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Complete Dissertation VU Research Portal Abraham in Narrative Worldviews: Doing Comparative Theology through Christian- Muslim Dialogue in Turkey Bristow, G.F.V. 2015 document version Publisher's PDF, also known as Version of record Link to publication in VU Research Portal citation for published version (APA) Bristow, G. F. V. (2015). Abraham in Narrative Worldviews: Doing Comparative Theology through Christian- Muslim Dialogue in Turkey. 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Oct. 2021 VRIJE UNIVERSITEIT Abraham in Narrative Worldviews: Doing Comparative Theology through Christian-Muslim Dialogue in Turkey ACADEMISCH PROEFSCHRIFT ter verkrijging van de graad Doctor aan de Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, op gezag van de rector magnificus prof.dr. F.A. van der Duyn Schouten, in het openbaar te verdedigen ten overstaan van de promotiecommissie van de Faculteit der Godgeleerdheid op donderdag 28 mei, 2015 om 11.45 uur in de aula van de universiteit, De Boelelaan 1105 door George Farquhar Vance Bristow Jr geboren te Pennsylvania, Verenigde Staten promotoren: prof.dr. J.A. Kirk prof.dr. P.A. van Doorn-Harder copromotor: dr. I.J. Glaser This dissertation research was completed in co-operation with the International Baptist Theological Study Centre, a collaborative partner of the Faculty of Theology at VU Amsterdam. ABSTRACT Entitled Abraham in Narrative Worldviews: Doing Comparative Theology through Christian-Muslim Dialogue in Turkey, this study has implications for the fields of contextual missiology, interfaith comparative theology and biblical interpretation in Islamic contexts. Many approaches to Abrahamic dialogue do not grapple with the Abrahamic texts of Genesis and the Qur’an in enough detail for meaningful comparison. In this thesis I introduce and utilize a model for comparing particular Biblical and Qur’anic narratives, along with their use by Christians and Muslims respectively. This approach builds on the tight connection between narrative and worldview to enable theological comparison of these distinct but related worldviews. The Biblical/Christian worldview categories of Creation, Fall, Redemption and Consummation are juxtaposed with Qur’anic/Muslim categories of Tawhid (Oneness of God), Prophethood and Afterlife in three sets of polarities in order to catalyse deeper comparison. In the main body of the study I examine separately the Genesis Abraham narrative, the New Testament treatments of Abraham, the Qur’anic Abraham stories, and finally the use of Abraham by Turkish Muslims through analysis of field research interviews. This prepares the way for comparing Christian and Muslim worldviews as expressed in their respective uses of Abraham. Using the central themes developed through the discrete studies and the polarities generated by my narrative-worldview model, I undertake a theological comparison of Abraham in Christian and Muslim worldview. This yields evidence that despite some common ground, the worldviews diverge deeply in each of the major polarities. The beginning of the story, with God as the sovereign creator of all things, and humanity entrusted with a particular set of responsibilities as God’s special creation, and the end of the story, with resurrection, judgment and heaven and hell, have significant common elements when looked at broadly. But the rest of the story, making up almost the entire sweep of the Biblical narrative, is vastly different. Looking through the lens of Abraham narratives, the two worldviews have little in common in terms of either plight or solution. Despite some limited overlap Abraham stands in a different story of God’s relationship to humanity. i Abraham in Narritieve Wereldbeelden: Vergelijkende theologie door middel van de Christelijke-Moslim dialoog in de Turkse context. SAMENVATTING Dit onderzoek heeft implicaties voor de volgende terreinen: contextuele missiologie, interreligieuze vergelijkende theologie en Bijbelse interpretatie in een Moslim context. Vele benaderingen van de dialoog m.b.t. Abraham behandelen de teksten over Abraham in Genesis en de Koran in te weinig detail om een zinvolle vergelijking te kunnen maken. In dit onderzoek introduceer en gebruik ik een model voor het vergelijken van zowel de verhalen in de Bijbel en de Koran als ook het gebruik van deze verhalen door Christenen en Moslims. Op deze wijze wordt het mogelijk om theologisch