Global Ethic Foundation | Basic Literature on Global Ethic

Basic Literature on Global Ethic

		Hans Küng Global Responsibility In Search of a New World Ethic
London, 1991 158 pp ISBN 0 334 02001 8

“... a manifesto written for thinking Christians. Its very brevity, passion and clear common sense will make it extremely accessible and popular with students” (Theological Book Review). “The book is short, but has a steely and lucid logical structure ... Küng is disarmingliy honest and direct in his forthright considerations of the ways in which religions have failed to live up to their own ethical norms. The great strength of the book is its timely and rigorous treatment of the concept of global responsibility. It is essential reading for anyone wishing to think systematically about a new world ethic!” (Science and Medical Network).

“This is a small mountin of a book. Its sides are steep and climbed only with frequent pauses for breath, but the view from the top is worth the exertion ... we should be thankful for Hans Küng and his motivating judgment that religion remains decisive in human affairs and that peace, if it is to be found anywhere, lies along the road of intelligent and well-researched dialogue. Küng, an antidote to the conservatism of the current Vatican, is the kind of intellectual the late twentieth century needs; thorough, engaged and with a global perspective” (Financial Times).

“This very readable and short book written in nontechnical language should be must reading for serious theological students concerned about a global perspective for their life and work.” (Missiology)

“A persuasive appeal for a shift to a postmodern agenda that will take seriously the claims of religion.”
(National Catholic Reporter)

“Highly intelligent.... It is understandable while being scholarly and should be read by anyone seeking an overview of ethical history as it relates to the present.”
(Church and Synagogue Library Association).

		Hans Küng (Editor) Yes to a Global Ethic
London, 1996 240 pp ISBN 0 334 02633 4

Hans Küng's book Global Responsibility, with its plea for a consensus on basic ethical values among those of all religions and no religion, has not only been widely influential, but also led to a Declaration Toward a Global Ethic which was endorsed by the Parliament of the World's Religions held in Chicago in1993.

The present book takes the process a stage further. In it a remarkable group of international figures, including heads of states and world organizations, religious leaders, scholars and writers, make their own contribution towardsthe vision of a global ethic. The distinguished list of more than thirty names includes Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, Cardinal Jeseph Bernardin, Archbishop George Carey, Crown Prince Hassan of Jordan, former Mayer Teddy Kollek, Yehudi Menuhin, President Mary Robinson, former Chancellor Helmut Schmidt, Cornelio Sommaruga, President of the Red Cross, Bishop Desmond Tutu and Elie Wiesel.

Contributors were invited because their commitment to a global ethic was already evident. Together, they bear impressive witness that in many religions and cultures a greater awareness of the need for such an ethic is steadily growing. Reading what they have written, from longer articles to brief statements and prayers, is a moving experience and one which offers great hope for the future.

“An interesting attempt to articulate and promote a sign of hope that a global change of conscience is possible.”
(Bookfinder)

“A remarkable text ... It is a testimony to Küng’s own preeminence in the theological and religious world, that he would persuade all of these people to write movingly and intelligently in support of his vision.... Küng is to be congratulated for pursuing with passion and conviction the goals he outlines in this book.”
(Reviews in Religion and Theology)

“These testimonials are often moving and inspirational.”
(National Catholic Reporter)

“Deserving of praise.”
(Publishers Weekly)

		Hans Küng A Global Ethic for Global Politics and Economics
London, 1996 240 pp ISBN 0 334 02633 4

		Hans Küng A Global Ethic for Global Politics and Economics
New York, 1998 316 pp ISBN 0-19-512228-3

Hans Küng's Global Responsibility, published in 1991, marked an important new stage in his work. On the one hand it led to his magisterial books on Judaism and Christianity, and on the other hand it led to the Declaration toward a Global Ethic, approved by the Parliament of the World Religions in 1993, and the setting up of the Global Ethic Foundation of which he is president.

This latest book marks a further practical step forward. In it Hans Küng enters into a detailed examination of current ethical issues in politics and economics in a way which will surprise those who regard him solely as a theologian. Discussed at every stage of its creation with experts in politics and economics, his argument shows a quite remarkable grasp of contemporary issues andhas that professional touch which is so much hallmark of all that he has written.

Can politicians break all the rules, whether in international politics, domestic questions or in their personal lives? Is power everything, and do the means justify the end? These are the questions dealt with in the first part, which offers historical surveys of Realpolitik and more idealistic ettempts at an alternate along with discussions of the war informer Yugoslavia and Gulf War.

Is the welfare state doomed? Is the marked a law to itsself? Does the future lie with the transnational companies? How much scope is there for ethics in a business world which increasingly seems to be dominated by financial scandals? These are the issues in the second part.

As well as tackling all these difficult questionsin depth, Hans Küng offers his own condrete suggestions for amore humane social order. His vision will fascinate all those concerned for al better world, of all religious beliefs or of none.

