Clinton Bennett - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Clinton Bennett is a British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

scholar of religions and participant in interfaith dialogue specializing in the study of Islam

Islam

Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...

and Muslim-non-Muslim encounter. An ordained Baptist

Baptist

Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...

minister, he was a missionary

Missionary

A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...

in Bangladesh

Bangladesh

Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...

before serving as the second director of interfaith relations

Interfaith

The term interfaith dialogue refers to cooperative, constructive and positive interaction between people of different religious traditions and/or spiritual or humanistic beliefs, at both the individual and institutional levels...

at the British Council of Churches

Churches Together in Britain and Ireland

Churches Together in Britain and Ireland is an ecumenical organisation. The members include most of the major churches in England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland. It was formerly known as the Council of Churches of Britain and Ireland...

in succession to Kenneth Cracknell

Kenneth Cracknell

Kenneth R. Cracknell is a British specialist in interfaith dialogue and the Christian theology of religions.Cracknell has written many articles and books on interfaith dialogue and other subjects, including Towards a New Relationship , Justice Courtesy and Love , An Introduction to World Methodism...

. Bennett has also taken part in the dialogue activities of the World Council of Churches

World Council of Churches

The World Council of Churches is a worldwide fellowship of 349 global, regional and sub-regional, national and local churches seeking unity, a common witness and Christian service. It is a Christian ecumenical organization that is based in the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva, Switzerland...

. A graduate of Manchester

University of Manchester

The University of Manchester is a public research university located in Manchester, United Kingdom. It is a "red brick" university and a member of the Russell Group of research-intensive British universities and the N8 Group...

, Birmingham

University of Birmingham

The University of Birmingham is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Birmingham Medical School and Mason Science College . Birmingham was the first Redbrick university to gain a charter and thus...

and Oxford

University of Oxford

The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...

Universities he has held several academic appointments in the UK and in the US, where he now lives. He currently writes for various publications and teaches part-time at the State University of New York at New Paltz and at Marist College

Marist College

Marist College is a private liberal arts college on the east bank of the Hudson River near Poughkeepsie, New York. The site was established in 1905 by Marist Brothers, and the college was chartered in 1929...

. He is a Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society

Royal Asiatic Society

The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland was established, according to its Royal Charter of 11 August 1824, to further "the investigation of subjects connected with and for the encouragement of science, literature and the arts in relation to Asia." From its incorporation the Society...

, of the Royal Anthropological Institute and of the Committee for the Scientific Examination of Religion

Committee for the Scientific Examination of Religion

The Committee for the Scientific Examination of Religion, or CSER, is based at the Center for Inquiry in Amherst, New York. According to its mission statement, CSER is a research consultation devoted "to the study of religion and ethics from the standpoint of philosophical naturalism and to the...

. He has authored books, chapters in books, journal articles and Encyclopedia entries. He can be considered to have made a significant contribution toward developing a Christian appreciation of Islam and of Muhammad

Muhammad

Muhammad |ligature]] at U+FDF4 ;Arabic pronunciation varies regionally; the first vowel ranges from ~~; the second and the last vowel: ~~~. There are dialects which have no stress. In Egypt, it is pronounced not in religious contexts...

. Ahmad Shafaat writes, ‘Bennett’s approach allows him to treat Islamic traditions and their Muslim interpretations with sensitivity and respect, not often found among Christian writings on Islam.’

Background

Bennett was born in Tettenhall

Tettenhall

Tettenhall is a historic part of the city of Wolverhampton, England. The name Tettenhall is probably derived from Teotta's Halh, Teotta being a person's name and Halh being a sheltered position...

then an Urban District in Staffordshire

Staffordshire

Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. In 1966, he migrated to Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

with his parents, Howard Bennett (1922–1997) and Joan Bennett (1922–2007) and his two siblings. He completed his final year of primary education in Australia then attended Maclean High School, Maclean, New South Wales

Maclean, New South Wales

Maclean is a town in Clarence Valley Local Government Area in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Australia. It is on the Clarence River and near the Pacific Highway. At the 2006 census, Maclean had a population of 3,245 people...

. He was a member of the School Debating Team taking part in inter-school competitions, a member of the Radio Club, Student Leader of the Inter-School Christian Fellowship chapter and represented his class for a year on the Student Representative Council. He won prizes for acting and for History. After gaining his School Certificate

School Certificate

The School Certificate was a qualification issued by the Board of Studies, New South Wales, typically at the end of Year 10. The successful completion of the School Certificate is a requirement for completion of the Higher School Certificate...

, he worked in Sydney

Sydney

Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

as an officer in the state civil service 1972-1973. Originally an Anglican, Bennett was baptized into membership of the Lower Clarence Baptist Church in 1969. He was active in the Christian Endeavor

Young People's Society of Christian Endeavour

The Young People's Society of Christian Endeavor was a nondenominational evangelical society founded in Portland, Maine, in 1881 by Francis Edward Clark...

movement and as a youth camp leader.

Education

Bennett returned to England to train for ordination at Northern Baptist College, Manchester

Manchester

Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...

while also taking a BA in Theology at the University of Manchester

University of Manchester

where he developed his interest in world religions. His initial focus was on the religions of India

Religion in India

Indian religions is a classification for religions that originated in the Indian subcontinent; namely Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism and Sikhism. These religions are also classified as Eastern religions...

. In order to matriculate, Bennett spent his first year obtaining a Certificate in Biblical Knowledge from the University and two 'A levels' (in Religious Studies and British Constitution and Politics) from the Joint Matriculation Board (JMB). At University Bennett was politically active through the Liberal Society. He was Treasurer of the Baptist-United Reformed Church Society, served on the Chaplaincy committee and as Secretary of the Theological Society. In this capacity, he invited such theologians as Maurice Wiles

Maurice Wiles

Maurice Frank Wiles was a Regius Professor of Divinity at Oxford University for 21 years, from 1970 to 1991.-Miracles:...

