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Karen Armstrong
Monday - Friday, June 23 -27, 2008
Contemporary and historical
religion's most prolific author, Karen Armstrong is a highly
sought-after lecturer around the world, and is called upon by
governments, universities, and church and secular organizations
alike to educate about the world's religions and to inform regarding
their place in the modern world. A former Roman Catholic nun,
she was educated at Oxford and has taught at London University
and London's Leo Baeck College for the Study of Judaism. Her
writings include A History of God: From Abraham to the Present,
the 4000 Year Quest for God; Jerusalem: One City, Three Faiths;
The Battle for God: Fundamentalism in Judaism, Christianity,
and Islam; Islam: A Short History; The Great Transformation:
The Beginning of Our Religious Traditions; and Muhammad: A Prophet
For Our Time. She has been honored around the world especially
as a bridge-builder between the Abrahamic Faiths of Judaism,
Christianity, and Islam. Her most recent work is A History of
the Bible.
Karen is one of the 2008 winners of the TED Prize, chosen for
her world-changing work and continuing potential to inspire others
to do something great for the world. In her acceptance of this
award, Karen talked about how the Abrahamic religions - Islam,
Judaism, and Christianity - have been diverted from the moral
purpose they share to foster compassion, because she has seen
a yearning throughout the world to change this fact. People want
to be religious, she says, and we should act to help make religion
a force for harmony. She has asked the TED community to help
her build a Charter for Compassion - to help restore the Golden
Rule as the central global religious doctrine. |
