The Heart of Interreligious Dialogue: Exploring a Skills-Based Approach to Dialogue with Acharya Dr. Judith Simmer-Brown

Dr. Judith Simmer-Brown is Professor Emeritx of Religious Studies at Naropa University, where she has been on the faculty since 1978. She has practiced Tibetan Buddhism for almost 50 years and is a direct student of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. She serves on the steering committee of the American Academy of Religion’s Contemplative Studies Group, and has published widely on Tibetan Buddhism, women in Buddhism, interreligious dialogue, and contemplative studies. 

In this episode, we explore the ins-and-outs of interreligious dialogue, the historic Buddhist-Christian Dialogues at the Naropa Institute, the retreats held before and after those dialogues, the dialogue of theology and devotion, public and private dialogue, ‘interreligious’ and ‘interspiritual’ dialogue, the development of the first course in Interreligious Dialogue at Naropa and its skills-based approach, the cultivation of good dialogues and dialoguers, as well as personal cultivation of one’s spiritual life.

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