Parliament of Worlds Religion 2009 Melbourne Australia

Author(s): Parliament of the World’s Religions
Publisher: USA Parliament of the Worlds Religions

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| PROGRAZ
Saturday, December 5, 2009
2:30-4:00pm ENGAGEMENT SESSION
Naresh Jain represents the Jain community at the national and international levels. He actively works with the religious and spiritual communities in New York and New Jersey to organize interreligious programs. He served as an advisor to the 2004 Barcelona Parliament Program Task Force, 2006 Montreal Global Congress of World's Religions, and 2009 New Delhi Global Congress of World's Religions, and as a member of the 2009 Parliament Site Selection Task Force.
Sacred Sites, Sacred Solidarity: Stories from the Frontlines Sharon Rosen Additional Speakers to be Announced Room 106 Some of the most perilous and inspiring accounts on the 'frontlines' of the interreligious movement involve facing the threats to sacred sites of the world's religious and spiritual communities. When ethnic, cultural or religious tensions flare, places of Worship and practise are often the first targets for anger and violence. Such attacks can lan flames of rage within and among spiritual communities. But when religious neighbours and others from abroad stand in solidarity with the aggrieved community, cycles of hatred and destruction can be reversed, and the fires may be stopped before they spread beyond control. This session of the Sacred Sites, Sacred Solidarity Symposium will feature the real life encounters that involve sacred sites around the world, the efforts to protect them and the ways in which diverse communities have come together in solidarity
Religious Freedom and Interreligious Dialogue: IARF and Its Work in India Dr Homi Dhalla Dr Thomas Mathew Dr John Taylor Jasbir Singh Rev Johanna Boeke Rev Richard Boeke Orlanda Brugnola Room 108 Panel Discussion The International Association for Religious Freedom (IARF), founded in 1900 and with chapters in North America, Britain and Europe, now works mostly in Asia. Every four years, it holds an international congress, which in 2010 will be held in Cochin, India. This session will highlight the work of IARF in southern India in fostering friendship and community between Hindus, Sikhs, Muslims, Jains and Christians. Thomas Mathew is Council President of IARF. Dr John Taylor is a representative of the International Association for Religious Freedom in Geneva and Vice-Chair of the Steering Committee of the Coalition. He holds a PhD from McGill University and for many years worked for the World Council of Churches. Jasbir Singh is chairman of the Rajasthan State Minorities Commission Rev Johanna Boeke is a former International Association for Religious Freedom representative to the UN, Geneva. The Rev Dr Richard Boeke was founding President of the US Chapter of the International Association for Religious Freedom and is a Vice President of the World Congress of Faiths. He is the author of "God is No-Thing. His latest essay is "Evolve or Explode? A Lesson From Darwin For Our Time,
The Last Yoik in Saami Forests? Room 107 Film
Over the last half-century. population growth and logging damage have taken their toll on the forests of Finnish Lapland. These forests are essential to the Indigenous Saami people's reindeer herding and traditional ways of life. This film discusses alternatives to logging as well as more efficient uses for Lappish timber, but the issue of Indigenous land rights is at the root of this story of economic pressure and cultural survival. The film was directed by Hannu Hyvonen.
The Gülen Movement's Global Peace and Social Reconciliation Vision and Projects: Lessons Learned from Germany, the US and Medina Ercan Karakoyun Ibrahim Sayar Ali Riza Candir Room 109 Panel Discussion The life and works of distinguished Turkish-Muslim scholar, Fethullah Gülen, are best described by his deep respect for and connection to all creation. 'Living to let others live is the core principle of his understanding of the service to humanity. In this program, we will hear from three social activists inspired by Gülen, and through their voices we will gain insight into the Gülen Movement's global peace and social reconciliation vision and projects. We will see this first in a presentation about the Gülen Movement's social responsibility and solidarity vision and projects in the US; second, in a presentation about the contribution of the Gülen Movement for the integration of Muslims in Western societies with emphasis on the Gülen Movement
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