The Reader introduces key ideas and issues as well as providing background material. I found my appetite whetted by many of the passages and I now intend to read in full many of the articles and books. I was particularly pleased to read several fascinating, but previously unpublished, pieces and at the end of each section there is an excellent list of suggestions for further reading. The book also has a very good bibliography and a glossary of terms. A Reader such as this will be very valuable to students at all levels who are studying some aspect of Christian-Jewish relations. It would also be of interest to Jews and Christians who are participating in dialogue or considering the need to do so. There is a great deal of material which would help someone to 'get their bearings' on both theory and practice. The extracts deal with some major theological issues which arise in dialogue such as the nature of God, Christology, the problem of suffering and soteriology and while these are not discussed in depth the commentary on the extracts enables the reader to get a sense of the wider picture.” –Common Ground, 1997
The editor's contribution to this volume is invaluable. In addition to comments linking and summarising contributions, there is a succinct introduction on the background to the dialogue and a readable and personal final chapter. The bibliography and list of authors and sources is an excellent resource, revealing the huge amount of ongoing work currently taking place in Jewish-Christian dialogue. . . Overall, this book gives an excellent overview of the depth and breadth of thinking, discussion and writing which are rapidly and profoundly changing the relationship between Christians and Jews. Bringing together such material is a remarkable achievement and makes it a valuable resource for anyone wishing either to participate in dialogue or simply to understand the issues involved.” –The Australian Jewish News, 17 October 1997
The Australian Jewish News
The breadth of this thoughtfully-chosen selection is indicated by the inclusion, on the one hand, of the Palestinian Christian Naim Ateek in the section on Israel, and, on the other hand, of Judith Plaskow, who has argued that feminist attacks on the patriarchy of the Old Testament are a form of anti-Judaism.” –Theological Book Review, June 1997
The Reader's strength lies, in my view, in its inclusion of extracts from the writings on individual theologians and writers alongside those from statements by the institutional churches . . . Secondly, while the editor includes most of the obvious names one would expect in an anthology of this kind (such as Rosemary Radford Ruether, Franklin Littell, Emil Fackenheim and Pinchas Lapide), she also introduces some who are less well known . . . A third point of interest is the organization of the extracts into thematic chapters. The majority of these themes are those one would expect to find running through any book or anthology on Christian-Jewish dialogue (for example, the Holocaust, Mission, and the Jewish Jesus). However, the inclusion of a chapter on women is less predictable, and to be welcomed for precisely that reason.” –Religion and Theology
This is an exceptionally good introduction to Christian-Jewish Dialogue. With the selections organised thematically, and reflecting the whole range of different positions in the dialogue, the Reader illuminates the hard questions dominating the Dialogue today. Helen Fry's Reader will not be surpassed for a long time to come.” –Ian S. Markham, Professor of Theology, Liverpool Hope University College
Common Ground, 1997
"the book will be invaluable to students and others who are new to the issues." European Judaism, Volume 30, No. 1, Spring 1997 "The editor's contribution to this volume is invaluable. In addition to comments linking and summarising contributions, there is a succinct introduction on the background to the dialogue and a readable and personal final chapter. The bibliography and list of authors and sources is an excellent resource, revealing the huge amount of ongoing work currently taking place in Jewish-Christian dialogue...Overall, this book gives an excellent overview of the depth and breadth of thinking, discussion and writing which are rapidly and profoundly changing the relationship between Christians and Jews. Bringing together such material is a remarkable achievement and makes it a valuable resource for anyone wishing either to participate in dialogue or simply to understand the issues involved." The Australian Jewish News, 17 October 1997 "The breadth of this thoughtfully-chosen selection is indicated by the inclusion, on the one hand, of the Palestinian Christian Naim Ateek in the section on Israel, and, on the other hand, of Judith Plaskow, who has argued that feminist attacks on the patriarchy of the Old Testament are a form of anti-Judaism." Theological Book Review, June 1997 "The Reader introduces key ideas and issues as well as providing background material. I found my appetite whetted by many of the passages and I now intend to read in full many of the articles and books. I was particularly pleased to read several fascinating, but previously unpublished, pieces and at the end of each section there is an excellent list of suggestions for further reading. The book also has a very good bibliography and a glossary of terms. A Reader such as this will be very valuable to students at all levels who are studying some aspect of Christian-Jewish relations. It would also be of interest to Jews and Christians who are participating in dialogue or considering the need to do so. There is a great deal of material which would help someone to 'get their bearings' on both theory and practice. The extracts deal with some major theological issues which arise in dialogue such as the nature of God, Christology, the problem of suffering and soteriology and while these are not discussed in depth the commentary on the extracts enables the reader to get a sense of the wider picture." Common Ground, 1997
