PARLIAMENT OF THE WORLD’S
RELIGIONS UPDATE
August 20, 2003
Greetings of Peace! It is with great excitement that we send this most
recent
email update on the Council for a Parliament of the World’s
Religions. In
preparation for the 2004 Parliament, the Council will be holding several
pre-Parliament events in cities throughout the world. We are sending
you
this email in the hopes that you will be able to attend one of these
wonderful
events. If an event is not being held in your area, but you would be
interested in exploring the possibility of holding a pre-Parliament event
in
your town, please contact CPWR staffmember Sheila Thornton at (312)
629-2990
ext. 242 or email her at sheila@cpwr.org.
********
Before we list the dates and locations of each pre-Parliament event,
we’d like
to provide you with some background on the UNESCO Centre of Catalonia, one
of
the Council’s two primary partners for the 2004 Parliament of the
World’s
Religions.
The UNESCO Centre of Catalonia, based in Barcelona, Spain, seeks to
contribute
to international peace and cooperation through the promotion of dialogue
and
collaboration in the fields of education, science, culture and
communication.
The UNESCO Centre of Catalonia has a long history of working in the area
of
human rights, and regularly sponsors conferences and dialogues on the role
of
religions in creating cultures of peace.
For more information about the international publications, conferences,
and
local community-building efforts of the UNESCO Centre, please visit their
website at www.unescocat.org.
The staff of the UNESCO Centre work to extend the interreligious movement
in
Barcelona, engaging with religious and spiritual communities to build
interreligious understanding and cooperation. It is their
coordination,
along with the local religious and spiritual communities, that will enable
the
2004 Parliament to have a positive, community-building effect on the
larger
metropolitan area, as well as Spain as a whole.
In order to better understand some of some of the local dynamics and
issues
related to Barcelona's local religious and spiritual communities, we
recommend that you read "What will the 2004 Parliament of the
World’s
Religions Mean for Barcelona?, an article written by Francesc Rovira of
the
UNESCO Centre of Catalonia and published in a terrific interreligious
journal
entitled Interreligious Insight. You can find a copy of this article
online at http://www.cpwr.org/new/insightvol1.htm.
And now, for the listing and descriptions of the upcoming pre-Parliament
events
for this Fall.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA (USA) -- AUGUST 22-24, 2003
Nurturing Interfaith Opportunities: From Southern California –
To the
World
Join more than 55 Southern California interreligious organizations as they
hold
a retreat to celebrate the interrreligious movement in Southern
California, and
to prepare for the 2004 Parliament of the World’s Religions.
The Los Angeles Pre-Parliament event will be held from Friday, August 22,
5 pm
until Sunday, August 24, 2003, 4 pm at Hsi Lai University (www.hlu.edu )
which
is located at 1409 N. Walnut Grove Ave, Rosemead, California, USA.
The weekend will include opportunities for participants to do the
following:
* Share interreligious highlights, successes, and best practices
* Enjoy interreligious dialogue, fellowship, music, information, and
resources
* Experience diverse worship and meditation practices (optional
participation)
* Share our experiences, visions, and hopes
* Learn details about the 2004 Parliament in Barcelona, Spain
For further information on the Los Angeles pre-Parliament event, please
contact
Sandra Comeau at (760) 941-7022 or by email at scomeau@earthlink.net.
BARCELONA, SPAIN -- OCTOBER 16, 2003
In preparation for the 2004 Parliament, the religious and spiritual
communities
of Barcelona will be hosting their first pre-Parliament event on
Thursday, October 16, 2003. An expected 1,000 people from
throughout Spain, including participants from every major local religious
and
spiritual community, are expected to attend this exciting one-day event.
The
program will include opportunities for intra- and inter-religious
dialogue,
prayer and reflection, as well as music and dance from many of
Barcelona’s
diverse communities. Participants will learn about the 2004
Parliament
event and the many lead-up activities during the coming year.
The event is being planned by one of the Council's partner organizations,
The
UNESCO Centre of Catalonia, in conjunction with the religious and
spiritual
communities of Barcelona. For more information, please contact the
Centre
at (34) 93 458 95 95 or via email at centre@unescocat.org
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS (USA) -- NOVEMBER 16, 2003
The Chicago pre-Parliament event will take place at the State of Illinois
Center, Sunday afternoon, November 16, from 12:30 to 5:30pm. The
program
will include reflection and ritual, programs and dialogues and
performances of
music and dance. Information about plans for the Barcelona 2004
parliament and how to get involved in the work of the Council will be
available.
For more information on the Chicago pre-Parliament event, please contact
CPWR
staff member Sheila Thornton at (312) 629-2990 ext. 242 or via email at
sheila@cpwr.org
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA (USA) -- NOVEMBER 16, 2003
The second pre-Parliament event in the San Francisco Bay Area,
co-sponsored by
the Bridge Cooperation Circle and Pathways to Peace, will take place
November
16, 2003, at St. Aidan’s Church, 101 Gold Mine Drive, San Francisco.
