The Jesus Dialogues

Jesus Speaks with Religious Founders and Leaders

Hill

• Publisher: Resource Publications
• Year: 2015
• eBook ISBN: 9781498219112
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Religion

The Jesus Dialogues is a unique book. There is no other book that uses this interesting dialogue method to contrast and compare such an extensive number of religions. In each chapter, Jesus sits down with both women and men religious founders and leaders and talks with them on an equal basis about religious perspectives, past and present. The book is a thorough overview of Christianity, compared and contrasted with eight other religions as well as selected indigenous religions. A final chapter deals with the "why" and "how" of interfaith dialogue, which is so needed in today's diverse and global society.This book reflects the author's six decades of study and teaching in the areas of Christianity and world religions. It is based on sound scholarship, worldwide travel, and experience in interfaith dialogue. The Jesus Dialogues demonstrates that there is truth and a way to ultimacy in all religions. At the same time, listening in on these conversations reveals significant differences among religions. These dialogues help one realize that Gandhi was right when he said that we must listen to all religions in order to obtain just a glimpse of the divine.

Chapter 1

Judaism

Jesus with Moses and Miriam

Can a woman forget her nursing child,or show no compassion for the child of her womb?Even these may forget,yet I will not forget you.

—Isa 49:15 (Emphasis added.)

As he went ashore he saw a great crowd: and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.

—Mark 6:34 (Emphasis added.)

Jesus: Moses, I am so delighted to meet you and your sister, Miriam—both great prophets of my religion. You know, I am sure, that I was born a Jew and died a Jew. I have always honored you as a leader of my religion. It saddens me that our two traditions separated from each other. My desire was to reform my own religion rather than begin a new one.

Moses: Jesus, we too are honored to meet you and to sit here on this hillside overlooking Jerusalem, an important city for many religions. Miriam and I have always been close. As you know, when I was a baby, she put me in a basket to be saved from Pharaoh’s wrath. Miriam arranged that our mother, Jochebed, be hired as a nurse in the court. Later, Miriam played a prominent role in our exodus from Egypt and led the celebration when we crossed the Red Sea to gain freedom.

Jesus: I am pleased to be with you, Miriam. My beloved mother has the same name! I am always glad to see women counted among the prophets. You too bear the Spirit of God and bring forth God’s revelation. My apostle Paul also spoke of women as prophets in the early Christian communities.

Moses: You mentioned that you did not want to start a new religion, but wanted to reform Judaism. It grieves me also that my people now have a separate religion from yours and that there exists such deep division and misunderstanding among many of our followers. Over the centuries, Jews have suffered such horrible persecutions from Christians! We must discuss this regrettable history in more detail later.

Jesus: Please share some of your story with me, Moses.

Moses: As you know, Judaism began long before me, though I lived more than a thousand years before you were born. Our father Abraham, our great originating patriarch, lived possibly thousands of years before me.

We might review our stories for those who are listening to our dialogue. As Torah reveals, Abram (his original name) was called by God to leave his land of Ur (probably in Iraq) and go to a foreign land, where he would begin a great nation and bless all the communities on earth.

Abram must have been a man of great faith because he picked up his family and traveled until he came to the land of Canaan. There God changed Abram’s name to Abraham and made a solemn covenant with him that is still the centerpiece of our religion: “And I will give to you, and to your offspring after you, the land where you are now an alien, all the land of Canaan, for a perpetual holding; and I will be their God” (Gen 17:8). Henceforth, we would view ourselves as a chosen people, and our male children would be circumcised as a sign of this sacred covenant.

Jesus: I want my followers to see themselves as a chosen people also, but not in any exclusive sense. “Christians,” as they now name themselves, are called to proclaim to all people that they are chosen to be in a covenant with the Creator as God’s beloved people.

Moses: Yes, but often your followers have thought that the so-called “New Testament” replaced our “Old Testament” and viewed Jews as in need of conversion. Vatican Council II changed that thinking and now your covenant is described as being in continuity with ours. And, of course, Islam is included in what is termed the Abrahamic religions, the People of the Book. All of us need to alert people everywhere that they are God’s people.

