The Centre for Interfaith & Cultural Dialogue at Griffith University will present Prof. Douglas Pratt speaking on the topic of ‘The problem of extremism in Judaism, Christianity and Islam’ at the Nathan Campus on the 17th of July, 2018.
Impositional Religion: The problem of extremism in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam
Presented by Douglas Pratt, PHD, DTHEOL
Douglas Pratt recently retired as Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Waikato, New Zealand. He is a Research Team Leader on the Christian-Muslim Relations: A Bibliographical History 1500-1900 project based at the University of Birmingham, UK.
Prof. Pratt is widely published in the fields of Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations, interreligious dialogue, and contemporary issues such as Islamophobia, religious pluralism and extremism, Douglas’ most recent book is Religion and Extremism: Rejecting Diversity (Bloomsbury, 2018).
Keep reading to discover what Douglas Pratt will be covering on the night:
“Religious extremism is perhaps one of the most pernicious and troublesome among the many challenges with which we human beings, in our diverse societies and nations, are confronted. Today we are witness to many violent reactions to all sorts of diversity, be it religious, ethnic, gender or cultural diversity. All too often this is grounded in a religious ideology.
While by no means the only causal element, religion, or rather religious ideologies, especially when taken and applied in what can only be described as an ‘extreme’ fashion, is undeniably a major component in many situations of conflict and strife. It would seem that, whereas the twentieth century opened the door to interfaith dialogue and allied engagements, the new century is thus far an age of extremism, with the accompanying phenomenon of religiously motivated terrorism as all too often a feature of this extremism.
An impositional religious absolutism of one sort or another, often identified as ‘fundamentalism’, seems to lie at the root of many of the problems that puzzle the world today. Following some opening remarks to set the scene, my presentation will explore elements of extremism that are embedded in the texts, histories, and contemporary manifestations of the three so-called Abrahamic, or monotheistic, faiths: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.”
Event Details
Program: Prof. Douglas Pratt presents: ‘The problem of extremism in Judaism, Christianity and Islam’
Date: 17th July, 2018
Time: 7:00PM
Location: Centre for Interfaith & Cultural Dialogue, Nathan Campus, Griffith University
Address: 170 Kessels Road, Nathan, 4111
Cost: Free
Bookings: to icd@griffith.edu.au.
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