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Faith in Public Life

29/2/2016

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Last week I took part in  a session looking at the role of religion in public life. It's an important subject and raises its head all the time, even if only in conversations as to whether Muslim women should be allowed to wear the veil in public which still seems to be a bone of contention for some. 

Some of our time was spent reflecting on the Marakesh Declaration. This came out of a convention called by the King Mohammed VI of Morocco in January and attended by 250 of the world's most eminent Islamic leaders from over 120 countries with observers from other faiths. One of the organising partners was the Forum for Promoting Peace in Muslim Societies based in Abu Dhabi, an organisation I had never heard of before but worth knowing about, I think. The convention celebrated the 1400th anniversary of the Charter of Medina written by the Prophet Mohammed when he set up the Muslim state in Medina after his flight from Mecca. It establishes a rule of law for a pluralistic society and offers freedom of religion, especially to the Jews living in Medina at the time. The Marakesh statement focusses on the place of minorities in Islamic societies. It calls for the protection of the rights and liberties of all religious groups and asks "Muslim educational institutions and authorities to develop a jurisprudence of the concept of citizenship which is inclusive of diverse groups".

But I can't help wondering if it's possible to truly feel a citizen while being described as a minority. Immediately this throws up a them and us situation. While this declaration refers to Muslim majority societies it could easily have been written in Britain a number of years ago when we talked about ethnic minorities and later minority ethnic communities. I don't think I truly appreciated at the time that this was alienating and marginalising for people, especially if their families had lived in this country for two or three generations. This notion, wishing to be inclusive as it does, seems to be based on the model of civic life which Lord Jonathan Sacks calls the Country House model.  The image of the country house  conjures up a society which wants to welcome others into it, even wants them to feel at home but only on the terms set down by the majority who establish the rules, conduct, way of life and the others are expected to conform. They are always guests in someone else's home, never truly at ease, keeping their own customs and way of life private. Lord Sacks suggests this was the model prevalent in Britain from the middle of the last century especially after a large influx of immigrants in the 1950s. He suggests it then developed into the model of the Hotel. Here there was a recognition of a shared home but, as guests in a hotel keep to their own rooms, perhaps passing in the corridors or even sharing a table in the dining room, so different communities lived quite separately from one another - perhaps meeting now and then at events or whatever but then retiring back into their own community lives. This is the kind of multi-culturalism that Trevor Philips said was a failure and it may well be that we have not developed much beyond this model.  What the former Chief Rabbi is suggesting in his book ' A Home We Build Together' is that society needs to become a place of engagement and inclusivity where we all, no matter what our ethnic origins or religions, can feel involved in a common enterprise of building a better society for us all.
 
My sense is that this is done better in a secular society than a religious one. I wonder if a secular society is the best and maybe the only way to guarantee the kind of equality  that motivates us to have concern for the common good. Is this possible in a society where one religion and its way of life dominates the public square? It could be of course that a secular society is not much better especially if it promotes an atheistic and totalitarian philosophy. We have plenty of examples of non-religious societies which were in fact anti-religious, oppressive and violent. These regimes  did not support equality, equal participation or a sense of common citizenship. My understanding of a secular society is the one set out in a Scottish Government document ' Belief in Dialogue'. There it states quite clearly that modern Scottish society is secular which means that it's about creating a society of equals regardless of the beliefs of those within it; allows freedom to practice religious beliefs openly; allows for engagement in civic processes with the possibility of influencing political decisions. And what the state sees to do is " to provide ‘a space in the public square’ to a wide range of views to ensure the freedom of many religious groups and not just one or even none".  This is a vision of a society which respects equality and inclusiveness because it recognises that all its citizens share a common humanity and that they all have the right to their own beliefs and values which should be respected as part of the diversity of Scotland.

