from my speech: i believe deeply that all religions try to answer the same existential questions and teach the same things – namely, the basics of how to live a decent, compassionate life. if differences in religious rituals and symbols were the only issue at hand, i believe that negotiating that diversity would be a lot simpler, a lot more doable than what we r confronted with today.
in my view most conflicts in the world are about other things – things like land, resources and power. but unfortunately such conflicts are often cloaked in the language of religion. it’s the “us” vs “them” syndrome, the clash of civilizations narrative. the trick is to dehumanize the other in order to strip them of rights we take for granted for ourselves. without such dehumanization, the cruelty that human beings perpetrate on one another would be impossible.
and this is where interfaith dialogue comes in. instead of being used as an excuse to “otherize” vast sections of humanity, religion can be used most effectively to humanize, to affirm those who have been reduced to being two-dimensional, cardboard stereotypes. religion is invested with both spiritual meaning and moral authority and it is therefore brilliantly poised to counter inequality-based rhetoric and violence.
interfaith dialogue provides us a safe space to interact with and get to know the other. that in and of itself is an invaluable service to the community.
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1) daan braveman, president of nazareth college
2) brian and jean hickey to whom the center is now dedicated
3) dr shafiq, the heart and soul of the center
4) my speech…
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