		Hans Küng, Helmut Schmidt (editors) A Global Ethic and Global Responsibilities Two declarations
London, 1998 152 pp ISBN 0 334 02740 3

1998 sees the fiftieth anniversary of the adoption of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights, a great landmark in human history. There can be no going back behind this Declaration, but there is increasing recognition that it needs to be balanced. If all pursue their own rights exclusively and do not accept any obligations and responsibilities, the result can be hostility, conflict and ultimately chaos.

Consequently the InterAction Council, a distinguished body of elder statesmen and other leading public figures, chaired first by Helmut Schmidt and now by Malcolm Fraser, has produced a "universal Declaration of Human Responsibilities". This book contains the text of the Declaration, in the drafting of which Hans Küng was closely involved, an account of the historical background to it, a discussion of its significance, and responses from around the world.

Parallel to it is printed the 1993 Declaration of the Parliament of the World's Religions together with an explanatory account by Hans Küng.

Hans Küng is President of the Global Ethic Foundation, Tübingen, and Helmut Schmidt is a former Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany.

		Hans Küng, Josef van Ess, Heinrich von Stietencron, Heinz Bechert Christianity and World Religions Paths to Dialogue
New York, 1996 460 pp ISBN 0-88344-858-0

		Hans Küng, Josef van Ess, Heinrich von Stietencron, Heinz Bechert Christianity and World Religions Paths to Dialogue
London, 1987 460 pp ISBN 0-00-217619-X 0-00-626994-X

The world-renowned theologian Hans Küng here joins with three colleagues to address a crucial question: How can we break through the barriers of noncommunication, fear, and mistrust that separate the followers of the world's great religious traditions? In this exploration of this question, Christianity and Worlds Religions has been hailed internationally as an indispensable resource for teaching a both college and graduate levels.

Küng's conversation partners analyze the main lines of approach taken by Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism on basic questions. Küng gives Christian responses to the values and challenges each tradition presents.

As Küng points out, efforts to breach the barriers between believers are not merely philosophical exercises. "The most fanatical, the cruelest political struggles are those that have been colored, inspired, and legitimized by religion. To say this is not to reduce all political conflicts to religious ones, but to take seriously the fact that religions share in the responsibility for bringing peace to our torn and warring world."

"'No peaceamong the nations without peace among the religions,' Hans Küng long has argued. Christianity and World Religions brings the reader into close encounter with these three major non-Christian religions. Providing a rich body of information, it is outstanding in both its range and incisiveness. Küng dialogues with fellow professors, each one of whom is a specialist on the faith under discussion. In the end, Küng's own positions as a Christian theologian is both made more incisive and enriched."

Niels C. Nielsen, Jr., Rayor Professor of Philosophy and Religious Thought Emeritus Rice University

		Hans Küng, Julia Ching Christianity and Chinese Religions
London, 1987 460 pp ISBN 0-00-217619-X 0-00-626994-X

This book, never befor published in the United Kingdom, serves as a companion volume to Christianity and the World Religions, dealing in particular with Confucianism and Taoism, but also with Buddhism and Chinese folk religion.

Central to Hans Küng's argument is that Chinese religions are not some kind of Far Eastern and exotic appendage of general religious history, to be treated as marginal or as an afterthougt, but must be taken seriously as a third independent complex, of equal status to prophetic Semitic religion and mystic Indian religion. In each chapter, Julia Ching, descended from a distinguished Shanghai family, offers Chinese perspectives von the subject matter, to which Hans Küng offers a Christian response.

		Hans Küng, Christianity Its Essence and History
London, 1995 312 pp ISBN 0 334 02571 0 0 334 02584 0

“Christianity bears all the marks of Küng’s virtues: stunning erudition, provocative honesty and sometimes unrelenting polemics.”
(America)

“Christianity takes up where On Being A Christian (1976) left off, but it stands on its own ... This volume exemplifies the best yet from one of the world’s premier teachers. Brief sections on the essence and center of Christianity are followed by a lengthy analysis of the entire history of Christianity to show how and why it became what it is today, with a view to moving it toward what it could be — a servant of Christ’s mission. Breathtaking in scope and analytical power. Excellent layout, helpful graphics, name-only index, but comprehensive outline. A ‘must’ for every serious library.”
(Choice)

“A mammoth and important rendering of the Christian faith, by one of the most prominent living Roman Catholic theologians.... Impressive work that could become essential reading for students and interested laypersons alike.”
(Kirkus Reviews)

“A dazzling display of scholarship ... The work is a remarkable achievement for a church always in need of reform and reformers.”
(Library Journal)

“The depth of understanding and clarity of presentation of such a wide range of material is breathtaking and always insightful.”
(Reformed Review)

“Küng is brilliant and exciting.”
(Christian Century)

“Essential for any college or university library.”
(National Catholic Reporter)

