Interreligious dialogue is as imperative today as it ever has been

In October we celebrated the month of mission throughout the world and were reminded of the call each baptised person, and indeed every human being, has been given – to be an instrument of love, peace and justice in our contemporary world. This call is one to which many Irish missionaries have responded with love and generosity.

There are countless ways in which missionaries do this, abroad and in their own country, reaching out especially to those on the margins of society, proclaiming and witnessing to the gospel through pastoral ministry, social ministry, healthcare, education and through interreligious dialogue.

Mission in and through interreligious dialogue is today an imperative as never before, not only because of the more pluralistic world we live in, or because of the growing importance of religious identity in violent international, national and ethnic conflicts, but also so as to better understand our own Christian faith and mission today.

As a human family, we are invited to work together to advance a culture of mutual respect in the awareness of our being brothers and sisters

Pope Francis continuously emphasises the themes of fraternity, social friendship and unity, for which dialogue in all its forms among believers of various faiths and cultures is necessary.

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In his message for World Mission Day 2021, he reminds us: “The history of evangelisation began with the Lord’s own passionate desire to call and enter into friendly dialogue with everyone, just as they are.”

Last month, at a media launch in the Veritas bookshop in Dublin, World Mission Ireland was rebranded as Missio Ireland. Missio is a global organisation which has its international headquarters in Rome and a national office in more than 120 countries.

It is responsible for the Mission Sunday collection, which is sent to the Pope’s universal solidarity fund. These funds are then distributed to specific missionary projects throughout the world and Missio Ireland ensures that all contributions and donations received here are distributed justly and transparently.

Among the diverse projects and needs that are supported are interreligious dialogue and peacebuilding.

Interfaith forum

My own story can attest to that. I was a missionary in Kaduna in northern Nigeria. Nigeria is a great country with a booming population, now nearly 200 million, about half Christian and half Muslim; the north, where I was based, is majority Muslim.

Conflict too often erupts, primarily due to poverty, insecurity and bad governance, and issues are framed along the lines of religious identity. Today kidnapping is common as is extremist violence such as from Boko Haram as well as from so-called 'Fulani herdsmen' causing clashes and rampages on villages.

This violence is extremely destructive, with many lives lost and properties and livelihoods destroyed. As in most cases throughout the world, women suffer the brunt of poverty and are too often voiceless.

There are very strong women’s faith organisations, whether as women’s wings in the Christian denominations or as national or denomination-based Muslim women’s groups.

These organisations are very important to the women, and they give them a voice within their faith communities. Hence, in 2010, I invited the women leaders of these faith organisations to come together to confront their concerns as women and to work in dialogue to help bring peace, justice, and security for all.

Thus, we established the Interfaith Forum of Muslim and Christian Women’s Association which is commonly known as the Women’s Interfaith Council (WIC). This organisation has grown and developed primarily due to the work of committed and convinced Muslim and Christian women of faith.

Recently the WIC was awarded the Aachen Peace Prize 2021.

WIC is funded by many people, including by Missio. Without these funds the organisation could not continue and certainly could not carry out its objectives.

This kind of work is urgent today, not only in Nigeria but throughout the world, including here in Ireland where Islamophobia, racism and hate speech are experienced too often.

It is through meeting each other as human beings, and not as ‘Muslims’ and ‘Christians’, that we can begin to overcome our prejudices about each other, learn to appreciate each other in our needs and beliefs, and learn to coexist and build a peaceful and just world.

During these past months of the global Covid-19 pandemic, we have all become very aware that the actions of one of us affect the lives of all of us and indeed of all creation.

We have witnessed the selfless sacrifice of people who have been there for us, frontline workers and so many others, people of all faiths and of none, who have found ways to reach out in a spirit of community and solidarity.

As a human family, we are invited to work together to advance a culture of mutual respect in the awareness of our being brothers and sisters, all responsible for each other and for our common home.

Sr Kathleen McGarvey, OLA, is the provincial leader in Ireland of the Missionary Sisters of Our Lady of Apostles