Twinning Muslim and Jewish congregations
JTA reports on a great initiative to “twin” Jewish and Muslim congregations across the USA. The programme was kicked off by a weekend themed “Confronting Islamophobia and Antisemitism Together”, an indicator that American Jews and Muslims are making earnest attempts to reach beyond the Middle East conflict to join hands in battling prejudices within and against their communities.
Far from there being “too many dialogues“, the more point-to-point connections we develop, the stronger we are as a community of communities. While we can rely on our umbrella organisations to support our endeavours, the real progress is made by people getting to know, and working with, other people.
What is your religious group doing to extend its hand in friendship to others?
Dave
Add comment November 19, 2008
Every little bit helps
The past month I’ve been struggling to find something meaty and exciting and world-changing to discuss, but then I realised one cool evening at an Art exhibition that the battle for tolerance and understanding is won in the little things. The Irfanspace Art Show (which i hope Mark will report more about) attracted a wide range of people, and I was excited to rub shoulders with various Muslims, Jews and Christians who also appreciated the art. As one speaker said in opening the show, we may not understand each other theologically, but we can all appreciate the art together, which builds a deep bridge. Deeper than theology there’s relationships. And when the temptation arises to caricature the “other”, then relationships sustain the truth and keep us together.
Every little bit of action helps build the density of the interfaith relationship web. The next few months there’s various inter-faith conferences and events which i hope to go to. At first I was feeling a little tired at the thought, but now I have new energy. Who knows who I’ll meet there. Who knows what relationship webs will form under the hand of the Creator and Sustainer of all. I think I’ll just have to put more energy into meeting people even when I’m tired! Every little bit helps.
Fr. John D’Alton
Add comment November 2, 2008
NZ National Interfaith Forum 2009 Announcement
Plans are well underway for the 2009 National Interfaith Forum, hosted by the Auckland Interfaith Council. Mark your calendar now - the Forum will run from the evening of Friday, 27th February 2009, through Sunday, March 1st (midday).
There will be an exciting range of beautiful venues and interesting speakers, as well as entertainment and great food. The annual annual Women’s Interfaith Forum will precede the conference, on Friday 27th Feb, 9:30 a.m.- 4:00 p.m.
Programme details and registration forms will follow soon.
If you would like to receive regular updates about the forum, including programme and registration information, please sign yourself up to the interfaith forum announcement email list.
Dave
Add comment October 28, 2008
Just Peacemaking and positive action
Following on from the previous post on Abrahamic alternatives to war the participants at the forum agreed to the following action programme:
1. As Believers in the one God, we all believe that to continue our conflicts is violation of God’s moral code and its imperative of justice. Violent actions as humans do not promote the cause of God and have negative repercussions for all.
2. We all believe that the concepts of “holy war” or crusades are neither compatible with the will of God nor with the true spirit of our religions.
3. We all believe that Just Peacemaking is the best option to resolve human conflicts and actively work toward the elimination of the conditions that lead to violence. We define violence as the illegitimate use of force.
4. We all believe that we have the responsibility within our respective communities to correct scriptural misinterpretations used to justify violence, through education of our own religious communities about the true message of our faiths, and also through engagement in intrafaith dialogue.
5. We all believe that we need to look both inward to our traditions as we do this work, and look outward to share results and receive feedback.
6. We all believe that psychological issues, social issues, and historical narratives must be taken into account as critical components of the process of conflict transformation.
7. We all believe that there is no religious justification for “terrorism” that targets innocents/noncombatants.
8. We recognize that we have continuing tensions, unresolved issues, and tasks, such
as:
a) to take account, soon, of the extraordinary crisis and risk to human survival
in current global affairs. We cannot wait, however, to solve all the “issues” before we act;
b) to understand in what sense each tradition must promote its own claims for “truth” without engaging in triumphalism. Can an “invitational” religion not imply some form of superiority over others?
c) to determine if our diverse historical experiences remain merely side by side, or must we work to write a common account of our histories? Are histories reconcilable? Can we internalize the “other’s” history?
9. We propose to explore a world day of celebration of shared human dignity.
10. We all agree that we should explore the necessary procedures and steps to implement this document.
11. We all agree to mine our own religious traditions to further develop the Just Peacemaking practices.
–
The basic tennets of Just Peacemaking, as cited in the document are:
1. Support nonviolent direct action.
2. Take independent initiatives to reduce threat.
3. Use cooperative conflict resolution.
4. Acknowledge responsibility for conflict and injustice and seek repentance and forgiveness.
5. Advance democracy, human rights, and religious liberty.
6. Foster just and sustainable economic development.
7. Work with emerging cooperative forces.
8. Strengthen the United Nations and international efforts for cooperation and human rights.
9. Reduce offensive weapons and weapons trade.
10. Encourage grassroots peacemaking groups and voluntary associations.
–
Sure, I hear you thinking, this is all mum-and-apple-pie stuff. But it’s very real and very achievable, but only if we each take personal responsibility for making it happen. This goes way beyond “have you hugged a Jew / Christian / Muslim today” to asking yourself, “what can I do myself, with my family, within my own community, in my own country, and in the world to make peace a viable alternative to war?“
1 comment October 23, 2008
Abrahamic alternatives to war
The United States Institute of Peace recently released a report, Abrahamic Alternatives to War: Jewish, Christian, and Muslim Perspectives on Just Peacemaking.
