On September 18, 2009, DLSU hosted an IFTAR Dinner as part of its participation in observance of the month-long celebration of Ramadan.  Muslim students of the university as well as muslim brothers and sister in the nearby communities were invited to this event. Br. Armin, President and Chancellor, stressed that the celebration is part of the continuing efforts of the university to foster deeper and broader interfaith dialogue in the country.

These are original artworks done by TREDONE A52 class under Dr. Jeane Peracullo AY 2009-2010 1st term.

The 3rd Plenary Speaker in the Conference will be Ms. Jana Jean Dacobor, Youth Desk Coordinator of the Bishop-Ulama Conference.

We are honored to announce that the 2nd Plenary Speaker for the 2009 Interfaith Conference is  Ms. Maritess Guingona-Africa of Peacemakers’ Circle. 

The Peacemakers’ Circle logo consists of the globe around which a pair of golden wings seemingly holds it in its care and protection. The wings represent faith and its gold-yellow color represents the highest ideals and aspirations of all faiths.  Visit their website at http://peacemakerscircle.blogspot.com/

Fr. Sebastiano D’ Ambra is one of the Plenary Speakers in the forthcoming 2009 National Conference on Interfaith Dialogue in the Philippines with a theme: New Thinking, New Concepts of Interfaith Dialgue in the Philippines: Spotlight on the Youth, which will be held in November 26-28, 2009 at De La Salle University-Manila.

Fr Sebastiano D’Ambra of the Pontifical Institute for foreign Missions (PIME), is the founder of SilSilah Dialogue Movement in the Philippines. Silsilah is an Arabic word which literally means chain or link. As used by the Sufis (Muslim Mystics), it describes a process in attaining an experience of the Divine. The same root word is used as “geneological tree” which helps to think about a spiritual chain of humanity as created by the same God. Thus, “Silsilah” in the Movement is taken as an inspiring and key word to describe Muslims, Christians and other people of living faiths who are moving together as one universal family towards a common vision and mission of dialogue and peace.
(http://www.silsilahforum.org/index.php?l=en). The organization is involved actively and dynamically in fostering interfaith dialogue, peace and social transformation  in the country for 25 years.

NEW THINKING, NEW CONCEPTS OF INTERFAITH DIALOGUE IN THE PHILIPPINES: SPOTLIGHT ON THE YOUTH

November 26-28, 2009

De La Salle University

CALL FOR PAPERS

This Conference aspires to bring together scholars, teachers, practitioners, and youth interested in religion and youth from a wide range of disciplines and religious traditions in the Philippines.  Presentations may either be in the form of research papers and scholarly work, or artworks, or both.

1)                   To identify, analyze, and indicate possible ways to present new ways and new concepts of interfaith dialogue. 

2)                   To identify and reflect on transformative practices of spiritual/religious communities that  engage young people.

3)                   To weave connections through sharing of indigenous as well as emergent worldviewS

 4)                   To identify initiatives on peace-building through IFD:  sharing on efforts at dialogues

The papers and/or artworks may address any of the following general topics:

1)       The Changing Patterns of Beliefs, Rituals, Struggles, and Practices of Young People, including Kids and Adolescents.

2)       Multidisciplinary Discussions on the meaning/s of “religion,” “spirituality,” “popular,” “culture,” and “interfaith dialogue.”

3)       Explorations, Analyses, Discussions on the Intersection of Religion and or Spirituality and Popular Culture on

The following shall be considered in the drafting of proposals:

a.       The conference will be an opportunity to learn more about other belief/thought systems; not an opportunity to outdo the others.

b.       The conference shall cultivate correspondences and friendships among people of different religious orientations and/or no religious affiliations whatsoever.

c.        The conference shall encourage healthy dialogue between various belief and faith systems; and, manifest respect and understanding for each other despite differences.

DE LA SALLE UNIVERSITY through the Philosophy Department of the College of Liberal Arts

Contact Person:  Dr. Jeane C. Peracullo, Philosophy Department, De La Salle University 2401 Taft Avenue, Metro Manila 1004 Telephone Number: 524-4611 local 546 Fax Number 524-4611 local 534 (ask for fax tone)

E-mail: peraculloj@dlsu.edu.ph; peracullojeane@yahoo.com

De La Salle University-Manila, through the College of Liberal Arts’

Committee of Emergent Program on Worldviews and Beliefs, held the

National Conference on Theories and Practices of Interfaith Dialogue

in the Philippines last April 24-26 at the Br. Andrew Gonzalez Building.

