Mozaik 34/2014 Bridging our Differences: Learning Skills of Intercultural Dialogue Together PART 2

World Student Christian Federation Europe Region

Ecumenical Journal, 2014/Culture and Higher Education

Bridging our Differences: Learning Skills of Intercultural Dialogue

Together

Mozaik (established in 1992) is the ecumenical journal of the World Student Christian Federation (WSCF, 1895) Europe Region, published two to three times a year. It aims to reflect the wide variety of opinions and viewpoints present among the different Student Christian Movements (SCMs) in ecumenical dialogue. You can find us Online at wscf-europe.org.

This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.

Editor-in-Chief:

James Jackson (United Kingdom)

Art Editor:

Mária Bradovková (Slovakia)

Address:

WSCF Europe

Storkower Straße 158 #710 D-10407

Berlin, Germany

ISSN 1019–7389

Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I [am] the LORD.

― Leviticus 19:18

We have a stake in one another ... what binds us together is greater than what drives us apart, and ... if enough people believe in the truth of that proposition and act on it, then we might not solve every problem, but we can get something meaningful done for the people with whom we share this Earth.

The Holy Prophet Mohammed came into this world and taught us: 'That man is a Muslim who never hurts anyone by word or deed, but who works for the benefit and happiness of God's creatures. Belief in God is to love one's fellow men.'

― Barack Obama

― Abdul Ghaffar Khan

EDITORIAL Building our Bridges

Welcome to a very special edition of Mozaik. I’m sure it’s obvious to everyone that this year has been an eventful one globally. From the Ukrainian revolution and conflict with Russian backed separatists, analysed in these pages by Ukrainian journalist Natalia Rudnichenko, to the fighting in Gaza and the rise of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. Within this context of global strife, the work of the ecumenical movement (including WSCF Europe) and all progressively minded Europeans is more vital than ever. Rather than staying within our metaphorical fortress, we have to reach out and engage with other cultures, whether this is through tackling xenophobia at home, peace-building between religions or simply loving a neighbour from a different country. We include in this magazine various visions of how to engage with this multifaith modern world, which paradoxically seems closer and yet more divided than ever.

The title of this edition, Bridging Our Differences, is taken from a conference that took place in Wroclaw, Poland in March-April, organized with the cooperation of Religions for Peace and European Interfaith Youth Network, both interfaith NGOs. For this conference, young people from SCMs across Europe gathered together to learn about interacting with different faiths and cultures, including from Bosnian students, local faith leaders, and intercultural communications experts.

In this edition will be a mosaic of introductions, articles, resources and prayer. This is my first edition as editor-in-chief, and was assisted by our (relatively) new permanent staff member based in Berlin Kathryn Cammish, and also of course by our new Regional

Secretary Natia Tsinstadze, who has written a letter introducing herself and lays out some of her plans for WSCF Europe over the next few years. We have also chosen to republish a prayer issued by WSCF Global to focus our prayers on the Middle East.

We have an article by Rachel Power investigating the role of religion in peacebuilding rather than simply causing war; after this we have the history of the Interreligious Council of Bosnia and Herzegovina, written by one of its founders Vjekoslav Saje. We have an analysis of Catholic Doctrines of Intercultural dialogue and its failings, written by Rui Coehlo, a member of International Catholic Youth Students.

In addition we have Peter Haresnape writing on his experience working as a member of a Christian Peacemaker Team fighting in Canada to protect indigenous rights, and a conversation about God and Faith with Thomas Gilet, who was born to French converts to Sufi Islam and is now an interfaith activist. What’s more, we feature WSCF-E participant Yulia Bajelidze who tells us what WSCF-E means to her since she first attended a WSCF event in 2010. Finally we present a passionate poem by Pip Sides drawing on spiritual themes across different religions and ideas from varied European cultures.

And, as a final piece of news, this may be the final issue of Mozaik in this format as we are looking at embracing new technologies. I hope you enjoy reading it.

James Jackson Editor-in-Chief

Interreligious Dialogue as a Means to Peacebuilding

– Rachel Power

Bad Faith: The Shortcomings of Catholic Doctrine on Interreligious Dialogue

– Rui Coelho

Interfaith Sufi Spirituality

– Interview with Thomas Gilet

A Spirituality of Decolonization

– Peter Haresnape

History of the Interreligious Council of Bosnia and Herzegovina

– Vjekoslav Saje

The World and Ukraine

– Natalia Rudnichenko

3 Foundation

Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you.

― Matthew 2:1-2

Cultural differences should not separate us from each other, but rather cultural diversity brings a collective strength that can benefit all of humanity.

