Facing the Other

Rezensionen / Stimmen

'Karol Wojtyla and Emmanuel Levinas, obviously two of the great thinkers of the twentieth century, each profoundly original and deeply immersed in his own distinctive tradition, were yet able to meet in fruitful conversation on central questions about human nature and destiny, as Nigel Zimmermann shows in this lucidly and elegantly argued account.'
- Fergus Kerr, Honorary Fellow, School of Divinity, University of Edinburgh

''Facing the Other' ... draws out the significance of the difference between a religious tradition whose God is wholly other, and the Christian claim that God became incarnate. Along the way, Zimmermann offers the reader a 'theology of the body for grown-ups' as he explains the centrality of the nuptial mystery and its Trinitarian foundations in the thought of Wojtyla/John Paul II. The work is beautifully crafted.'
- Tracey Rowland, Dean and Permanent Fellow in Political Philosophy and Continental Theology, John Paul II Institute, Melbourne

'Zimmerman's work has several merits.... [I]t is a powerful examination of one of the most important issues in philosophy and theology.... [I]t is also a successful work of Jewish-Christian dialogue. Highly sophisticated, it shows that grand intellectual discussions in an interreligious context can be relevant to day-to-day human affairs, even their bodily feelings and interactions. The work also serves as an exemplary instance of comparative philosophical research. Rather than simply studying a single issue from different perspectives, it tries to get these two intellectuals to clarify each other and to offer solutions where the other had failed.'
- Fatima Tofighi, Reviews in Religion and Theology, Volume 24 Issue 4, October 2017

Nigel does considerably more than lead the reader through a series of difficulties moving from phenomenology to theology and back again, and touches on considerably more than his favored theme of the body. The range of his remarks, some brief and some extended, and the clarity of their formulation, are already enough to recommend this work for close study
Jeffrey Blochl, Boston College, Ma, studies in christian ethics 32(1), pp.142-4