Edward Kessler | |
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| Born | 3 May 1963 London, England |
| Occupation | Theologian |
| Nationality | British |
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Edward Kessler MBE (born 3 May 1963) [1] is the Founder President of The Woolf Institute, a leading thinker in interfaith relations, primarily Jewish-Christian-Muslim Relations, a Fellow of St Edmund's College, Cambridge [2] as well as a Principal of the Cambridge Theological Federation and Convenor of the Commission on the Integration of Refugees.
Born in 1963, Kessler was educated at City of London School and graduated with a First-Class Honours Degree in Hebrew and Religious Studies from the University of Leeds in 1985, an MTS degree from Harvard Divinity School in 1987, and an MBA degree from the University of Stirling in 1989. He went on to work in a family business, Kesslers International Group, for 7 years before returning to his academic studies, completing a PhD degree at the University of Cambridge in 1999.
Kessler, with Martin Forward, founded the Centre for the Study of Jewish-Christian Relations (CJCR) in 1998 [3] and was elected Fellow of St Edmund's College in 2002. In 2006 The Centre for the Study of Muslim-Jewish Relations (CMJR) and the Centre for Policy Public Education were established [4] and the name of the organisation was changed to The Woolf Institute in 2010, and its focus was extended to the study of relationship between religion and society, with a focus on relations between Jews, Christians and Muslims. It constructed its own building in 2017, located at Westminster College where the Institute is presently located.
Kessler lauched an independent UK Commission in November 2022 on the Integration of Refugees. Lord Carlile was appointed Chair and Bishop Guli Francis-Dehqani Vice Chair. The Commission is taking evidence at hearings around the UK and is due to publish its report in the Spring of 2024.
In 2023 he was appointed Chair of the Advisory Board overseeing the unification of Reform and Liberal Judaism.
In 2006, he was awarded the Sternberg Interfaith Award from philanthropist Sir Sigmund Sternberg "in recognition of outstanding services in furthering relations between faiths". [5] In June 2007 The Times Higher Education newspaper described him as "probably the most prolific interfaith figure in British academia". [4] In 2011 he was awarded an MBE awarded for services to interfaith relations [6] Kessler has published 12 books, most recently, Jews, Christians and Muslims which was published in 2013 by SCM and Jesus which was published in 2016 by The History Press. He is presently editing a Documentary History of Jewish-Christian Relations (to be published by Cambridge University Press in the Spring of 2024).
Kessler was Convenor and Vice-Chair for the Commission on Religion and Belief in British Public Life (2013–15), a two-year initiative that examined the role of religion and belief in Britain. Its report, "Living with Difference" made 37 recommendations and generated public controversy, particularly over faith schools. [7] He was also Principal Investigator of the Woolf Diversity Study, a study of diversity in England and Wales (2017–19), which published a policy report entitled, How We Get Along.
Much of his academic work has been examining scripture and exploring the significance for Jewish-Christian relations of sharing a sacred text. He has identified a common exegetical tradition, especially in the formative centuries. More recently his writings have focussed on the encounter with Islam and contemporary relations between the three Abrahamic faiths and implications for fostering a vibrant and open society. Kessler proposes approaches for managing difference, which he argues is vital in forming a positive identity as well as sustaining communities. [8] In his discussion on covenantal theology, he argues for the creation of ‘theological space’ in which people of faith can affirm one another without losing their particularities of faith. [9]
Kessler also explores the tensions, positive as well as negative, between religion and civil society. At a lecture at the Brookings Institution in 2014, he argued that diplomats and policymakers need to be better trained in religion and belief, describing the contemporary religious landscape as a post-interfaith world. In 2019, at The Council for Religious and Life Stance Communities in Oslo, he argued that because religious monopolies are in decline, Christianity can no longer be portrayed as the dominant ‘host’ religion in Europe and a previously intrinsic relationship is being weakened - belonging to a minority is the norm.
In 2022, as Visiting Professor at the Irish School of Ecumenics, Trinity College, Dublin, he delivered a lecture on ways to sustain and safeguard, Jerusalem’s Holy Places; in 2023, he delivered the Krister Stendahl Memorial Lecture in Stockholm and discussed the importance of tackling the difficult issues in interfaith dialogue.
