Beyond Babel: Religion and Linguistic Pluralism

ISBN-13: 9783031421266 / Angielski / Twarda / 2023

Opis

This volume is the first attempt to investigate explicitly how the multiplicity of religions and forms of spirituality interconnect with the pluralism of languages, including scientific codes, formal languages, and artistic expressions. In a journey “beyond Babel”, the volume explores how religious and linguistic pluralisms enter into polyphonic relations, how they co-evolve and grow together, and why they clash. 

This text provides the setting for a dialogue on a rich variety of religious languages and traditions, including Hinduism, Judaism, Islam, Jainism, and Christianity. The chapters explore how these traditions can venture into new interreligious paths, how sacred meanings translate into vernacular speeches, how religious identities and scientific notions interacts, what role emotional expressions play in interfaith encounters, and the impact of Artificial Intelligence on beliefs.

The book is authored by esteemed senior scholars, established researchers, and exceptional junior doctorate holders whose expertise spans across religious studies, the history of science, philosophy, fine arts, theology, linguistics, computer science, and legal studies. This volume contributes to interfaith studies and teaching, to sociology and philosophy of religion, and to the history and anthropology of religion and the sacred arts. It is intended to reach students, researchers, instructors, and professionals alike.

Spis treści

Introduction

Chapter 1. Beyond Babel: Interconnecting Religions and Languages, Andrea Vestrucci, Graduate Theological Union, USA.

 

Conceptual Orientations

Chapter 2. Divine Language, Graham Oppy, Monash University, Australia.

Chapter 3. The Oscillation Paradigm in Interreligious Dialogue, Stanislaw Krajewsky, University of Warsaw, Poland.

Chapter 4. Religious Language, Silence, and Scientific Imagination, Yiftach Fehige, University of Toronto, Canada.

 

Interreligious and Intertextual Gatherings

Chapter 5. On the Power of Imperfect Words: An Inquiry into the Revelatory Power of One Hindu Verse, Francis X. Clooney, Harvard University, USA.

Chapter 6. Interreligious Empathy and Linguistic Plurality, Catherine Cornille, Boston College, USA.

Chapter 7. Beyond Comparisons to Contemplative Theology, Pravina Rodriguez, Graduate Theological Union, USA.

Chapter 8. Religious Reformation and Arabic Language in Colonian India, Mashal Saif, Clemson University, USA.

 

Living Religions, Living Speeches, Living Texts

Chapter 9. Knowledge from words: text, tradition and authority in Indian Thought-Tradition. Purushottama Bilimoria, University of Melbourne, Australia, and Graduate Theological Union, USA.

Chapter 10. (Re)Connecting Analytic Philosophy and Empirical Research. The Example of Ritual Speech Acts and Religious Collectivities. Andrea Rota, University of Bern, Switzerland.

Chapter 11. Jainism and Sanscrit Language. Marie-Hélène Gorisse, University of Ghent, Belgium.

Chapter 12. “Expression to Our Christmas Feeling”: Imagining Familial Religion in Schleiermacher. Daniel Weidner, University of Halle-Wittenbeg, Germany.

 

Religious and Scientific Codes

Chapter 13. Islamic Geometries: Spiritual Language against a Secularist Grid. Wendy Shaw, Free University of Berlin, Germany.

Chapter 14. Scientific and Religious Discourses in COVID-19 Pandemic. Flavia Marcacci and Massimiliano Padula, Pontifical University Latenanensis, Italy.

Chapter 15. Theological Discourse as Scientific Discourse. Elisabeth Maikranz, University of Heidelberg, Germany.

Chapter 16. Religion and Science in Victorian Alchemic Practices. Ingrid Malm, University of Uppsala, Sweden.

Chapter 17. Mathematics Declaring the Glory of God. Volker Kessler, University of South Africa.

 

Religions in a Technological World

Chapter 18. A Simplified Variant of Gödel’s Ontological Argument. Christoph Benzmüller, Free University of Berlin, Germany.

Chapter 19. Human Dignity after the Human. Zachary Calo, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar.

Chapter 20. (Online) Spelling the (Digital) Spell: Talking About Magic in the Digital Revolution. Lionel Obadia, University of Lyon 2, France.

Chapter 21. Religious Belief and Complex Systems. Sara Lumbreras, Pontifical University    Comillas, Spain.

 

Religious Limits of Language

Chapter 22. Ineffability: Its Origins and Problems. Anselm Ramelow, Dominican School of Philosophy and Theology, USA.

Chapter 23. Would We Speak if We Hadn’t to Die?. Hans-Christoph Askani, University of Geneva, Switzerland.

Chapter 24. Paradox and Diagonalization. Andrea Vestrucci, Graduate Theological Union, USA.

 

O autorze

Andrea Vestrucci teaches and conducts research for the Department of Applied Computer Science at the University of Bamberg, Germany (Chair of AI Systems Engineering). He is also a Research Professor at Starr King School, Oakland, CA, and a Privat-Dozent at the University of Geneva. He dovetails the philosophical and computational approaches to Artificial Intelligence by exploring metaphysical arguments and cognitive models in automated reasoning environments. He focuses on ethical issues raised by intelligent systems in interaction with groups and communities’ values and decision-making processes. Formerly Professor at the Federal University of Ceará, Brazil, and Researcher at UC Berkeley (Consortium for Interdisciplinary Research), he is the recipient of the Australian Award, and a laureate of the Academic Society of Geneva.