Religious Literacy - markdurie.com

13 Mar Divine pronouns? Let God decide

Posted at 14:28h in Faith & Worldview Blog, Faith and Culture, Identity, Religious Literacy 0 Comments

The Church of England has been asked to respond to requests from clergy to use gender-neutral pronouns for God. The question has been referred to the Church of England’s Liturgical Commission. This would be a major variation from the Book of Common Prayer, a foundational text...

16 Dec Divisive Victoria: Promotes Islam, Shuns Christianity

Posted at 20:14h in Faith & Worldview Blog, Religious Literacy, Understanding Islam 2 Comments

In the lead-up to the recent Victorian election, Premier Daniel Andrews announced grants of more than $8 million to the Victorian Islamic community. A social media video posted by his office celebrated this news in a way that can only be described as joyful. In the...

11 Aug The Quran and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion: A discussion with Mark Durie and Jonathan Cole

Posted at 08:28h in Religious Literacy, Understanding Islam 0 Comments

The following is an edited version of a ‘Political Animals’Podcast with Jonathan Cole Cole: Welcome to the Political Animals. I am your host, Jonathan Cole. I am an academic writer and translator, specializing in Political Theology, the intersection between religion and politics. Joining me in this episode...

02 Jun Islamic Antisemitism Drives the Arab-Israeli Conflict

Posted at 10:18h in Religious Literacy, Understanding Islam 1 Comment

This article was published in the Middle East Quarterly, 29(3): 1-8. An underestimated, unappreciated, and oft-denied driver of the Arab-Israeli conflict is Islamic religious antisemitism. How deeply entrenched is this religious bigotry, and can it prevent, or slow down, the nascent reconciliation between Israel and the...

12 May Whither the Australian Anglican Church?

Posted at 08:57h in Changing World, Faith & Worldview Blog, Faith and Culture, Marriage, Religious Literacy 14 Comments

A Divided Church This week the General Synod of the Australian Anglican Church has been debating what its stance is to be on human sexuality. A vote to affirm the church’s traditional position on marriage was strongly supported by clergy and laity but was narrowly rejected...

16 Nov What is Islam’s Relationship to Christianity? The Theological Analysis of the Bible and the Quran

Posted at 08:43h in Religious Literacy, Understanding Islam 0 Comments

The Quran is a book of the utmost importance and influence in the world today. It is the foundational text of Islam, and through the Islamic sharia it shapes legal systems, politics, ethics, cultures, and worship for a quarter of the world’s population. The intriguing Quran There...

06 Oct Is ‘Abrahamic’ a Useful Concept?

Posted at 09:56h in Religious Literacy, Restoring Worldviews, Understanding Islam, Video 0 Comments

In this ME Forum Webinar, Mark Durie discusses whether the figure of Abraham can be a point of unity and whether the concept ‘Abrahamic’ is a help or a hindrance to peaceful coexistence. Mark Durie is the founding director of the Institute for Spiritual Awareness, a...

26 Aug Abrahamic Dreaming: Is Abraham a Point of Unity for Islam, Christianity, and Judaism?

Posted at 09:12h in Religious Literacy, Understanding Islam 1 Comment

The expression “Abrahamic Religions” has become widely accepted in academic and popular conversations as a cover term for a genetically connected “family” of three religions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Religious Studies departments on campuses, the term has become the standard way to refer to the...