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Now before we listen to the opening lecture, I would like to tell you a little bit about the aims and intentions

that we, the planning team, have with this conference.

And this means, of course, also introducing you a little bit into its topic.

Public theology, religion, education, inter-religious perspectives.

To address the first notion, what is public theology?

Of course, we are all aware that this is not an easy question to answer.

As Harold Breitenberg emphasized more than a decade ago,

and as we may be able to reaffirm during our conference,

there are different concepts of public theology,

so that we can rather speak of public theologies in the plural than in the singular.

Yet it seems to me that three basic aspects can be named that are foundational

for public theology across most concepts and contexts.

Although I'm aware of the risk that my emphasizing these three aspects

may also be due to a subjective perspective,

but this is then the perspective that we have here at the Nuremberg Forum.

The first aspect is that public theology implies the awareness of a religion

to be only one among other religions and worldviews in a pluralistic society and in the world.

Public theology is public in the sense that it finds itself in a public realm

that is characterized by religious and worldview diversity.

And public theology is not only aware of this fact,

but positively affirms such a particularistic position within pluralism.

Public theologians have come to appreciate the openness and diversity of a pluralistic world

and accept that this limits their own sphere of influence.

I suggest calling this the self-limiting aspect of public theology in German, Selbstbegrenzung.

The second aspect that directly follows from the first one

is that public theology is public in the sense that it exposes itself

and its religious tradition willingly to critical public discourse.

This implies that public theology accepts that in a pluralistic society and world

there are certain basic common values and criteria

by which religions and worldviews can legitimately be criticized and challenged.

As an example, we can think of the internationally codified human rights.

I suggest calling this aspect the self-critical aspect of public theology.

The third aspect I would like to point out is the one that is usually mentioned first

when public theology is defined, but which in my view relies on the other two.

It is the fact that public theology is willing and aiming to make contributions

to the common good of pluralistic societies and the world.

This means that public theologians insist that their religious tradition

has to offer potentials for addressing the major societal and global challenges we are facing,

that it can help finding humane solutions to concrete problems

as well as developing hopeful visions for the future.

And public theologians lay special emphasis on the fact that the religious perspectives they bring in

are to the benefit of everybody irrespective of their religious and secular worldviews.

Public theology is public in the sense that the treasures of its tradition are for all.

I suggest calling this the self-transcending aspect of public theology in German.

As we are all aware, public theology is a concept that arose in the context of Christianity.

It is interesting to see how it developed almost simultaneously in different countries

and in different parts of the world.

Obviously, it is a concept that was and is perceived to be a convincing response

to certain transformations in societies and to a changed world.