Parliament of World Religions Stirs Dreams of Religious Concord
Episcopal News Service. September 17, 1993 [93159]
David Skidmore, Communications Officer for the Diocese of Chicago
In a week that marked the anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s 1963 "I have a dream" speech and witnessed the announcement of the historic Israeli-Palestinian accord, predictions of peace and concord sprouting throughout the world's political and spiritual frontiers became a common refrain for speakers at the Parliament of World Religions (PWR) in Chicago, August 28-September 4.
Commemorating the 100th anniversary of the world's first major interfaith gathering in 1893, the parliament drew nearly 8,000 people representing the full spectrum of religious belief, from the mainline monotheistic faiths of Islam, Judaism and Christianity -- to the Eastern religions of Hinduism, Sikhism, Jainism, Buddhism, Shintoism and Taoism as well as more avant-garde expressions like Scientology and the neo-pagan Wicca.
His Holiness the Dalai Lama, in his keynote address at the closing plenary in Grant Park, said that religion has a special role in fostering "mutual respect, mutual understanding" between the world's peoples and cultures. Noting that material success has failed to curtail corruption, injustice, exploitation and violence in the world, it is time that humanity made spiritual development a first priority, said the 58-year-old spiritual leader of the Tibetan people and recipient of the 1989 Nobel Peace Prize.
Aware that religion "sometimes becomes the source of conflict," the Dalai Lama said that nevertheless all religions can work together "in the spirit of pluralism and the spirit of harmony." Through teaching compassion, forgiveness, tolerance and contentment, all the world's major religions have an opportunity to rectify a battery of social ills, including sexual abuse, desecration of the environment, and economic justice.
The Dalai Lama's call for harmony and peace resounded in the remarks of other speakers as well. "The fundamental truth of the manifestations of God is peace. This underlies all religions, all justice," said Dr. Wilma Ellis, administrator general of Ba'hai International Community. "The divine purpose is that we should be in unity, concord and agreement, and should love one another."
On a similar note, Dr. Leon Finney, pastor of Christ Apostolic Church in Chicago, urged the parliament participants to "lay aside all elements that would divide us and pick up those ideas, feelings and beliefs that would unite us." Predicting the parliament would be the catalyst for ending hunger and injustice and for cultivating world peace, Finney said the time has arrived for humanity to unite "without regard for color, creed or gender."
This paean to peace kept the waters fairly calm through most of the parliament's 11 plenary sessions and scores of workshops, seminars, lectures and artistic projects. However, by the parliament's third day it became obvious that the road to Nirvana was lined with potholes. The first to upset the pluralistic applecart was the Greek Orthodox Diocese of Chicago which pulled out of the parliament in protest over the participation of neo-pagan groups. In a communique released that day, the Orthodox Christian host committee was apparently most concerned with the Wiccan religion, an earth religion centered around the practice of witchcraft, and more particularly with the Fellowship of Isis, whose high priestess shared in the opening plenary blessings.
The second break in the karma came the following day when Indian Hindus disrupted a plenary session that showcased the plight of the world's displaced peoples. The program "Voices of the Dispossessed" featured 17 speakers from lands that have become familiar datelines for civil strife and minority repression -- Haiti, Liberia, India, South Africa, Guatemala, Ethiopia and Tibet -- and from one often overlooked: the United States. Objecting to uncomplimentary pictures of Indian government policies being painted by Muslim and Sikh speakers from the states of Kashmir and Punjab, several Hindus attempted to shout down the speakers, even resorting to rushing to the podium to press their points more personally. The disruption resulted in the expulsion of some protesters and forced the cancellation of several of the remaining speakers. Warning "that disruption will not be tolerated," a PWR official told the participants "if you can't listen we will ask you to leave."
One other defection marred the parliament, that of the Jewish AntiDefamation League of B'nai B'rith which dropped out in protest of Nation of Islam's Minister Louis Farrakhan's participation. Farrakhan "continues to espouse and promote anti-Semitic notions of Jewish domination and control" asserted the league in a letter to the PWR council. Farrakhan, who spoke on the challenges facing the African American family, defended his position at a press conference, maintaining that he was open to dialogue, and did in fact communicate with Jewish rabbis, but that "the secular Jewish community has a different view than the rabbis."
Despite their baggage of political and faith-fed rivalry and conflict, representatives of contending faiths proved -- eventually -- they were able to sit down together to share their stories, and reform or retire their misperceptions, preconceptions and prejudices. For 250 religious leaders meeting in a special assembly during the parliament's final three days, this resolve was translated into signatures to a Declaration of a Global Ethic, a nine-page document that promulgates a set of "irrevocable, unconditional ethical norms" for the entire human community." The document, which relies heavily on the insights of Roman Catholic theologian Hans Kiing, asserts four cardinal principles reflected in most of the world's religious codes: a commitment to non-violence and respect for life, solidarity and economic justice, tolerance and a life of truthfulness and equal rights and partnership between men and women.