1989 – An English Jew: The Life and Writings of Claude Montefiore, London: Vallentine Mitchell, (2nd Edition, 2002)
2002 – Jews and Christians in Conversation: crossing cultures and generations, eds., E. Kessler, JT Pawlikowski & J Banki, Cambridge: Orchard Academic
2004 – A Reader of Liberal Judaism: Israel Abrahams, Claude Montefiore, Israel Mattuck and Lily Montagu, London: Vallentine Mitchell
2004 – Aspects of Liberal Judaism: Essays in Honour of John D Rayner on the occasion of his 80th Birthday, eds., E. Kessler and D.J.Goldberg, London: Vallentine Mitchell
2004 – Bound by the Bible: Jews, Christians and the Sacrifice of Isaac, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
2004 – Themes in Jewish-Christian Relations, eds., E. Kessler & M.J. Wright, Cambridge: Orchard Academic
2005 – A Dictionary of Jewish-Christian Relations, eds., E, Kessler & N. Wenborn, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
2006 – Challenges in Jewish-Christian Relations, eds., J. Aitken & E. Kessler, New York: Paulist Press
2006 – What do Jews Believe? London and New York: Granta Publications
2010 – Introduction to Jewish-Christian Relations, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
2013 – Jews, Christians and Muslims, London: SCM
2016 – Jesus, Stroud: The History Press
2024 - A Documentary History of Jewish-Christian Relations: From Ancient Times to the Present Day, eds. E. Kessler & N. Wenborn, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press (forthcoming)
Kessler regularly appears in the media commenting on religion and belief issues of the day, such as presenting a BBCR4 documentary entitled 'We do do God' (2019), is a regular contributor to the Woolf Institute Blog and hosts the weekly podcast 'Naked Reflections', https://www.thenakedscientists.com/podcasts/naked-reflections. He also presented the series, Covid-19 Chronicles (2020), which consisted of more than 50 interviews with faith leaders on the impact of the coronavirus on religion and belief. He wrote and presented two A-Z podcasts (2018–20), An A-Z of Believing: From Atheism to Zealotry and An A-Z of the Holy Land: From Arab to Zion. For examples see external links.
He has expressed opposition about any imminent beatification/canonisation of Pope Pius XII. [10]
Kessler has delivered a number of public lectures including:
The 1st Hugo Gryn Memorial lecture, London (1998); The 30th Cardinal Bea Memorial Lecture, London (2000); The Shapiro Lecture, Chicago (2003); The Martin Buber Lecture, East Anglia University (2004); The Bishop Grossteste Lecture, Lincoln Cathedral (2005); The Kennedy lecture, North Carolina (2008); [11] Ely Cathedral Lectures: 400th anniversary of the publication of the King James Bible. [12] Changing Landscapes: A lecture on Jews, Christians and Muslims in the UK Today, University of Derby (2012)); The Abrahamic Religions: the prospects for their inter-relations, University of Edinburgh (2013); Religion and International Relations: towards a post-interfaith society, Brookings Institution, Washington, D.C. (2014); 2016 Keeping Faith in Foreign Affairs, University of London (2016); How can Christians, Jews and Muslims move beyond our religious differences and work together to build a better world? (Kirk Interfaith Conference, Glasgow, 2017), Religion and the Nation State, The Council for Religious and Life Stance Communities, Oslo (2019), The Changing Landscape of Religion and Belief: Standing on the Crossroads (University of Suffolk, 2021) [13]
Religious pluralism is a set of religious world views that hold that one's religion is not the sole and exclusive source of truth, and thus recognizes that some level of truth and value exists in other religions. As such, religious pluralism goes beyond religious tolerance, which is the condition of peaceful existence between adherents of different religions or religious denominations.
Islamic–Jewish relations comprise the human and diplomatic relations between Jewish people and Muslims in the Arabian Peninsula, Northern Africa, the Middle East, and their surrounding regions. Jewish–Islamic relations may also refer to the shared and disputed ideals between Judaism and Islam, which began roughly in the 7th century CE with the origin and spread of Islam in the Arabian peninsula. The two religions share similar values, guidelines, and principles. Islam also incorporates Jewish history as a part of its own. Muslims regard the Children of Israel as an important religious concept in Islam. Moses, the most important prophet of Judaism, is also considered a prophet and messenger in Islam. Moses is mentioned in the Quran more than any other individual, and his life is narrated and recounted more than that of any other prophet. There are approximately 43 references to the Israelites in the Quran, and many in the Hadith. Later rabbinic authorities and Jewish scholars such as Maimonides discussed the relationship between Islam and Jewish law. Maimonides himself, it has been argued, was influenced by Islamic legal thought.
Christian−Jewish reconciliation refers to the efforts that are being made to improve understanding and acceptance between Christians and Jews. There has been significant progress in reconciliation in recent years, in particular by the Catholic Church, but also by other Christian groups.
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.
Religion in the United States is widespread, diverse, and vibrant, with the country being far more religious than other wealthy Western nations. An overwhelming majority of Americans believe in a higher power, engage in spiritual practices, and consider themselves religious or spiritual. Christianity is the most widely professed religion, with most Americans being Evangelicals, Mainline Protestants, or Catholics.
Over the centuries of Islamic history, Muslim rulers, Islamic scholars, and ordinary Muslims have held many different attitudes towards other religions. Attitudes have varied according to time, place and circumstance.
