Real Religious Pluralism and a Process for Understanding

By Gary Boelhower.

Published by The International Journal of the Humanities

Many who hold a pluralistic perspective on faith have been criticized for taking an "identist" view which reduces the pluralism of diverse traditions to a multiplicity of expressions of one reality and one "salvation." John Cobb, on the other hand, takes a perspective that has been called "deep" pluralism, recognizing the real differences in understanding ultimate reality and religious experience. Based on the Whiteheadian understanding of diverse structures of human exisence and the multiplicity of ultimates, Cobb both recognizes the validity of other faith traditions and continues to assert the uniqueness of his Christian faith. How does such a pluralistic perspective not lapse into relativism? Based on Cobb's theory of pluralism and its Whiteheadian foundations, I will present Cobb's perspective that Christ is the incarnation of the Logos as creative transformation and, thus, Christianity requires an interfaith process of deep listening and openness to transformation. Criteria for identifying authentic creative transformation will be identified.

The International Journal of the Humanities, Volume 5, Issue 7, pp.175-182. Article: Print (Spiral Bound). Article: Electronic (PDF File; 502.615KB).

Dr. Gary Boelhower

Chairperson, Department of Theology and Religious Studies, The College of St. Scholastica, Duluth, Minnesota, USA