Multi-faith Dialogue

Last year while I was at a conference in New Orleans I told about the interfaith work that I have been doing in Fort Wayne. The suggestion was made to change the way I referred to the work from ‘interfaith’ to ‘multi-faith’.  After the conference I began researching the difference in these two words. In my searching I came across an article written by Rick Love of Peace Catalyst International. His thoughts on the difference of these two words resonated with me. He has three key points:

• Multi-faith dialogue is based on common ethics and the common good rather than common theology.

• Multi-faith dialogue expands the conversation to conservatives and fundamentalists.

• It allows for “theological exclusivism” while promoting “social inclusivism.”

When I started my interfaith work I asked a group of Canterbury School parents to join me in this new endeavor. As a follower of Jesus my faith is incredibly important to me. Those I asked to be in the group were people I knew were deeply devoted to their faith. At the interest meeting I discussed my hope for this ‘interfaith’ group. My hope was that the members would be willing to discover what we had in common; they would be willing to listen to each other; they would discuss our differences in a civil manner; and they would do the hard work of being peacemakers. Truly, this is not an easy task. This group met for three years. Through the ground rules the group wrote we were able to find the common ground but also discuss our differences.  Over the three years each person’s faith was deepened and strengthened.  And we became friends.

Understanding the meaning of words is important. During the dialogue with my friends from other faiths I discovered the importance of  knowing the meaning of words so we could truly understand each other. During a discussion we often would use the same word, but the meaning for that word was quite different. Sometimes I took the time to clarify exactly what was meant by a word, but quite honestly, many times I did not. When I failed to have a word clearly defined I knew true understanding had not occurred. It takes time and effort to ensure words are understood correctly. It takes time and effort to be a peacemaker.

Even though I will continue to use the word ‘interfaith’ I will be changing the name of my blog and the events I host to ‘multi-faith’. Words are important and my desire is to accurately reflect the dialogue that is occurring at Canterbury School and in Fort Wayne. For it is through multi-faith dialogue that we are striving to be peacemakers.