue IV: The Nature and Purpose of the Umma
Part II: Unity and Disunity in the Life of the Community
Perspectives on Christian Desires for Communion and Experiences of Division (or, The History of the Church in Half a Chapter!)
Unity and Disunity in the Life of the Muslim Community
Scripture Dialogue V: Unity and Disunity in the Church
Scripture Dialogue VI: Unity and Disunity in the Umma
Part III: Continuity and Change in the Life of the Community
Continuity and Change in the Life of the Community: Muslims’ Changing Attitudes to Change
The Christian Church Facing Itself and Facing the World: An Ecumenical Overview of Modern Christian Ecclesiology
Scripture Dialogue VII: Continuity and Change in the Church
Scripture Dialogue VIII: Continuity and Change in the Umma
Part IV: Reflection
Conversations in Doha
Index
Reviews
"The strengths of these volumes are numerous. . . . The Building Bridges seminar stands as a sign of hope for future engagement."—Biblioteca
"The Community of Believers is the twelfth volume in what is arguably the most important extended series of scriptural and theological interfaith conversations: the Building Bridges seminars, originated by the Archbishop of Canterbury and now supported by Georgetown University."—Dr. Pim Valkenberg, The Catholic University of America
"Understanding one another is key to building stronger Christian/Muslim bonds. This volume of essays and associated religious texts provides a basis for dialogue in three timely areas of Christian/Muslim relations all focusing on issues of community. The format of the book provides readers with a strong source for developing new conversations between Christians and Muslims as well as bringing new topics to bear on existing dialogue efforts."—Zeki Saritoprak, Director, Bediüzzaman Said Nursi Chair in Islamic Studies, John Carroll University
Contributors
Ahmet Alibašić Gavin D'Costa Brandon Gallaher Lucy Gardner Feras Hamza Lucinda Mosher Abdullah Saeed
About the Author
Lucinda Mosher is faculty associate in interfaith studies and director of the Multifaith Chaplaincy Program at the Hartford Seminary and assistant academic director of the Building Bridges Seminar.
David Marshall is associate professor of the practice of Christian-Muslim relations at Duke Divinity School and academic director of the Building Bridges seminar.
