Berlin Institute for Public Theology
Mission Statement
Public Theology, understood as theologically informed interdisciplinary discourse on public issues and the scholarly reflection thereof, is of paramount importance in modern societies which tend to be pluralistic in regard to religions and comprehensive worldviews. It involves the plural perspectives of faith into public debates and allows for a critical reflection of those perspectives.
Thus, it enables public scrutiny of those perspectives while enriching public discourse by the contribution of religious perspectives. As Public Theology is vitally interested in public discourse as part of a democratic and pluralistic culture, it tries to enable and further it wherever possible. By rendering the particular background perspectives transparent, Public Theology contributes to the clarification of normative issues, the formation of opinions and political deliberation.
Even though originating in a Protestant Christian field of discourse, Public Theology as an academic endeavor aims at a horizon encompassing ecumenical, interreligious and other perspectives on comprehensive worldviews.