Is God Religious? The Significance of Abraham Joshua Heschel for Interreligious Relations

This lecture explores Abraham Joshua Heschel’s vision of religion not as a fixed institutional system, but as a dynamic response to God. Drawing on his Depth-Theology of divine pathos and human responsibility, we will examine how Heschel challenges us to transcend religious exclusivism and rediscover faith as an encounter grounded in compassion, justice, and humility. Heschel’s vision of God as a loving parent of all humanity leads to a theology that demands solidarity among God’s children. Interreligious dialogue, in this light, becomes not merely an option but God's moral imperative. Special attention will be given to Heschel's role in shaping Nostra Aetate and to his vision for authentic interfaith dialogue in times of crisis.

Dr. Dror Bondi is Senior Research Fellow and Lecturer at the Schechter Institute in Israel and the 2025-2026 Corcoran Visiting Chair in Christian-Jewish Relations at Boston College. He completed his Ph.D. and M.A. in Jewish Philosophy at Bar-Ilan University. He is an author, translator and editor of several of Abraham Joshua Heschel’s books in Hebrew. Dr. Bondi’s book Ayeca? about Heschel’s thought earned him the 2006 Shalem Prize. In 2019, his edition of Heschel’s groundbreaking Torah Min HaShamayim (Torah From Heaven), based on newly discovered manuscripts, introduced critical new insights into Heschel’s thought and won the Mifal HaPais Prize.

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