The challenges of comparative theology: An assessment of Kärkkäinen's Doing the work of comparative theology

Abstract

AbstractDoing the Work of Comparative Theology by Veli‐Matti Kärkkäinen seeks to do the work of understanding the parallels, similarities, and differences between Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism through comparative theology. Comparative theology differs from comparative religion in that it investigates other religious traditions from the perspective of a particular tradition, rather than approaching all of the traditions from the outside. This approach, however, presents unique challenges, specifically, maintaining the same approach to a topic regardless of the tradition being explored, and presenting each tradition without universalizing the beliefs of the tradition as a whole.