Reference Committee on Relations with Other Faiths

1. INTRODUCTION

“Relations with people of other faiths is not an optional extra for us but an essential area of interaction and witness. The church proclaims the inclusiveness of God’s love to all humankind and promotes peace with justice, compassion, understanding and harmony. It also proclaims that it is God who created the earth and all humankind – the one God who we worship as Creator, Saviour and Holy Spirit. “
(Keith Rowe in ‘Living with the Neighbour who is Different.’)

People of other faiths have always lived in Australia. Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander communities who have cared for the land and lived in it from time immemorial had a sophisticated and complex spirituality that was integral to their existence and life. On the first fleet were 16 Jewish prisoners. Many Afghan cameleers who opened up the desert areas of Australia’s inland in the 1800’s were Muslims. Buddhist and Hindus came with the gold rushes and as cane cutters.
At a time in Australian and world history

• where the self-concept of Australia as a tolerant and accepting society is being challenged,
• when there is significant growth in Islam and Buddhism in Australia
• where divisions between people are growing,
• where labeling and vilification are exacerbating difficult conflict situations,
• when the growth in census figures for those who profess no religious affiliation is rising significantly

the church seeks to explore, again and deeper, its relationships with those who confess faith and spirituality differently from us and with whom we share this place and this land.

1. The mission statement from the mandate of this agency is
i. to promote knowledge and understanding of other living world faiths and their communities in Australia and to advise the Assembly on appropriate ways to foster relationships with such communities.

The 10 member reference committee has worked consistently over the past three years to fulfill its mandate and the priorities of the Assembly within the very limited resources it has. It has no staff , a very tiny budget, and relies on the faithful work of a small group of people from NSW as the committee, plus some administrative assistance and support from the Associate General Secretary. It seeks to be aware of work being done in other synods as well as NSW and, through its work and national contacts with other faith communities, is a resource for synods, congregations and presbyteries.

2. ASSEMBLY PRIORITIES

2.1 The Assembly in 2000 encouraged congregations to use the resources “Living With The Neighbour Who Is Different” and “So you want to Worship”. It also urged synods, congregations and presbyteries to recognize the importance of fostering neighbourly relations with people of other faiths.

2.2 As a result of proposals agreed to at the last Assembly, the major project has been the publishing of the booklet “Living With The Neighbour Who Is Different” and the writing of study guides for the book. . The booklet covers the theological rationale behind dialogue, looks at various Christian attitudes to dialogue and explores the issues of evangelism, mission and dialogue. Working with other assembly agencies enabled us to provide the church with a valuable and flexible resource. Theology and Discipleship worked with us on the content and assisted in editing of the booklet. Uniting Education worked on the writing of study guides. Production costs were eventually covered by a grant from the secretariat communications section after other sources did not eventuate. About half of this was recouped from sales

2.3 Distributing the booklet and helping the members of the church become aware of its availability is always difficult. Many people want to be able to see a book such as this before buying. With many church bookshops now closed this is more problematic. All congregations received a copy of the booklet with the invitation to buy it as a resource for their community or return it. A few disliked this method of distribution and we have not continued the practice. School chaplains were particularly advised of the resource as many of them are working in a multi-faith environment. It was also distributed ecumenically to people in the National Council of Churches. We have sold approximately 3,500 copies and are pleased with the result. There are more copies available from Rainbow books or the Assembly office and we will have some available at the Assembly meeting.

3. INVOLVEMENT WITH PERSONS OF OTHER FAITH

3.1 Interaction with people of other faiths
As part of our ability to learn about other faiths and to advise the president and the church on issues affecting them, the committee attempts to develop relations with people of various faith traditions.

3.2.1 Dialogues
Jewish/Uniting Church – this dialogue has continued to meet twice a year. In recent meetings we have begun to explore terminology and theological concepts from the different traditions that have led to misunderstandings and tension. The Uniting Church has given public support to the Jewish community in recent years when it has been the target of violence and vilification.

