Passing on the Faith: Transforming Traditions for the Next Generation of Jews, Christians, and Muslims (Abrahamic Dialogues) - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0823226484 ISBN 13: 9780823226481

Publisher: Fordham University Press, 2007

Synopsis

From the beginning, the Abrahamic faiths―Judaism, Christianity, and Islam―have stressed the importance of transmitting religious identity from one generation to the next. Today, that sustaining mission has never been more challenged. Will young people have a faith to guide them? How can faith traditions anchor religious attachments in this secular, skeptical culture?

The fruit of a historic gathering of scholars and religious leaders across three faiths and many disciplines, this important book reports on the religious lives of young people in today’s world. It’s also a unique inventory of creative and thoughtful responses from churches, synagogues, and mosques working to keep religion a significant force in those lives.

The essays are grouped thematically. Opening the book, Melchor Sanchez de Toca and Nancy Ammerman explore fundamental issues that have an impact on religion―from the cultural effects of global consumerism and personal technology to pluralism and individualism.

In Part Two, leading investigators present three leading studies of religiosity among young people and college students in the United States, illuminating the gap between personal values and organized religion―and the emergence of new, different forms of spirituality and faith.

How religious institutions deal with these challenges forms the heart of the book―in portraits of “best practices” developed to revitalize traditional institutions, from a synagogue in New York City and a Muslim youth camp in California to the famed French Catholic community of the late Brother John of Taizé. Finally, Jack Miles and Diane Winston weave the findings into a broader perspective of the future of religious belief, practice, and feeling in a changing world.

Filled with real-world wisdom, Passing the Faith will be an essential resource for anyone seeking to understand what religions must, and can, do to inspire a vigorous faith in the next generation.

About this title

About the Author

James L. Heft, S.M., is President and Founding Director of the Institute for Advanced Catholic Studies and University Professor of Faith and Culture and Chancellor, University of Dayton. He edited Believing Scholars: Ten Catholic Intellectuals and Beyond Violence: Religious Sources for Social Transformation in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam for Fordham.

Review

A valuable resource for those seeking to understand what religions must, and can, do to inspire a vigorous faith in the next generation. (―Dialogue and Alliance)

In addition to all the success stories in Passing on the Faith, there is also a lot of concern about cultural circumstances that challenge the communication and formation of Christian, Jewish, and Muslim identity―including the circumstances of religious diversity and pluralism. . . (―Commonweal)

A substantial contribution to the discussion of the faith of the young in contemporary society. (―Theological Studies)

. . .An excellent resource the should be read by anyone interested in youth and the continuity of religious tradition. (―America)

Particularly helpful for those of us who are trying to think through the meaning of emerging adulthood for communities of faith. (―Books & Culture)

About this edition

• Publisher: Fordham University Press
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 0823226484
• ISBN 13: 9780823226481
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 334
• Editor: James L. Heft