Multifaith Matters

Dr. Benno van den Toren on interfaith apologetics

Today's cosmopolitan, multicultural, and multifaith environments call for new approaches to apologetics. In order to free Christian apologetics from dominant Western habits of mind ill-suited to interreligious dialogue, we must listen and speak with both humility and confidence. In their book Humble Confidence: A Model for Interfaith Apologetics, Benno van den Toren and Kang-San Tan provide a global, intercultural introduction to Christian apologetics. Building on recent developments in apologetics and missiology, as well as their experience teaching internationally in Europe, Asia, and Africa, Van den Toren and Tan offer an approach that is conversational, patient, holistic, and embodied. Benno van den Toren unpacks this in our conversation.

Benno van den Toren (PhD, Theological University in Kampen) is professor of intercultural theology at the Protestant Theological University in Groningen, the Netherlands. He has taught in French-speaking Africa and at Wycliffe Hall at Oxford University, and his books include Christian Apologetics as Cross-Cultural Dialogue and Reasons for My Hope: Responding to Non-Christian Friends.

Benno van den Toren: https://www.pthu.nl/en/about-us/people/b.vandentoren/

Humble Confidence: A Model for Interfaith Apologetics: https://www.amazon.com/Humble-Confidence-Model-Interfaith-Apologetics/dp/0830852948/

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#BennovandenTorren #KangsanTan #interfaith #apologetics

Jack Hunter and an Anthropology of the Paranormal

Dr. Jack Hunter provides an anthropological perspective on the paranormal. Hunter is an anthropologist exploring the borderlands of ecology, religion and the paranormal. He lives in the hills of Mid-Wales with his family. He is an Honorary Research Fellow with the Alister Hardy Religious Experience Research Centre, University of Wales Trinity Saint David and a Research Fellow with the Parapsychology Foundation, New York. He is the founder and editor of Paranthropology: Journal of Anthropological Approaches to the Paranormal, the author of Spirits, Gods and Magic: An Introduction to the Anthropology of the Supernatural (2019) and Engaging the Anomalous (2018). He is the editor of Strange Dimensions: A Paranthropology Anthology (2015), Damned Facts: Fortean Essays on Religion, Folklore and the Paranormal (2016), and is co-editor with Dr. David Luke of Talking With the Spirits: Ethnographies from Between the Worlds (2014). To find out more about his work visit www.jack-hunter.webstarts.com.

Deep Weird: The Varieties of High Strangeness Experience: https://www.amazon.com/Deep-Weird-Varieties-Strangeness-Experience/dp/1786772248/

Damned Facts: Fortean Essays on Religion, Folklore, and the Paranormal: https://www.amazon.com/Damned-Facts-Religion-Folklore-Paranormal-ebook/dp/B01BRL7UUS/

Jack Hunter's Deep Weird Dialogues: https://www.youtube.com/@Discarnates

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#paranormal #JackHunter

James Keenan on Moral Theology, the New Testament and Multifaith Encounters

Moral theology provides a helpful but often neglected avenue for multifaith engagement beyond Christian emphasis upon evangelism and apologetics. James Keenan discusses the New Testament's teaching on virtue ethics, particularly humility and love, and how these can be practiced in multifaith contexts. Keenan is Vice Provost for Global Engagement and Canisius Professor, Director of The Jesuit Institute at Boston College. He is the author of several books, including one related to this conversation, Jesus and Virtue Ethics: Building Bridges Between New Testament Studies and Moral Theology, which he co-authored with Daniel Harrington. 

James Keenan: https://www.bc.edu/bc-web/schools/mcas/departments/theology/people/faculty-directory/james-keenan-sj.html

Jesus and Virtue Ethics: https://www.amazon.com/Jesus-Virtue-Ethics-Building-Testament/dp/0742549941/

You can listen to Multifaith Matters on your favorite podcast platform, including Podbean, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, and iHeart Radio.

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#moraltheology #virtueethics #NewTestamentStudies #JamesKeenan #multifaith

Stephen Bullivant on Nonverts and the Making of Ex-Christian America

One of world's leading experts on contemporary atheism and nonreligiosity, sociologist and theologian Stephen Bullivant draws on dozens of interviews, original analysis of high-quality survey data, and a wealth of cutting-edge studies, to present an entertaining and insightful exploration of America's ex-religious landscape. Bullivant holds professorial positions at St. Mary’s University, London, and the University of Notre Dame, Sydney. He has doctorates in theology and sociology. His studies of contemporary nonreligiosity have received wide international coverage, including from the BBC, New York Times, Economist, Financial Times and Der Speigel. In this episode we are discussing his book Nonverts: The Making of Ex-Christian America (OUP, 2022).

Stephen Bullivant: https://www.stmarys.ac.uk/staff-directory/stephen-bullivant

Nonverts: The Making of Ex-Christian America:  https://www.amazon.com/Nonverts-Ex-Christian-America-Stephen-Bullivant/dp/0197587445/  

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#Nones #Nonverts #StephenBullivant #atheism

Andrew Perriman and narrative-historical approaches to the gospel, salvation, hell and multifaith

What fresh possibilities open up with a narrative-historical approach to the Bible? Andrew Perriman discusses this in light of the gospel, salvation, hell, and then connecting dots to multifaith encounters. Perriman lives in London, UK. He is the author of several books, including Re: Mission: A Vision of Hope for a Post-Eschatological Church; The Future of the People of God: Reading Romans Before and After Western Christendom; End of Story: Same-Sex Relationships and the Narratives of Evangelical Mission; and his latest volume In the Form of a God: The Pre-existence of the Exalted Christ in Paul. He also published a collection of blog posts on hell and heaven called Hell and Heaven in Narrative Perspective.