The Marrakesh Declaration is an important statement and should be publicised well. Hopefully though it's the beginning of a conversation about shared citizenship and about the kind of society in which all feel valued for themselves and enjoy equality of status and freedom of worship. It's good to know that these questions are being raised throughout the world and surely, if enough of us engage in the conversation, it must take the human family further on its journey towards acceptance and respect for unity in diversity


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The Gentleness of Mercy

21/2/2016

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This  week Rabbi Mark Solomon gave a talk in the Lauriston Jesuit Centre on Mercy in Judaism. A summary of it's on the website of the Scottish Bishops' Committee for Interreligious Dialogue for anyone interested in accessing it. It was inspiring and thought provoking and  got me thinking about various things which have been on my mind recently. At one point Rabbi Solomon spoke of mercy being one of the defining characteristics of God and how Exodus 34:6-7 reveals the 13 attributes of mercy, seen to be the innermost essence of God's nature. These are beautiful verses and they speak of God as merciful and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for the thousandth generation, forgiving iniquity and transgressions and sins. However it ends on a different note. The end of verse 7 says 'forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin yet by no means clearing the guilty, but visiting the iniquity of the parents upon the children and the children's children, to the third and fourth generation'. What can this mean? It can't mean that one generation suffers for the specific sins of earlier generations. Surely a loving and merciful God wouldn't do this?  I didn't look at the text until afterwards so couldn't ask Rabbi Solomon about it. Now I wonder if somehow this is related to the teaching on karma and maybe even shows us a bit of what indulgences are about. Indulgences have been on my mind a bit because of the year of mercy when certain rituals and prayers can lead to a plenary indulgence.

Indulgences are quite hard to understand and I would normally not talk about them at all. They were, after all,  one of the bones of contention that brought about the Reformation.  I was brought up on the definition that indulgences are about doing away with what was called the  temporal punishment due to sin after the sin itself has been forgiven. The term temporal punishment is an unfortunate one as it suggests punishment for what has already been forgiven. Perhaps karma can shed some light on it. Karma teaches that bad deeds have consequences for the individual committing them and for others who are affected by them.  Recently two people were condemned to death for the murder of Akong Rinpoche, the former abbot of Samye Ling Tibetan Monastery. Both the family of Akong Rinpoche and monks in  Samye Ling have appealed against the death sentence. One of the reasons was that dying did not give the murderers the opportunity of working out their karma and building up good karma for themselves and those they have offended. This makes sense to me.  To do harm to another does affect ourselves and those whom we have offended. It changes the energy in our relationship. Because all things are connected and all beings are interrelated any action good or bad affects others. It seems to me that this could well be what temporal punishment is and that prayers and rituals are ways in which we can restore the balance. Perhaps too this is the meaning behind the verses in Exodus when it says that forgiveness does not clear the guilty but can visit iniquity or the consequences of the action on others. This does not contradict the idea of God being all forgiving. I often think that religions have deep and genuine intuitions about reality but express them in different ways, some of which are unfortunate and not easily understood if taken at face value. As always the important thing is to look behind the words to find the deeper meaning that relates to our human condition.

Another interesting thought was about forgiveness - sometimes suggested as a difficulty for Jews, especially in the light of Christian teaching on forgiving our enemies.  Forgiveness is part of Judaism. Each year at Yom Kippur Jews are told to approach those whom they have offended through the year and ask forgiveness of them. Forgiveness is a relational exercise and should be offered and accepted face to face. This apology is to be offered three times and, if it is not accepted by then, the person apologising can let it go as it then becomes the problem of the other person. For those who have been offended and offered no apology it's important to forgive the perpetrator in the heart and to pray for mercy for them. Forgiveness becomes more difficult in events such as the Holocaust. Rabbi Solomon believed it was not possible to offer a blanket forgiveness and though some people have heroically forgiven those who made them suffer great indignities and abuse, it's not something that can be asked of everyone. Forgiveness, however, does not do away with the need for a reckoning of the evils committed. 

What I appreciated was Rabbi Solomon's inclusive and welcoming approach to other faiths. He suggested that in the past it was perhaps important for faiths to grow and develop in their own patch but that times had now changed. Religions have to justify their existence in the face of aggressive secularism. To do this we need to recognise the depth of spirituality in other faiths and to show the world the gentleness of mercy especially when facing the pressing problems of our time.  What a witness this would be.

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Opening the Door to Mercy.

