21 Nov : “International interfaith initiatives are growing in many parts of the world”, according to United States Department of State issued “International Religious Freedom Report 2010”, which came out on November 17.
It further says: “We are encouraged by this growing recognition by governments and religious leaders that freedom and respectful religious coexistence are critical to our shared future.”
“Middle East region in particular has seen a growing interest in intrafaith and interfaith dialogue. There have been repeated calls for the promotion of tolerance, dialogue, and coexistence, resulting in joint efforts both within and beyond the region”, it points out.
Welcoming growth in the efforts at interfaith dialogue, Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, argued that serious and honest interfaith dialogue was the need of the hour. Religion was the most powerful, complex and far-reaching force in our society, so we must take it seriously. And we all knew that religion comprised much more than our own particular tradition/experience, Zed added.
Rajan Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, stresses: In our shared pursuit for the truth, we can learn from one another and thus can arrive nearer to the truth. This dialogue may help us vanquish the stereotypes, prejudices, caricatures, etc., passed on to us from previous generations. As dialogue brings us reciprocal enrichment, we shall be spiritually richer than before the contact.
