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Importance of Interfaith Dialogue |
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Written by Dr. Liyakatali Takim
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Sunday, 01 June 2008 |
According to Martin Buber, "true dialogue expresses an essential aspect of
the human spirit, when we listen and respond to one another with an authenticity
that forges a bond between us."
Dialogue has become a tool that fosters a better understanding between different
faith groups and promotes peaceful co-existence. However, dialogue needs to
progress beyond negating misconceptions and understanding the beliefs and praxis
of others. Dialogue is also interwoven with understanding in a fundamental way
what it means to believe in a particular religious tradition and to attempt to
enter the heart of the partner in dialogue. Those who engage in dialogue not
only relate their tradition but also what is meaningful in it, how they
experience and relate to the sacred within their tradition.
An essential component in dialogue is the willingness to reexamine one's faith
in the light of how others relate to their tradition and the ability to
strengthen or adjust one’s own engagement and interaction with the sacred based
on the experiences of the other. Understanding the faith of others should
strengthen rather than weaken a person’s commitment to his or her tradition.
For example, I recently read that when Professor Cantwell Smith was asked if he
was a Christian, he responded, "Ask my neighbor." That short yet profound reply
made me reflect on my social responsibilities. We become enriched in our own
faith tradition by interacting with the other. Dialogue between religions does
not only entail relating the intensity or depth of our own faith but also
witnessing and growing in it while understanding and respecting the faith of the
other. Students in the comparative religions class which I offer at the
University of Denver have often remarked that their faith and commitment to
their own religious tradition has been strengthened by learning about other
religions.
In this context, it is important to note that the etymology of the word
"dialogue" is dia in Greek, referring to the act of seeing through. Dialogue
should empower us to "see through" the faith of others, and enable us to
reexamine our assumptions of the other based on the other's definition of
itself. Each group is able to better express what it believes and, in the
process, to understand more deeply the meaning of what it means to be committed
to a particular faith tradition. The process of self-definition also requires
that each group express itself based on its own terms and for the partner in
dialogue to accept and respect that self-definition. In the process, our
preconceived notions of the other are challenged and often dramatically altered.
This is the first step to moving beyond the stereotypes and misrepresentations
of the past.
It is improper for Muslims, for example, to assume that their often-distorted
image and understanding of Christianity is how Christians understand themselves.
The ability to change one's views and perceptions about the other is an
important component if interaction between people of different religious
backgrounds is to lead to a more peaceful co-existence between them. The purpose
of engaging in interfaith dialogue is not to reach doctrinal agreement but to
increase sensitivity to others. As the Parliament of the World's Religions
affirmed in Chicago in 1993, "The earth cannot be changed for the better unless
the consciousness of the individual is changed first."
Dialogue provides access to windows of understanding of how others define
themselves and challenges us to grow in our own faith through the experience of
the other. It necessitates a shift in paradigm, asking us to embrace those we
have previously excluded or demonized. We tend to exclude or marginalize others
in different ways. These range from assimilation, abandonment, indifference, and
domination of the other. Exclusion is also conjoined with the distortion of
rather than simply ignorance of the other. As Miroslav Volf states, "it
(exclusion) is a willful misconstruction, not mere failure of knowledge."
Exclusion often entails cutting the bonds of humanity that connect us as moral
human beings and can generate a wide range of emotional responses, from hatred
to indifference, and even the cursing of or killing of the other. The other
emerges as an inferior being that either must be assimilated by being made like
the self or subjugated to the self.
Dialogue is the first step toward accommodating or making space within oneself
for the other. The challenge for both Muslims and Christians when they converse
is to seek opportunities for interpretations that can make a community see the
enemy in a new way. It is essential that we move away from defining ourselves
over and above an enemy "other". This is an important measure in establishing a
peaceful relationship. In this sense, I believe we need to go beyond tolerating
or understanding the other. More than ever, there is a need to embrace the
other. This suggests a different function of dialogue, one that can bring the
hearts, rather than just the minds, of people together.
A professor of religious studies at the University of Denver, Dr. Liyakat
Takim has written and translated many books and articles related to Islam and
Shi'ism. His book Heirs of the Prophet: Charisma and Religious Authority in
Shi'ite Islam recently received the 2007 CHOICE Award for Outstanding Academic
Title from SUNY Press.
Source: Islamic Insights
Comments posted are the sole opinion of the author and may not necessarily reflect the opinions of AIM. |
