Cross-sectional tasks Criticism of anti-Semitism and racism

One of the Institute's research and teaching focuses in the various theological disciplines is on the criticism of anti-Semitism and racism. Criticism of anti-Semitism and racism is incorporated into many courses as a cross-cutting theological topic.

Together with the Evangelische Akademie zu Berlin and the Comenius Institute in Münster, the Institute is a co-initiator and member of the network of antisemitism and racism-critical religious education and theology (narrt). Members of the institute from various disciplines work together with people from the fields of school, church and society. More information about narrt can be found here: narrt.de

An insight into our activities can also be found in the report of the Lower Saxony Anti-Semitism Commissioner:

Criticism of anti-Semitism as a university didactic task - Institute of Theology and Religious Education at the University of Oldenburg. In: Lower Saxony State Commissioner against Anti-Semitism and for the Protection of Jewish Life: Jewish Life in Lower Saxony - Vibrant, Valuable and Enriching. Second annual report (2021). Hanover 2022, 85-92, available at: https://www.mj.niedersachsen.de/download/184811/LgA_Jahresbericht_2021.pdf

The Responsibility of Protestant Theology in the Face of Anti-Semitism and Racism. An opening to the discussion

Institute resolution from the year 2019

Theology is entangled in the history of anti-Semitism, racism and other forms of discrimination. Because the university was the place where such ideological ideas were primarily formed, it is particularly important to examine the involvement of university theology in these conditions. For centuries, theological scholarship has produced and supported anti-Semitic and racist thought patterns: They continue to have an effect to the present day.

It can be observed that racist and conspiracy theory statements are on the rise in university spaces, both in public lectures and in seminars. It is also noticeable that with the shifts in discourse that make discriminatory speech (once again) possible, academic standards are being relativised: For example, when dealing with sources and when analysing a state of research. With regard to the topic of "Islam" in particular, it is becoming apparent that there are more and more so-called "Islam experts" who do not fulfil academic standards. In recent decades, a pool of anti-Muslim images has formed within the framework of science, which seem to become plausible because they are continuously reproduced.

According to the self-image of the Institute of Theology and Religious Education, one of the central tasks of the subject is to deal with epochal problems relating to religion(s), politics and culture. We therefore see it as our responsibility to engage with contemporary trends and discourses in which anti-Semitic and racist arguments are put forward. In the tradition of the University of Oldenburg's namesake, Carl von Ossietzky, we must reflect on how scientific arguments and discriminatory discourses can be exposed, argued against and deconstructed.

Partly because of its involvement in the history of anti-Semitism and racism, theology (with a few exceptions) has so far failed to address these and other instruments of discrimination. Against historical revisionist tendencies, for example in relation to the Shoah or the transatlantic slave trade, theology must endeavour to contribute to a reflective culture of remembrance. It should start where generalisations and essentialisations occur, which are produced and reproduced in the name of science, and continue to work on uncovering and deconstructing them.

Addressing discrimination within theology is a tough, difficult and sometimes emotional endeavour. Anti-Semitism and racism can occur, for example, in discussions about the "evil God" of the Old Testament and the "good God" of the New Testament or in statements about the "exotic character" or "backwardness" of non-European Christianity. It is part of our academic self-image to deal with this difficulty by analysing the tradition - including our own.

This is important because the Institute of Theology and Religious Education is a place where future teachers complete their studies. As schools - similar to universities - are multipliers for attitudes and ideologies, it is fundamental to enable a critical approach to anti-Semitism and racism and to recognise that everyone involved is part of the dynamics of discrimination. It is a key educational task to raise awareness of privileges and marginalisation. To this end, it is important to create spaces - including theological seminar rooms - in which this can be done productively and ways out of these dynamics can be designed and discussed.

This text is intended to be a point of reference for such discussions.