wfn.org | LWI Special issue on 'Diapraxis for Peace and Reconciliation'

["Frank Imhoff" <Frank.Imhoff@elca.org>]

Special Lutheran World Information (LWI) on 'Diapraxis for Peace and
Reconciliation'

"Diapraxis for Peace and Reconciliation" is the theme of a special issue
of Lutheran World Information (LWI) produced prior the Second Inter-Faith
Action for Peace in Africa (IFAPA) Summit, held April 18-25 near Johannesburg, South Africa.

The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) has taken a leading role in the IFAPA
initiative.

Bearing in mind the summit's theme, "Working Together for Peace in
Africa," the editorial team responsible for the content of the special LWI
chose to focus not only on inter-faith dialogue per se, but also on
inter-faith dialogue in action-diapraxis. They went further, and sought
concrete examples, portrayed through the people's shared struggles and
joint efforts for justice, peace and reconciliation in the different world
contexts.

Copies of the 20-page, full-color LWI No. 04/2005 can be ordered from
info@lutheranworld.org. Cost CHF 1.50, EUR 1.00 or USD 1.25, plus postage.
A discount is offered for bulk orders.

The entire publication is posted in a low PDF format on: http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf (816 KB)

A summary of the contents follows:

CONTENTS

Diapraxis for Peace and Reconciliation

Foreword - LWF General Secretary, Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko

Diapraxis for Peace and Reconciliation-An LWF Perspective

Diapraxis - Today's Challenges

Inter-religious Dialogue and the Search for a Social Spirituality

Dipraxis - Joint Action for Common Good

Inter-faith Dialogue and Diapraxis - Perspectives from the Regions

Religious Dialogue - A Ray of Hope in Ending Africa's Longest Civil War

Sierra Leone: Keeping Hope Alive on an Elusive Path to Peace

Nepal: Fighting Caste-Based Discrimination, HIV/AIDS with Religious
Values

India - "Peace Among Christians, Hindus and Muslims"

Building Bridges Across Ethnic, Religious Divide in Kosovo

Christians and Muslims Build Relationships in Denmark

North American Youth Inspired to Act Across Faith Boundaries

New York's Pain, Anguish, Became a Bedrock of Faith Expression

A Dialogue with Deni Indians in the Northwest Amazon Region

Diapraxis for Peace and Reconciliation - A Youth Perspective

Toward Tolerance and Respect, Not Uniformity

Come and See: A Response to Claims that Religions Cannot Coexist Peacefully
Geneva Inter-Religious Youth Platform Promotes Encounters That Present
'The Other'

Challenging, Changing Each Other in the Cradle of Monotheistic Religions

Inter-faith Dialogue and Diapraxis*

IFAPA: Making people of Different Faiths "Become Friends"

West African Women Building Peace Across Religious Divide

The Time to Start Is Now - Engaging South Africa's
Young People in Peace Initiatives

Mauritania's Political, Faith Leaders Stress Need for Religious Tolerance

News in Brief - LWF Publications on Inter-faith Dialogue

Dialogue and Beyond: Christians and Muslims Together

Multi-faith Challenges Facing the Americas * and Beyond

Crises of Life in African Religion and Christianity

Explorations of Love and Wisdom: Christians and Buddhists in Conversation

Foreword - LWF General Secretary Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko

This special issue of Lutheran World Information (LWI) is a Lutheran World
Federation (LWF) contribution to the Second Inter-Faith Action for Peace
in Africa (IFAPA) Summit, [held] April 18-25 in Ekurhuleni Metropolitan
Municipality near Johannesburg, South Africa.  [Full article on http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf - pg. 3]

Diapraxis for Peace and Reconciliation-An LWF Perspective

There is general criticism that more or less the same people are participating in inter-faith dialogue meetings
without any connection to the reality of ordinary people's lives. The
Lutheran World Federation (LWF) sees inter-faith dialogue as rooted in
common inter-faith praxis, thus the use of the term "diapraxis."

What Is Diapraxis?

In 1988 Danish Lutheran theologian Lissi Rasmussen proposed the term
diapraxis in relation to inter-faith dialogue, stating:

"Against the background of my experiences in Africa and Europe, I see
dialogue as a living process, a way of living in co-existence and
pro-existence. Therefore I want to introduce the term "diapraxis." While
dialogue indicates a relationship in which talking together is central,
diapraxis indicates a relationship in which common praxis is essential.
Thus by diapraxis I do not mean the actual application of dialogue but
rather dialogue as action. We need a more anthropological contextual
approach to dialogue where we see diapraxis as a meeting between people
who try to reveal and transform the reality they share." [Full article by
Rev. Dr Ingo Wulfhorst, LWF Study Secretary for the Church and People of
Other Faiths, on: http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf - pg. 4]

DIAPRAXIS - TODAY'S CHALLENGES

What are today's challenges with regard to diapraxis? The editorial team
for this special LWI invited a Christian and a Muslim scholar to reflect
on current challenges with regard to inter-faith dialogue and action.

