Abstract

Exploring a fictive dialogue between the Buddhist master Śāntideva and the apostle Paul, this seminar
demonstrates how Buddhist and Christian teachings on liberation and ultimate reality can illuminate
each other, fostering deep interreligious learning.

About the Speaker

Perry Schmidt-Leukel is Senior Professor of Religious Studies and Intercultural Theology at the University of Münster, Germany and was Director of the Institute for Religious Studies and Intercultural Theology. He received his PhD in Theology from the University of Munich (1992). His habilitation (1996) was in Systematic Theology, Ecumenical Theology and Religious Studies.  Prior to joining the University of Münster, he taught at the Universities of Munich, Innsbruck and Salzburg and was Professor of Religious Studies and Systematic Theology at the University of Glasgow (2000-2009). In 2015, he delivered the prestigious Gifford Lectures at the University of Glasgow.

Schmidt-Leukel is internationally renowned as one of the leading proponents of a pluralist theology of religions. His primary research interests lie in the fields of interfaith relations, Buddhist-Christian dialogue, theologies of religions within various religious traditions, and interreligious theology.  He has published over 30 books in both German and English. Among his more recent English publications are: The Celestial Web: Buddhism and Christianity – A Different Comparison (Orbis Books, 2024); Buddha Mind – Christ Mind:  A Christian Commentary on the Bodhicaryāvatāra (Peeters, 2019); and God Beyond Boundaries: A Christian and Pluralist Theology of Religions (Waxmann, 2017).