Paul O. Ingram

That We May Know Each Other: The Pluralist Hypothesis as a Research Program

When an African American Muslim named Siraj Wahaj served as the first Muslim “Chaplain of the Day” in the Unites States House of Representatives on 25 June 1991 he offered the following prayer, the first Muslim prayer in the in the history of the House of Representatives: In the name of God, Most Gracious, Most merciful. Praise belongs to thee alone; O God, Lord and Creator of all the worlds. Praise belongs to Thee Who shaped us as and colored us in the wombs of our mothers; colored us black and white, brown, red, and yellow. Praise belongs to Thee who created us from males and females and made us into nations and tribes that we may know each other.1

The modern Buddhist-Christian dialogue : two universalistic religions in transformation

A discussion of contemporary Buddhist-Christian dialogue between process theologians and Pure Land Buddhists, this study analyzes their transformation and theological structures in the post-Christian era of religious and secular pluralism.

Review Essay: Buddhists Talk about Jesus, Christians Talk about the Buddha

Buddhists have been talking about Jesus and Christians have been talking about the Buddha from the earliest times of Buddhist-Christian encounter in the first century.1 My educated guess is that until 1980, most of the talk was monological rather than dialogical for cultural and historical reasons peculiar to both traditions. But after the first “East-West Religions in Encounter” meeting, organized by David Chappell in the summer of 1980 at the University of Hawai‘i, the nature of Buddhist-Christian conversation changed from a monologue to a systematic twenty-year dialogue. The initial “East-West Religions in Encounter” conference has now evolved into the Society for Buddhist-Christian Studies. The publication in the society’s journal, BuddhistChristian Studies, of a series of essays and responses edited by the journal’s coeditors, Rita M. Gross and Terry C. Muck, entitled “Jesus Christ Through Buddhist Eyes and Gautama the Buddha Through Christian Eyes” is evidence of just how far BuddhistChristian dialogue has evolved since 1980.2 These same essays were republished by Continuum Publications under the title, Buddhists Talk About Jesus, Christians Talk About the Buddha.3 The selection of the contributors was guided by a common editorial conviction. In Gross’s words:

In Memoriam: David Wellington Chappell (1940-2004)

David Wellington Chappell died of heart failure on December 2, 2004, in Laguna Hills, California. He was a well-known teacher-scholar in Buddhist Studies and the principal founder of the Society for Buddhist-Christian Studies (1987), as well as the founding editor of the Society’s journal, Buddhist-Christian Studies. He received his B.A. degree from Mount Allison University, his B.D. from McGill University, and his Ph.D. in history of religions from Yale University. David’s academic specialty was the Chinese Buddhist tradition. He published significant work on T’ien-t’ai Buddhism, including Buddhist and Taoist Practice in Medieval Chinese Society, T’ien-t’ai Buddhism: An Outline of the Fourfold Teachings, Buddhist Peace Work: Creating Cultures of Peace, and Unity in Diversity: Hawaii’s Buddhist Communities. He was emeritus professor of religion at the University of Hawai‘i, where he taught for more than thirty years, before assuming a position as professor of comparative studies at Soka University of America in 2000. Always interested in balancing scholarship and teaching, David was the recipient of a number of grants in support of his work, including grants from the Hung-Wo and Elizabeth Lao Ching Foundation, the University of Hawai‘i Institute for Peace, the Japanese Studies Foundation, the Niwano Peace Foundation (Tokyo), and the Lilly Foundation. In the last few years of his life he was also actively engaged in Buddhist-Muslim dialogue in Asia, Europe, and North America, working with Dharma Master Hsin Tao, founder of the Museum of World Religions in Taiwan. David is survived by his wife, Stella Chappell; daughters Cindy Rice, Laura Demitria, Gwen Demitria, and Jeanne Barnes; and son Mark Chappell. He is also survived by five grandchildren and his brother, Gordon Chappell. A celebration of David’s life was held during the Society for Buddhist-Christian Studies Seventh International Conference at Loyola Marymont University, Los Angeles, June 3–8, 2005.