Religion and Dialogue in Modern Societies: Possibilities, Challenges, and Limitations of Interreligious Dialogue, with a Focus on Dialogue in Theology and Education

The growing religious pluralisation of modern societies has placed the question of religions and dialogue at the centre of public and academic attention. There is an ambivalence: On the one hand, violence and terrorism of individuals or groups, using religion as justification, shows the destructive potential of religions and their instrumentalization. On the other hand, interreligious dialogue contributes to peaceful coexistence of people with different cultural and religious backgrounds, and thus offers non-violent alternatives to the polarizing effects of difference. Research in this field has intensified in the past 20 years. However, an integration of analyses done in theologies of world religions, in social sciences and education is lacking. Further, there is a need for analyses that integrate results of research comparing different contexts. In addition to studies in the northern hemisphere, other contexts, such as South Africa and southern Africa, can provide valuable perspectives. On the basis of the international research project “Religions and Dialogue in Modern Societies” (ReDi), which I directed at the Academy of World Religions of the Universität Hamburg (Germany) from 2013 to 2018, my intended work as a fellow at STIAS will contribute to overcoming these deficits.