ABSTRACT
This pioneering handbook proposes an approach to pluralism that is relational, principled, and non-relativistic, going beyond banal calls for mere "tolerance."
The growing religious diversity within societies around the world presents both challenges and opportunities. A degree of competition between deeply held religious/worldview perspectives is natural and inevitable, yet at the same time the world urgently needs engagement and partnership across lines of difference. None of the world’s most pressing problems can be solved by any single actor, and as such it is not a question of if but when you partner with an individual or institution that does not think, act, or believe as you do. The authors argue that religious literacy—defined as a dynamic combination of competencies and skills, continuously refined through real-world cross-cultural engagement—is vital to building societies and states of neighborly solidarity and civic fairness.
Through examination, reflection, and case studies across multiple faith traditions and professional fields, this handbook equips scholars and students, as well as policymakers and practitioners, to assess, analyze, and act collaboratively in a world of deep diversity.
Introduction 1. Rethinking Religious Literacy and Pluralism: Crossing Cultures, Making Covenants, and Engaging Globally Part I: What is Religious Literacy For? Philosophical and Religious Perspectives on Covenantal Pluralism 2. Covenantal Pluralism: Toward a World of Peaceable Neighborhoods 3. Covenantal Pluralism: Perspectives from Jewish History and Thought 4. Fratelli Tutti, Lessons Learned from Interreligious Action, and the Catholic Church 5. Are Calvinists for Pluralism? The Politics and Practice of a Protestant Possibility 6. Deed Over Idea: Toward a Shared Caliphate 7. Hinduism, Insular Pluralism, and Religious Literacy 8. The Elephant in the Room: Buddhist Religious Exclusivism and Prospects for Covenantal Pluralism 9. Isomorphism, Syncretism, and Poly-ontological Dynamics: The Implications of Chinese Religion for Covenantal Pluralism 10. On Neutrality and the Nones: Secular Humanism, Covenantal Pluralism, and "Religious" Literacy PART II: Who Needs Religious Literacy? Perspectives on Professional Fields 11. Religious Literacy and K-12 Education 12. Religious Literacy and Higher Education 13. International Studies, Religion, and Cross-Cultural Religious Literacy 14. Religious Literacy in Development and Humanitarian Relief 15. Religious Literacy and Diplomacy 16. Religious Literacy, Chaplaincy, and Spiritual Care 17. Corporate Religious Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion as Covenantal Pluralism 18. Religious Literacy and Social Services 19. Religious Literacy and American Journalism: A Charge to Public Service PART III: Where Can Religious Literacy and Covenantal Pluralism Make a Difference? Case Studies and Practitioner Perspectives 20. Engagement & Embrace—from Apartheid to Democracy: A Reflection on Rupture and a Toolkit for Transition 21. The Secularism Paradox: Living with Deep Difference in the Middle East 22. Two Steps Forward, One Step Back: Prospects for Covenantal Pluralism in Laos and Vietnam 23. Cross-Cultural Religious Literacy, Competencies, and Skills: An Indonesian Experience 24. ‘Salad Bowl’ Secularism: India’s Covenant to Preserve Pluralism 25. Religious Literacy and Pakistan’s Pluralist Potential 26. Geo-Religious Literacy, Orthodoxy, and Plurality in Russia: Prospects for Covenantal Pluralism 27. Transition and Transformation in Western Europe: Possibilities for Covenantal Pluralism 28. Religious Literacy, Racial Literacy, and Latin America’s Overdue Reckoning with Deep Diversity 29. Cross-Cultural Religious Literacy and Pluralist Leadership in the United States 30. Understanding—and Bridging—Religious Liberty Tribalism: A Case Study in Talking About Muslims’ Rights with Christian Conservatives in America 31. Seeking a Virtuous Feedback Loop: Robust Pluralism and Civic Engagement in the United States 32. Fairness as a Path Forward on LGBTQ Rights and Religious Liberty 33. From the Pulpit to Pluralism: A Personal Reflection