Inter-religious Dialogue and the Search for a Social Spirituality

Inter-religious dialogue presupposes three fundamental elements. Firstly,
dialogue is between people and not among religions or belief systems. It
is people who embody beliefs and give concrete expression to their
religious values and convictions in daily living.

Secondly, authentic dialogue happens among people who are committed to
specific religious convictions. Inter-religious dialogue therefore is an
encounter of commitments shared by people.  Thirdly, dialogue is not
merely a "two-way" communication, mutual exchange or conversation, but
fundamentally a "dia-logue." [Full article by Rev. Dr J. Paul Rajashekar,
Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, on:
http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf -
pg. 6]

Diapraxis - Joint Action for Common Good

Inter-faith dialogue, the aspect of two or more faiths working together to
address common concerns, poses a critical global concern in the 21st
century.

Dialogue, the face-to-face engagement of people with different persuasions, is not aimed at conversion of the other or winning debate, rather at
identifying together areas of mutual understanding. Inter-faith action or
diapraxis, although hinging on inter-faith dialogue, goes beyond open
discussion and allows for common activities. [Full article by Ugandan
Islamic scholar, Sheikh Hamid A. Byamugenzi, on: http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf - pg. 7]

INTER-FAITH DIALOGUE AND DIAPRAXIS

Perspectives from the Regions

Experience of religious plurality varies from region to region, from
country to country. The editorial team for this special LWI invited
religious leaders, parish pastors, lay people and young adults, women and
men from various religious backgrounds to share their experiences with
regard to inter-faith dialogue and diapraxis.

Africa

Sudan: Religious Dialogue - A Ray of Hope in Ending Africa's Longest Civil
War

Religion has played both positive and negative roles in Sudan's history.
With the exception of a fragile peace established after negotiations
between southern insurgents (the Anya Nya) and the Sudan government in
Addis Ababa in 1972, which lasted until the resumption of the conflict in
1983, Southern Sudan has been a battlefield.

The north-south distinction and the ensuing hostility are based on
religious differences and on conflict between peoples of different
cultures and languages. [Full article by Moses Telar Cindut, Secretariat
for Religious Affairs, Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army, on:
http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf -
pg. 8]

Sierra Leone: Keeping Hope Alive on an Elusive Path to Peace

For decades, Sierra Leone, despite varying political dynamics in the pre
and post-independence era enjoyed relative peaceful co-existence among its
13 ethnic groups, adherents of Islam, indigenous beliefs and Christianity.
Then the rebel Revolutionary United Front (RUF) launched a bush war
against the government in 1991. [Full article by Rev. Marie Jilo Barnett,
Evangelical Lutheran Church in Sierra Leone, and a member of the LWF
Executive Committee, on: http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf - pg. 9]

Asia

Nepal: Fighting Caste-Based Discrimination, HIV/AIDS with Religious Values

Nepal is the only constitutionally declared Hindu state in the world.
Around 86 percent of its 27 million people are Hindus. Buddhists represent
eight percent of the population, Muslims four percent, while Christians
and the rest comprise about two percent. Religion occupies an integral
part of Nepali life and society and includes codes for individual behavior
and daily rites of worship. [Full article by Ms Shashi Rijal, advocacy and
development coordinator, LWF Department for World Service Nepal program,
on: http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf
- pg. 9]

India - "Peace Among Christians, Hindus and Muslims"

Eleven-year-old Ranjit Samal's artistic impression of "Peace among
Christians, Hindus and Muslims" in India. [Picture of painting on:
http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf -
pg. 10]

Europe

Building Bridges Across Ethnic, Religious Divide in Kosovo

Kosovo is a small region in the Balkans. A province of Serbia, the
majority of its population is of Albanian rather than Serb origin. Ninety
percent of its two million people are Muslims. The ethnic conflict in the
late 1990s not only resulted in unjustified loss of human life, it also
led to the destruction of many holy sites. Indeed 218 mosques were burned
down and damaged, with eight destroyed in Mitrovica alone.

