Dialogue Between Faiths
DIALOGUE BETWEEN FAITHS: WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?
I am aware that many in our church have not had opportunity to learn about the long and rich history of dialogue between Christianity and Judaism, as well as between Christianity and Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism. All of these dialogues have increased in scope and frequency since the 1971 establishment of a Dialogue Sub-unit by the World Council of Churches. I write now to throw light on the subject, and, hopefully, to dispel some of the fears and misunderstandings which for some are associated with intentional dialogue between faiths.
The first thing to say is that the New Testament is not concerned with conversion of people of other faiths to Christianity. At the time of writing, neither Christianity nor Islam was in existence. The mission of members of the post-Easter Christ movement was primarily concerned with convincing their fellow Jews that Jesus the Jew was the Messiah predicted by the biblical prophets. When their activity began to attract non-Jews, the problem arose as to whether or not these people should actually become Jews first, before they could become members of the movement. The idea of an entirely new and separate faith called 'Christianity' had simply not then arisen. Yet even then, the hellenistic Jewish writer of the Book of Acts presented Peter's response to the gentile Cornelius in a very positive light. "I truly understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him" (Acts 10.34-35). The Hebrew Scriptures echo this basic understanding of God's direct relationships with all people in the Book of Malachi, where the prophet says, "For from the rising of the sun to its setting my name is great among the nations, and in every place incense is offered to my name, and a pure offering for my name is great among the nations says the Lord of hosts (Malachi 1.11).
Interfaith dialogue is obviously not concerned with astrology, witches, cannibals and head-hunters, or all manner of 'New Age' beliefs. It is dialogue between the major faiths, viz., Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Sikhism, and Baha'i, as illustrated in the 'Calendar of Faiths' in February's 'Crosslight'. The aim of dialogue is not to undermine any one of those faiths, but to build trust, meet common challenges together, and address potentially conflictive and divisive issues. The WCC has organized international, national, and regional dialogues between these faiths in recent years, and currently the foci are:
- Multi-religious reflection on secularization, the role of religion in public life, and the challenges of religious plurality;
- Christian-Jewish-Muslim dialogue on the issue of Jerusalem;
- Hindu-Christian dialogue on issues such as proselytization, religious extremism and caste;
- Christian-Muslim forum on human rights.
The plain fact is that none of these crucial conversations could take place in the presence of overt attempts at conversion from one faith to another. This does not deny the uniqueness of Christianity or the uniqueness of any of the other faiths in dialogue. In fact, while none of the participants are encouraged, or indeed expected to deny the smallest detail of their own faith, the essential ingredient in such dialogue is humility, and trust in the (one) God of ALL participants. This was eloquently expressed at the last WCC Assembly by a Hindu guest, Dr. Anantanand Rambachan of Trinidad, who said, "If there is to be hope for a future in which we can rejoice, arrogance, hostility and indifference must give way to humility in our relationships and attentiveness to each other's experience of the sacred."
Finally, one respondent raised the spectre of clergy censorship of 'Crosslight' because it featured the issue of non-conversionist interfaith dialogue. It should be remembered that The Uniting Church is a signatory to the World Council of Churches, whose world-wide 347-church membership has endorsed such conversations as a basis for harmonious relations in multi-faith communities (such as Australia) and between nations. This is affirmed by The Uniting Church's 1997 Assembly resolution which urges the development of dialogue with Judaism, in particular. As the official news media for The Uniting Church in Victoria, 'Crosslight's' articles on interfaith dialogue in its February issue reflect the views of the church national and universal.
Rev Dr Lorraine Parkinson, DONCASTER 3108
Chair, Synod Working Group on Christian-Jewish Relations.