, I. Howard Marshall

I. Howard Marshall

Ian Howard Marshall is Professor Emeritus of New Testament Exegesis and honorary research professor at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland, specifically in the department of Divinity and Religious Studies...

, Morna Hooker

Morna Hooker

Morna Dorothy Hooker is a British theologian and New Testament scholar.She was Lady Margaret's Professor of Divinity within the University of Cambridge from 1976 to 1998, becoming the first woman to hold the Cambridge degree of D.D., and as of 1998 is Professor Emerita...

and others to address the Society, whose members included Faculty alongside students. For the last six months of his final year he was Baptist Student Leader at the College (where Methodists were also training for ministry). He graduated in July 1978 and was ordained as a minister of the Baptist Union of Great Britain

Baptist Union of Great Britain

The Baptist Union of Great Britain, despite its name, is the association of Baptist churches in England and Wales. -History:...

the same month. Accepted for service with the Baptist Missionary Society, Bennett spent an academic year at the Selly Oak Colleges

Selly Oak Colleges

Selly Oak Colleges was a Federation of educational facilities, primarily concerned with theology and social work, in Birmingham, England. The Federation was for many years associated with the University of Birmingham...

, Birmingham

Birmingham

Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...

where he undertook missionary orientation. He was most influenced by Lesslie Newbigin

Lesslie Newbigin

Bishop James Edward Lesslie Newbigin was a Church of Scotland missionary serving in the former Madras State , India, who became a Christian theologian and bishop involved in missiology, ecumenism, and the Gospel and Our Culture Movement.-Biography:Born in Newcastle upon Tyne, Newbigin's schooling...

, who taught missiology

Missiology

Missiology is the area of practical theology that investigates the mandate, message, and mission of the Christian church, especially the nature of missionary work...

. In July 1979, Bennett obtained a Certificate in the Study of Islam from the University of Birmingham

University of Birmingham

through the Centre for the Study of Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations before proceeding to Bangladesh, where he remained until 1982 engaged in pastoral care and distance education teaching as a tutor for the College of Christian Theology Bangladesh (CCTB). He passed the Junior and Senior level Bengali

Bengali language

Bengali or Bangla is an eastern Indo-Aryan language. It is native to the region of eastern South Asia known as Bengal, which comprises present day Bangladesh, the Indian state of West Bengal, and parts of the Indian states of Tripura and Assam. It is written with the Bengali script...

examinations of the Bangladesh Language Examination Board. Although he completed several units of a Masters degree by distance learning from Fuller Theological Seminary

Fuller Theological Seminary

Fuller Theological Seminary is an accredited Christian educational institute with its main campus in Pasadena, California and several satellite campuses in the western United States...

, Pasadena, CA he was unable to complete the residential component because of the cost. When the BMS chose not to support his plan to enroll for an MA at a College in Bangladesh, he returned to Birmingham, graduating MA in 1985 and PhD in 1990. Both research degrees were in Islamic Studies under the supervision of David Kerr and Christian W. Troll, SJ. His external examiners were Jan Slomp and Clifford Edmund Bosworth

Clifford Edmund Bosworth

Clifford Edmund Bosworth FBA is an English historian and orientalist, specializing in Arabic studies. He received his B.A. degree from Oxford University and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from Edinburgh University. He held permanent posts at St. Andrews University, Manchester University, and the Center...

. Bennett's doctoral thesis was subsequently published as Victorian Images of Islam (1992) (in the CSIC Studies on Islam and Christianity series). In 1985, Bennett also passed the Bengali 'O Level' (London) achieving an 'A' grade. In 1996, Bennett graduated from the University of Oxford

University of Oxford

with the M.Ed. through Westminster College, Oxford

Westminster College, Oxford

Westminster College was a college of higher education in England. The college was founded in London in 1851 as a training institute for teachers for Methodist schools, and moved to Oxford in 1959. Following the move, the college also began to offer degree courses in Theology and Education. In 2000,...

where he was teaching at the time. In 1994 he had completed the Certificate of Professional Studies in Education from the University’s Delegacy of Local Examinations

OCR (examination board)

OCR is an examination board that sets examinations and awards qualifications . It is one of England, Wales and Northern Ireland's five main examination boards....

also through Westminster

Westminster College, Oxford

Career

While researching at Birmingham University for his doctorate, Bennett was employed by the Birmingham Ethnic Education and Advisory Service Trust as a community tutor and development worker. During 1986-7 he was Free Church Chaplain at Aston University

Aston University

Aston University is a "plate glass" campus university situated at Gosta Green, in the city centre of Birmingham, England.Established in 1895 as the Birmingham Municipal Technical School, Aston was granted its Royal Charter as Aston University on 22 April 1966...

From 1985 until 1992 he was associate pastor at Highgate Baptist Church, Birmingham

Birmingham

. In September 1987 he succeeded Kenneth Cracknell

Kenneth Cracknell

as director of inter-religious relations at what was then the British Council of Churches

Churches Together in Britain and Ireland

, where he remained until 1992. Bishop Jim Thompson

Jim Thompson (bishop)

James Lawton "Jim" Thompson was an Anglican bishop. He was firstly the area Bishop of Stepney from 1978 to 1991 and later the diocesan Bishop of Bath & Wells in succession to George Carey who had become Archbishop of Canterbury...

as moderator of Bennett's committee led his service of induction into office. During his tenure, Bennett encouraged member churches to adopt the four principles of dialogue, traveled widely speaking and lecturing to promote these principles but he often found himself especially concerned with Christian-Muslim relations. He issued joint press statements with Zaki Badawi

Zaki Badawi

Sheikh Mohammed Aboulkhair Zaki Badawi ,KBE, GCFO was a prominent Egyptian Islamic scholar, community activist, and promoter of interfaith-dialogue. He was the principal of the Muslim College in London, which he founded in 1986...

, Chair of the Imams and Mosques Council in response to the Salman Rushdie affair

The Satanic Verses controversy

The Satanic Verses controversy was the heated and sometimes violent Muslim reaction to the publication of Salman Rushdie's novel The Satanic Verses. Many Muslims accused Rushdie of blasphemy or unbelief and in 1989 Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini of Iran issued a fatwa ordering Muslims to kill Rushdie...

and to the first Gulf War

Gulf War

The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...

