Inter-Faith Dialogue and
Inter-Faith Action - What Comes First
Panel
Discussion at Regional Conference Focuses on Different Ways
of Making
Peace
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa/GENEVA, 3 October 2003 (LWI) -
The
second day of the regional Southern Africa Inter-Faith Conference
in
Johannesburg was opened by religious leaders of the Hindu,
Jewish and Muslim
faiths. The common spirituality conveyed
through their prayers set the tone
for the morning's topic: "What
Makes for Peace in Our Region?"
During
the panel discussion that followed, with participants from
Angola, Malawi,
Mozambique, South Africa and Zambia, it soon
became evident that different
countries and faiths view the
concept of peace in different ways. While some
religious leaders
concentrate their efforts on developing the individual's
inner
peace, others, also influenced by the type of conflict
experienced
in their countries, place greater importance on
political peace.
The
discussion furthermore tackled the question of how religious
communities
should work together in the face of theological and
ideological differences.
Bishop Paul Musuru of Zambia urged
participants to leave theological debates
aside and start to
engage in activities that bring peace to the region as
soon as
possible. "Let's first do something together and go into
debate
about our differences at a later stage," he said. He was
supported
by Ms Joana Vemba, a Christian from Angola, who also
argued that there is
enough common ground between religions to
work for peace here and now. "To
discuss theological differences
is not a priority, peace is a priority," she
emphasized.
The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) General Secretary, Rev.
Dr
Ishmael Noko agreed that peacemaking was of utmost importance.
But he
urged all delegates to simultaneously be clear about what
their different
religions mean by peace: "Peace may be
interpreted in many different ways,
and we have to agree what we
mean by it." A theological debate should not
take place in order
to defend one's own religion, but to clarify one's
theological
basis so that inter-faith dialogue can take place with
mutual
respect. "You cannot respect something that you don't know,"
argued
Noko, who is chairing the conference that is hosted by the
National Religious
Leaders' Forum of South Africa.
Sheikh Imuran Shareef from Malawi agreed
that information about
each other's faith principles was a prerequisite for
respectful
dialogue. "We do not have to go into theological debate,"
he
said, "but if Malawian Christians and Muslims want to live
peacefully
next to each other as good neighbors and colleagues
they need to know about
their customs, traditions and beliefs in
order to avoid
conflict."
Former Zambian President Dr Kenneth Kaunda, expected to
deliver
the keynote address, was unable to attend the conference, as
he
was involved in important conflict mediation at the request of
the
Lybian government. His personal assistant, Mr Stanley
Matonga, presented
Kaunda's "warmest and sincere greetings." (467
words)
(By LWI
correspondent Erika von Wietersheim, Namibia)
(The LWF is a global
communion of Christian churches in the
Lutheran tradition. Founded in 1947 in
Lund (Sweden), the LWF now
has 136 member churches in 76 countries
representing over 61.7
million of the 65.4 million Lutherans worldwide. The
LWF acts on
behalf of its member churches in areas of common interest such
as
ecumenical and interfaith relations, theology, humanitarian
assistance,
human rights, communication, and the various aspects
of mission and
development work. Its secretariat is located in
Geneva,
Switzerland.)
[Lutheran World Information (LWI) is LWF' information
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Unless specifically noted, material presented does not
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Where
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