― Robert Alan Silverstein

Letter from new Regional Secretary Natia Tsintsadze

Dear friends,

I am honoured and privileged to address you for the first time in my new role as Regional Secretary of WSCF Europe. It gives me great pleasure and enormous responsibility to be with you in the WSCF and work alongside you to achieve our common objectives during these challenging times. I believe that my extensive experience in management and development areas in executive positions over the last ten years will help me to successfully carry out my responsibilities as Regional Secretary. I strongly believe in living by and applying Christian values and principles to our daily lives. Through my human rights and interfaith work I have been able to combine my professional and personal interests. Working for and with the WSCF-E family will make these informal links even stronger and will allow me to work in the areas I feel so passionate about: building a just and peaceful world for all through our faith and passion.

During the next two years I will be committed to strengthening the WSCF presence at all levels, with a special focus on achieving more synergy between local movements and regional and global structures. This synergy is particularly important through the current turbulent period of crisis and social changes. We need to share, reconcile and unite to grow and succeed in our vision.

I believe the WSCF-E events and initiatives will bring together more national and local movements and will become a platform to exchange and develop our common and individual strategies. These regular meetings and cooperation should be the guarantee and dynamo of moving forward nationally and locally.

I am keen to learn lessons from our past and look forward to applying some new approaches and perspectives to future development. I count on the support and enthusiasm of our volunteers in the European Executive Committee and many others across the world and I hope our joint venture will get us closer to achieving our vision.

I am excited for the forthcoming opportunities in 2015 to meet many of you personally at our Staff & Officers Meeting in Madrid and the General Assembly in Colombia. On my journey with the WSCF I am open for and welcome your ideas, suggestions and criticism: “Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much”, as Helen Keller said.

I am grateful to share the blessings of Christmas this year together and may I also take this opportunity and joy to wish you all the best in this celebration of faith and love.

Have a blessed Christmas and a glorious New Year! With love from,

Natia Tsintsadze

Natia Tsintsadze has an MA in Diplomacy and International Relations and an International Masters in Comparative Local Development. She has worked for human rights and civil society organizations where she has developed expertise in advocacy work and promoting active citizenship and social inclusion.

Thomas Gilet & Daniela Korin Malec and Daniel Eror of the European Interfaith Youth Network.

My Word on WSCF Events

Yulia Bajelidze

It took quite a long while to put my thoughts onto paper and answer the question of why I continued to attend WSCF events over and over. This happened not because of lack of ideas I had in my mind but on the contrary, there were too many positive emotions, faces, thoughts and feelings whenever I thought about the Federation. My first experience with WSCF-E was in Berlin, 2010. That was the point when my journey with WSCF made a start. As I represented Young Christians for Peace and Democracy and as I served as an international contact person at the same organization, first of all I started to work hard on ensuring the idea of making our relations with WSCF-E more solid. After negotiations, many formal and informal talks, we finally organized with YCDP to become an associated member of WSCF-E, in 2011 at the European Regional Assembly in Logumkloster, Denmark.

Since then, I have been lucky to attend a number of WSCF-E events and even serve as a member of the Preparatory Committee of a WSCF-E conference on the topic of Xe-

nophobia and Migration in Europe held in Velletri, Italy in 2012. Here I could write more and more about my amazing personal experiences with the federation, including my engagement at WSCF global level and my standing as a proxy for a member of the WSCF Global Advocacy and Solidarity Committee, but now I would like to focus on the aspect that makes me keep attending the events and becoming a WSCF-er as such. I am always inspired to be a part of such activities and use each opportunity, to spend time with the WSCF community. Why?

I will try to share the several reasons why WSCF is so precious for me. Firstly, it provides a unique chance to meet with young people from Orthodox, Protestant and Catholic backgrounds (and not only) and to share our faith and work towards social justice and peace in our communities. Throughout these years, I have met people from various cultural, national, religious, political and personal backgrounds and I really learned a lot from them. For me it is a great magic when people with all their differences meet at WSCF events and in a second

Group Photo of Conference Participants.

become so open to each other, even putting themselves at risk to be defenseless. This community always teaches how to trust one another; how to trust strangers and people regardless of our religious differences. During such meetings, we have to discuss sensitive and difficult topics, but we always find a way to be open-minded, tolerant and respectful to others. I always like to challenge my visions and in this way the WSCF gatherings have enriched my life so much.

What I really admire about WSCF work is that it desires to empower and educate young progressive Christians with the skills to become ecumenical leaders of their communities and to fight for justice and peace. And, I find it very wise because young students who are engaged inthe WSCF activities are future politicians, religious leaders, public figures, diplomats, teachers, stakeholders of the world.

Besides all mentioned above and besides travelling, exploring different cities, tasting and enjoying local cuisines, getting know a bit of history and culture and expanding one's worldview, the best thing I love about WSCF, is the PEOPLE! Yes, the WSCF Community consists of some of the most amazing people I have met in my life. Even though I have met some people just once we keep in touch and feel very close to each other. I always wonder, feel excited and happy about how many young people the federation can gather that are so committed to the WSCF’s work. It’s a pure commitment to what you really believe in without expecting anything. When I am recalling now people I have met through the years, I remember many happy and sad, joyful and melancholic faces with their successful or heartbreaking stories, but behind all of them I see a great power and ability to bring a positive change in this world. The faces of WSCF people are stucked in my mind and I am sure it will never disappear from there.

