(Fairfax Station, VA) - On Thursday, the Durga Temple hosted an interfaith dialogue coordinated by the Interfaith Conference of Washington, DC. Members of various Eastern and Western faiths came together to discuss what they like about their tradition. The purpose of interfaith discussion is to listen to what other people say and to reflect on the self. No matter what someone said about their religion, almost everyone in the room could agree with the statements made. Here are some reflections made by some of the participants:
- What I love about my path is that it is accepting of all paths as valid. The purpose is to let the experiences in the world transform me.
- What I love about my religion is that it is open to discovering your own path to Judaism.
- What I love about Islam is that it promotes the universal human principles. God knows is through our work, not how we appear on the outside from status to skin color.
- Compassion, mercy, and love are at the center of all religions. Service to our fellow man, loving our fellow man, that is the purpose. It is not ritual or dogma, which divide us.
- What I love about my religion is that everyone believes that all Gods are one. All religions claim God as their Father. "He is my Father, not your Father! No, he's my Father, not your Father!' Like children fighting for the affection of a parent. Our religions are part of God, so we are siblings.
- Many religions are rooted in language. What I love about my path is that I let experience dictate what I believe.
- What I love about my religion is that we all want to be closer to this thing we call god.
- What I love about my religion is that it gives me a sense of community. No matter what religious institution, we all get along.
- Individuals seek knowledge through their religion.
- Religion means that which binds together.
- What I love about my religion is that it brings me to a higher level. Those rooted in faith find a freedom in doing what we ought to do versus what we want to do.
In every interfaith discussion that I have had the privilege to be a part of, it has been clear that we have so much more in common than we ever realize. As one person said today, it is true that the divine looks to the work that we do and not just what's on the outside. Experience, community, transformation, and most of the characteristics of our various religions described here are true to what is so great about the Pagan path, too.
In recalling interfaith training for Pagan leaders, we were recommended to use words like "Nature-faith" to describe our faith. I felt comfortable today to use the word Pagan. I described my path as Nature-based and Pagan. It was actually well received, a compliment to the diverse group, and many people came up to me to get my contact information afterwards to inquire about Paganism. We most certainly built bridges in the DC interfaith community today.
~Iris Firemoon
0 comments:
Post a Comment