. In 1992, having helped to establish the Churches Commission for Interfaith Relations within the new ecumenical structures for Britain and Ireland, he left the Council to take up appointment as Lecturer in Religious Studies at Westminster College, Oxford

Oxford

The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...

. From 1996 he was Senior Lecturer. Bennett lived on campus as a Resident Tutor and Assistant Chaplain. In his teaching at Westminster, Bennett was asked to focus on anthropology

Anthropology

Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...

alongside colleagues whose specialisms were psychology, sociology and phenomenology of religion. He was Leader of the Religions in Contemporary Society Cluster for the BTh Final Year and RS Subject Leader for Part One (Years One and Two) of the B.Ed program. While at Westminster, Bennett also taught part-time on a Masters in spirituality at what is now the University of Winchester

University of Winchester

The University of Winchester is a British public university primarily based in Winchester, Hampshire, England. Winchester is a historic cathedral city and the ancient capital of Wessex and the Kingdom of England.-History:...

. In 1998, he moved to Baylor University

Baylor University

Baylor University is a private, Christian university located in Waco, Texas. Founded in 1845, Baylor is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.-History:...

, Waco, Texas

Texas

Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...

with the rank of associate professor of religion. He was cross-listed as Asia Studies faculty and also taught on the Baylor Interdisciplinary Core. He was a full member of Graduate Faculty. After leaving Baylor in 2001, Bennett has tutored part-time for The Centre for the Study of Jewish-Christian Relations

The Centre for Jewish-Christian Relations

The Centre for the Study of Jewish-Christian Relations based at Wesley House, Cambridge is an institute for the study and teaching of Jewish-Christian Relations and the promotion of interfaith dialogue...

, Cambridge

Cambridge

The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...

(mainly Distance Learning). He has also taught for Cambridge University

University of Cambridge

The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...

’s Institute of Continuing Education. 2006-2007 he was on the full-time faculty of the Unification Theological Seminary

Unification Theological Seminary

The Unification Theological Seminary , is the main seminary of the international Unification Church. It is located in Barrytown, New York and with an Extension Center in midtown Manhattan. Its purpose has been described as training leaders and theologians within the Unification Church. The...

, Barrytown, NY

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

where he was Associate Professor of Ministry and Living Traditions and Director of Field Education. He was part-time at UTS during 2005. Bennett has also had honorary status as a Visiting Research Fellow at Birmingham University. Since 2005 he has written and edited for the on-line New World Encyclopedia and for other publications. Since Fall 2008 he has taught Religious Studies part-time at the State University of New York at New Paltz.

Teaching

Bennett has taught undergraduate level courses on B.Ed, BA and B.Th. degrees in Hinduism

Hinduism

Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...

, Sikhism

Sikhism

Sikhism is a monotheistic religion founded during the 15th century in the Punjab region, by Guru Nanak Dev and continued to progress with ten successive Sikh Gurus . It is the fifth-largest organized religion in the world and one of the fastest-growing...

, Christianity

Christianity

Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...

, Islam

Islam

Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...

, Buddhism

Buddhism

Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...

, Judaism

Judaism

Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...

, Methodology, Ethics (Moral Dilemmas and Matters of Justice), Islamic Theology and Philosophy, Islamic Art and Architecture

Architecture

Architecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...

, Religious Exclusivism and the Issue of Uniqueness, Area Studies (Asia and the Americas) and World Cultures. At graduate

Postgraduate education

Postgraduate education involves learning and studying for degrees or other qualifications for which a first or Bachelor's degree generally is required, and is normally considered to be part of higher education...

level, he has taught M.Th, MA, M.Div, M.R.E. and PhD courses in Religious Pluralism, Spirituality, Ministry, Islam, Religions of India, China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

and Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, Pastoral Theology, Pastoral Care and Counseling, Paths of Faith (World Religions), Islam, Christian-Muslim Relations, The Theory and Practice of Ecumenism, the United Nations and Global Peace and Church Growth. He has successfully supervised MTh, MA and MEd dissertations in a range of subject areas. At Westminster, he was a member of the B.Ed. and MTh Examination Boards and External Examiner in Religious Studies for New College, Southampton. He also served as external examiner for a University of Leeds

University of Leeds

The University of Leeds is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England...

M.Phil. At Baylor, he participated in the oral examination of PhD and MA students. He has both supervised and examined MA theses for the Centre for the Study of Jewish-Christian Relations, Cambridge. Bennett uses literature

Literature

Literature is the art of written works, and is not bound to published sources...

, especially post-colonial literature and film

Film

A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...

to help explore religious themes in his teaching.

Involvement in the World Council of Churches
World Council of Churches
The World Council of Churches is a worldwide fellowship of 349 global, regional and sub-regional, national and local churches seeking unity, a common witness and Christian service. It is a Christian ecumenical organization that is based in the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva, Switzerland...

Bennett was a Consultant at the Baar

Baar, Switzerland

Baar is a village in the canton of Zug in Switzerland.-Geography:Baar has an area, , of . Of this area, 55% is used for agricultural purposes, while 24.5% is forested...

Meeting of the WCC’s Dialogue Sub Unit (1988) and a member of the Sub Unit’s Working Party that drafted Issues in Christian Muslim Relations: Ecumenical Considerations (1991). 1992 until 1998 he was a member of the World Council of Churches’ Consultation on the Church and the Jewish People (CCJP) representing the Baptist Union of Great Britain, attending meetings in Geneva

Geneva

Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...

(1992) and Budapest

Budapest

Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...

(1994).