• Muslim/UCA Link group – this dialogue continued for two years but has not met for over a year due to other demands on the leadership. Informal relationships are strong among some members of the committee within their own areas of ministry. Some discussion have taken place with AFIC about how this dialogue may take place differently.
• National Australian Dialogue between Muslims, Christians and Jews
  This group was established by the National Council of Churches in 2002 and primarily focuses on relationships between these three faiths here in Australia as they share a common heritage of Abraham. It has twelve regular members (four from each – at least one of whom must be a woman) and each faith community is invited to have a fifth member and invite young people to observe. The Christian component currently involves a Roman Catholic religious woman, the general secretary of the NCCA ( ordained Lutheran), a Uniting Church lay woman, and a bishop from the Orthodox tradition. An Anglican priest comes from time to time and we have had two young people attend one session each. It has met every two months in 2002 and will have a public launch of its program in March 2003. Members of the three faiths have visited each others places of worship and explored common issues of concern. The development of trust and understanding are of greatest importance. It has issued a number of press releases at times of tension and when a faith community has been the subject of violence or public comment. eg a statement for peace after 11 September, a similar statement after the Bali Bombing Its primary focus is on developing harmonious relationships between the communities here in Australia rather than lobbying on international political issues.

3.3 Other events and contacts
Muslim-Christian dinner. Following the Witness for Peace in Indonesia in 1999, the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils invited 80 Christians from NSW to a dinner with 80 Muslims in mid September 2001 in Sydney. It coincidently was organized to occur just days after the twin towers bombing in New York. It gave the community an opportunity to meet with Christians, for a joint statement for peace to be read and for relationships to be further developed at that difficult time for Muslims everywhere.

Pitt St Uniting Church held a Peace Forum in November 2001 with Christian and Muslim leaders, and the Lakemba community held a peace walk with Muslims and Christians, going to each others place of worship and praying for each other. Many members of the committee participated in the joint prayer gathering in Martin Place after 11 September.

The president along with other Christian leaders visited mosques in Sydney after they were attacked after the twin towers bombing in USA on 11 September, and Muslim leaders visited Christian churches, also in Sydney, when retaliatory attacks occurred.

Graham Brookes, chairperson, attended the Premier’s Forum for Religious Leaders in NSW where representatives signed a Declaration for Religious Tolerance.

3.4 Visits to other faiths
Many religious communities do not have a national or state structure and need to be related to individually. The committee decided to visit some of the local temples to learn more, and experience something of these communities.

In early 2001 members of the committee visited the new Murugan Hindu temple at Mays Hill Westmead, NSW. It was an opportunity to ask questions and expand our understanding of Hindu philosophies and symbolism. During the visit the committee observed one of the many Hindu rituals.

Later in the year arrangement we were made to visit the Cao Dai community in Sydney and to visit their temple in Wiley Park, NSW. It is a young faith community originating in the 1920’s in Vietnam. This faith brings together elements of Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism and Daoism/Taoism. The visited consisted of a very informative presentation and question time, a tour of the temple and a meal of traditional vegetarian food.

3.5 Other involvements
Members are involved with the World Conference on Religion and Peace and some attend the NSW Governor’s reception for religious leaders.
Some are active members of the NSW Council of Christian and Jews.
A women’s interfaith forum was established in 2002 in NSW and meets regularly and is involved in some common outreach.

4. RESOURCES FOR THE CHURCH

4.1 Some Theological Colleges run courses on interfaith dialogue or other religions. Coolamon College is writing a unit on Islam as part of its Discovery Program. The Victorian Council of Churches has an active interfaith group and has produced useful resources on various faith traditions and meeting together.

4.2 Workshops on relations with other faiths
As part of raising awareness within the church of people of other faiths and our interaction as Christians with them, various members of the committee have taken up opportunities for leading workshops on relations with other faiths and Christian attitudes to interfaith dialogue. Some of the workshops included
§ The Defence Force Chaplains Character Leadership training course on Christian attitudes.
§ NCYC Newcastle - a two session elective for the first time on this issue with 50 enthusiastic young people. They appreciated very much the opportunity to meet a rabbi and an imam first hand and to ask various questions. A follow up session on theological understandings and attitudes to interfaith dialogue gave them a framework to use as they develop their understandings and relationships in this area.
§ UTC – a session on Christian attitudes to interfaith dialogue was included in an undergraduate unit on multi-culturalism

5. CO-OPERATION WITH OTHER ASSEMBLY AGENCIES

The committee met with Rob Bos, national director of Theology and Discipleship, for a conversation about where the two committees share common work and how to develop an adequate theological framework for our work. Dialogue raises issues of mission and evangelism and how we understand our attitudes to people of other faiths in a pluralistic world. The concept of one God and its implications for our life is one that needs further development in the church.

The committee also met with Helen Richmond, national director for Multi-cultural Ministry, as she shared some of her experience from SelyOak College in Birmingham of work in interfaith dialogue and issues they faced and learnings gained.

