Young Christians, Muslims, Jews Explore Unity in Diversity
Young Muslims, Christians and Jews look at how they can hold onto their distinctive identities while maintaining close relationships with one another.
Posted: Friday, July 13, 2007, 8:59 (BST)
Young Christian, Jewish and Muslim adults have gathered from around the world to explore inter-faith relations and unity in diversity during a summer seminar at the World Council of Churches' (WCC) Ecumenical Institute in Bossey, Switzerland.
The July seminar has brought together 21 participants from Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Africa and the Americas to take a closer look at the question, 'How can we affirm our identity as Muslims, Jews and Christians not in separation or against each other but in relation to one another?'
The participants will also speculate on what the future holds as the traditional "one nation, one culture and one religion" gives way to greater cultural and religious diversity.
The one-month programme "Building an Interfaith Community" is designed to "prepare the future generation of leaders in churches, other faith communities and society at large for the challenges of living peacefully in a world of religious plurality", the WCC said.
Each day starts with a moment of shared prayer and spirituality, prepared alternately by the Christian, the Jewish and the Muslim participants.
The experience of living under the same roof, eating and washing dishes together, is enriched by lectures offered by specialists from Christian, Jewish and Muslim communities as well as through participation in services at a local synagogue, mosque and churches in Geneva.
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Added: Friday, July 13, 2007, 11:44 (BST)
It would be very interesting to see how the fundamentally different faiths find common ground. The common ground would be so vague or 'tolerant' that there would be no conviction - to truth. The only structure a foundation like that can hold is one's ego.
Some Biblical truth and wisdom regading this:
2 John 1:8-11, says, "Watch yourselves, that you might not lose what we have accomplished, but that you may receive a full reward
9 Anyone that goes too far and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God; the one who abides in the teaching, he has both the Father and the Son.
10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house, and do not give him a greeting.
11 for the one who gives him a greeting participates in his evil deed..
- 2 Cor 4: “we do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to everyone's conscience in the sight of God."
Various qoutes related to this:
"It is good to have an open mind, provided it isn’t open at both ends." – Doug Barnett
"You can have such an open mind that it is too porous to hold a conviction." – George Crane
"The purpose of an open mind is to close in on something" – William Temple
Don, Cape Town, South Africa
