With this treasure of a book, K.K. Hebsoor has made a much-needed contribution to the dialogue between Vedanta and Christianity. The Heart of Christ models how a serious interfaith conversation can unfold. Hebsoor engages with the words of Christ from a perspective rooted in a deep commitment to Vedanta, taking the words of Jesus seriously while at the same time being very clear about the differences between his Vedantic interpretation of these words and the views of mainstream Christianity. It is only by performing this balancing act–being open to the other, while at the same time not downplaying genuine differences–that true dialogue can advance. In the spirit of Swami Prabhavananda’s The Sermon on the Mount According to Vedanta, Hebsoor’s book picks up where that classic work leaves off, and continues with a similar line of thought, based on the Vedantic conviction, expressed by such figures as Sri Ramakrishna, Swami Vivekananda, and Mahatma Gandhi, that there are deep truths to be found in all religions. The need for interfaith cooperation is more urgent than it has ever been, and is becoming more urgent by the day. Books like this one certainly have a major role to play in the promotion of such cooperation, engaging with serious differences, while yet doing so in the hope that a deeper harmony may yet emerge.
– Dr. Jeffery D. Long, Professor of Religion and Asian Studies, Elizabethtown College, Elizabethtown, PA.
