Christian-Muslim relations in Syria | SOAS University of London
Channel: SOAS University of London
Date: 2020-12-02

This illustrated zoom lecture will consider Eastern Christian approaches to Christian-Muslim relations and some expressions of its praxis in contemporary Syria both before and during the current conflict.  The paper will briefly outline the religious landscape in Syria; examine how Eastern Christianity has engaged with that landscape both historically and contemporaneously; and consider just a few contributions of Eastern Christian thought to Christian-Muslim relations in modern Syria.  Questions will be welcome at the end.

The speaker:
Revd Dr. Andrew Ashdown has been ordained for 30 years and spent 25 years in parish ministry.  An undergraduate of Divinity at King’s College, London, his Masters was in Abrahamic Religions at Heythrop College, London University. He has travelled extensively in Africa, Asia and the Middle East; has been responsible for Church links with parts of West and East Africa and South Asia; and has led numerous group visits to the Near East and elsewhere with a focus on interreligious and cultural engagement.  Dr. Ashdown visited Syria several times before the war, and, as part of his doctoral research, visited the country 10 times between 2014 and 2018 as a guest of the local faith communities.  He travelled widely throughout the country at the height of the war, including areas most impacted by the conflict, meeting members of all communities as well as numerous local and national religious, community and political leaders. He also visited many internally displaced centres in Syria and refugee communities in Lebanon and Iraq.  Dr. Ashdown is now Manager of Good Governance and Advocacy for Humanitarian Aid Relief Trust (HART) UK, which works with partners in some of the remotest and most conflicted corners of the planet. His doctoral research is to be published by Routledge at the end of November 2020.

The book: 
Dr. Andrew Ashdown (Foreword by Mor Ignatius Aphrem II), Christian-Muslim relations in Syria. Historic and contemporary religious dynamics in a changing context, Abingdon: Routledge, Nov. 2020 (ISBN 9780367559137)

Offering an authoritative study of the plural religious landscape in modern Syria and of the diverse Christian and Muslim communities that have cohabited the country for centuries, this volume considers a wide range of cultural, religious and political issues that have impacted the interreligious dynamic, putting them in their local and wider context. 

Combining fieldwork undertaken within government-held areas during the Syrian conflict with critical historical and Christian theological reflection, this book makes a significant contribution to understanding Syria’s diverse religious landscape and the multi-layered expressions of Christian-Muslim relations. It discusses the concept of sectarianism and how communal dynamics are crucial to understanding Syrian society. The complex wider issues that underlie the relationship are examined, including the roles of culture and religious leadership; and it questions whether the analytical concept of sectarianism is adequate to describe the complex communal frameworks in the Middle Eastern context. Finally, the study examines the contributions of contemporary Eastern Christian leaders to interreligious discourse, concluding that the theology and spirituality of Eastern Christianity, inhabiting the same cultural environment as Islam, is uniquely placed to play a major role in interreligious dialogue and in peace-making. 

The book offers an original contribution to knowledge and understanding of the changing Christian-Muslim dynamic in Syria and the region. It should be a key resource to students, scholars and readers interested in religion, current affairs and the Middle East. 

https://www.routledge.com/ChristianMuslim-Relations-in-Syria-Historic-and-Contemporary-Religious/Ashdown/p/book/9780367559137