Through WSCF I made friends not just in the European region, but now I have friends in Jordan, Mexico, Malaysia, Zimbabwe, Philippines, Lebanon, Columbia, Syria, and Uruguay i.e. in all continents. WSCF is a big family with members spread all over the world with such a strong connection. I always feel myself as a part of one great community. I feel that “We are many; we are one”.

As I said in the beginning, there are too many things in my head I would like to say about the World Student Christian Federation’s work and events. Even if I were asked to describe it in two sentences, I would never end my words without emphasizing one totally incredible thing that happens at WSCF meetings. Yes! Magic happens for me when we pray together. In everyday life I do not regularly attend church services as often as I wish, but ecumenical prayer is so much more powerful and magical for me. During such prayers and worship, I feel God with us and in us more than ever, when we sing Taize songs toget-her we leave all our differences behind and unite in Christ. Very often in such moments tears come down from my eyes. And, these are the tears of happiness, happiness of unity!�

Since 2009 Yulia Bajelidze has served as international programs coordinator at Young Christians for Peace and Democracy, WSCF-E SCM Georgia. She has an academic background in international relations BA and political science MA from Stockholm University and University of Warsaw. Yulia loves reading books, watching and discussing movies, discovering new possibilities andways of life, traveling and being happy with small things.

My word on WSCF Events I Yulia Bajelidze

WSCF Global Prayer for The Middle East

To you Almighty God we pray

For you have suffered on the cross and knew what it’s like to suffer

Comfort the mothers of the martyrs in our countries and especially Syria, Iraq and Palestine Comfort those who are enduring injustice upon claiming their rights in having a decent life

To you Almighty God we pray

To soothe the pain of our brothers and sisters, men and women, elders and kids who suffer on a daily basis

To give strength to the kidnapped ones, those who will no longer feel the warmth of their homes

To help those who bear the scars of painful memories in both their souls and bodies

Almighty God

Come rest among us and between us, in the hope that the homeless will find their way back

Guide us and lead us on this rough road, for we willingly had left everything behind to face our tomorrow We pray for you with all the faith we’ve got, hoping that you build in each heart an immortal altar instead of all the destroyed churches

King of peace

Let your peace reign on our region so we live as one in harmony, peace and love, as you are one with your Father and Holy Spirit

Amen

Statement of Faith

by Pip Sides

I try to live a faith that is Christian in love, Buddhist in compassion, Muslim in Prayer, Jewish in mysticism

Sikh in Service

Marxist in Equality

Hindu in Inclusivisity

Ba'Hai in Nationalism

Pagan in Nature

Dionysian in worship

Zoroastrian in Fire

Our Prophets spoke of Love, with the wisdom from above, The Earth is bleeding, its time for healing, we are one human race, so look beyond my face, Separation is just an illusion Now its time for fusion.

France the Land of Liberty, needs to respect her minority

Sarkozy thinks its OK to send the Roma away;

But that is not the way, we want to behave; Belgium Brussels your the HQ. Romanian People we love you; If you crave a gloomy hour, Read a little Schopenhauer, Germany's got Marx and Nietzsche

An explosion in my head something to free me, Czech's got Prague and Kafka

Slovakia's got the Tatras; Macedonia has poetry I want to know more; Thank you to the Latvian who opened our door, Britain's got royalty and afternoon tea, Italy Berlusconi, will they ever be free?

Iceland has beauty but she ran out of Cash Banks asked for it back and she sent them ASH Bosnia gave us such hospitality; Thank you all for listening to me'.

Composed with inspiration of Grégoire Vuilleumier at the [EYCE/FEMYSO] Fundamentalism or Responsible Citizenship conference, Sarajevo 2010.

Philip Sheridan Sides (Pip). Pip is an Irish artist, exhibiting professionally since 1997. Pip is currently a student in the Drumshambo School of Traditional Irish Music . Pip loves the bodhran, tin whistle, sea kayaking, and poetry. Pip runs photography workshops and exhibits internationally. Pip is proprietor of his start up; Wild Atlantic Way Photo Tours- Adventures with Diego Trotsky on the longest charted coastal drive in THE WORLD!

Dan Bassett (England)

I look to create an unnatural juxtaposition between the images used in this work to create something that is fantastical. Collage is a technique used by many artists to reappropriate images to give them newly defined meaning. This is a process that I believe has many parallels between the content of the magazine and my style of illustrating it. The images created through this process are further manipulated and broken - through changing the computer language that the image is made up of. The finalised images contain the original juxtapositions in combination with the computer ‘reading’ the new language and as such, I hope represents the difficulty within understanding new and foreign ideas. Conflict, accident and beautiful chance make up these images much like the defining forces that influence our lives.

Dan Bassett is a 90's kid and creative from the South West of England, currently operating out of Brighton. Dan tries to explore processes in order to create artwork. IG _dan_bas

Our illustrator