Miriam: Well, let’s go on with our story. You men tend to be too theoretical. Religion is about people. According to our faith stories, Abraham and his wife Sarah had a son Isaac, who in turn with his wife Rebekah had two sons, Esau and Jacob. The latter’s name was changed to Israel, and his sons generated the twelve tribes of Israel. This marks the beginning of a new people founded by these fathers and mothers, beginning with Abraham and Sarah. One of Jacob’s sons, Joseph, was sold into Egypt. He prospered there. During a famine, he welcomed Jacob and his family into Egypt where they all thrived.1

Moses: And that is when I came into the picture. Torah tells of a new pharaoh coming into power who enslaved the Israelites. At one point, he decided to kill all our babies. So to save me, Miriam put me in a basket and set me afloat in the bushes along the Nile. As she watched, I was retrieved by Pharaoh’s daughter and taken to the palace, where I was raised in courtly comfort. As a young man, I was strong and impetuous. At one point, I got into serious trouble for killing an Egyptian who was abusing a Jew. I fled to the desert, where I lived as a shepherd for a number of decades.

Jesus: There is a similar story surrounding my birth when Herod slaughtered innocent babies after hearing that a new king was born. My stepfather Joseph was alerted in a dream to take me into Egypt so that my life could be saved.

Moses: As the story goes, one day God suddenly spoke to me from a burning bush and directed me to return to Egypt and free my people. It was a scary mission, but I followed God’s command and returned to Egypt. For quite some time, I was unable to persuade pharaoh to let my people go. It was only after a series of disasters and the death of Egypt’s firstborns that the pharaoh decided to capitulate.

Soon after we left, the pharaoh sent troops after us, but their chariots got mired in the quicksand of the sea where we had crossed safely. This was our “Passover,” and our people still celebrate this event every year.

Jesus: It is heartening to hear your firsthand account of those ancient times. I have so many treasured memories of celebrating Passover with my family and then later with my disciples. My last supper with my disciples was in fact a Passover dinner, which I transformed into a commemoration of my death on the cross the next day. Since that time, my disciples have celebrated that sacred meal in my memory, as I had asked them.

Moses: After my people escaped Egypt, we wandered in the desert for forty years. Those were trying times with much hardship over which my people complained a great deal. But God was always with us. At one point, on a mountain called Sinai, God gave me the Law, the Commandments, to show my people how to live good lives.

Jesus: My followers still cherish the commandments, Moses. And you are recognized as a great leader. Some even refer to me as the “new Moses.”

Moses: Thank you, Jesus. It really upset me that after all my work for my people, God did not deem me worthy to enter the Promised Land. It broke my heart that I had to die without ever being able to see my dream fulfilled in the land of Canaan. Nonetheless, there is some consolation in the recognition accorded me by my people who still hold me up as their greatest prophet, liberator, and lawgiver.

Jesus: I cherish this sacred history, Moses. When I was young I remember those wonderful family gatherings on our rooftop, where it was cool, and we would talk about times past. I remember being taught that Saul united the tribes and became the first king. He wasn’t keen on David, that young upstart shepherd who gained recognition by killing the Philistine, Goliath. Saul drove David out of the country. Then, when Saul died, David returned and became our greatest king. His son Solomon was the next king, who consolidated and organized the nation. He also built the first Temple and has been recognized for his wisdom.

Miriam: Indeed. We honor David as our greatest king, and his sayings and prayers have always been a source of inspiration. I know that y...

Table of contents

• Title Page
• Introduction
• Acknowledgments
• Chapter 1: Judaism
• Chapter 2: Islam
• Chapter 3: Hinduism
• Chapter 4: Buddhism
• Chapter 5: Jainism
• Chapter 6: Sikhism
• Chapter 7: Taoism
• Chapter 8: Confucianism
• Chapter 9: Indigenous Religions
• Chapter 10: Interfaith Dialogue
• Epilogue
• Bibliography