All in Good Faith

Author(s): Jean Potter, Marcus Braybrooke
Publisher: World Congress of Faiths

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Inter-Faith Groups
14. LOCAL INITIATIVES
RESPONSE TO A QUESTIONNAIRE
individuals.
Jean Potter
Inter-faith groups which have grown up in some of the multi-faith communities in Britain have often developed because people from different faith backgrounds, for whom their own belief is often of paramount importance, wished to find out more about people of other faiths. Learning about other faiths can then lead on to sharing cultural activities such as dance, music and food, providing the activity does not require any participant to compromise his or her religious belief. When it comes to sharing in prayer or worship, however, there is often a fear that this will lead to compromise. This is why many groups have felt unsure whether to embark on any form of inter-faith worship.
It was largely queries to the World Congress of Faiths from such groups or individuals as to the desirability, feasibility and practicality of arranging interfaith prayer or worship that prompted the production of this book, as a resource which might be of help to such groups or
To gauge the need for such a book, a questionnaire was initially sent to all known inter-faith groups throughout the country asking for their reactions, experiences and suggestions on the subject. Replies were received from 18 groups, and without exception all felt that such a book would be useful.
Some groups have given considerable attention to this subject. For example, one of the oldest inter-faith groups, started in Wolverhampton in 1974, held a conference on the subject of Inter-Faith Worship in 1982. That year there had been a Service of Prayer for Peace and Disarmament organized by the Council of Christian Churches in which there were readings from the Bhagavad Gita and the New Testament, and prayers said by a Sikh, a Muslim and a Christian. Up to then, however, the Wolverhampton Inter-faith Group had never initiated or organized any inter-faith worship, although they had visited different faiths at worship, as observers, and individuals could participate as far as they felt able. But as the group had
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