Andrew Perriman's blog P.OST: https://www.postost.net/2008/10/about-me

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#AndrewPerriman #narrativehistorical #gospel #soteriology #hell #multifaith

Mohammed Dajani on rhe Israeli Palestinian Conflict

Mohammed Dajani addresses the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Dajani is a Jerusalem-born scholar and peace activist who holds two doctorate degrees. He is Founder of the Wasatia Islamic moderate movement in Palestine which he created in 2007 to promote moderation and reconciliation, peace, tolerance, and justice. He is Founder and Director of Wasatia Graduate Academic Institute.

Wasatia: http://www.wasatiamovement.com/

Our prior podcasts on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict:

Daniel Bar-Tal on the psychology of the conflict: https://youtu.be/wXf3itk4fSo

Munther Isaac and a Palestinian Christian perspective: https://youtu.be/RGxM2yegaHk

You can listen to Multifaith Matters on your favorite podcast platform, including Podbean, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, and iHeart Radio.

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 #MohammedDajani #WasatiaMovement #IsraeliPalestinianConflict

June Everett on After School Satan Clubs and a Response to Good News Clubs

June Everett is Campaign Director for the After School Club, and an ordained minister of The Satanic Temple. In this conversation she shares her personal journey, discusses the After School Satan Clubs, and responds to our prior podcast with Lydia Kaiser of Child Evangelism Fellowship and their Good News Clubs.

After School Satan Club: https://thesatanictemple.com/pages/after-school-satan

Lydia Kaiser of Child Evangelism Fellowship on the Good News Club: https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-jh7nd-13725eb

Lucien Greaves on the After School Satan Club: https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-zj835-11b1fe6

Stephen Bradford Long on The Satanic Temple: https://www.podbean.com/ew/pb-cv29w-fa8d1c

For a good academic discussion of TST see Joseph Laycock's "Speak of the Devil: How The Satanic Temple is Changing the Way We Talk About Religion" (Oxford University Press, 2020). https://www.amazon.com/Speak-Devil-Satanic-Changing-Religion/dp/0190948493

Learn more about our work at https://www.multifaithmatters.org. 

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#AfterSchoolSatan #TheSatanicTemple #Satanism #ChildEvangelismFellowship

Lydia Kaiser on the Good News Clubs and the Response of After School Satan Clubs

Lydia Kaiser, Corporate Communications Specialist for Child Evangelism Fellowship talks about the Good News Clubs in schools, and also responds to the controversy raised by the response of The Satanic Temple to the Clubs and their efforts at putting After School Satan Clubs in schools where the Clubs are present.

Good News Club at Child Evangelism Fellowship: https://www.cefonline.com/ministries/goodnewsclub/

Podcast with Lucien Greaves on After School Satan Clubs: https://johnwmorehead.podbean.com/e/lucien-greaves-of-the-satanic-temple-on-after-school-satan-clubs/

For a further exploration of these topics:

Stephen Bradford Long on The Satanic Temple: https://youtu.be/bg7TalPZ_Rs

For a good academic discussion of TST see Joseph Laycock's Speak of the Devil: How The Satanic Temple is Changing the Way We Talk About Religion (Oxford University Press, 2020) https://www.amazon.com/Speak-Devil-Satanic-Changing-Religion/dp/0190948493

Learn more about our work at https://www.multifaithmatters.org. 

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#GoodNewsClub #ChildEvangelismFellowship #AfterSchoolSatanClub

Darren Duerksen and Christ-Followers in Other Religions

In recent decades many people have begun following Christ while remaining a part of their non-Christian religious communities. These "insider" Muslims, Hindu, Buddhist, Native American, and other followers of Christ have generated much interest and controversy, particularly in Western mission agencies and churches. Darren Duerksen is our guest who discusses this topic as part of his new book "Christ-Followers in Other Religions: The Global Witness of Insider Movements." Along the way he defines things like "insider movements" and "contextualization," and "alternative missiological imaginaries," addresses questions about the definitions of "religion" and "culture," and comments on the realities of hybrid religiosity and syncretism.

Darren Duerkesen is Associate Professor of Intercultual and Religious Studies at Fresno Pacific University.
https://www.fresno.edu/person/001g000000g1rxbiau/darren-duerksen

Christ-Followers in Other Religions: The Global Witness of Insider Movements
https://www.amazon.com/Christ-Followers-Other-Religions-Witness-Movements/dp/1914454642/

Beyond Contextualization: Rethinking Religious and Cultural Boundaries
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/beyond-contextualization-rethinking-religious-and-cultural-boundaries-tickets-409911134237

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#missiology #interculturalstudies #missiology

Andrew Chesnut and Santa Muerte, the Skeleton Saint

Santa Muerte, the Skeleton Saint, is the heart of the fastest growing new religious movement in the Americas and the West. Andrew Chesnut is our guest who shares his research on the topic. Chesnut is Professor of Religious Studies, Virginia Commonwealth University. He is the author of Devoted to Death: Santa Muerte, the Skeleton Saint (Oxford University Press, 2012), the first academic study of this topic in in English.

R. Andrew Chesnut: https://vcu.academia.edu/AndrewChesnut

Additional resources on Santa Muerte: https://skeletonsaint.com/

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