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How should Christians participate in inter-religious dialogue?


Christians should be involved in inter-religious dialogue when its basic purpose is to enable members of different faith-communities to understand one another better.


Inter-religious dialogue, as is with all social interaction, should lead the conversation partners to better understand one another as well as respect the differences between them. For the Christian, such dialogue can be understood simply as the conversation between people who hold different religious beliefs. Thus, inter-religious dialogue is part of the larger context of social intercourse in a pluralistic society. Inter-religious dialogue can be conducted at different levels and with different objectives and goals (see Issue 4 above). Even when such dialogue is conducted at official levels with more concrete goals in view, e.g. inter-faith collaboration for nation building, they cannot detract from this basic criterion of fostering understanding between the different faith communities.


 

National Council of Churches of Singapore

“For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit, we were all baptized into one body.”

- 1 Corinthians 12:12-13