Though we live in a world filled with a lot of interpersonal conflicts in the name of faith, religion, and groups, there are also other concepts of unity that still co-exist with us. What we are going to see here is also one such concept. Now many people are aware of the concept of interreligious dialogue. So what is interreligious dialogue and how does it benefit the society, is it even real in the first place? These are some of the things that we will be covering here.
What is interreligious dialogue?
Have you heard of something called religious pluralism? If yes, you are probably aware of interreligious dialogue as well, and you just didn’t know the name. If no, we will explain it to you. Religious pluralism is pretty much similar to interreligious dialogue.
People who believe and practice the concept of religious pluralism are the ones who can better explain how it works, for others it will always be a mystery. In religious pluralism, people believe that apart from the one they believe and practice, there are also true concepts in other religions that can be applied to real life. The simple idea of respecting and accepting other scriptures is what religious pluralism is. Like I said earlier interreligious dialogue is very close to religious pluralism. Interreligious dialogue happens when you are trying to practically etch down your thoughts and spread it to a large number of people. This is what interreligious dialogue is.
Challenges faced!
The concept of interreligious dialogue works miracles only when it is done than said. By this, I mean that it is easy to talk interreligious dialogue, but it is difficult to follow and profess it. To adopt the culture of interreligious dialogue itself is difficult in the first. When this is one of the important ways to stop the atrocities that are happening in the name of religion, one can preach when he or she practices it.
When you are trying to endorse the idea of interreligious dialogue, you will face a lot of questions, and it all begins with family. Your family members are the ones who will question your behavior. They will look for reasons that could stop you from all this. This is because, despite knowing you are not wrong, they fear the judgments of the society.
Next thing is when you feel you have gotten the approval of people, is to get out to the society and persuade people to follow the ideology of ecumenism and unity among religions. It is not as easy as we think it is. So this will be the prime challenge when it comes to spreading the values of interreligious faith.