 For the complete write-up please follow the link:

http://www.dlsu.edu.ph/offices/mco/publications/2401/20080602.pdf

 On this first day of our conference, we heard the lectures of five of our seven plenary speakers. To synthesize them I will first review the highlights of these lectures and then I will identify some insights that they more or less share.

 Our first speaker was Bro. Karl Gaspar whose lecture was entitled “Dayalog Sa Kinabuhi Ug Pagtotoo: Theories and Practices of Interfaith Dialogue in the Mindanao Setting”. Bro. Gaspar shared with us his first-hand experiences of the application of interfaith dialogue in Mindanao as envisioned by Bishop Bienvenido Tudtud, which Bro Gaspar fondly referred to as Tatay Bido. His experiences were a witness to and an affirmation of the workability and importance of interfaith dialogue in the Philippines. Furthermore, Tatay Bido’s “Dialogue of Life and Faith”, which was how Tatay Bido’s interfaith program was called, was given a theoretical grounding by Bro. Karl. He showed that such program is also sound and coherent as a theory. Accordingly, its four aspects, namely the dialogue of life, action, theological exchange and religious experience, could be shown to be consistent with contemporary and influential philosophical, sociological, and anthropological theories. Consequently, Tatay Bido’s “Dialogue of Life and Faith” can be universalized so as to be applicable in other contexts or countries, and can be a subject of academic research. Bro. Karl likewise emphasized that interfaith dialogue need not just be among scholars, religious or academic, in formal conferences; for it could also be done, in fact even more meaningfully, by people in ordinary situations or as they go about their day to day life.  

Our second speaker was Dr. and Dean Guru Hadji Mashur Bin-Ghalib Jundam whose lecture was entitled “I.N.T.E.R.F.A.I.T.H.: The Dialogue of all Dialogues”. Dr. Jundam basically showed how Islam views interfaith dialogue, with special focus on how such dialogue could transpire among Islam, Judaism, and Christianity. He began his lecture with an enlightening idea that it is not really God’s scriptures that are different but the people who received them, implying that God’s decrees to all of mankind are essentially the same and that religious differences are merely the makings of humans. Certain similarities among these three great religions were then identified by Dr. Jundam. Among them are their belief in one God, their belief that man was created in the best stature and from God’s own breath, and their common kinship, being all descendents of Adam and Eve. In addition, Dr. Jundam pointed out that in all these religions the highest kind of love for humans is their love of God, whose highest kind of expression is their love for one another regardless of their differences. In this connection, Dr. Jundam clarified that these religions taboo the so-called “religious wars”. Dr. Jundam concluded his talk by giving every letter of the word “interfaith” a corresponding value or virtue (Integrity, Nobility, Tolerance, Enthusiast, Respect, Frankness, Affability, Intelligent, Trust, and Humility), which constitute the necessary conditions for the success of any interfaith dialogue.

            Ang ating ikatlong tagapagsalita ay si Dr. Susan Reyes. Ang kanyang panayam, na pinamagatang “Kalooban at Dayalogo: Culturally-Rooted Contemplative Education and Dialogue,” ay isang diskurso sa pagkamakahulugan ng isang dayalogo. Pinatunayan sa panayam na ito ang katotohanan ng ideya na ang ating pakikipagdayalogo, maging ito man ay sa ating kapwa o sa Diyos, ay makabuluhan lamang kung tayo ay may malinis na kalooban. At ito ay totoo sa iba’t ibang antas ng pakikipagdayalogo, na ipinakita ni Dr. Reyes sa pamamagitan ng kanyang mga personal na karanasan. Una, bilang isang ordinaryong mamamayan, isinalaysay ni Dr. Reyes ang kanyang pakikisalamuha sa isang “healer” sa isang bus na nasakyan niya.  Ikalawa, bilang isang mag-aaral at mananaliksik, isinalaysay naman niya ang kanyang pakikisalamuha at pakikipamuhay sa mga mistiko sa Banahaw. At ikatlo, bilang isang propesor at administrador, ibinihagi niya ang kanyang kasalukuyang proyekto kasama ang mga Buddhists sa pagtatayo ng isang Interfaith Retreat Center. Sa lahat ng mga ito, lumilitaw ang katotohanan ng nasabing ideya: ang isang healer ay kailangang may malinis na kalooban upang maging isang ganap na daluyan ng kapangyarihang manggamot, ang mga mistiko ay naniniwala na ang kalinisan ng kalooban ang siyang tunay na daan patungo sa ispritwalidad, at ang proyektong magtayo ng isang interfaith retreat center ay maisasakatupuran lamang kung malilinis ang mga kalooban ng mga taong sangkot dito. At para mas maunawaan ang konsepto ng malinis na kalooban, ibinahagi rin ni Dr. Reyes ang kanyang pagbabalangkas sa kalikasan ng kalooban ng tao, na bunga na rin ng kanyang mga pananaliksik at karanasan. 

