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Reviewed by Farris, Senior Minister, Santa Monica First United Methodist Church, Santa Monica, CA. Religious Foundations of Western Civilization: Judaism, Christianity and Islam, edited by Jacob Neusner This nearly 700-page textbook should be in every church library and in every pastor’s study. At a time when religious tensions dominate the news, shape international policy and are the source of fear, misunderstanding and even violence at home and abroad, the careful study of the three major Western world religions is mandatory for religious leaders. The opening chapter places the context of the text in September 11, 2001, immediately demonstrating “how and why the questions in this book matter to our lives today.” Prof. Jacob Neusner’s compilation is a World Religions textbook, first developed with and for his course at Bard College. It is intended as objective description of the religious traditions that have shaped the West, rather than as advocacy for any particular faith perspective. The classical forms of Judaism, Christianity and Islam are defined and described, with particular attention to some of their important intersections in the history and culture of the West. In so doing, the authors, Jewish, Christian and Muslim scholars, employ the language of the academic study of religion to shed light on the most troubling and vexing dilemmas of our present-day social, cultural and political landscape. In this text for students and scholars, which presupposes no detailed knowledge of the three traditions, Parts One and Two present the origins and main traits of the three. Part Three places the three traditions in dialogue on common interests—society, philosophy, and mysticism. The authors’ examples of times and places in which the three traditions have worked together and enriched one another provide evocative material for reflection on our present estrangement, misunderstanding and fear. Part Four examines principal moments of conflict, from the Crusades to the Balkans, addressing issues of religion and nationalism, namely Christian imperialism, Judaic Zionism and Islamic Jihad. Part Five looks at how each of the three traditions has responded to issues of modernity. Part Six explores how each has approached questions of “the other.” Each chapter includes questions for discussion. Echoing the philosophy of Bard College itself, this text “means to foster tolerance even when fiercely held conviction concerning God is concerned.” The closing chapter of the book returns to the Sept. 11th context. Pointing to a rising Islamophobia, the author concludes with a paper written by Ali S. Asani, Professor of the Practice of Indo-Muslim Languages and Culture at Harvard University entitled: “So That You May Know One Another”: A Muslim American Reflects on Pluralism and Islam.’ Reflecting on what he sees to be a “clash of ignorances” rather than a “clash of civilizations,”,Asani quotes the Qu’ran: “O humankind, We [God] have created you male and female, and made you into communities and tribes, so that you may know one another. Surely the noblest amongst you in the sight of God is the most god-fearing of you. God is All-knowing and All-aware. (Qu’ran 49:13). It will take work and commitment to “know one another.” This important new text provides a framework from which to demonstrate that commitment and do that vital work together.
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