[Unedited] Karen Armstrong with Krista Tippett

Judaism

Karen Armstrong's journey into Judaism began during her work on a film project in Jerusalem, where she first encountered Judaism and Islam. She realized the profound connections between these faiths and Christianity, which she had previously overlooked. This exposure led her to understand that religion is not solely about belief, but about shared human experiences and questions.

Once you saw it in the context of these other faiths and saw ultimately the profound similarities between them, that working in isolation from one another, often and often in a spirit of deadly hostility with one another. Still, Jews, Christians and Muslims had continually over the centuries, asked many of the same questions about God, spirituality, prayer, ethics, and come up with remarkably similar solutions.

--- Karen Armstrong

Armstrong's exploration of Judaism and other religions helped her view her own Catholic tradition differently, recognizing its efforts to address similar spiritual and ethical questions 1 2.

   

Islam

Armstrong's understanding of Islam revealed its deep connections with other Abrahamic faiths, particularly through the shared lineage from Abraham. She was initially unaware of these connections, but her studies illuminated the profound respect Islam holds for prophets like Moses and Jesus. This realization inspired her to explore the Sufi tradition, which emphasizes transcending religious distinctions to connect with the divine.

He's at home equally in a synagogue, a mosque, a temple or a church, because when one has touched the divine, one can leave these manmade distinctions behind.

--- Karen Armstrong

Armstrong found inspiration in the beauty of the Quran and the compassionate teachings of Muhammad, which contrasted sharply with the violence often associated with Islam in modern times 3 4.

   

Interfaith

In the aftermath of September 11, Armstrong observed a significant shift towards interfaith dialogue and understanding. She noted that many people sought to comprehend the catastrophe through a religious lens, leading to numerous interfaith initiatives across the United States. These efforts aimed to foster understanding and compassion among different faith communities.

We've got to take the initiative, I think, or I think so and start to listen to what they're trying to say because as we've learned to our cost they're trying to express often very badly and in innoxious ways anxieties and fears that no society, no government can safely ignore.

--- Karen Armstrong

Armstrong emphasized the importance of listening to the pain and fear underlying fundamentalist ideologies, advocating for compassion as a means to break the cycle of violence and reclaim religious traditions from extremists 5 6.