Voluntary Service

Bennett served as member, Vice Chair and Chair of Chandos Primary School Governing Body (1986–1992) and as a Governor of Yew Tree Community School (1984 – 88). Both schools are in Birmingham, UK. He was a member of Birmingham Community Relations Council (1985–92) and Chair of the Birmingham Affairs Committee of Birmingham Churches Together (then the Birmingham Council of Christian Churches) also serving on the executive and Free Church committees (1987 – 92). Also in Birmingham, he was Secretary of what is now called the Birmingham Council of Faiths (1985–92), Secretary of Small Heath Advice Centre (1985 – 89), Chair of Oldknow Bengali Association (1984–1992) and a member of the Highgate Advice Centre Management Committee (1985–1992). In these capacities, he engaged in advocacy, fund raising, recruited staff and liaised with the Charity Commission

Charity Commission

The Charity Commission for England and Wales is the non-ministerial government department that regulates registered charities in England and Wales....

, City Council and Government Departments. He organized play schemes, supplementary schools and excursions. Bennett assisted several Birmingham Mosques with obtaining charitable status and funds for community activities. He did so while serving as a Birmingham delegate on the General Committee of the West Midland Baptist Association the regional body of his own denomination. At national level during his period with the British Council of Churches he served on the executive committees of The Interfaith Network for the UK, The Council of Christians and Jews

The Council of Christians and Jews

The Council of Christians and Jews, or CCJ, is a voluntary organisation in the United Kingdom. It is composed of Christians and Jews working together to counter anti-semitism and other forms of intolerance in Britain. Their patron is Queen Elizabeth II....

and the World Congress of Faiths. He was also a member of the Religious Studies committee of what was previously called the School Curriculum and Assessment Authority

Qualifications and Curriculum Authority

The Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency is an exempt charity, and an executive non-departmental public body of the Department for Children, Schools and Families...

of the UK Department of Education. For several years an associate member of the Iona Community

Iona Community

The Iona Community, founded in 1938 by the Rev George MacLeod, is an ecumenical Christian community of men and women from different walks of life and different traditions in the Christian church....

Bennett has also visited the Taizé Community

Taizé Community

The Taizé Community is an ecumenical monastic order in Taizé, Saône-et-Loire, Burgundy, France. It is composed of about 100 brothers who come from Protestant, Eastern Orthodox and Catholic traditions. The brothers come from about 30 countries across the world. The monastic order has a strong...

. He has led student groups at both communities over Easter (1986 and 1997 respectively). In 2005 he attended the Centenary Congress of the Baptist World Alliance

Baptist World Alliance

The Baptist World Alliance is a worldwide alliance of Baptist churches and organizations, formed in 1905 at Exeter Hall in London during the first Baptist World Congress.-History:...

.
He is a member of the International Advisory Board of FOREF-Europe (Forum for Religious Freedom). He is currently a member of the Alliance of Baptists

Alliance of Baptists

The Alliance of Baptists is a fellowship of Baptist churches and individuals in the United States. In its theology and social stances, the Alliance is characterized as a progressive or liberal Christian fellowship...

Links with Indian-Sub Continent and with the Muslim World
Muslim world
The term Muslim world has several meanings. In a religious sense, it refers to those who adhere to the teachings of Islam, referred to as Muslims. In a cultural sense, it refers to Islamic civilization, inclusive of non-Muslims living in that civilization...

Bennett has maintained close ties with India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

and Bangladesh. He has visited and toured India several times as well as teaching at summer schools for the Henry Martyn Institute, Hyderabad and on Westminster College’s former M.Th. extension program in India. In 1996 and 1997 he did field work in Bangladesh interviewing for his book on Muhammad. He has traveled to a number of other Muslim countries including Egypt

Egypt

Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...

, Turkey

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

, Indonesia

Indonesia

Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...

, Malaysia and Morocco

Morocco

Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...

and has explored the Moorish

Moors

The description Moors has referred to several historic and modern populations of the Maghreb region who are predominately of Berber and Arab descent. They came to conquer and rule the Iberian Peninsula for nearly 800 years. At that time they were Muslim, although earlier the people had followed...

architectural legacy in Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

Consultancy

Bennett has advised Continuum

Continuum International Publishing Group

The Continuum International Publishing Group is a publisher of books, with its editorial offices in London and New York City. It had been owned by Nova Capital Management since 2005...

, Routledge

Routledge

Routledge is a British publishing house which has operated under a succession of company names and latterly as an academic imprint. Its origins may be traced back to the 19th-century London bookseller George Routledge...

, Oxford University Press

Oxford University Press

Oxford University Press is the largest university press in the world. It is a department of the University of Oxford and is governed by a group of 15 academics appointed by the Vice-Chancellor known as the Delegates of the Press. They are headed by the Secretary to the Delegates, who serves as...

and Ashgate

Ashgate Publishing

Ashgate Publishing is an academic book and journal publisher based in Farnham, Surrey, United Kingdom. It was established in 1967 and specializes in the social sciences, arts, humanities, and professional practice...

on the publication of mss. Between 1987 and 1992 he was an adviser to the Roman Catholic National Council for Lay Associations (NCLA), also advising at meetings of the European Forum of National Laity Committees in Vienna

Vienna

Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...

(1990) and Antwerp (1992). 2005-2007 he was a member of the Global Council of the Universal Peace Federation

Universal Peace Federation

There are a number of organizations founded, run, or supported by Sun Myung Moon, the founder of the Unification Church. Commentators have mentioned Moon's belief in a literal Kingdom of God on earth to be brought about by human effort as a motivation for his establishment of groups that are not...

. During 2006, Bennett led seminars and workshops on Bangladeshi culture for Hudson School District, Hudson

Hudson, New York

Hudson is a city located along the west border of Columbia County, New York, United States. The city is named after the adjacent Hudson River and ultimately after the explorer Henry Hudson.Hudson is the county seat of Columbia County...

, NY. During 2007 he was an accredited representative of the UPF

Universal Peace Federation

at the United Nations

United Nations

The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...

in NY.

Publications and Scholarly Work

Bennett says that his published work reflects interest in a number of theoretical issues in Religious Studies

Religious studies

Religious studies is the academic field of multi-disciplinary, secular study of religious beliefs, behaviors, and institutions. It describes, compares, interprets, and explains religion, emphasizing systematic, historically based, and cross-cultural perspectives.While theology attempts to...

as well as in teaching and learning. These include the insider-outsider problematic, the relationship between theology

Theology

Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...

