Jews and Christians: Rivals or Partners for the Kingdom of God? in Search of an Alternative for the Theology of Substitution (Louvain Theological & Pastoral Monographs, 21)

For centuries, the Christian churches and Christian theology have sought to forge their own identity by challenging the identity of Judaism. Christians often inquired whether Israel was still the people of God, whether the church had replaced Israel. An affirmative answer to the latter inquiry is often described as the "theology of substitution": the church has taken Israel's place. The implication is that there is no longer any place for Israel in God's plan of salvation. The history of Christian anti-Judaism is dramatic proof of the violent potential that is implicit in this Christian theology of substitution. After Auschwitz, the search for an alternative to this theology, a search which touches the heart of Christianity, has become a necessity. The central question of this book is whether - and how - Christianity can maintain its identity if it no longer understands itself as a substitute for Judaism. Didier Pollefeyt shows how the theme of substitution constitutes the basic theological problem for Christians in the encounter with Judaism. Bertold Klappert develops an alternative for the Christian theology of substitution by drawing on the work of Protestant theologians. Leon Klenicki offers a Jewish perspective, as he seeks to develop a theory of dialogical encounter for Jews and Christians. Terrence Merrigan reflects on the way in which the Christian rediscovery of Judaism can be significant in the light of the postmodern challenge of religious pluralism. Rik Hoet analyzes biblical metaphors which might serve as an alternative for the Christian theology of substitution.