CCAR

Edited by Rabbi Mark S. Diamond and Andrew C. Reed

A joint publication between CCAR Press and Brigham Young University.

Interfaith dialogues of understanding are valuable both for challenging individuals to articulate their beliefs and practices in a careful way and for deepening connections between people of different faiths. The Jewish and Latter-day Saint communities have at times been at odds, yet they share a number of significant historical and communal bonds. Understanding Covenants and Communities comes out of the Jewish--Latter-day Saint Academic Dialogue Project, a groundbreaking interfaith encounter between these two religious communities. The fruit of five conferences held semiannually since 2016, the volume addresses such themes as theological foundations, sacred scriptures, lived experience and worship, and culture and politics. Readers will emerge with a deeper understanding of the Jewish and Latter-day Saint traditions and how the two faith communities can engage in a meaningful dialogue.

Table of Contents
Study Guide - Free Download

It is long past time that the Jewish-Christian dialogue be widened to include a Latter-day Saint-Jewish encounter. This brave and thoughtful collection brings together two faith communities that have much in common but know too little about the other. In overcoming misunderstandings and mistrust, we will learn to celebrate our differences as well as commonalities, and together sanctify God's name in a secular age.
- Yossi Klein Halevi, Senior Fellow, Shalom Hartman Institute, Jerusalem

This important and innovative collection shows how very rich and fruitful collaborative scholarship and friendship between two faith traditions can be. In particular, this engagement leads to deeper understandings of Covenant in the two faiths, as well as the nature of the Temple--especially the cessation of temple provision after 70CE in both Jewish and Christian traditions, and the significance of their restoration in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the nineteenth century and beyond. The debate is scholarly and very fertile for mutual understanding in terms of eschatology, incarnation, understanding Messiahship, and contemporary theological and political trends in both faith traditions. This is a much-needed and valuable clarifying contribution.
- Rev. Dr. Andrew Teal, Faculty of Theology and Religion, University of Oxford

Interreligious dialogue is exceptionally hard work. These Jewish and Latter-day Saint conversation partners have put in that effort and now provide in print models of patience, rigor, and generosity--all key elements of any successful dialogue. These two religious communities for too long have stood apart. This volume and the dialogue that made it possible are encouraging signs of a better future. They bring academic tools to bear on their topics but never remove themselves from the communities they serve.
- J. Spencer Fluhman, Executive Director, Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, Brigham Young University

Understanding Covenants and Communities is a cutting-edge, truly pioneering work in the study and practice of Jewish-Latter-day Saint (LDS) relations. It publishes a series of rich dialogues between the two faith communities and moves the greater project of Jewish-Christian relations into a new, and unique, venue.
- The Journal of Mormon History

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