Summary
- Jewish, Muslim, and Christian sacred texts all contain sections that support violence and justify warfare as a means to achieve certain goals. In particular historical circumstances, these texts have served as the basis to legitimate violent campaigns, oftentimes against other faith communities.
- Many of the passages from sacred texts in all three religious traditions that are misused in contemporary situations to support violence and war are taken out of context, interpreted in historically inaccurate ways, or can be better translated. Finally, all of these passages need to be understood within (and constrained by) the primary spiritual aims of the individual faith.
- There are also a great many teachings and ethical imperatives within Jewish, Christian, and Muslim scriptures that promote peace and present the means to achieve it. These include mandates to strive for political, social, and economic justice; tolerant intercommunal coexistence; and nonviolent conflict resolution.
- The three religious delegations that participated in the conference leading to this report presented slightly different and yet overlapping methods for peacemaking articulated by their sacred scriptures. The considerable overlap led the scholars to affirm the existence of a coherent “Abrahamic Just Peacemaking” paradigm, which began to take focus through their rigorous interfaith debate.
- Further work is needed to articulate fully this Abrahamic Just Peacemaking paradigm. The conference scholars committed themselves to continued development of this model in pursuit of a rigorous and effective faith-based program to promote alternatives to war.
About the Report
Eight Muslim scholar-leaders, six Jewish scholar-leaders, and eight Christian scholar-leaders met from June 13 to 15, 2007, in Stony Point, N.Y., at a conference sponsored by the United States Institute of Peace and the Churches’ Center for Theology and Public Policy. Conference participants specified practices within each of the three faith traditions that could lay the groundwork for nonviolent alternatives to resolving conflict and addressing injustice, while also identifying roadblocks in the sacred texts of their traditions to creating such processes. The scholars ’ teachings found that these ancient religious teachings on peace and justice are often consistent with modern conflict-resolution theory. This report examines passages that support violence in each tradition’s scripture, presents definitions of “just peacemaking” in each tradition, summarizes places of convergence that might create the foundation for a program offering an Abrahamic alternative to war and presents a joint statement and series of commitments reached at the end of the conference.
A fantastic initiative, and a fascinating read!
You can also download the full PDF.
Dave
2 comments October 22, 2008
Catholic Church to Muslims: Let’s work together for the dignity of the family
The following message was sent by Jean-Louis Cardinal Tauran, president of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue to Muslim friends on the occasion of the end of Ramadan.
Christians and Muslims:
Together for the dignity of the family
Dear Muslim friends,
1. As the end of the month of Ramadan approaches, and following a now well-established tradition, I am pleased to send you the best wishes of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue. During this month Christians close to you have shared your reflections and your family celebrations; dialogue and friendship have been strengthened. Praise be to God!
2. As in the past, this friendly rendez-vous also gives us an opportunity to reflect together on a mutually topical subject which will enrich our exchange and help us to get to know each other better, in our shared values as well as in our differences. This year we would like to propose the subject of the family.
3. One of the documents of the Second Council Vatican, Gaudium et Spes, which deals with the Church in the modern world, states: ‘The well-being of the individual person and of human and Christian society is intimately linked with the healthy condition of that community produced by marriage and family. Hence Christians and all men who hold this community in high esteem sincerely rejoice in the various ways by which men today find help in fostering this community of love and perfecting its life, and by which parents are assisted in their lofty calling. Those who rejoice in such aids look for additional benefits from them and labour to bring them about.’ (n. 47)
4. These words give us an opportune reminder that the development of both the human person and of society depends largely on the healthiness of the family! How many people carry, sometimes for the whole of their life, the weight of the wounds of a difficult or dramatic family background? How many men and women now in the abyss of drugs or violence are vainly seeking to make up for a traumatic childhood? Christians and Muslims can and must work together to safeguard the dignity of the family, today and in the future.
5. Given the high esteem in which both Muslims and Christians hold the family, we have already had many occasions, from the local to the international level, to work together in this field. The family, that place where love and life, respect for the other and hospitality are encountered and transmitted, is truly the ‘fundamental cell of society.’
6. Muslims and Christians must never hesitate, not only to come to the aid of families in difficulty, but also to collaborate with all those who support the stability of the family as an institution and the exercise of parental responsibility, in particular in the field of education. I need only remind you that the family is the first school in which one learns respect for others, mindful of the identity and the difference of each one. Interreligious dialogue and the exercise of citizenship cannot but benefit from this.
