AS CHRISTIANS FACE RIVAL RELIGIONS

Because, as Dr. Gerald Cooke points out, a kind of religious Monroe Doctrine has operated to maintain Christianity's freedom from serious religious competition in the West, a majority of believers are unprepared by experience to face the challenge of non-Christian traditions and faiths. They are not sure how to respond to the claims of their own faith. Yet the confrontation is upon them, and must be met. Dr. Cooke writes this book to help all those who would understand the nature of the problem, and seek at least partial answers to it. He seeks to provide guidance for the answering of such questions as these: How are we to resolve the conflict of claims to truth and value which are advanced by the various faiths of mankind? Does the Christian have a mandate to stand firm in an exclusive claim to find revelation of absolute truth? Is the Christian under obligation to seek common ground with non-Christian religions to take a stand of tolerance and to advance only relative claims to truth and value? This is an exceedingly helpful book for those who see that Christians must relate themselves realistically to the world around them.