Society for Buddhist-Christian Studies Frederick J. Streng Book Award 2014: SBCS Streng Award Committee

John Ross Carter’s In the Company of Friends: Exploring Faith and Understanding with Buddhists and Christians (Albany, NY: SUNY Press, 2012) has been selected as the winner of the 2014 Streng Book Award by the unanimous decision of the committee.

Carter is a professor of the study of the great religions of the world and a professor of philosophy and religion, emeritus, at Colgate University. He has published earlier works on a range of topics, including the religions of Japan, the Theravada tradition in Sri Lanka, and the threefold refuge.

Scholars in the field have reviewed the book enthusiastically. John Makransky writes:

In the Company of Friends is groundbreaking. It brilliantly critiques current assumptions operative in the academic study of religions, theologies of religions, and interreligious dialogue and painstakingly sketches a new direction for learning inter-religiously. It will become a lightning rod of intense scholarly discussion and creative re-imagining in many fields related to religion and theology in the academy in coming years.

Ruben L. F. Habito says:

This book is a distinctive contribution in the field of Interreligious Dialogue Studies, specifically Buddhist-Christian dialogue, coming from more than three decades of scholarship and experience of the author. The fact that it is a testimony of an accomplished scholar and revered teacher, engaged in interreligious dialogue, giving not only detached accounts of ideas, but more relevantly, his personal engagement with the themes and issues discussed, makes the book an attractive read for those interested in the field.

This award is given annually by the Society for Buddhist Christian Studies in memory of Frederick John Streng (1933–1993), who was one of the founders of the society. Recent winners include Rose Drew (2013), Paul Knitter (2012), Peter Feldmeier and Leo LeFebure (2011), and Catherine Cornille (2010).