The committee has been represented on the joint committee on refugees established by the ASC.

6. MEMBERSHIP 2000 - 2003

Rev Graham Brookes – chairperson
Rev Geoff Barnes
Rev Clyde Dominsh
Rev Ray Richmond
Rev Bern Stevens
Rev Hugh Woongul Park
Rev Eleni Poulos (representing SR&J)
Una Laird
Wendie Wilkie
Wilma Viswanathan
Deb Porter Co-opted)

7. FUTURE DIRECTIONS

• “A radical recovery of God as creator means that my Hindu or Buddhist neighbour ..…is a child of God. God is as much his or her creator as mine. There is no other God but the God who is the source of all being.”
  (Wesley Ariarajah, Not with out my Neighbour WCC 1998)
• “In an age of human division, Christians are under divine obligation to act in neighbourly love towards those who belong to other religions”
  ( Keith Rowe ‘Living with the Neighbour who is different’ UCA publication 2001)

These two statements encapsulate the concerns and directions of this committee for the next triennium.

7.2 Since the last Assembly in July 2000, relationships with people of other faiths in Australia and the world have become a more important issue than ever before. In the light of religious tensions in various parts of the world, especially the Middle East, and the sense of vulnerability in the west generally and in Australia that resulted from the bombing of the twin towers in New York and the nightclub in Bali, many people in our church are asking more questions and seeking to have deeper understanding about interfaith issues and relationships. The arrival of asylum seekers and refugees by boat, violence in detention centres and concerns over mandatory detention, give rise to much radio and print media coverage and highlight division and fear in the Australian community. There has been a significant interest in dialogue with Muslims and an increase in programs and media focus on Islam generally after September 2001. Tensions in the Middle East, and in particular in Palestine and Jerusalem, have increased tensions with the Jewish community.

Attacks in various states in Australia, particularly Sydney and Melbourne, on schools and places of worship, on people in particular dress eg Muslim women, alerted us again to the potential for religious violence and the importance of good relationships with other faith communities in Australia. The Jewish community reports the highest level of such attacks in 2002 than ever before. Media articles and news stories highlighted some of the fragility of our self understanding of being a tolerant and accepting society. In the light of these and other changes in our society the work of this reference committee has become more significant.

The committee’s plans include

7.3 Dialogues

The committee will ensure that the Assembly continues to be involved in dialogue with people of other faiths nationally and will encourage people in other councils of the church to do likewise in their area. To this end it will continue to have membership in the three dialogues mentioned above and provide information and contacts for other members of the church who wish to become involved in their area.

7.4 Networking
The committee plans to run a conference in 2004 bringing together people from all synods to share ideas and to learn more about fostering interfaith dialogue and relationships. It will have an educative component so as to better equip people to facilitate and foster dialogue in their own areas. We will seek funding to assist us to do this.

The committee plans to create opportunities for people in the UCA to meet together to be become more informed about interfaith dialogue, to develop theological understandings and reflection, and to share insights and ideas as well as encourage one another . As a result of the interest shown at NCYC and by young people at university, there is a small group exploring the possibility of running some seminars for young people from the three faiths. Sources of support are being explored. There is also a possibility of running a conference for UCA on Who Is My Neighbour (or similar) with other agencies and sections of the church where a range of multi-cultural, multi-faith, social justice and theological issues can be explored.

7.5 Informing and advising

The committee in the past has produced good resources on Jewish/ Christian issues and the “Living with the neighbour who is different”. There are other resources that could be developed and many others in existences. A list of print and electronic resource as well as people resources across the church and elsewhere could be developed to help people know some of the ways to approach dialogue or interfaith gatherings. More information needs to be obtained nationally so that there is more awareness of the range of ways the church is involved in relations with people of other faiths.

7.6 Membership
The committee would like to have other synods represented on its committee to form a better national network but does not have a budget to bring people to meetings. It will endeavor to have corresponding members and to find a way to bring people together nationally from time to time. It will also seek to have a wider age range of people involved and to include some who are involved in chaplaincy and other such areas where they are involved in a multi-faith environment as a normal part of their work.

Wendie Wilkie
Associate General Secretary

APPENDIX A

RELATIONS WITH OTHER FAITHS
An Agency of the Assembly promoting Dialogue and Respect for Other Living World Faith communities

Approved by the Ninth Assembly, July 2000