Interreligious dialog most urgent and needed

Interreligious dialog most urgent and needed

Aloys Budi Purnomo, Rector, St. Peter Major Seminary,
Pematang Siantar, North Sumatra, aloybudipurnomo@plasa.com

Our society is marked by the twofold reality of religious
pluralism and social injustice, which provides ample
opportunities for all religions to enrich one another spiritually
and practically. In such a reality the need for interreligious
dialogue is not only necessary but it is an overriding necessity.

Interreligious dialogue is one of the intricate and urgent
challenges faced by religious believers now that we have crossed
the threshold of the third millennium. Contemporary discussion
with regard to interreligious dialogue has taken a more practical
turn. And, it is right to say that interreligious dialogue is
more urgent and needed than ever. Such dialog is the duty of each
of us all, whatever our religion and faith.

It is a fact that we live in the reality of religious
pluralism. It is a characteristic of our world and society today.
We have from the beginning lived in the context of other faiths
and religions. Like it or not, we cannot avoid living in a world
of many religious faiths and religions.

Rightly, in the social context of religious pluralism, we find
ourselves in relationships with others. The development of
communications, however, and broader encounters in the world of
work, have created a new situation. Muslims, Christians,
Buddhists, Hindus, etc., are rubbing shoulders in everyday life.
Religious believers are therefore obliged to live their faith in
a plural context. They cannot avoid the question: How can I
reconcile my personal faith with respect for the faiths of others
-- faiths which may often contradict mine? How can I keep hold of
the two ends of the chain, fidelity to my own religious creed and
acceptance of the truth of the other? In this situation and with
these questions, we have to engage in interreligious dialogue for
the sake of the future of humanity.

But, what is the meaning of interreligious dialogue in our
life today? Is it only mutual tolerance or peaceful coexistence
between the followers of various religions? Is it something more
important and significant than merely mutual information or
discussion between believers in different faiths and religions?
So what is the meaning of interreligious dialogue for us?

In a very simple but essential way, we can describe
interreligious dialogue as the interactions between people who
belong to different religions (or ideologies that function as
religions). It consists of two aspects, namely, a dimension of
mission and a dialogue in the context of believers in different
religions living together in civil society. Here, the goal of
interreligious dialogue is harmony, which affirms pluralism in
unity.

However, interreligious dialogue is not the same as the effort
to get the interlocutor to be convinced of one's own faith and to
persuade him to change his religion. It does not aim at
conversion in the sense of a change of religious allegiance, but
conversion understood as a greater readiness to do God's will
should be one of the aims and fruits of sincere interreligious
dialogue.

Interreligious dialogue is a process of communication from
heart to heart between followers of numerous religions, not only
at the academic level among leaders, but at the grassroots level
in the religious sense. At the grassroots level and in our age
and the social context of religious pluralism, interreligious
dialogue is the praxis of dialogue based on personal religious
experience and firm truth claims, on the recognition of the
possible truth in all religions grounded in the hypothesis of a
common ground and goal for all religions, and an openness to the
possibility of accepting insights into the divine truth that they
previously either never realized or rejected.

The followers of different religions and faiths are in need of
interreligious dialogue today since our society is sometimes
inclined to religious fanaticism and fundamentalism, causing
flare ups of religious emotions. In our globalized and
multireligious society of the 21st Century, we should realize
that interreligious dialogue is a quickly growing phenomenon. It
is also becoming more and more important with the goal of
promoting cooperation among the believers and followers of
various religions so that in mutual respect and understanding,
social justice and peace, brotherhood and fraternal
collaboration, we can build up our world and society.

Sociologically, it is a fact that there are a vast number of
religions in our world and society. We cannot ignore or deny this
fact. From the perspective of the theology of religions, this
sociological reality is in accordance with the will of God, who
desires all men and women to be saved and to come to the
knowledge of the truth.

Based on this fact, we should learn what treasures a bountiful
God has distributed among the nations of the earth. Here, we can
mention that interreligious dialogue is a manifestation of a
positive attitude toward other religions. It consists of an
invitation that every religion has to acknowledge, preserve, and
promote the spiritual and moral wealth found among these other
believers, as well as the values of their societies and cultures.

In the pluralistic world in which we live today and whether we
like it or not, we have to get deeply involved in building our
commitment to interreligious dialogue.

We know that religious pluralism is not something new. Also,
we know well that each one of the world religions emerged from a
situation of religious plurality and controversy. Therefore, we
should be open to whatever truth and wisdom is discoverable in
every tradition.

Every follower of a religion has to strive to practice
interreligious dialogue. The practice of interreligious dialogue
incorporates the assumption that religion is an area of universal
concern that we can consider, contemplate and talk about.

May all of us bear witness to compassion and loving kindness
in promoting the true goodness of humanity by committing
ourselves to interreligious dialogue. It is time for us to work
for the day when all peoples and nations may enjoy security,
harmony, justice and peace!