“This is a vintage Küng book: argumentative, wide-ranging, and well written.”
(Church History)

“A good text for an undergraduate introduction to Christianity.”
(Religious Studies Review)

		Hans Küng Judaism Between Yesterday and Tomorrow
London, 1995 312 pp ISBN 0 334 02571 0 0 334 02584 0

“Küng’s work contains a mine of information about Judaism, and its discussions of issues facing Judaism and the Jewish people today are clear, sympathetic and insighftul.”
(The Journal of Religion)

“A stunning achievement. What erudition this man has! The section on the Bible alone would be worthy of an Old Testament specialist.”
(The Expository Times)

“An invaluable reference work ... Küng has produced a work for Christians as they seek to relate to Jews in a religiously plural world.”
(Interpretation)

		Hans Küng Great Christian Thinkers Paul, Origin, Augustine, Aquinas, Luther, Schleiermacher, Barth
NewYork,1994 236 pp ISBN 0-8264-0643-2

		Hans Küng Great Christian Thinkers Paul, Origin, Augustine, Aquinas, Luther, Schleiermacher, Barth
London, 1994 236 pp ISBN 0 334 02558 3

“This superb book reads like the transcribed notes of an excellent classroom lecturer: clear, original, insightful, and interconnected.... One of our most accessible treatises on Christian theology.”
(Publishers Weekly)

“Readers will encounter solidly researched, informative description and evaluation of seven monumental Christian thinkers grouped and related incisively by a brilliant contemporary theological mind. This is a treat not to be missed.”
(National Catholic Reporter)

“Küng's treatment of this dazzling array of theologians is as insightful as it is penetrating. The essays can indeed serve as introductions in and of themselves, each with a short biography, a delineation of the theological positions held, and a concluding assessment of what lies ahead.”
(Anglican Theological Review)

“This book would serve well as an introductory text to theology. Küng’s conversational writing style makes this a text that could easily find its way into the college classroom or home library. If you want to read about great Christian thinkers, this is a good place to start.”
(St. Anthony Messenger)

“Readers of this fair and thought-provoking survey, whether curious lay readers or beginning seminary students, will be inspired to delve into the well-chosen chapter bibliographies and extensive references.”
(Library Journal)

		Hermann Häring Hans Küng Breaking Through: The Work and Legacy
London, 1998 378 pp ISBN 0 334 02739 X

In this comprehensive critical survey of the 40-year career of Catholic theologian Hans Küng, Hermann Häring reveals the currents of thought and critical acumen that first set Küng at loggerheads with the Vatican and then made him one of the clearest and most persuasive voices for change within the church. Häring explains Küng’s powerful presence at the center of the emerging ecumenical movement that found its greatest expression in the Parliament of World Religions, of which Küng himself was the prime mover.

In recent years Küng has devoted himself to the task of examining the history and legacy of the three great monotheistic religions of the West—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. He has sought to show why unless these religions can learn to coexist based on mutual understanding and respect it will not be possible for peace either between these religions or indeed between all peoples to flourish in the forthcoming millennium. Always a passionate advocate for honest dialogue and open-mindedness, Küng—as his story is told by Häring—emerges in this study as a titanic, expansive thinker who offers a dynamic vision of a world at peace anchored on the solid foundations of interconnected world religions.

Herman Häring is Professor of Systematic Theology at the Catholic University of Nijmegen in the Netherlands.

		Karl-Josef Kuschel Abraham A Symbol of Hope for Jews, Christians and Muslims
London, 1995 286 pp ISBN 0 334 02567 2

In a world where there is all too much hostility, latent or manifest, between Christians and Muslims, Muslims and Jews, Christians and Jews, and an increase in fundamentalism and extremism, this book sets out to present a new vision for peace between the religions. It centres on Abraham, a figure who has an important place in Jewish, Christian and Muslim tradition, and thus forms a common point of reference.

First Karl-Josef Kuschel analyses the role Abraham has been made to play in each of the three great religions in connection with politics, ideals, laws: the non-Jew who was made a Jew, then a Christian and then the model Muslim. Since he is the possession of all these religions, a future relationship between them could be an 'Abrahamic ecumenism'. The second part of the book then sets out the presuppositions for such an ecumenism, with a universalistic perspective, and the third section outlines the contribution that this ecumenism could make in the world of our day.

Karl-Josef Kuschel teaches ecumenical theology and theological aesthetics in the University of Tübingen.

		Peggy Morgan, Marcus Braybrooke (editors) Testing the Global Ethic Voices from the Religions on Moral Values
Oxford, and Ada (USA), 1998 166 pp ISBN 0 95 24140 1 5 0 9637897 6 7

This book, which will be of importance to all concerned for the future of our world, will be of special value to teachers in a number of areas, including education in personal, social and moral values, citizenship and religious education. The book will also be particularly useful for interfaith and religious study groups.

International Interfaith Centre and The World Congress of Faiths