12/2/2016

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There's  been a tradition in the Catholic Church since the 14th century that every 25 years (or sometimes 50) there's a Holy or Jubilee Year. It'a a time of pilgrimage and repentance for sin and begins with the solemn opening of the Holy Door in St Peter's Basilica in Rome. Last year Pope Francis announced an extraordinary Holy Year which he designated a Year of Mercy. It began on 8th  December with opening of the Holy Door and will finish just before the beginning of Advent in November 2016. But this year the Pope has broken with tradition and designated Cathedrals and certain Churches throughout the world as places of pilgrimage, each having its own Holy Door.  The idea is that Catholics can go on pilgrimage to these churches and enter through the special door as a sign of sorrow for sins and a desire to open oneself to the mercy of God, with no need to travel all the way to Rome. 

What the Pope is doing in this is calling the Catholic Church back to the essence of  its faith, wanting the Church to reflect the merciful face of God, something not always associated with the Church, especially in these days of films such as Philomena and Spotlight. For Francis the core of the gospel and the core of christianity is to be seen in three parables, the stories of the lost sheep, the lost coin and the Prodigal Son. The parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin have a similar theme. They're not so much about what's been lost as the shepherd and the woman who do not rest until they've found what they've lost.  And for the Pope they reflect the mercy of God and the message of Jesus who talked again and again of God's care for everyone - because they were God's children and not because of religion, race, sexual orientation or any of the myriad ways we like to categorise people.  For the Pope there are no outsiders and like Jesus he wants to challenge us to look at those we might consider to be outsiders in a new way, even recognising that these so called outsiders can reflect the mercy and compassion of God more clearly than the so called insiders. Perhaps the most best known parable of Jesus is the story of the Good Samaritan. What's significant here is that the establishment and professional religious people pass by - maybe they were even returning from religious services in the Temple in Jerusalem, maybe they were concerned about ritual impurity, maybe they were suspicious that this was a trap and feared for their safety. Whatever it was they passed by and it was the Samaritan, considered a heretic and even an enemy, who stopped and cared for the wounded man who probably was a Jew. 

It doesn't take much of a leap of imagination to know where institutional religion usually stands.  For most religions those who do not conform either in practice or belief have been excluded. All religions have their heretics. Those who do not belong have been thought of as outsiders. We've lived in  a world of them and us. But now the world of interfaith relations is helping us relate in new ways. We're recognising that we've much in common with people of different faiths, that we can learn from them and together we have a concern for peace and justice in our world which is after all our common home.  Love, justice, mercy, compassion are at the heart of all our faiths but these have more often than not become obscured by institutional concerns and a desire for orthodoxy and orthopraxy as well as a truth that they think is their sole possession. Pope Francis, however, has  a gift for simply paying attention to different things.  He is for sure, othodox in his belief and practice but the focus of his attention is on people with whom he has a natural rapport. Because of this he is showing forth the human face of the Church.  This is also the case in his relationship with other faiths.

In section 23 of the letter which instituted the Year of Mercy he recognises that mercy goes beyond  the confines of the Church. He acknowledges that mercy "
relates us to Judaism and Islam, both of which consider mercy to be one of God’s most important attributes.  ..........the Old Testament are steeped in mercy, because they narrate the works that the Lord performed in favour of his people at the most trying moments of their history. Among the privileged names that Islam attributes to the Creator are “Merciful and Kind”. This invocation is often on the lips of faithful Muslims who feel themselves accompanied and sustained by mercy in their daily weakness. They too believe that no one can place a limit on divine mercy because its doors are always open". The Pope then goes on to say "I trust that this Jubilee year celebrating the mercy of God will foster an encounter with these religions and with other noble religious traditions; may it open us to even more fervent dialogue so that we might know and understand one another better; may it eliminate every form of closed-mindedness and disrespect, and drive out every form of violence and discrimination."

There can be no better vision for those of us involved in interfaith relations. Hopefully this year of mercy might take us forward in our journey to realising it.