Despite all this tragedy, leaders of different faith groups made an effort
to rebuild a peaceful society. [Full article by Imam Rexhep Lushta,
Mitrovica, Kosovo, on: http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf - pg. 11]

Christians and Muslims Build Relationships in Denmark

When the LWF Christian-Muslim study team carried out its first case study
in Denmark in November 2003, team members voiced concern about an
atmosphere of 'Islamic phobia' in the country. This became manifest,
especially when the group met one Member of Parliament from the extreme
nationalistic Danish People's Party, which constitutes the re-elected
neo-liberal government. [Full article by Prof. Lissi Rasmussen, director,
Islamic-Christian Study Center in Copenhagen, on: http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf - pg. 11]

North America

North American Youth Inspired to Act Across Faith Boundaries

The National Day of Inter-faith Youth Service [is marked] in more than 50
cities and campuses, in partnership with several organizations in the
USA.

The event is organized by the Chicago-based Inter-Faith Youth Core (IFYC),
whose aim is to generate an international movement in which religious
young people come together across faith boundaries to strengthen their own
faith identities, build understanding across traditions and cooperate to
serve the common good. [Full story by April Kunze, IFYC director of
National Programs, on: http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf - pg. 12]

New York's Pain, Anguish, Became a Bedrock of Faith Expression

On 11 September 2001, we watched the towers fall from our sixteenth floor
windows of the Interchurch Center on Riverside Drive, New York. At noon
hundreds of us in the building gathered to pray. It was an inter-faith
gathering. [Full story by Bishop Stephen P. Bouman, Metropolitan New York
Synod, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, on: http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf - pg. 12]

Latin America and the Caribbean

A Dialogue with Deni Indians in the Northwest Amazon Region

The colonization of Brazil brought about a clash of cultures that was
disastrous for the country's Indigenous population, and which resulted in
its decimation. Even the Evangelical Church of the Lutheran Confession in
Brazil (IECLB) shares responsibility in this devastating colonization
history, as its members were settled as immigrants in territories that
were home to Indigenous people. [Full story by IECLB pastor Rev.Walter
Sass and Deni leader, Saravi Deni, on: http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf - pg. 13]

DIAPRAXIS FOR PEACE AND RECONCILIATION

A Youth Perspective

Toward Tolerance and Respect, Not Uniformity

Although it has not always been easy dealing with various issues, I
particularly try to be tolerant and patient with my colleagues. My aim is
to accommodate and respect everyone for who they are and what they believe
in. [Contribution by Kenyan Muslim youth, Mwanakitina Saggaff, on:
http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf -
pg. 16]

Come and See: A Response to Claims that Religions Cannot Coexist Peacefully
A Jew, a Christian, a Muslim, and a Baha'i, are sitting at a dinner table.
In the past, this alone would signal the start of a comedy routine.
However, in today's integrated world, contact with various religions is
increasingly becoming a daily reality for millions of people.

As a Baha'i, I have been taught to revere the different religions to which
other people belong. The above scenario at a dinner table depicts the
variety of friends that I have made through inter-faith work. [Contribution by Babak Mostaghimi, president of the Baha'i Club, Johns Hopkins
University, and member of the university's Inter-faith Council in
Baltimore, Maryland, USA, on: http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf - pg. 16]

Geneva Inter-Religious Youth Platform Promotes Encounters That Present
'The Other'

There are different factors that transform and develop our identity and
human consciousness.
Being in contact with the other, who has a different horizon, a different
experience of life, is one of these principal factors. Through dialogue,
we learn not only about the other but also about ourselves. I have
participated in meetings of the inter-religious youth platform, "Plateforme interreligieuse jeunesse," a forum that brings together young people from
all religions in Geneva, Switzerland. [Contribution by Arielle Herzog, a
Jewish member of the "Plateforme interreligieuse jeunesse," on: http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf - pg. 16]

Challenging, Changing Each Other in the Cradle of Monotheistic Religions

The Holy Land has endured a long history of suffering and unrest.
Circumstances surrounding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict have now
reached dangerous points, and the highly militarized and politicized
situation has taken its toll on ordinary people on many fronts. We should
be guided by the right logic when dealing with other people, Palestinian
or Israeli; Christian, Jewish or Muslim. [Contribution by Palestinian
youth, Annaliza Younan, a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in
Jordan & the Holy Land, on: http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf - pg. 17]

INTER-FAITH DIALOGUE AND DIAPRAXIS...