, Religious Studies and the study of culture

Culture

Culture is a term that has many different inter-related meanings. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions...

, the issue of objectivity, how colonial and neo-colonial attitudes influence the study of religions and post-modern approaches to textual interpretation. He acknowledges the influence of Edward Said

Edward Said

Edward Wadie Saïd was a Palestinian-American literary theorist and advocate for Palestinian rights. He was University Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University and a founding figure in postcolonialism...

, Clifford Geertz

Clifford Geertz

Clifford James Geertz was an American anthropologist who is remembered mostly for his strong support for and influence on the practice of symbolic anthropology, and who was considered "for three decades...the single most influential cultural anthropologist in the United States." He served until...

and Wilfred Cantwell Smith

Wilfred Cantwell Smith

Wilfred Cantwell Smith was a Canadian professor of comparative religion who from 1964-1973 was director of Harvard's Center for the Study of World Religions. The Harvard Gazette characterized him as one of the field's most influential figures of the past century...

as well as Bishop Kenneth Cragg

Kenneth Cragg

The Rt Rev Kenneth Cragg is an Anglican priest and scholar who has commented widely on religious topics for over fifty years, most notably Muslim-Christian relations. Born on 8 March 1913 and educated at Blackpool Grammar School and Jesus College, Oxford he was awarded the Grafton Scholarship ...

, among others. According to Ahmad Schaffat, Bennett "repeatedly shows concerns about how conclusions are influenced by our assumptions and backgrounds and gives some thought to the ways of avoiding this influence". Bennett "defines his approach in terms of Edward Said's criticism of Orientalism

Orientalism

Orientalism is a term used for the imitation or depiction of aspects of Eastern cultures in the West by writers, designers and artists, as well as having other meanings...

and Cantwell Smith's way of avoiding that type of criticism" so that even when he "describes at length some very hostile views of Christian writers on Islam and its prophet he either counters them by Muslim understanding or his own more favorable opinion."

Victorian Images of Islam

Bennett’s Victorian
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...

Images of Islam (1992) has been widely cited. For example, by Kate Zebiri (1997), Rollin Armour (2003) Hugh Goddard (2000) and Dana L. Robert (2008). Armour refers to the work of Bennett and of such scholars as Bernard Lewis

Bernard Lewis

Bernard Lewis, FBA is a British-American historian, scholar in Oriental studies, and political commentator. He is the Cleveland E. Dodge Professor Emeritus of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University...

and John Esposito

John Esposito

John Louis Esposito is a professor of International Affairs and Islamic Studies at Georgetown University...

as lying "behind almost every page that follows" (2003: xiv). David Thomas described the book as an "illuminating study into an overlooked corner of Victorian religious history". In particular, it showed that more diversity of approach existed among earlier contributors but that more often than not it is a priori premises rather than encounter that determine attitude Bennett described contributors as confrontational or conciliatory, analyzing the work of three scholars in each category. The three conciliators were Charles Forster, Frederick Denison Maurice and Reginald Bosworth Smith and the three confrontationalists were William Muir

William Muir

Sir William Muir, KCSI was a Scottish Orientalist and colonial administrator.-Life:He was born at Glasgow and educated at Kilmarnock Academy, at Glasgow and Edinburgh Universities, and at Haileybury College. In 1837 he entered the Bengal Civil Service...

, William St. Clair Tisdall

William St. Clair Tisdall

William St. Clair Tisdall was a British historian and philologist who served as the Secretary of the Church of England's Missionary Society in Isfahan, Persia....

and John Drew Bate. Conciliators were those "Western writers who questioned the prevailing attitude of cultural and religious superiority that led to a belittling of everything non-European" Confrontationalists perpetuated traditional anti-Muslim polemic. Bennett later commented that while "actual meetings between Christians and Muslims may result in a change of heart and mind ... more often than not ... it confirms our prejudices, which it has to be said is one of the biggest problems involved in Christian-Muslim encounter." He stresses, though, that the story of Christian-Muslim encounter includes examples of harmonious co-existence as well as of hostility. By remembering these experiences we can ensure that future relations are not solely defined by a negative historical memory. Ahmad Gunney called the book "a valuable contribution to the debate on the important question of Islam and the West" and said that "the Baptist minister" had to a "certain extent" complemented "the work of three Muslim writers, M. A. Anees, Syed Z. Abedin and Z. Sardar

Ziauddin Sardar

Ziauddin Sardar is a London-based scholar, writer and cultural-critic who specialises in Muslim thought, the future of Islam, futures studies and science and cultural relations...

" whose book had been published by the same publisher as Bennett's. Like Thomas, Gunney remarked that Bennett's research showed that even when people are "technically well equipped" and spend "extensive periods of residence in the countries of the world of Islam" this does "not necessarily lead to objective judgements, especially if one starts off, as in the case of the three confrontational writers with a priori assumptions about Islam." Andrews, a Shi’a Muslim, suggested that the book’s study by Muslim Imams-in-training might "go some way towards breaking down barriers and misconceptions" and observed that "through his own enlightened position" Bennett "has done a lot to undermine at least one Muslim’s preconceptions about Christian missionaries, and about Baptist missionaries in particular".

