Faith and Interfaith: Examining religion’s role in protecting human rights

“The reason why we have this conference is the fundamental concepts are very common. Of course the differences are there because of historic backgrounds and the societies where the faiths originally started, but we find that even if there are differences others can learn from that and still work together towards a common goal.”

Ahmadiyya Times | News Watch | US Desk
Source/Credit: Cochrane Times
By Daniel Austin | March 30, 2011
Post-event - edited for timing references and relevance by Ahmadiyya Times for our visitors.

More often than not discussions about the major world religions tend to focus on the differences. But for the past six years a conference in Cochrane has sought to bring religious leaders together from many different faiths in an effort to discuss the values they all share.

This year, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama’at of Calgary hosted  a conference on religion’s role in protecting human rights. The conference brought together scholars of native spirituality, Christianity, Judaism and Islam to examine what their religions teach about human rights and how they can better work together in their pursuit of the same goal.

“The idea is basically that we are bringing people together from all religions to discuss, in a harmonious way and in a way where they can discuss the commonalities between the religions, the ways we can all pursue the same cause of bringing humanity and moral values,” said Mansoor Anjum, one of the conference’s organizers.

Anjum said the conference gives people the opportunity to hear more about each religion and can function as a way to dispel many of the myths many people believe about each of the faiths. And he said that when people from different religious denominations come together they tend to learn more about what makes their faiths similar than what makes them different.

“The reason why we have this conference is the fundamental concepts are very common,” Anjum said. “Of course the differences are there because of historic backgrounds and the societies where the faiths originally started, but we find that even if there are differences others can learn from that and still work together towards a common goal.”

Anjum said every year organizers seek out scholars who have a deep understanding of the chosen topic from both a religious point of view and a more worldly point of view. This keeps the discussion focused on the issue at hand, and he said the conference tends to feature a “very scholarly discussion” and an opportunity to delve deeper into political issues.

Ctimes.editor@sunmedia.ca


Update:
The 6th Annual World Religions Conference organized by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama’at Calgary was held  on March 28 at the Cochrane RancheHouse. The admission was free.


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