True and Holy: Christian Scripture and Other Religions

Traditionally Christians have read the scriptures of other religions through a hermeneutic of hostility, and interpreted interreligious relationships in light of sharp scriptural condemnations of idolatry and idolaters, often with deadly consequences. In recent decades, however, Catholics and many other Christians have undergone a major shift in relations with other religious traditions and in biblical interpretation. This new hermeneutics of generosity seeks instead to uncover what can be learned from other holy texts and the communities that treasure them, and also seeks to find common ground on important issues such as human rights and religious liberty.

Leo D. Lefebure is Matteo Ricci professor of theology at Georgetown University. His books include The Path of Wisdom: A Christian Commentary on the Dhammapada (recipient of the 2011 Frederick J. Streng Book of the Year Award from the Society for Buddhist-Christian Studies), Revelation, the Religions and Violence (Pax Christi Book Award winner), The Buddha and the Christ, Life Transformed: Meditations on the Christian Scriptures in Light of Buddhist Perspectives, and Toward a Contemporary Wisdom Christology: A Study of Karl Rahner and Norman Pittenger. He is a trustee of the Council for a Parliament of the World's Religions.