Learning from all faiths

Catholic New Times, June 6, 2004 by Bert Monster

Every time we Catholics attend Mass, we acknowledge our belief in a "holy, Catholic Church." That means we are a community open to a universal God, a God without earthly boundaries, a God that exists for all humankind.

How well do we reflect our belief in this holy catholic God?

How ready are we to build community based on God's universal love?

If we Christians are genuinely interested in resolving our differences among each other and other religions we need only do one thing. It is so simple it may astound people. You will not have to observe any new regulations, you will not have to join a new religion or give up the one you belong to now, you will not have to live on a remote mountain top nor be asked to live in a make-believe world inhabited by do-gooders. It will not demand that you become holier than you already are.

It will take people to change their belief about religion and God. That's all.

We simply need to change our belief about the need to defend God. It is our attachment to the defence of our faith that keeps us at odds with one another. It causes much pain and suffering.

Every time we profess that we think we know God better than the next person, we cause that person or group sadness and pain. The pain eventually translates into fear and hatred. If God were truly allowed to be the all-powerful, all-loving One, we would know that love does not need to be defended because love does not know attack.

The minute we think that our religion is the only one, we're in trouble. The minute we talk in terms of 'we,' the good guys, and 'they,' the bad guys, we're in trouble. The minute we draw lines and separate ourselves from our neighbours because we think we 'have a corner on the "faith market," we're in trouble. The minute we teach who is going to heaven and who is going to hell, we're in trouble.

Mother Teresa said: "We need to teach the Muslim to be a better Muslim, we need to teach the Jew to be a better Jew, and so on."

So how can we begin to change our fixed beliefs?

Perhaps we should begin by accepting that God is much greater than any idea that we, past or present, might have. Perhaps we should admit no one religion possesses all there is to know about God.

Perhaps we could begin by accepting that we need one another. Perhaps we could try to understand each other's uniqueness rather than enforced and unrealistic similarities. Perhaps we could begin by sharing each other's gifts. We could move out of our comfort zone and listen to what else God has to say about the creatures we are called to love.

If we want peace and harmony, we have to work for them; they will not simply drop from heaven. If we want love we have to draw on its source. There we will find an unlimited supply of answers to the world's challenges.

From Muslims, the church can learn prayer, fasting, and almsgiving; from Hindus, meditation and contemplation; from Buddhists, detachment from material goods; from Confucianism, filial piety and respect for elders; from Taoism, simplicity and humility; from animists, reverence and respect for nature and gratitude for harvests.

Together, we are all greater.

Bert Monster writes from St. Catherines, Ont.