Learnings for the Future of Inter-Faith Dialogue

Part II: Insights evoked by intractable international differences (Part #1)

Published in Transnational Associations, 1994, 1, pp. 15-22 [PDF version] (with Part I in 1993, 6, pp. 345-354)

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Although Part I of this article, focused on the Parliament of the World's Religions (Chicago, 1993) as a major inter-faith event, 'faith' can usefully be understood in a broader sense than in relation to religion. Dialogue is a challenge in many arenas where the entrenched 'beliefs', 'faiths' or 'religions' may correspond to political or ideological factions, philosophies, management styles, cultural biases, or even aesthetic preferences. During the Global Forum, on the occasion of the Earth Summit (Rio de Janeiro, 1992), this challenge was explored in an Inter-Sectoral Dialogue bringing together sectors such as science, religion, labour, industry, environment, and the like (1). Representatives of particular sectors may hold to their ideological faith as strongly as adherents of a particular religion. Dialogue in an inter-religious context may therefore have learnings for other arenas, as is true of the reverse. The point is best reinforced by Kinhide Mushakoji's study of Global Issues and Interparadigmatic Dialogue; essays on multipolar politics (2).