The
day will include opportunities for you to:
* Participate in diverse communities’ reflection and ritual
* Explore the teachings of your own traditions that bear on the situation
of
refugees locally and around the world
* Share insights from various religious and spiritual traditions
* Hear about the latest plans for the 2004 Parliament and how you can
become
involved
* Share a meal with all participants to break the fast of Ramadan.
A third Bay Area pre-Parliament event will take place February 29, 2004 in
the
South Bay. Save the date and plan to attend!
For more information or to register for the November event, please contact
Rowan Fairgrove at rsvp@uribridgecc.org
DELHI, INDIA -- DECEMBER 7-10, 2003
The New Delhi pre-Parliament event will be a four-day conference,
including
opportunities for intrafaith and interfaith discussions, the signing of a
declaratory statement, visits to religious sites, and meetings with
community
leaders. A valedictory address will be given by H. H. the Dalai
Lama, and
the inaugural address will be given by the President of India. Over 300
concerned and committed people from all over India and the world will
attend.
Please note that reservations and a fee are required for the
pre-Parliament event in Delhi. The deadline for registrations is
August
31, 2003. You may download a registration form from www.cpwr.org
homepage.
For more information on the Delhi pre-Parliament event, please contact
Sheila
Thornton at (312) 629-2990 ext. 242 or via email at sheila@cpwr.org
OTHER CITIES IN THE PLANNING STAGE INCLUDE...
* Brussels, Belgium
* Cape Town, South Africa
* 25 in Catalonia
* Denpasar, Bali
* Detroit, Michigan, USA
* London, England, United Kingdom
* Seattle, Washington, USA
* Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
* Montreal, Quebec, Canada (Post Parliament event)
********
ADDITIONAL NEWS AT CPWR...
If you are interested in offering a presentation, workshop, or performance
at
the 2004 Parliament, you must complete a Call for Programs. This document
was
issued early in July and is now available on the CPWR website
(www.cpwr.org) in
English, Spanish, and Catalan. We are exploring translations into other
languages, including French, German, Arabic, and Hindi.
Programs of many types will be considered, including lectures, academic
papers,
seminars, panel discussions, religious or spiritual observances,
workshops,
training sessions, and artistic performances. All proposals will be
evaluated by a panel of international advisors and recommendations will
come to
a task force composed of staff and advisors from CPWR and the UNESCO
Centre of
Catalonia.
Programs and presenters will be evaluated according to the following
criteria:
* Does the program explore or relate to the theme of the 2004 Parliament
--
Pathways to Peace: the wisdom of listening, the power of commitment?
* Does the program contribute to the overall balance of the Parliament
event in
terms of religious and spiritual traditions, new and well-known voices,
gender,
region, and academic and experiential formats?
* Does the presenter demonstrate the capacity to successfully engage
participants in the topic?
All presenters must agree to adhere to the principles of the Parliament
and of
respectful dialogue, which include non-proselytizing, a willingness to
engage
in interreligious dialogue, and a commitment to present potentially
divisive
topics from a variety of viewpoints.
Regular programs will be 90 minutes in length, although a limited number
of
other time formats are possible. In addition, a limited number of symposia
(1–3
day series of programs exploring a particular topic in depth) will also be
considered.
The first review panel will meet in September, with ongoing reviews until
the
final submission deadline of February 15, 2004. The finalized
program
will be available on-line in June 2004 to enable registered participants
to
review the full offering before they arrive in Barcelona.
If you wish to submit a program proposal, you can download the Call for
Programs from the website, print it and send it in by mail or fax to one
of the
addresses below. For more information, please read the full Call for
Programs or contact the program staff at the following addresses
(depending on
your location)
Outside Spain:
Council for a Parliament of the World’s Religions
P.O. Box 1630
Chicago Illinois 60690
USA
Fax: (312) 629-2991
E-mail: program@cpwr.org
Website: www.cpwr.org
Within Spain:
UNESCO Centre of Catalonia
Mallorca, 285
08037 Barcelona
Spain
Fax: (34) 93-457-5851
E-mail: parlament2004@unescocat.org
Website: www.unescocat.org
********
We hope you've enjoyed receiving this CPWR electronic update. Your
comments, questions, and suggestions are always welcome.
If you wish to unsubscribe, please reply to this email with PLEASE
UNSUBSCRIBE
in the subject line. If you would like to be added to our mailing
list,
or receive additional materials on the Council for a Parliament of the
World's
Religions, please contact us.
P.S. The next deadline to register for the 2004 Parliament is November 1,
2003.
After this, the individual and group fees will increase.
Please
register to attend the 2004 Parliament before November 1, 2003 to take
advantage of the lower registration rates!
In Partnership......
The Council for a Parliament of the World’s Religions (CPWR)
********
The Council for a Parliament of the World's Religions (CPWR)
70 E. Lake, Suite 205
Chicago, IL 60601
(312) 629-2990 ext.
info@cpwr.org
The mission of the Council for a
Parliament
of the World's Religions is to cultivate harmony between the world's
religious
and spiritual communities and foster their engagement with the world and
its
other guiding institutions in order to achieve a peaceful, just, and
sustainable world.
|