Bennett's "In Search of" books

In 1996, Bennett wrote the first of four books with ‘In Search of’ in their title, In Search of the Sacred: Anthropology and the Study of Religion, in which he called for a combination of historical, textual and participant observation research to shed light on how religion is lived as well as on its history

History

History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...

and official dogmas. He argued that no researcher is neutral and that we all need to engage in reflexivity to guard against bias and the imposition of a priori presuppositions, so that, as a reviewer commented, "suddenly the act of observation becomes the subject of observation" and "for a teacher like Bennett, his own experience as an ordained minister and missionary, his own experience with the give and take of ecumenical teaching becomes the data of religious thought". "Bennett", Dening continued, "is not independent of all the observations made through centuries of thought", so "there is convergence: library and field, intellect and emotion, thought and experience in the end come together". The book, said this reviewer, helped "to make the exposition of more than a hundred years of thought on the study of religions lucid and memorable". Alan Race, in another review, described the book as cutting "through a dense thicket, yielding a clear, highly readable survey of how" anthropology and Religious Studies

Religious studies

"have interacted and failed to interact", although remarking that it mainly discussed European history. Bennett followed this in 1998 with In Search of Muhammad and in 2001 with In Search of Jesus: Insider and Outsider Images. A. G Noorani describes In Search of Muhammad as "an earnest effort by a devout Christian to understand Muhammad, and places" Bennett "in the ranks of others whose services Minou Reeves acknowledges in her survey of Western writing on Muhammad." Commenting on Bennett's discussion of the sources available for the life of Muhammad, Hugh Goddard says that while he is "not as negative" as "some modern Western scholars", neither "is he uncritical of them", suggesting that "some traditions, particularly concerning Muhammad’s miracles and the role of women, should be judged as unreliable." Referring to Bennett's attempt to suggest how "Christ and Muhammad might be viewed as somehow complementary, rather than as rivals" he called this a "brave attempt" even though "there are no easy answers to such a significant question." Citations include Gerard Rixhon, who says that he makes "words of Bennett's" his "own "when he wrote his searching book on Muhammad" and aimed "to hear Muslim voices."
Timothy Johnson, ABC News chief medical correspondent, who is also an ordained minister of the Evangelical Covenant Church

Evangelical Covenant Church

The Evangelical Covenant Church is an evangelical Christian denomination of more than 800 congregations and an average worship attendance of 179,000 people in the United States and Canada with ministries on five continents. Founded in 1885 by Swedish immigrants, the church is now one of the most...

, refers to Bennett as "a fine scholar and student of world religions", and recommends In Search of Jesus as "an amazing compendium of the many attempts to capture the story of Jesus by both insiders (those who claim to be Christians) and outsiders (those of other religious traditions)." "You can", he continues, "look up almost any writer on the subject of Jesus and find a brief but fair summary of the person's writing and point of view ... It is a great one stop source of quick summary information." The fourth ‘In Search of’ book, In Search of Solutions: The Problem of Religion and Conflict appeared in 2008 as part of a series edited by Rosemary Radford Ruether

Rosemary Radford Ruether

Rosemary Radford Ruether is an American feminist scholar and theologian.-Biography:Ruether was born in 1936 in Georgetown, Texas, to a Roman Catholic mother and Episcopal father. She has reportedly described her upbringing as free-thinking and humanistic as opposed to oppressive...

and Lisa Isherwood.

Other Writing

Other books include Muslims and Modernity (2005) and Understanding Christian-Muslim Relations (2008). Research for Muslims and Modernity was supported with a grant from the Spalding Trust. Bennett has also co-written Researching Teaching Methods in College and Universities, explaining that this drew on his use of "small-scale, qualitative research" undertaken because he "wanted more exposure to social research methodology". Chapters in edited volumes include four contributions to the 1994 Pinter series Themes in Religious Studies (edited by Jean Holm with John Bowker

John Bowker

John Westerdale Bowker is a professor of religious studies who has taught at the universities of Cambridge, Lancaster, Pennsylvania and North Carolina State University...

), which have been used by the Open University

Open University

The Open University is a distance learning and research university founded by Royal Charter in the United Kingdom...

and to Jesus and the Cross: Reflections of Christians from Islamic Contexts (2008) edited by David Emmanuel Singh. Various articles reflect his interest in alterity

Alterity

Alterity is a philosophical term meaning "otherness", strictly being in the sense of the other of two . In the phenomenological tradition it is usually understood as the entity in contrast to which an identity is constructed, and it implies the ability to distinguish between self and not-self, and...

, citizenship

Citizenship

Citizenship is the state of being a citizen of a particular social, political, national, or human resource community. Citizenship status, under social contract theory, carries with it both rights and responsibilities...

, identity and belonging in multi-cultural contexts and in the "clash of civilizations

Clash of Civilizations

The Clash of Civilizations is a theory, proposed by political scientist Samuel P. Huntington, that people's cultural and religious identities will be the primary source of conflict in the post-Cold War world....

" thesis and its criticism. He edited the Journal Discernment from 1990 until 1998 and guest edited an edition of World Faiths Insight (1991, New series No 28) marking Marcus Braybrooke’s retirement as editor, and Vol 24 No 2 (2001) of Westminster Studies in Education commemorating the 150th anniversary of Westminster College’s foundation. He is editor of a series on Studying Religion for Continuum International

Continuum International Publishing Group

The Continuum International Publishing Group is a publisher of books, with its editorial offices in London and New York City. It had been owned by Nova Capital Management since 2005...

. Contributors include David Ananda Hart

David Ananda Hart

David Ananda Hart is a British radical theologian, Anglican priest and convert to Hinduism.- Career :Educated at Keble College, Oxford and Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York, with a doctorate in Philosophy of Religion from the University of Derby, Hart is a prominent member of a...

and William Brackney.

Missionary concern

His missionary background is reflected in contributions to such publications as the International Bulletin of Missionary Research including three articles in the mission legacies series, the Biographical Dictionary of Christian Missions (1998) (edited by Gerald H Anderson) and by reviews in the journal Missiology: An International Review.

Contribution to a Christian Appreciation of Islam and of Muhammad

In his attempt to resolve disputed issues on the agenda of Christian-Muslim encounter, Bennett has focused on the Trinity

Trinity

The Christian doctrine of the Trinity defines God as three divine persons : the Father, the Son , and the Holy Spirit. The three persons are distinct yet coexist in unity, and are co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial . Put another way, the three persons of the Trinity are of one being...

, the crucifixion and on problem scriptures, among other issues.