7. Dear friends, now that your fast comes to an end, I hope that you, with your families and those close to you, purified and renewed by those practices dear to your religion, may know serenity and prosperity in your life! May Almighty God fill you with His Mercy and Peace!
Jean-Louis Cardinal Tauran
President
Archbishop Pier Luigi Celata
Secretary
[Translations provided by the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue]
Posted by Dave
Add comment September 23, 2008
Dialogue Australasia 2009 Conference
Dialogue Australasia will be holding their next conference 15-17 April 2009 at the Old Parliament Buildings in Canberra. The theme is “Teaching the Abrahamic Religions: Christianity in Dialogue with Judaism & Islam”.
Dialogue Australiasia is an organisation comprising mainly Christian schools in Australia and New Zealand. Their purpose is to “help young people become more fully human by nuturing and promoting the development of a broad-based academic approach to the teaching of Values, Philosophy & Religious Studies”, and their vision is to “be a vibrant organisation that brings together educators who have a shared sense of the importance of our purpose, and a willingess to work together to achieve its objectives.”
According to the conference blurb, “Relations between Christians, Jews and Muslims are among the most divisive, challenging and important issues in the world today. Despite their often violent differences, each share a common heritage as the Children of Abraham and the worship of one God. In a time when understanding these three religions has taken on a new and critical urgency, this important conference will equip educators with practical strategies and resources to enable students to explore the similarities, differences and relationships between the Abrahamic faith traditions.”
For more information, see the Conference Information page.
Dave
1 comment September 19, 2008
Militant atheism vs mutual respect among religions
Bishop Michael Putney, the Bishop of Townsville, spoke recently at an Iftar dinner jointly hosted by the Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne and the Australian Intercultural Society. He argues that given the dominant secular society that we live in, it is difficult for people of faith to flourish, pass on their beliefs to their children, and support and sustain each other. In order to move beyond tolerance, as religious people we need to have harmonious relationships with people other faiths.
It is a truism now in inter-religious relations that there can be no peace in the world unless there is peace between the World Religions. Unless we religious people have harmonious relationships, and I would argue unless we have real friendship between us and not just tolerance and respect, other forces, political and economic, will be able to use us to further their own causes which bring division and pain to our world.
His speech makes an interesting read … thanks to The Ecumenical and Interfaith Newsblog for the reference.
Dave
5 comments September 16, 2008
Kuala Lumpur and avoiding the “clash” of religions and civilisations
Various authors have created a fearful climate arguing that a “clash” of religions and civilisations is inevitable. But many are hopeful that instead, genuine justice and peace can prevail. Kuala Lumpur is a significant location in this given that it stands at the crossroads of Chinese, Indian and South-East Asian cultures, and at the contact point between Islam, Buddhism, Christianity and Judaism. Edward DeBono many years wrote that KL and Malaysia would be critical to watch as an indicator of future global trends, and he even set up office there to watch first hand what developed.
So its great to see the interfaith work of Just International, which has involvement of Muslims, Christians, Hindus and Buddhists, with a long history of Jewish relations too. I don’t agree with all their analysis but at least they have tried hard to present a balanced/multi-viewed approach to news.
Their website is well worth exploring for great insights into global issues, and for positive news of movements for justice and peace. Currently they have insights about Georgia, Kashmir, Thailand, Sudan, Orissa and most of the Middle East. Just tends to focus on anywhere multinationals and governments are using religion to cover-up their violence and oppression. They also have some good news stories of multifaith groups building for the future.
Fr. John
Add comment September 3, 2008
World Council of Churches debate on “The Promised Land”
The World Council of Churches has announced an international ecumenical debate on “The Promised Land”, from 10-14 September in Bern, Switzerland. Sixty-five Christian theologians “will discuss the concept of the ‘Promised Land’ and related theological issues with a view to help more churches become advocates for a just peace.”
“One of the main goals we hope to achieve is to deepen church understanding of biblical promises concerning the land and its peoples. This will require a holistic approach to the biblical message, promoting common understanding of how theological issues may be related to the conflict,” says Michel Nseir, programme executive for the WCC special focus on Middle East. “Different approaches to biblical and theological issues should not prevent common action for a just peace.”
That’s all very interesting from my perspective, however without Muslim and Jewish involvement the prospect of real progress being made is slim. As my favourite local refugee organisation says, “nothing about us without us!”
The WCC’s “Public Witness: Addressing power, affirming peace” project has laudable goals and some great programmes such as the Decade to Overcome Violence. However, the rubber meets the road at the Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel, and it seems like a very one-sided road to this Jewish reader. By effectively taking sides and not acknowledging different perspectives, the Council has turned itself into a political tool rather than an instrument of peacemaking dialogue. To my mind, that’s moving backwards, not forwards, as such exclusion can only lead to more violence on both sides.
For a slightly different but aligned (and more scholarly) perspective, see Frank Crüsemann’s article recently published in Jewish-Christian Relations, 60 Years: The Church and the State of Israel.
Dave
3 comments September 2, 2008