Interfaith marriage, sometimes called interreligious marriage or "mixed marriage", is marriage between spouses professing different religions. Although interfaith marriages are often established as civil marriages, in some instances they may be established as a religious marriage. This depends on religious doctrine of each of the two parties' religions; some prohibit interfaith marriage, and among others there are varying degrees of permissibility.
Claude Joseph Goldsmid Montefiore, also Goldsmid–Montefiore or just Goldsmid Montefiore (1858–1938) was the intellectual founder of Anglo-Liberal Judaism and the founding president of the World Union for Progressive Judaism, a scholar of the Hebrew Bible, rabbinic literature and New Testament. He was a significant figure in the contexts of modern Jewish religious thought, Jewish-Christian relations, and Anglo-Jewish socio-politics, and educator. Montefiore was President of the Anglo-Jewish Association and an influential anti-Zionist leader, who co-founded the anti-Zionist League of British Jews in 1917.
David Shlomo Rosen KSG CBE is an English-Israeli rabbi and interfaith peacemaker. He was Chief Rabbi of Ireland (1979–1985) before relocating permanently to Israel in 1985. He currently serves as the American Jewish Committee's International Director of Interreligious Affairs. From 2005 until 2009 he headed the International Jewish Committee for Inter-religious Consultations (IJCIC), the broad-based coalition of Jewish organizations and denominations that represents World Jewry in its relations with other world religions.
David Frank Ford is an Anglican public theologian. He was the Regius Professor of Divinity at the University of Cambridge, beginning in 1991. He is now an Emeritus Regius Professor of Divinity. His research interests include political theology, ecumenical theology, Christian theologians and theologies, theology and poetry, the shaping of universities and of the field of theology and religious studies within universities, hermeneutics, and interfaith theology and relations. He is the founding director of the Cambridge Inter-Faith Programme and a co-founder of the Society for Scriptural Reasoning.
The Centre for the Study of Jewish–Christian Relations (CJCR) was based at Wesley House, Cambridge. It was an institute for the study and teaching of Jewish–Christian relations and the promotion of interfaith dialogue. In 2010 CJCR and The Centre for the Study of Muslim-Jewish Relations were renamed The Woolf Institute.
Peter W. Ochs is the Edgar M. Bronfman Professor of Modern Judaic Studies at the University of Virginia, where he has served since 1997. He is an influential thinker whose interests include Jewish philosophy and theology, modern and postmodern philosophical theology, pragmatism, and semiotics. Ochs coined the term "scriptural reasoning" and is the co-founder of the Society for Scriptural Reasoning, which promotes interfaith dialog among Christians, Jews, and Muslims through scriptural study groups. He is also a co-founder of the Children of Abraham Institute, which promotes interfaith study and dialog among members of the Abrahamic religions.
The Woolf Institute is an academic institute in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1998 by Edward Kessler MBE and Martin Forward, and now located in central Cambridge on the Westminster College Site, it is dedicated to the study of interfaith relations between Jews, Christians and Muslims. Using research and education to explore the relationship between religion and society, it aims to foster greater understanding and tolerance.
Norman Solomon is a British rabbi, professor, and scholar in the field of Jewish studies and Jewish–Christian relations.
Laura Naomi Janner-Klausner is a British rabbi and an inclusion and development coach who served as the inaugural Senior Rabbi to Reform Judaism from 2011 until 2020. Janner-Klausner grew up in London before studying theology at the University of Cambridge and moving to Israel in 1985, living in Jerusalem for 15 years. She returned to Britain in 1999 and was ordained at Leo Baeck College, serving as rabbi at Alyth Synagogue until 2011. She has been serving as Rabbi at Bromley Reform Synagogue in south-east London since April 2022.
Sybil Ann Sheridan is a writer and British Reform rabbi. She was chair of the Assembly of Reform Rabbis UK at the Movement for Reform Judaism from 2013 to 2015 and was Rabbi at Wimbledon and District Synagogue in south west London. As of 2020 she is part-time rabbi at Newcastle Reform Synagogue.
Danny Rich is a Labour councillor in the London Borough of Barnet. He was, until 2020, the Senior Rabbi and Chief Executive of Liberal Judaism in the United Kingdom.
The Interreligious Coordinating Council in Israel (ICCI) was founded in 1991 to further understanding and communication between members of different faith communities and to build foundations for lasting fellowship.
"Our mission is to harness the teachings and values of the three Abrahamic faiths and transform religion's role from a force of division and extremism into a source of reconciliation, coexistence and understanding for the leaders and followers of these religions in Israel and in our region."
Ataullah Siddiqui was a Muslim scholar and academic who did much to promote interfaith relations.
Sarah J. K. Pearce is Ian Karten Professor of History and Head of the School of Humanities at the University of Southampton. She is known in particular for her work on Jews in the Hellenistic world and the Roman Empire, especially the life and work of Philo of Alexandria.
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