Worth Abbey is set in in beautiful Sussex countryside, not far from Crawley. That’s where Mrs Barnabas and I went yesterday for an inter-faith gathering in the Unity Room, which is part of the Abbey Church building.
The gathering was one of the regular Faiths in Sussex events at Worth Abbey.
My faith, our world
I was one of a panel of three – a Jewish rabbi, a Muslim imam, and a Bahá’í – asked to speak on the theme of My Faith and Our World. The imam – a Muslim scholar from Tanzania – described the basic beliefs and practices of Islam. He also described how he had come to be a Muslim scholar and how he had come to be the imam in Hastings; it seems that in studying to become a Muslim scholar (which he did in the UK) he was following in his father’s and grandfather’s footsteps.
The rabbi – a reform rabbi from Brighton – gave an overview of Jewish life, explaining why Jews mark the various days in the Jewish calendar and how the home is as important a locus for Jewish observance as the synagogue.
The Bahá’í (Barnabas) explained how he had become a Bahá’í, told a little of the story of Bahá’u'lláh, the Founder of the Bahá’í Faith, and spoke of some of the central Bahá’í teachings, including the oneness of God and the oneness of humankind.
Youth panel
To be honest, I was more inspired by the panel of youth speakers who addressed us after tea and cakes.
Adib, a young Bahá’í who is studying for his ‘A’ levels, explained why he was a Bahá’í and what inspired him about the Bahá’í Faith.
Two young Catholics spoke about how they are living for a year in a lay Benedictine house in Brighton, following the Rule of St Benedict as best they can under quite challenging circumstances. In Bahá’í terms, this would be considered a year of service – and service to the wider community is the intention of these young people. The house is intended to be a sanctuary, particularly for other young people in the city of Brighton.
And a young Muslim guy spoke very well about the meaning and importance of Islam in shaping his life.
There was something open and honest about all of them that warmed the audience’s hearts and called forth enthusiastic applause.
Breach of the peace
The usual form and spirit in inter-faith meetings such as these is one of irenicism. Speakers attempt reconcile, rather than highlight, their differences.
However. during the question and answer period, the imam created quite a frisson by telling us quite frankly what he understood the Qur’an to say about the corruption of their scriptures by the Jews and the Christians. He wasn’t ranting – far from it – but what he said prompted the rabbi to say, ‘Take care!’ in a tone of warning.
It’s worth noting what Bahá’u'lláh says on this subject in the Kitáb-i-Íqán:
Verily by “perverting” the text is not meant that which these foolish and abject souls have fancied, even as some maintain that Jewish and Christian divines have effaced from the Book such verses as extol and magnify the countenance of Muḥammad, and instead thereof have inserted the contrary. How utterly vain and false are these words! Can a man who believeth in a book, and deemeth it to be inspired by God, mutilate it? Moreover, the Pentateuch had been spread over the surface of the earth, and was not confined to Mecca and Medina, so that they could privily corrupt and pervert its text. Nay, rather, by corruption of the text is meant that in which all Muslim divines are engaged today, that is the interpretation of God’s holy Book in accordance with their idle imaginings and vain desires.
Why do we do inter-faith? And how?
Of course, the fact that the imam felt that in all conscience he had to say this, and the feelings that his statement raised in the rabbi should prompt us to think carefully about the nature of inter-faith meetings and dialogue.
Do we meet to build good relations between faiths? Or do we meet to dialogue, to speak honestly about our beliefs and practices and to learn from each other? Are these aims mutually exclusive?
And how do we accomplish these aims without stirring up rancour?
It is worth looking at the website of the St Ethelburga Centre for Reconciliation and Peace to see what the Centre’s aims are and the various ways in which they actually carry out dialogue.
The Benedictine life
Two monks attended our meeting. One was a veteran of 40 years in the Abbey, a gentle man with whom Mrs Barnabas and I had the pleasure of conversing at length about the history of the Abbey (this is the 75th year of its foundation as a priory).
The younger of the two, Father Paul Fleetwood, was our host from the Abbey and he smiled broadly when I referred during my talk to my having previously read something about the Rule of St Benedict and the Benedictine way of life. (This I had done in preparation some years ago to be the main speaker at a Bahá’í summer school at Ampleforth, a Benedictine monastery and school in Yorkshire.) Ampleforth’s website has a clear explanation of the Rule and the work undertaken by the monks.
What resonates for me in the Benedictine way is the close relationship between worship and work (in the spirit of service to one’s fellow humans). This is wholly congruent with the Bahá’í principle that work carried out in the spirit of service is equivalent to worship. And the importance given by St Benedict to education is echoed in the beliefs and practice of the Bahá’í community throughout the world.
Benedictine beauty
The two Benedictine abbeys I have visited (Ampleforth and Worth) both have wondrously beautiful settings and impressive buildings. In both places the abbey churches are, as one would expect, particularly stunning. Worth has an amazing circular church, a modern building that is both solid and, paradoxically, full of light – and is infused with the spirit of worship.
Technorati Tags: Baha’i, Bahai, inter-faith, Benedictine, abbey, Worth, Ampleforth, worship, work, service, education
Related posts:
Comments on this entry are closed.