Abstract
This seminar explores the new concept of global religion. This term points to the religious dimension of multicultural global communities. The older patter of multicultural, interfaith interaction emphasized tolerance―accepting the customs and beliefs of other communities without having to learn much about them, or to absorb their inner truths. Global religion moves beyond tolerance, and while honouring what is distinctive about each tradition, looks for the common human and transcendent elements that lie within all faith communities and help to unite a multicultural society into the harmony of a global community.

About the Speaker
Professor Mark Juergensmeyer is director of the Orfalea Center for Global and International Studies, professor of sociology and global studies, and affiliate professor of religious studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He is a pioneer in the field of global studies and writes on global religion, religious violence, conflict resolution and South Asian religion and politics. He has published more than three hundred articles and twenty books, including the recent Global Rebellion: Religious Challenges to the Secular State (University of California Press, 2008). An earlier version of this book was named by the New York Times as a notable book of the year.