Publisher's Synopsis
Christians and Muslims, bound together in a dialogue of life, give expression to the wideness of God's hospitality and grapple with the difficulties as well as the richness and promises that a shared life brings. In a world where religious and cultural differences often lead to conflict it has become increasingly important to search for missiological responses that can assist in the building of inclusive communities and forging of bonds of respect and understanding. Helen Richmond draws on the lived experience of Muslims and Christians in interfaith marriages in Indonesia and Australia, whose lives embody a living dialogue between two religious traditions, to offer a fresh approach to our understanding of Christian mission and Muslim da'wah. The narratives and testimonies of the couples in this study invite the question of whether Muslims and Christians who have viewed each other as intimidating opponents might instead regard each other as fellow pilgrims and partners in God's work in the world. The narratives and testimonies of the couples in this study invite the question of whether Muslims and Christians who have viewed each other as intimidating opponents might instead regard each other as fellow pilgrims and partners in God's work in the world. This book makes a substantive contribution to theological, and specifically missiological knowledge and will make an important point of reference for further research in the area of interfaith marriage in particular and to wider issues of Christian mission and interfaith engagement more widely. There is much that can be quarried from this insightful study. Professor Douglas Pratt, University of Waikato Helen Richmond demonstrates considerable originality in the subject area and in the methodology used in field research and interactions with the couples interviewed. She has the advantage of being fluent in Indonesian thereby having access to the worlds of Indonesian-language couples. The work she has done on the history of Islam and Christianity in Indonesia and Australia in relation to marriage is impressive and her arguments are cogent and clear. Professor James Haire School of Theology, Charles Sturt University Precisely at a moment of growing distrust between religious communities this book brings to light a world of intimacy between the two faith communities. Enduring interfaith marriages in which at least one partner is an active faith practitioner are rare, but they do form the ultimate meeting ground between the two great missionary traditions. The idea of looking at the vexed problem of Christian-Muslim relations through the lens of interfaith marriage is a courageous one and a metaphor that is rich with theological possibilities. Even more courageous was the author's decision to adopt a wholly ecumenical missiological approach, that is, one that takes both religions equally seriously and moreover takes at face value the often troubling desire of each to try and convert the other. Professor Gerry van Klinken, Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies (KITLV), Leiden Helen Richmond is a minister in the Uniting Church in Australia with considerable experience of working cross-culturally. She has had a long connection with Indonesia and her extended family which includes Muslims and Christians is a snap shot of the religious diversity of our times. For six years Helen worked as a Tutor in Mission Studies at the United College of the Ascension, Selly Oak, Birmingham, UK. She has served as the National Director for Multicultural and Cross-cultural Ministry in her church and for the last six years has been a Theology Teacher at Nungalinya College, an Indigenous training center in Darwin.
