Editorial

Faculty of Theology and Philosophy

School of Theology

Interreligious Dialogue and Religious Harmony: A Christian Perspective

What are we to make of the call to "interreligious dialogue" that has become so commonplace now-a-days? The first thing that can be said about this is that it is a symbol of the dawning of a new consciousness that accepts—and in many cases celebrates—the reality of cultural and religious difference. The reasons are, in part, pragmatic: we need to understand each other and work co-operatively for world reconciliation, harmony and peace. We are at a point in human history when no single religious or cultural tradition can responsibly decide to live in glorious isolation from the rest of the world. We either learn to live together in harmony or face the distinct possibility of destroying the one world we are called to share.

The second thing we need to acknowledge is that religions don't dialogue; people do! The first prerequisite for such dialogue is that people know and understand their own tradition at some depth. This is what one interreligious scholar, Raimon Panikkar, calls intra-religious dialogue. Often, the problems among religions stem from people who do not appreciate their own tradition beyond a superficial level. In this case the religious tradition may become a face which harbours ignorance and prejudice. Religion then becomes an ideology. Christians need to admit their own tradition has fallen into this trap too often in its two-thousand-year history, not least in the period of western colonization. Intra-religious dialogue requires such a moment of self-critique.

Inter-religious dialogue depends, then, on intra-religious dialogue. Do I know and understand my own tradition? Then we need to critique our understanding (and mis-understandings) of the religious other. In particular, we need to move to a point where we understand the religious other not as a threat to our own religious identity so much as an opportunity for growth. This can arise from the increasing belief that no single religion or culture—including our own—has all the answers for resolving the problems facing humankind. We actually need to learn from one another. We also need to avoid the all-too-common trap of comparing the 'ideals' of our own tradition—such as the Christian commandment to love—with the 'practices' of another—such as Islamic terrorist bombers. This is not only unhelpful, but profoundly dishonest, given that we could just as easily compare Islamic insistence on divine mercy and hospitality with the Christian crusades.

Next, we should realise there is no place for facile comparison of religions. There are often profound differences—not least our notions of God or the Absolute—which no amount of dialogue can dissolve. Religions may have much in common which we need to appreciate; however, they also express radically divergent and even mutually contradictory views of reality. This highlights the importance of religious experience over religious doctrines in dialogue. As Panikkar states: "Beliefs divide; faith unites!" Through dialogue, we search for a way of living harmoniously that respects radical difference. Here too we can learn from the postmodern insight that every tradition has its own symbols, rituals and values that need to be respected on their own terms. We are not aiming for a 'new world religion' that dissolves the particularities of any tradition. We are aiming for an emergent harmony arising from the distinctiveness of all traditions.

From a Christian perspective, what are our best resources for contributing to global harmony? Our starting point needs to be historical critique in which we acknowledge our own tradition's responsibility in the subjugation of peoples, cultures and traditions. Such missionary excesses cannot be justified on the basis of the religion of Jesus. In fact, biblical recovery clearly indicates that Jesus neither lived nor preached religious sectarianism. To the contrary, Jesus engages in dialogue with foreigners in a fully respectful manner; and he recognizes in the Roman centurion a greater faith than in all of Israel (Matt. 8: 10). Moreover, Jesus seems far less concerned about people's beliefs than their attitudes and actions. At the heart of his prophetic ministry are the words of the Beatitudes (Matt. 5: 3-12) where he speaks of universal human values of righteousness, peace, justice and mercy.

Jesus' message does not avoid the reality of human conflict; in fact, such conflict is to be expected. Importantly, though, Jesus does not promote conflict in the name of religion or any other cause. To live according to the Beatitudes means that we need to be passionately committed to peace, justice and reconciliation. This may cause one to "suffer persecution". In such a situation one is called, to quote another aphorism of Jesus, "to turn the other cheek" (Matt. 5: 39). The Beatitudes stand in stark contrast to those all-too-often historical instances where Christian praxis adopted patronizing, intolerant and even violent attitudes in the so-called "name of Jesus".

Another Christian resource for the promotion of harmony among peoples is the doctrine of the Trinity which celebrates pluralism in the Godhead. In other words, for Christians, the ultimate reality is both one and three: unity and plurality coexist in a manner that neither defies unity nor ignores diversity. So, for Christians, ultimate reality is imaged as the communion or harmony of Father, Son and Spirit, an image that should surely be reflected in all our relationships. Such harmony should also be reflected in the interrelationship of peoples, cultures and religions. The Incarnation (doctrine of the divine-and-human reality of Christ) can also be appropriated as a model for approaching religious diversity: we are really different in our beliefs; we are really united in our humanity and in the divine mystery we all recognise (by whatever name).

For Catholics, the call to religious dialogue could not be clearer. The Second Vatican Council (1962-1965) challenged us "to enter dialogue and collaboration with members of other religions (in order to) overcome divisions, foster friendly relations, achieve mutual understanding, and to work together with people of all faiths for the betterment of the world" (Nostra Aetate, 2-3). During the Council, Pope Paul VI proclaimed that dialogue—within the church, with other Christians, other religions and the entire world—was at the heart of the church's program of renewal (Ecclesiam Suam). We might say that respectful dialogue is the Catholic way of being in the world and relating to all people.

Dialogue is not just a matter of easy words. John Paul II makes this clear with a number of symbolic initiatives including: his visit to the synagogue of Rome (1986); praying at the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem (2000); inviting religious leaders to join him in prayer for World Peace in Assisi (1986 & 2002); and his apologies for the church's negative impact on women, Jews and Indigenous peoples. The process of dialogue always involves an ongoing call to conversion including: revaluating the positive value of other traditions; overturning ingrained prejudices; revising preconceived ideas; and purifying one's own religious faith. These ideas are spelt out in the 1991 document of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, entitled "Dialogue and Proclamation". This same document points out that all Christians are called to religious dialogue.

If the religious traditions come to the dialogue-table armed with unbending doctrines and narrow beliefs, these will lead at best to argument and debate—at worst to expressions of violence. Religious dialogue must be based in another reality, a new vision, a divine call, or trust in the mystery that transcends us. Only through such dialogue, founded on the particularity of each religious tradition, will religions play their vital role in the creation of a civilization of love, peace and harmony. This, after all, is what all religions claim to be their goal. What is new today is the realisation that we are called to do this together.

Associate Professor Gerard Hall SM - Editor
Australian Catholic University, Brisbane

24th June 2008
Birth of John the Baptist