Cohesive
Communities
Diversity
and Commonality
Presented by Nor’dzin
Pamo – Chair
of the Buddhist Council of Wales at the Interfaith Network UK National Meeting on the 19th October 2016, in Peterborough.
I have been Chair of the Buddhist Council of Wales since 2011, and as such am invited to attend a variety of interfaith events.
As
a religion, Buddhism is both a little awkward
to
accommodate in interfaith interaction, and also offers an unusual
opportunity to encourage the spirit of interfaith openness and
tolerance. In Buddhism there is no holy
book to
which all Buddhists will refer;
there
are no
teachings
that refer to a creator
god, or
an all-powerful, beneficent god; and even the word ‘faith’—which
seems to
be commonly
preferred to the word ‘religion’
—is
slightly problematic in Buddhism because faith is not demanded. The
emphasis is on practice. Shakyamuni—the historic Buddha—asked his
followers to practice and find out for themselves, rather than simply
because of their devotion to him.
So
. . . no book, no god, and no faith – and yet Buddhism is most
certainly a religion. I have to regard ‘faith’ and ‘religion’
as synonyms, else it make no sense for me to be present at interfaith
events.
There can be a tendency at Interfaith events to wish to find commonalities as a reason for different faiths coming together. I regular attend events where someone—of any faith—will say; ‘Well, we all believe in the same god, don’t we’. This is meant as a friendly, open and inclusive assertion, but it is actually rather disrespectful – and indicates a lack of knowledge of at least one of the religions represented in their audience. I usually keep my head down. It would be rude to challenge them. It would be appreciated if presenters would avoid generalisations, or claims of knowing anything about the beliefs of the people they are addressing. No person of religion can ever fully know or understand the faith and practice of another religion.
There can be a tendency at Interfaith events to wish to find commonalities as a reason for different faiths coming together. I regular attend events where someone—of any faith—will say; ‘Well, we all believe in the same god, don’t we’. This is meant as a friendly, open and inclusive assertion, but it is actually rather disrespectful – and indicates a lack of knowledge of at least one of the religions represented in their audience. I usually keep my head down. It would be rude to challenge them. It would be appreciated if presenters would avoid generalisations, or claims of knowing anything about the beliefs of the people they are addressing. No person of religion can ever fully know or understand the faith and practice of another religion.
Another time I was told that ‘We are all sinners.’ When I replied, ‘I'm not!’, the gentleman repeated his statement with more emphasis. I again replied, ‘I’m not!’ He looked rather exasperated at this point, and I was finding myself rather too strongly reminded of a Monty Python sketch—which seemed potentially disrespectful—so I explained: Buddhism states that we are all beginninlessly enlightened. It does not include any teaching that correlates with the concept of ‘original sin’.
There are commonalities that can be found, but these are not generally in the religion itself – they are more about the limitations and expectations a person of religion places upon themselves, such as:
-
living within parameters of your faith
-
being willing to allow something to be bigger than you are; to allow the needs or precepts of your religion to take precedence in your life
-
the wish to change, to be greater than you are, and/or to achieve a state of grace, enlightenment, or whatever is the aspiration of that religion
-
believing in the potential of your religion to bring out the best in human beings
-
to care about others; to regard compassion and kindness as an important aspect of being a human being
Involvement
in Interfaith should not demand compromise of the
representatives of
religion or faith. Friendly Interfaith interaction should not require
such a
compromise, or any sense
of a dilution
of the tenets of the
religions
represented. Interfaith
must applaud and support each religion’s
right to be different – to be
practised
in different ways, and to
hold widely different
beliefs
and views.
Yet seeking commonality seems to be pervasive. Seeking and finding what is the same in the world religions, however, is not a guaranteed road to harmony – there is a danger that choosing this route will lead to too much that cannot be said for fear of upsetting the balance. There is the danger of feeling the need to carefully steer a rather narrow path. I feel that the broader path of openness, respect, and appreciation of difference is preferable, though not always easy. I recognise that I do sometimes avoid being clear that Buddhism is an atheistic, or non-theistic religion, because I know that for people I care about, who believe in a creator god, this is not easy to hear or understand.
Knowing
that our faiths or religions are different—possibly radically
different—yet finding that we are people of kind heart; discovering
that interfaith colleagues also
cultivate patience and openness; recognising
interfaith friends can
like one another and enjoy each other’s
company – this is the opportunity offered by Interfaith
interaction.
Friendly
and respectful interaction, and
intermixing
of people of different religions—or of
no
religion—can
ripple
out into the community. When
there is
no fear of difference, then there is nothing
to
hate. Interfaith
harmony and respect can
help to
create
a society that is tolerant. Respect for difference, appreciation of
difference, the
enjoyment
of
difference – this
is the value of interfaith interaction. Let us
celebrate
that
our
freedom to be
different
is the key to a healthy society.