            Our fourth speaker was Dr. Nagasura Madala. Dr. Madala shared with us his personal views on interfaith dialogue, which were partly influenced by the fact that he comes from a family with mixed religious backgrounds, and his reflections on the situation of Mindanao, where he has spent most of his life. He inquired into the real goal of interfaith dialogue: Is it at bottom a way to convert people of different religions to one’s own religion or is it a way to better understand people whose religious faiths are different from one’s own? While he believes in the ideals of interfaith dialogue, he, however, reminded the participants of such dialogue to be very careful because in entering such dialogue one is also entering, in his own words, a “realm of sensibilities”-implying that this kind of dialogue also concerns sensitive issue or convictions that some people are willing to die for.

            Finally, our fifth speaker was Dr. Leni Garcia whose lecture was entitled “Narrating our Faiths Anew: New Myths for a Pluralistic Attitude toward Religion.” Dr. Leni argued that the best way to make interfaith dialogue a reality is to cultivate a pluralistic attitude toward religion. This could surely be done in a variety of ways but Dr. Leni’s focus was on the three following ones. The first is by means of exposing oneself to the various religious beliefs. In the academe, this can be done through the course Philosophy of Religion, where students get a chance to compare and contrast their own religious beliefs with those different from theirs. The second is through a re-examination of the various stories or “myths” through which the faiths of the different religions have been articulated. The idea is that these myths can be reinvented, not in ways that will eradicate religious differences, but in ways that these differences will no longer be causes of conflict and discrimination. And this in turn could be done by emphasizing common metaphors (for instance, the creation metaphor of cutting-up or opening up of beings in order to allow a creative act) and values (for instance, the universal value of compassion) among different myths. And the third is by studying the lives and thoughts of thinkers, philosophers, poets, and spiritual leaders, such as Marcel, Gandhi, Buber, Krishnamurti, Tagore, and Rumi, who transcended the limitations of their concrete situations in life in order to embrace a holistic attitude towards spirituality and life in general.

            Now, the following are some of the insights that all these lectures more or less share. First, interfaith dialogue is necessary and urgent. Such dialogue is surely a way to resolve present social conflicts, both local and global. Second, interfaith dialogue works. It is not an ideal that one can only hope for. Some local experiences have already proven its workability. And here open-mindedness, purity of heart, and good will proved to be necessary virtues. Third, it is well grounded in theory. Theories in contemporary philosophy, anthropology, and sociology, lend credence to its goals and methods.  Fourth, there are a variety of ways and levels through which it can be practiced. It is definitely not just a dialogue among religious or academic scholars in formal conferences but it is also a dialogue among ordinary people in ordinary situations in life. Fifth, much work still needs to be done. For it to fully realize its goals, further theorizing and field work need to be done. Finally, it has a clear universal message; namely, that we are all brothers and sisters, and our religious differences should not be a reason for discrimination, prejudices, and conflict. Inter-religious conflicts are not really caused by religious differences but rather by the failure to fully understand and practice the teachings of one’s own religious creeds. After all one’s love for his or her neighbor, regardless of one’s differences from him or her, constitutes the noblest expression of one’s love for God or the real path toward authentic religious spirituality.  

DE LA SALLE UNIVERSITY-MANILA

College of Liberal Arts

Emergent Program on Worldviews and Beliefs

“Theories and Practices of Interfaith Dialogue in the Philippines ”

April 24-26, 2008 

The Goals of this Conference:

1. to bring together local/national practitioners and theoreticians dealing with Interfaith Dialogue;

2. to identify, analyze, and indicate possible links/convergences of emerging field practices of and theoretical/academic approaches to Interfaith/Religious Dialogue;

3. to encourage conversational exchanges among practitioners in order to document the diversity of practices both in the field and academic settings;

4. to fortify relations among practitioners across regional, linguistic and religious boundaries.