The document, signed by virtually all of the assembly including its sole Anglican member, the Rev. Marcus Braybrooke, a priest and interfaith representative of the Church of England, was developed from input from over 100 scholars of various faiths over a four-month period. Intended by the trustees to be a definitive, conclusive statement -- open for discussion but not amendment, the declaration sparked considerable debate and skepticism from the assembly members. Only when the trustees agreed to tack on the proviso that it is "an initial declaration toward a global ethic" did the assembly agree to sign.
"It is a first step," said Dr. David Ramage, chair of the PWR board of trustees. "We hope that it will have authority in its own way to make it possible for us to continue our path in ways that will help and serve the world in its purpose and stop the cycle of religion being a factor in so much conflict."
Though among the signatories, Braybrooke said he had reservations about the declaration's dictatorial language and the pessimistic tone of its preamble which began with the statement "The world is in agony." He also felt the declaration's broad condemnation of "sexual immorality" invited fundamentalist interpretations incompatible with Anglican views.
The need for followup efforts was stressed by all the principle speakers, including the Dalai Lama, who observed in his address at the closing plenary that the implementation of ideas is much more challenging than their creation. He urged the parliament members to nurture a sense of responsibility toward putting the ethic into practice. "In spite of obstacles and difficulties," he said "our determination must be very firm."
Parliament Executive Director Daniel Gomez-Ibanez in an interview after the parliament said the council is considering forming a committee to look into the establishment of an ongoing interfaith body to continue the dialogue initiated at the parliament. The biggest hurdle will be funding: the council's $2 million budget will likely be depleted by the parliament expenses, said Gomez-Ibanez, meaning any additional programs will require an extensive fundraising campaign.
Regarding the declaration, Gomez-lbanez said it could prove to have the symbolic strength of the recent Israeli-Palestinian accord, serving as "an icon for collaboration" for the world's political, cultural and spiritual institutions. Like the Dalai Lama, he said, it will require a practical vision for its application "otherwise it will just disappear and gather dust like so many other declarations.
The participation by the Dalai Lama and the preponderance of religious leaders from Eastern traditions underscored the progress and change of fortunes realized over the 100 years of interfaith relations. Unlike the 1893 parliament -- which served to introduce eastern religions to the Western world -- the current parliament was not weighted towards Christianity. While delegates from most mainline denominations attended, including the Roman Catholic, Lutheran, Presbyterian, United Methodist and the United Church of Christ, they were eclipsed in numbers by the representatives of the Eastern religions and Eastern derivative sects and societies. In the hallways and meeting halls, white and saffron robes of Hindus and Buddhists, iridescent colored saris of Hindu women, white turbans of Sikhs, and the muted tones of Islamic women's chadors were more in evidence than the clericals and business suits of Westerners. And of those in Western suit and tie, as many were Muslim as were Christian.
Among the Christian delegations present, the Anglican communion was one of the smallest. While represented among the 25 presidents of the PWR council and 50-member board of trustees, Anglicans had a relatively modest role in the proceedings. Of the nearly 700 addresses, seminars, lectures and panels offered, only three featured an Anglican perspective: Dean James Morton's talk on the interfaith program at New York's Cathedral of St. John the Divine; a workshop on an international interfaith center at Oxford University conducted by the Rev. Marcus Braybrooke, chair of the World Congress of Faiths; and a talk on theosophical contributions to Christian liturgical expression by Geddes MacGregor, an Anglican priest and former dean of the University of Southern California's Graduate School of Religion.
Except for Morton's talk, the Episcopal Church's participation was low-key. Chicago's Bishop Frank Griswold was among the 50 religious leaders sitting on the dais at the opening plenary, but he was not one of the 18 invited to give and invocation or blessing. The Episcopal Church's associate ecumenical officer, the Rev. Dr. Christopher Agnew, attended as an observer but not as a direct participant. To have adopted a higher profile, particularly through signing the Declaration of a Global Ethic, could have compromised the church's position in longstanding interfaith dialogues in which it is currently engaged, said Agnew.
If there was any weakness in the offerings of talks and performances, it was that there was too much. For some experienced interfaith workers, the cultural cornucopia undercut the chief intent of the parliament which was to "promote understanding and cooperation among religious communities and institutions." Describing the gathering as "more like a religious fair than a religious conference," Braybrooke said that he "found the sheer size quite bewildering," and the high profile given neo-pagan groups "somewhat unhelpful."
The one high-profile role for the Episcopal Church actually occurred outside the parliament's main arena at the Palmer House Hilton Hotel when 130 religious leaders from the Chicago metropolitan area gathered at St. James Episcopal Cathedral to discuss the formation of an interreligious organization that would encourage dialogue among the city's various faith traditions, and foster cooperation on addressing community concerns like racism, sexism, poverty and violence. Exhibiting a more optimistic view than that of their international counterparts, the Chicago assembly signed, after a relatively rancor-free discussion, a "Commitment to Interreligious Dialogue and Cooperation" that pledges the signatories to "building toward a more peaceful, interdependent and interactive metropolitan community."
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