Trinity
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity defines God as three divine persons : the Father, the Son , and the Holy Spirit. The three persons are distinct yet coexist in unity, and are co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial . Put another way, the three persons of the Trinity are of one being...

Bennett suggests that if Christians and Muslims accept that their formulations about the nature of God

God

God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....

are wholly true but do not express the whole truth about God, they might both say something important about God

God

God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....

. “Paradox

Paradox

Similar to Circular reasoning, A paradox is a seemingly true statement or group of statements that lead to a contradiction or a situation which seems to defy logic or intuition...

”, he says, such as that God is One but also a Trinity

Trinity

, “could be … essential to the nature of God, who is at one and the same time transcendent and immanent, just and merciful, simple yet complex, singular yet possessing plural attributes, distinct from creation yet intimately involved in, and even present within, creation.” Thus, God might speak differently though different religions not “because God is playing a game or authoring confusion but to remind us that we cannot, while remaining human, grasp the totality of who God is.” Bennett refers to what he calls his “flirtation with Unitarianism

Unitarianism

Unitarianism is a Christian theological movement, named for its understanding of God as one person, in direct contrast to Trinitarianism which defines God as three persons coexisting consubstantially as one in being....

” although states that “over the years” his “faith has become firmly Trinitarian.”

Crucifixion
Crucifixion
Crucifixion is an ancient method of painful execution in which the condemned person is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross and left to hang until dead...

Bennett discusses this is his 1998, 2001 and 2008 books and in his 2008 chapter on the Cross. He suggests that while almost all Muslims believe that Jesus did not die on the Cross (although some argue that Q5: 157 is an ambiguous verse) and while Christians believe that Jesus was crucified and died on the cross, there might be a way to argue that “Jesus was and yet was not killed on the cross.” Referring again to paradox, he argues that what the Qur’an denies is not so much the fact that Jesus died but that he was killed by the Jews

Deicide

Deicide is the killing of a god. The term deicide was coined in the 17th century from medieval Latin *deicidium, from de-us "god" and -cidium "cutting, killing")...

. Indeed, says Bennett, Jesus

Jesus

Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...

was not killed by the Jews but by human sin

Sin

In religion, sin is the violation or deviation of an eternal divine law or standard. The term sin may also refer to the state of having committed such a violation. Christians believe the moral code of conduct is decreed by God In religion, sin (also called peccancy) is the violation or deviation...

. Christian conviction that Jesus’ death was absolutely necessary for human salvation makes nonsense of blaming any particular human agencies for his execution. Bennett does not deny Jesus’ death but says that “the Qur’an’s apparent although not unambiguous denial of the Cross challenges Christian over-emphasis on Jesus’ death.” Bennett sees the cross as a “metaphor of resisting evil and oppression” but is not “convinced that his salvation … derives from the cross”. Rather, he says, “my sanctification stems from the fact that Jesus lived” and by living “sanctified the whole of human life.” He regards Jesus' life as a paradigm of "being in relationship with God". Jesus life represents "the paradigm of the life of love and action lived in tune with God's will". Explicit faith in Jesus is not a precondition of salvation, since "God saves whomsoever he wills". A life that reflects Jesus' life of service of others is a precondition. As a Christian, he can honor Muhammad as someone through whom God spoke and whose legacy "can be interpreted as complementary" to Christ's.

Scripture

In Understanding Christian Muslim Relations he discusses extensively texts that Christians and Muslims cite from both of their scriptures to justify their views of the other. He examines texts that support positive, or conciliatory and negative, or confrontational, views. In examining such Qur’anic texts at 9: 5 (cited to justify unprovoked aggression against non-Muslims including acts of terror such as 9/11) and verses cited to justify the oppression of women in Islam (such as Q4: 34-5) Bennett refers to Muslim opinion that interprets the Qur’an’s message as permitting only self-defense and as one of gender equality. He suggests that while some Muslims used (and some still use) the Qur’an to justify violence or gender inequality, Muslim voices offering alternative ways to interpret these verses exist and have a right to be heard. Even if the majority of Muslims understand a text in a certain way, this does not necessarily mean that they are right. Noorani's comments on Bennett were in the context of discussion of Q9: 5. Noorani agrees with Bennett's interpretation that this refers to permission to re-engage after a religious truce in the context of an existing defensive war and does not constitute blanket permission for Muslims to attack non-Muslims at any time.

Bennett compares the incarnation with the process by which in Islamic understanding God's word became a book:

... somehow God made God's word enter Muhammad, and pass through him into what became a physical, material object, a book. The actual process of incarnation and of bookification can be regarded as mysteries while their reality or truthfulness can be affirmed ...

He says that he can affirm that Jesus was God "without being able to explain how":

I do not know whether Jesus was ontologically God, or whether he was so intimate with God that the distinction between who he was and who God is became blurred, which Muslims describe as a harmony of Jesus with God's will.

Critical response

Several writers comment on Bennett's openness about his Christian

Christianity

Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...

identity and aim of responding sympathetically as a Christian to the challenge of Islam. Noorani refers to him as a "devout Christian" Armour describes Bennett as a "confessing Christian" while Zahniser comments that Bennett's "search for Muhammad" is also a "struggle for interpretation." Bennett "combines a Christian struggle to find Muhammad with a textbook-like tour of Islam itself." Shafaat's review is a 26 page detailed analysis of Bennett on Muhammad and on Jesus. On the one hand, he praises Bennett for listening to Muslim voices. On the other, he suggests that Bennett is hampered by his loyalty to Jesus

Jesus

Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...

and by his need to "fit Islam into his Christian outlook", which results in his inability to "properly assess evidence about the Prophet Muhammad when it calls into question what we 'know of God in Christ'". On a positive note, Bennett "is aware that his attempt to fit Islam into his world-view 'is not unproblematical'." Theology

Theology

gets in the way of history

History

, so Bennett fails to allow the "historical Muhammad to speak for himself". Shafaat also thinks that Bennett may have "felt some pressure from his peers to downgrade his estimate of Muhammad". Bennett's Jesus "departs from the traditional Christian view."
Jay Smith's review implies that Bennett is a dangerous guide for Christians because - in his opinion - Bennett reduces the religious life to social work

Social work

Social Work is a professional and academic discipline that seeks to improve the quality of life and wellbeing of an individual, group, or community by intervening through research, policy, community organizing, direct practice, and teaching on behalf of those afflicted with poverty or any real or...

and denies the need for Jesus' redeeming death. Smith is not convinced that Bennett remains Trinitarian, saying that according to Bennett, Christians "must abandon our convictions (i.e. the trinity), become unitarian ..."

