The 2023 Gingko Interfaith Fellowship Retreat was a joint project between the British Charity Gingko and the International Center for Comparative Theology and Social Issues at the University of Bonn. The theme of the 2023 Retreat was ‘Political Christology in Late Antiquity and in the Qur’an.’ It took place at Kardinal Schulte Haus Bensberg from 28-31 August and was attended by an international and interreligious group of scholarship holders, mainly from the UK, Egypt, and Germany.
The seminar explored the political dimension of Christological tenets in both Antiquity and contemporary approaches. First, this helped to gain a better understanding of the Qur’an and its Late Antique environment. The participants discussed how the Qur’an is engaged in debates evolving around the imperial theology of the Byzantine empire. Second, the course addressed the question of the systematic relevance of contemporary Christology in interreligious encounters. The participants addressed changes and developments within modern Systematic Theology and ask how they relate to the Qur’anic discourses. Third, Muslim perspectives of Christ, the atonement and crucifixion were explored.
The Retreat was followed by the full-day symposium “The Religious Other(s)” in cooperation with the Suermondt-Ludwig Museum Aachen. The participants reflected on the role of art in interreligious encounter in a workshop that was open to the public. This was preceded by a rich discussion with writer Navid Kermani who read from his book “Ungläubiges Staunen”.
