Inter Religious Federation for World Peace

Cardboard Cathedral Unveiled in Christchurch New Zealand

Posted on August 20, 2013 by frank

New York - A new architectural wonder was unveiled in Christchurch, New Zealand this week. Though grand, its delight lies more in its underlying simplicity.

In a world of news flooded with oppressive tragedy and disorder, from the violent decline of Egypt to the abuse of power by the surveillance obsessed governments of England and the United States, it is a delight and a relief to read of any bright news that shows visionary, humanitarian horizons of human nature, human creativity, and purposes built on care.

On August 11, parishioners of the Anglican Diocese of Christchurch who lost their 131-year-old Gothic Christchurch Cathedral to a 6.3 magnitude earthquake in February, 2011, gathered once again to worship all together – in a cardboard church.

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Is Malaysia heading in a bad direction?

Posted on August 17, 2013 by frank

On August 17, AP wire reported that Malaysian authorities on Saturday revoked the immigration privileges held by a Singaporean man who offended some Muslims by allegedly letting Buddhists use an Islamic prayer room.

The person in question is a Singaporean-born owner of a southern Malaysian beach resort who was believed to have allowed Buddhist tourists to meditate in the resort’s Islamic prayer room. Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said the Muslim man has been stripped of his “permanent residency” status that enabled him to live and work in Malaysia.

How contrary this is to the broad, embracing, and exemplary life of the Prophet himself (PBUH), who welcomed 60 well-educated Christians, a bishop, his 45 scholars, and 15 men to dialogue and debate the Prophet’s revelations. Prophet Muhammad warmly welcomed the Najran delegation and provided them with a place to stay in Madina, in a secure place close to his mosque. He even ordered that their tent be pitched for them by the Muslims.

The AP article mentions other examples of a narrow, un-loving form of Islam growing in Malaysia.

We pray that Malaysia, and Muslims of influence there will seek to manifest the breadth, trust, and interreligious vision shown by the Prophet in his lifetime.

The prophetic voice of protest reaches the pulpit

Posted on August 14, 2013 by frank

With the decline of church attendance in modern times, United States citizens have forfeited one of our most vital and necessary mediating structures. So many of our freedoms and rights are enshrined in the all-important freedom of religion clause, and these have been voluntarily abandoned through decline in attendance, leaving nothing that stands between an avaricious government and its direct assault on freedoms and rights of isolated individuals currently seen as “society.”

Last Sunday at All Saints Episcopal, Pastor Joseph Snider drew out the implications of Luke 12:13 – 40, for the question of security. He spoke on fear and the forfeiture of our rights and freedoms hoping to find refuge in the provisions of the heartless, invasive Patriot Act.

“Where is real security to be found?” Jesus says it is not to be found by living in fear. It is to be found in seeking the Kingdom of God; …

And what does this mean?

At the very least it means what Isaiah called for, as we read earlier this morning: “cease to do evil, learn to do good, seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow.”

Continue reading to take in this worthy sermon, offering Biblical perspectives on the current unconstitutional NSA and TSA Leviathan intruding into the lives of Americans.

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Conference Report from Akshardam, New Delhi

Posted on August 6, 2013 by frank

Here is a brief report

Conference with the Swaminarayan Sampraday, at Akshardam, New Delhi by Frank Kaufmann

Swami Narayan Conference at Akshardam, New Delhi

Posted on August 2, 2013 by frank

Here is the conference material

Here is the paper on interfaith

Pope Francis Is Good for the Jews

Posted on July 15, 2013 by frank

As it turned out, the College of Cardinals could not have elected a man with a clearer commitment to Catholic-Jewish relations than Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio. As archbishop of Buenos Aires, he had celebrated Rosh Hashanah and Hannukah in local synagogues, voiced solidarity with Jewish victims of terrorism, and co-written a book with a prominent rabbi. Touching on one of the most sensitive points in the relationship between Catholics and Jews, Bergoglio had called for the Vatican to open its archives from the pontificate of Pius XII, who reigned from 1939 to 1958, to address lingering questions about whether the wartime pope had done or said enough to oppose the Nazi genocide.

It is relevant in this connection that the new pope comes from Buenos Aires, the city with the largest Jewish community in the Southern Hemisphere. No pope since the church’s early centuries has come from a society as culturally diverse as modern Argentina, which Francis has celebrated for its blend of ethnicities and religions.

Read the entire Wall Street Journal Article here

Muslim leaders’ Auschwitz visit boosts Holocaust knowledge

Posted on July 15, 2013 by frank

“Muslim leaders from around the world have taken part in an unprecedented trip to Germany and Poland to see and hear for themselves about the horrors of the Jewish Holocaust.

Mr Magid, who is originally from Sudan, first visited Auschwitz-Birkenau during a trip organised for American imams in 2010. He said the experience had led him to hold an annual Seder, a Jewish ceremonial meal, at his mosque in Virginia where he invites people to listen to the story of a Holocaust survivor who was saved by a Muslim family.

Read the article here

Was Pope Francis’ “Atheists are saved” comment heretical?

Posted on July 15, 2013 by frank

“But the short answer to the question is easy: No. Francis was only affirming the doctrine that Christ redeemed the whole world. Whether people accept that belief is another matter.

“In fact, popes going back to Leo XIII in 1891 and up through John Paul II – not to mention authoritative texts from the official Catholic Catechism and the Second Vatican Council - have said the exact same thing Francis did.”

Read the whole article at Religious News Service

The Most and least Christian states in America

Posted on July 15, 2013 by frank

A study measuring religious bodies in the United States called the, “2010 U.S. Religious Census: Religious Congregations & Membership Study (RCMS)” was recently released by the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies (ASARB). The most comprehensive study of its kind, it provides detailed county-by-county information on congregations, members, adherents and attendance for 236 different faiths groups. (The survey differentiates between specific denominations within the same tradition.)

The researchers found Utah to be the most Christian* state with around 78 percent of population identifying as Christian adherents. The researchers found Maine to be the least Christian state with only about 27 percent identifying as Christian adherents.

most least christian state

Read the whole article, and see a beautiful slide show of churches in America here

Technology and Ethics

Posted on July 15, 2013 by frank

Tech changes affect three areas. Individuals acquire greater independence and reach. The locus of power shifts accordingly. And traditional buffers between discordant groups dissolve. These developments call for new structures for moral development, and the radical reassessment of human organization.

Technology moves faster than ethics

communities.washingtontimes.com

Tech changes out-pace spiritual foundations for their ethical use.

Read the entire article here