vergelijkende observaties te maken van de verschillende, maar verwante, wereldbeelden. De Christelijke concepten: Schepping, Val, Redding en Eindtijd worden vergeleken met de Moslim concepten: Tawhid (Eenheid van God), Profeet en het leven na de dood. Door deze concepten naast elkaar te zetten wordt het mogelijk om vergelijkende observaties te maken. De kern van het onderzoek bestaat uit een analyse van achtereenvolgend: het verhaal van Abraham zoals beschreven in Genesis, de verwijzingen naar Abraham in het Nieuwe Testament, de verhalen over Abraham in de Koran en een veld onderzoek d.m.v. interviews, waarin gekeken wordt hoe de figuur van Abraham wordt gebruikt door Turkse Moslims. Dit als voorbereiding op een vergelijking van Christelijke en Moslim wereldbeelden, zoals deze tot uitdrukking komen in hun gebruik van Abraham. Gebruikmakend van de centrale themas die naar voren komen uit de genoemde specifieke onderzoeken, tezamen met de resultaten die voortvloeien uit het toepassen van mijn narratatieve vergelijkingsmodel, zal ik een gefundeerde theologische vergelijking maken van de Christelijke en Moslim wereldbeelden m.b.t. Abraham. Dit leidt tot data die aantonen dat ondanks de verwantschap de wereldbeelden essentiele verschillen tonen in elk van de onderzochte thema’s. Het begin van beide verhalen, met God als soevereine schepper van het heelal, en de mens als God's uitverkozen schepsel die speciale verantwoordelijkheden krijgt toebedeeld, vertoont in brede lijnen sterke overeenkomsten. Hetzelfde geldt voor het einde van het verhaal waar opstanding, oordeel, hemel en hel worden genoemd. Maar het verhaal er tussen in, bijna het gehele Bijbelse verhaal, vertoont grote verschillen met dat van de Koran. Gezien door de lens van de Abraham verhalen hebben de twee wereldbeelden weinig overeenkomsten wat betreft het menselijk dilemma en de oplossingen daarvoor. Hoewel er enige overeenkomsten zijn, concluderen we dat de rol die Abraham in Bijbel en Koran speelt niet dezelfde is en de relatie tussen God en mensheid op twee verschillende manieren weergeeft. ii ÖZET Anlatısal Dünya Görüşlerinde İbrahim: Türkiye'de Hristiyan Müslüman Diyaloğu Yoluyla Karşılaştırmalı Teoloji Yapmak adını taşıyan bu çalışma, bağlamsal misyoloji, dinler arası karşılaştırmalı teoloji ve İslami bağlamlarda Kutsal Kitap yorum bilimi için bir önem taşımaktadır. Birçok İbrahimi diyalog yaklaşımında (Kutsal Kitaptaki) Yaratılış ve Kur’an metinleri yeteri kadar detaylı bir şekilde incelenmediği için anlamlı karşılaştırmalar yapılamıyordu. Bu tezde Kutsal Kitap’a ve Kur’an’a ait belirgin anlatılar ve onların Hristiyanlar ve Müslümanlar tarafından kullanımını karşılaştırmak için yeni bir yaklaşım önerip uyguluyorum. Bu model, farklı olmasına rağmen birbiriyle bağlantılı olan dünya görüşlerinin teolojik karşılaştırmasını sağlar. Hristiyan dünya görüşü kategorileri olan Yaratılış, Düşüş, Kurtuluş ve Tamamlanış ile Müslümanlığın Tevhit, Peygamberlik ve Ahiret dünya görüşü kategorileri arasında derin karşılaştırmayı kolaylaştıran üç kutup grubu yan yana getirilir. Çalışmanın ana kısmında sırayla Yaratılış’taki İbrahim anlatısı, Yeni Antlaşma’nın İbrahim’i kullanımları, Kuran’daki İbrahim kıssaları, ve ilçe vaizleriyle yapılan görüşmeler sonucunda Türkiye’deki Müslümanların İbrahim’i kullanımını inceliyorum. Bu bölümler İbrahim’i kullanımlarında açıklanan Hristiyan ve Müslüman dünya görüşlerini doğrudan karşılaştırmak için bir yol hazırlar. Bu çalışmalar sonucu geliştirilen merkezi temalar ve önerdiğim anlatı-dünya görüşü modeli aracılığıyla üretilen kutup noktalarını kullanarak, Hıristiyan ve Müslüman dünya görüşündeki İbrahim üzerine teolojik bir karşılaştırma yapılmaktadır. Bu dünya görüşleri birbirleriyle ortak alanlar barındırmalarına rağmen her bir kutup grubunda birbirinden derin bir şekilde ayrılır. Genel olarak bakıldığında Tanrı’nın her şeyin egemen yaratıcısı olduğu ve bir takım sorumlulukların insanlığa yüklendiği başlangıç öyküleri ve kıyamet, yargı ve cennet-cehennemin yer aldığı son olaylara dair anlatılar ortak noktalar olarak görünür. Ama öykünün geri kalan kısmında, ki bu Kutsal Kitap’taki anlatının neredeyse tümünü kapsar, bu iki dünya görüşü birbirinden çok farklılıklar gösterir. İbrahim anlatıları merceği ile incelendiğinde ister sorun ister çözüm açısından bu iki dünya görüşünün ortak alanı azdır. Sınırlı örtüşmeye rağmen İbrahim, Tanrı ile insanlık arasındaki
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