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Prayer Intentions

7/2/2016

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It's been the tradition in the Catholic Church for the Pope to have a prayer intention for each month. It's organised and publicised by an organisation called the Apostleship of Prayer which was set up in 1844 by a group of Jesuit seminarians in France.  I was brought up on it in that part of their practice is a morning offering which offers the day to God for the intentions of the Sacred Heart (a Catholic devotion to the love of Jesus), the intentions of family and friends and particularly for the intentions of the Pope. The idea of offering the day to God is common in religions. Jews, Hindus, Bahai's have similar prayers and even Buddhists who don't offer the day to God, offer it for the good of all sentient beings. It's a good practice and one I continue though I don't express it in the way I was taught. I now wonder a bit as to the intentions of the Sacred Heart though I suppose I could say with some confidence that it would be for reconcilation and peace, the health and well-being of all people and the world in which we live. It's  a good way to start the day and a focus during the day. it's also good to remember how each day many people of faith are directing their energies to the health and well-being of humanity and I do believe that that good energy has an effect on our world even if it's not always obvious. 

 I haven't given much thought to the Pope's intention but this year Pope Francis has started presenting his intention for the month by video - the 'Pope Video' it's called. A friend sent me the one for January as if focussed on interreligious dialogue. It's rather wonderful and shows representatives of the Buddhist, Jewish, Muslim and Christian faiths expressing their belief  in God or confidence in the Buddha as in the case of the Buddhist nun but they all express their faith in love. 
And the Pope himself announces his prayer intention: that sincere dialogue among men and women of different faiths may produce the fruits of peace and justice. He tells us that “The world expects those who claim to adore God to be men and women of peace who are capable of living as brothers and sisters, regardless of ethnic, religious, cultural or ideological differences.” It's very obvious from the media and even our own experience that people of faith, never mind humanity, is nowhere near this ideal. But it's an ideal within our grasp if we change our way of thinking and relating to one another. For the Pope and for those of us engaged in interfaith relations the way forward is dialogue. It's in dialogue that those who might at first sight appear to be strangers are recognised as our brothers and sisters. At the moment it  is a minority sport with many good people giving notional assent to it but little energy or time commitment. Of course people  have to prioritise where to direct  their energies and there's much good work being done in many many areas. But dialogue as a way of life, not just between faiths, but between nations and all those who seem to be on opposing sides of a divide, is essential for the future of our race. As Pope John Paul said at the first Assisi meeting when he called the religious leaders of the world together to pray for peace, we either live and work together or we die together. I'm hoping that the publicity surrounding this video initiative and the topic of the prayer intention will awaken within many Catholics, and perhaps others, the desire to engage in interreligious dialogue. There are forty million subscribers to the Apostleship of Prayer and that's a lot of good people who may put their prayer into action and get engaged in some way in finding out more about their neighbours and getting to know them as brothers and sisters. 

This week begins the season of lent. It starts with a call to repentance. Traditionally the focus has been on prayer, fasting and almsgiving but the word repent means change - a change of direction, a change of mind and heart. It's a call to move beyond what often characterises relationships -  competition, superiority, suspicion, fear, insecurity to a recognition that we are all members of the one community, that we share a common home and are dependent on one another. Focusing on our individualities can lead us to compare ourselves with one another, to judge ourselves and what we hold dear with others, to see others as a threat, hindrance or help. To focus on community is to see ourselves as interdependent and to recognise the importance of cooperation, inclusion and friendship. It's to realise that underneath our individual differences there is  a basic unity. Pope Francis is a wonderful example of this. He shows us what to pay attention to and how to ignore the kind of differences that academics and theologians can argue over. One example of this is that  in his encyclical Laudato Si he includes a Christian prayer but also one for people of all faiths - at least those faiths who address Ultimate Reality as God. This breaks through the debates about the legitmacy of faiths praying together and shows us in a simple and straightforward way that it's possible. So too in his video for January he tells us that all men and women are children of God which is a reality beyond the divisions of religion and belief. To see others in this light would, I think, be a good lenten practice.


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    I am  a Catholic nun, involved in interfaith relations for many decades.  For me this has been an exciting and sacred journey which I would like to share with others.

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