Involvement in the Unification movement

Bennett is one of a number of academics who has both attended conferences sponsored by the Unification movement and has accepted employment by an affiliated organization. The former include Ninian Smart

Ninian Smart

Professor Roderick Ninian Smart was a Scottish writer and university educator. He was a pioneer in the field of secular religious studies...

, Ursula King, William Montgomery Watt

William Montgomery Watt

William Montgomery Watt was a Scottish historian, an Emeritus Professor in Arabic and Islamic Studies at the University of Edinburgh...

, Martin Forward

Martin Forward

Martin Forward is a British, Methodist Christian lecturer and author on religion and Professor of Religion at Aurora University, Illinois. He has taught Islam at the Universities of Leicester, Bristol and Cambridge, and had spent a period of time in India where he was ordained into the Church of...

, George D. Chryssides

George D. Chryssides

Dr George D. Chryssides was a senior lecturer and Head of Religious Studies at the School of Humanities, Languages and Social Sciences of the University of Wolverhampton now working for Birmingham University....

, Marcus Braybrooke and Jane I. Smith among many others. The latter include Richard Rubenstein and Richard Arthur. U.T.S. has employed and continues to employ non-Unification faculty. Attendance at Unification sponsored meetings has taken Bennett as far a field as San Francisco for the Second Assembly of the World’s Religions (August 15 to 21, 1990), Istanbul

Istanbul

Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...

for a Christian-Muslim colloquium (September, 1991), Berlin

Berlin

Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...

for a conference on religious freedom (May 29 – 31 1998 ), Israel

Israel

The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

(December, 2003) and South Korea

South Korea

The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...

on several occasions. At times he has been accompanied by his wife or son. He has consistently expressed the view that religious freedom is indivisible and that unless proven guilty of breaches in law, Unificationists and their founder have an absolute right to practice their religion. He has argued that working with the movement no more implies agreement with their beliefs than his work with Roman Catholics implies that he agrees with theirs. Bennett writes that ‘‘as a life long participant in Christian-Muslim dialogue, I have met through Rev. Moon

Sun Myung Moon

Sun Myung Moon is the Korean founder and leader of the worldwide Unification Church. He is also the founder of many other organizations and projects...

’s movement some of the most influential Muslim thinkers in the world. This is because Rev. Moon has funded inter-religious dialogue when most church bodies concerned with inter-religious relations remain strapped for cash."

Books

1992, Victorian Images of Islam, London: Grey Seal, pp 204 (ISBN 1-85640-028-X)

1996, In Search of the Sacred: Anthropology and the Study of Religions London: Cassell Academic (ISBN 0304 336815 hb; 0304 336823 pb) pp 218

1996, with Foreman-Peck, Lorraine and Higgins, Chris, Researching Into Teaching Methods in Colleges and Universities, London: Kogan Page (ISBN 0-7494-1768-4) pp 136

1998, In Search of Muhammad, London: Cassell Academic (ISBN 0-304-70401-6) pp 276.

2001, In Search of Jesus: Insider - Outsider Images London: Continuum (ISBN 0826449166) pp 364

2005, Muslims and Modernity: An Introduction to the Issues and Debates, London: Continuum (ISBN 082645481X) pp 286

2008, Understanding Christian Muslim Relations Past and Present, London: Continuum (ISBN 9780826487834)

2008, In Search of Solutions: the problem of religion and conflict, London: Equinox (ISBN 978-1845532390)

2009, Interpreting the Qur'an: A Guide for the Uninitiated, London: Continuum (ISBN 9780826499448)

2010, Studying Islam: The Critical Issues, London: Continuum (ISBN 978-0-82649550-1)

2010, Muslim Women of Power: Gender, Politics and Culture in Islam, London: Continuum (ISBN 9780826400871)

Chapters

1994, "Islam", pp 95 – 122, in J Holm with J Bowker (ed) Making Moral Decisions, London: Pinter (ISBN 1 85567 096 8).

1994, "Islam", pp 113 – 141, in J Holm with J Bowker (ed), Picturing God, London: Pinter (ISBN 1-85567-101-8).

1994, "Islam", pp 88 –114, in J Holm with J Bowker, Sacred Place, London: Pinter (ISBN 1-85567-104-2).

1994, "Islam", pp 90 – 112, in J Holm with J Bowker (ed), Rites of Passage, London: Pinter (ISBN 1 85567 103 4).

2008, “A Christian response to the Absence of the Cross in Islam”, 171-179, in David Emmanuel Singh (ed) Jesus and the Cross: Reflections of Christians from Islamic Contexts, Oxford; Carlisle, Cumbria and Waynesboro, GA: Regnum/Paternoster ISBN 978-1-870345-65-1

2011, "Saints, Incarnation and Christian-Muslim Relations: Reflections inspired by encountering Bangladeshi Islam", 99-111, in David Emmanuel Singh (ed) Jesus and the Incarnations: Reflections of Christians from Islamic Contexts. Oxford: Regnum Books ISBN 978-1-870345-90-3

Articles

1992, "The Legacy of Henry Martyn" pp 10–15, International Bulletin of Missionary Research, Vol 16 No 1.

1993, "The Legacy of Lewis Bevan Jones" pp 126–129, International Bulletin of Missionary Research, Vol 17 No 3.

1996, "The Legacy of Karl Gottlieb Pfander" pp 76 – 81, International Bulletin of Missionary Research, Vol 20 No 2

External links

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