The last chapter of this LWI special assembles feature and background
stories. It looks more closely at the Inter-Faith Action for Peace in
Africa (IFAPA) and at the role of women in peace building. It introduces
the work of the LWF Department for World Service program in Mauritania.

IFAPA: Making People of Different Faiths "Become Friends"

Peace is a basic element in every religion. Despite  our religious
diversity, we all preach the same values of morality, solidarity,
forgiveness and love. These commonly shared values are necessary to combat
violence and conflict in all its forms, and as catalysts to greater
cooperation between faith communities. [Full article by IFAPA coordinator,
Sheikh Saliou Mback*, on: http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf - pg. 17]

West African Women Build Peace Across Religious Divide

There is a saying in Nigeria that "When Kaduna State sneezes, the whole
country gets a cold." This was indeed the situation during what became
known as the Shariah conflict in Kaduna. Once a peaceful haven and
microcosm of Nigeria, Kaduna State is now identified as a hotbed of
inter-religious violence. [Full article by Thelma Ekiyor, director of
programs, West Africa Network for Peacebuilding, on: http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf - pg. 18]

The Time to Start Is Now-Engaging South Africa's Young People in Peace
Initiatives

On 20 March 2000, a youth peace conference was held for representatives
from many schools in the greater Durban area, South Africa. The KZN Youth
Peace Forum is now an ongoing event, involving some 40 schools with 80 to
100 students participating in various workshops. [Full article by Paddy
Meskin, president, South African chapter of the World Conference of
Religions for Peace, on: http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf - pg. 18]

Mauritania's Political, Faith Leaders Stress Need for Religious Tolerance

Speaking serenely but firmly, Sheikh Khalil Ould Cheikhny emphasized: "We
need a reformation, not fanaticism, to solve the problems in Africa." The
Muslim dignitary was addressing an audience of 500 people seated inside a
large Bedouin tent discussing what inter-faith dialogue entails, together
with LWF General Secretary, Rev. Dr Ishmael Noko and members of his
delegation. [Feature article by LWI German editor, Dirk-Michael Groetzsch,
who was in Nouakchott for the 30th anniversary celebrations of the LWF
Department for World Service Mauritania program, on http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf - pg. 19]

News in Brief - LWF Publications on Inter-faith Dialogue

Dialogue and Beyond: Christians and Muslims Together

Published by the LWF Department for Theology and Studies (DTS), the book
presents the results of an April 2002 LWF-sponsored consultation that
brought together Muslim and Christian scholars in Yogyakarta, Indonesia,
to deliberate common concerns and seek ways of responding together to
mutual challenges. [More details about the 177-page publication co-edited
by Rev. Dr Ingo Wulfhorst, LWF/DTS Study Secretary for the Church and
People of Other Faiths, and Sigvard von Sicard, professor of Islamic
studies at the Department of Theology, University of Birmingham, England,
on http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf -
pg. 7]

Multi-faith Challenges Facing the Americas * and Beyond

This collection of essays provides a glimpse into the enormously rich
fabric of multi-faith realities in what constitutes North, Central and
South America. [More details about the book edited by Hance A. O.
Mwakabana , on http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf - pg. 15]

Crises of Life in African Religion and Christianity

In this publication, writers from Christian and African religious
traditions share their respective theological/spiritual perspectives
regarding rituals related to death, as well as the strong African sense of
life beyond all human suffering and death. [More details about the book
edited by Hance A. O. Mwakabana, on http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf - pg. 15]

Explorations of Love and Wisdom: Christians and Buddhists in Conversation

Christians and Buddhists reflect on spiritual practices as a resource of
life and how both faith communities are caring for people in their daily
concerns and crises. [More details about the book co-edited by Hance A. O.
Mwakabana and Theodore Ludwig, on: http://www.lutheranworld.org/LWF_Documents/LWI/LWI-04-2005-EN-low.pdf - pg. 15]

(The LWF is a global communion of Christian churches in the Lutheran
tradition. Founded in 1947 in Lund, Sweden, the LWF currently has 138
member churches in 77 countries all over the world, with a membership of
nearly 66 million Christians. The LWF acts on behalf of its member
churches in areas of common interest such as ecumenical and inter-faith
relations, theology, humanitarian assistance, human rights, communication,
and the various aspects of mission and development work. Its secretariat
is located in Geneva, Switzerland.)

[Lutheran World Information (LWI) is the LWF's information service. Unless
specifically noted, material presented does not represent positions or
opinions of the LWF or of its various units. Where the dateline of an
article contains the notation (LWI), the material may be freely reproduced
with acknowledgment.]

* * *

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