A Tapestry of Faiths: The Common Threads Between Christianity and World Religions

by Winfried Corduan

Christians find themselves in an increasingly diverse world. The new place of worship in our neighborhood might just as likely be a Hindu temple or a Muslim mosque as a church or a synagogue. How should we view other world religions, and more important, how should we engage our religiously oriented neighbors in conversation? Do all religions teach the same thing? Or are there significant differences? Do we try to minimize differences and just get along? Or do we hold out the Christian faith as the one true hope for all the world? Drawing on his wide experience and knowledge of other religions and how they are actually lived, Winfried Corduan helps us sort through the complex tapestry of faiths around the globe. He contends that there are common threads of understanding that can serve to link us in meaningful discussion. From these common threads we can go on to explore genuine differences. Through the course of the book, Corduan leads readers to explore the important issues of revelation and truth, morality and guilt, grace and redemption, eschatology and hope. Ultimately, Jesus Christ, he argues, stands unique among religious figures and Christianity unique among the world's religions. This is a book that strengthens Christians in their convictions while encouraging them to engage their neighbors with humility, loved, and discernment.

Genres: Religion

246 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2002

Reviews

[Doug · Rating 4 out of 5]

Corduan is a treasure to the evangelical community, from my perspective. I enjoy his writings in general, but found this book helpful as I completed some course requirements for a seminary degree. Corduan's perspective is unique in my own experience in that he writes from a well-informed religious perspective. As a philosopher of religion, he's able to analytically evaluate religious faiths epistemologically, metaphysically, and ethically. He obviously studies diligently, but also has some language expertise to boot. Needless to say, this is helpful today for the simple reason that religions are ignorantly lumped together, without much discernment (because of lazing intellectual marginalization in many instances). Corduan does a good job of making other faiths accessible for those less knowledgable (like myself), distilling what makes them click, while trying to genuinely represent them as well as he can from his Christian point of view. He unapologetically stands in the evangelical tradition (his book No Doubt About It comes to mind), while distinguishing between what is truly similar and what is not.