Overview

Masao Abe is widely acknowledged as a leader in the worldwide dialogue on Buddhism. A profound scholar of Buddhism and of Christian theology, his critical and constructive reflections culminate in the seminal essay that is the cornerstone of this volume. Seven eminent scholars respond to the challenge of Abe's construal of Kenotic God and Dynamic Sunyata. Abe demonstrates powerfully the dynamism of the Buddhist appreciation of the divine Emptiness at the heart of Being. His essay suggests how the doctrine of sunyata can provide a needed corrective to the reified understanding of God prominent in Jewish and Christian traditions. Abe opens the way for new and deeper engagement of these traditions with the wisdom of Buddhism. Leading Christian and Jewish theologians--Thomas J. J. Altizer, Eugene Borowitz, John B. Cobb, Jr., Catherine Keller, Schubert M. Ogden, Jurgen Moltmann, and David Tracy--respond to Abe's challenge. From perspectives as diverse as American feminism, post-Holocaust Judaism, process thought, and hermeneutics, they reply to Abe's proposals for considering God to be intrinsically self-emptying. Abe responds to these essays in a conclusion. Provocative and illuminating, The Emptying God shows how interfaith dialogue, at its very best, provides materials for the mutual transformation of all traditions.

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9781597524216

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Reviews

An extremely important new contribution. . . . Everyone interested in this dialogue will want to study Masao Abe's unfolding of the basic Buddhist concept of sunyata and its relation to the concept of God, and the various responses which follow. -- John Hick, author of 'The Metaphor of God Incarnate' This book is an event by taking seriously the Buddhist, Christian, and Jewish traditions at the same time. Professor Abe's work, deeply rooted in the Zen philosophy and at the same time open for dialogue, is a real challenge for Jewish-Christian thinking. The responses in this book are not a last word, but a first attempt to dialogue. -- Hans Kung, author of 'Theology for the Third Millennium: An Ecumenical View'

Author Information

John B. Cobb, Jr. is an American theologian, philosopher, and environmentalist. Described by historian Gary Dorrien as one of the two most important North American theologians of the twentieth century, Cobb is the preeminent scholar in the field of process philosophy and process theology, and the author of more than fifty books. In 2014, he was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Cobb is a founding co-director of the Center for Process Studies and Professor Emeritus of Claremont School of Theology and Claremont Graduate University. Christopher Ives is Professor of Religious Studies at Stonehill College, Easton, Massachusetts. He is also the editor of 'Divine Emptiness and Historical Fullness' (1995).

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