Jesper Svartvik

Jewish-Christian Relations

The academic study of ethics, in light of the experience of the Holocaust, has seen rapid development in the last decade. In addition to research into ethical decision making during the Holocaust itself in such volumes as Rab Bennetts Under the Shadow of the Swastika: The Moral Dilemmas of Resistance and Collaboration in Hitlers Europe, more general reflections on the significance of the Holocaust for contemporary ethics have come to the fore from Jewish and Christian scholars alike. There have also been those such as Herbert Hirsch who have questioned whether we can learn anything from the Holocaust in terms of the moral challenges facing us today given the sui generis nature of that event as well as the immense complexity of modern society.

Religious Stereotyping and Interreligious Relations

Religion can heal, but it can hurt as well. This collection of essays addresses some key issues of religious stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination, and considers a wide range of important topics which haunt our societies today. When stereotyping becomes the oxygen we inhale, when it is so important to us that we cannot see how we can survive without it - what can and should we do? Twenty-two scholars from Australia, Europe, the Middle East and North America explore the anatomy of various forms of stereotyping and ways to oppose them.

Christian-Muslim Relations

Pre-requisite course(s) N/a Co-requisite course(s) N/a Prohibited combination N/a Course aims To present the ways in which Islam has responded to the religious “other” and specifically to Christianity from its origins to modern times; To show the significance of the figure of Jesus/Isa in Islam; To examine how the impact on Islam of modernity has affected its attitude to Christianity and Christians; To address central issues of doctrinal disagreement between the two religions from a theological perspective; To engage with Christian thought on Islam; To appreciate the contemporary context of Christian-Muslim relations in contemporary Europe. Learning outcomes Knowledge and understanding: Students will be able to:

The Theology of Land in Jewish-Christian Relations and Its Role in Misunderstandings between Jews and Christians

Without sufficient knowledge of the painful history of Jewish-Christian apologetics and polemics, commencing already in late antiquity and continuing to medieval times, one easily fails to recognize the complexities of current Christian approaches to the Land, now known as Israel and/or Palestine. The purpose of this chapter is to examine the interplay of theology and politics, and especially to reflect on theology of religions, i.e., the discipline which seeks to account theologically for the meaning and value of other religious traditions, not necessarily only, as has often been the case in history, as a problem, but also as a promise and a possibility for a renewed self-understanding.

Stumbling Block or Stepping Stone? On the Reception History of Hebrews 8:13

This article develops ideas presented in a volume to be published by T&T Clark/Continuum, i.e., it traces the extraordinary reception history of Hebrews 8:13, from its original apocalyptical setting to how it is currently used in apologetical contexts.