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Theology, Jewish, Antisemitism, Modern Christian Theology, Christianity - General & Miscellaneous, Christianity - Comparative Studies, General & Miscellaneous Judaism, Holocaust - Study & Teaching, Judaism - Comparative Studies
God and humanity in Auschwitz by Donald J. Dietrich β€” book cover

God and humanity in Auschwitz

by Donald J. Dietrich
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Overview

God and Humanity in Auschwitz synthesizes the findings of research developed over the last thirty years on the rise of antisemitism in our civilization. Dietrich sees the Holocaust as a case study of how prejudice has been theologically enculturated. He suggests how it may be controlled by reducing aggressive energy before it becomes overwhelming. Dietrich studies the recent responses of Christian theologians to the Holocaust and the Jewish theological response to questions concerning God's covenant with Israel, which were provoked by Auschwitz. Social science has dealt with the psychosocial dynamics that have supported genocide and helps explain how ordinary persons can produce extraordinary evil. Dietrich shows how this research, combined with the theological analyses, can help reconfigure theology itself. Such an approach may serve to help dissolve antisemitism, to aid in constructing such positive values as respect for human dignity, and to point the way to restricting future outbreaks of genocide. God and Humanity in Auschwitz surveys which religious factors created a climate that permitted the Holocaust. It also illuminates what social science has to tell us about developing a strategy that, when institutionally implemented, can channel our energies away from sanctioned murder toward a more compassionate society. It is an essential resource for theologians, sociologists, historians, and political theorists.

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Editorials

Jewish Book World

A frank analysis and synthesis of recent findings, both Jewish and Christian, on a still very sensitive issue. The author, a Catholic theologian, views the Holocaust as a case study of theologically inspired anti-Semitism, and its implications for Christians and Christianity. With all the tools of the social sciences, he deftly demonstrates how ordinary people can produce extraordinary evil.

Book Details

Published
September 30, 1994
Publisher
New Brunswick, U.S.A. : Transaction Publishers, 1995.
Pages
355
Format
Hardcover
ISBN
9781560001478

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