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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PROGRAM Monday, December 7, 2009
2:30-4:00pm ENGAGEMENT SESSION
legislators. He helped to enact legislative reforms in the areas of education, children's rights, the environment and social justice. Today, Rabbi Melchior leads a variety of civil society movements, including a forum that promotes dialogue and understanding among different strands of Israeli society Rev Dr Antje Jackelén is Bishop of Lund in the Lutheran Church of Sweden, the first woman bishop to be popularly elected the Church of Sweden She was previously a professor of systematic theology/religion and science at the Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago and director of the Zygon Center for Religion and Science She is the author of Time and Eternity (2005) and numerous articles in a variety of languages. Currently, she serves as president of the European Society for the Study of Science and Theology Professor Pal Ahluwalia is Pro Vice Chancellor of Education, Arts and Social Sciences at the University of South Australia. He has pubLished many books and articles and was appointed a UNESCO Chair in Transnational Diasporas and Reconciliation Studies in 2008. He is a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia Swami Atmapriyananda was inspired by the Ramakrishna-Vivekananda ideal of renunciation and service and was drawn te monastic life through his close contact with monks of the Ramakrishna Order. He taught physics at Vidyamandira College for nearly 27 years. When the Ramakrishna Mission established Vivekananda University in 2005. Swami Atapriyananda became its first Vice Chancellor, a position he currently holds. Eshin Nishimura has been a Rinzai Zen Buddhist priest since 1936. He is former president of Hanazono University in Kyoto, Japan and is also a major modern scholar in the Kyoto School of thought A current professor in the Department of Buddhism at Hanazono University, he has lectured at universities throughout the world on the subject of Zen Buddhism. He has been a participant in many dialogues on the relationship of Zen to Christianity and Western philosophy
Alternatives to Empire, Another World is possible Rev Harry Kerr Larry Marshall Dr Chandra Muzzafar Joseph Camilleri Room 212 Interactive Workshop Alternatives to Empire is a collaborative project that challenges the characteristics of Empire: dominance achieved through military victory: the exploitation of the economic resources of the subject peoples; the destruction of cultures, religions and languages of subject peoples; and the transfer of wealth from poor to rich. The project as sumes that people of different faiths and philosophies can discover common values that embody a respect for the rights and dignity of all humanity, sustainable stewardship of the earth's economic and ecological systems, and the sacredness and unity of all life. This workshop will explore those values that are universal in scope and inspiration and that are premised on the fundamental questions of human existence: Who are we? What is our purpose on this earth? How should we live? How should we address the critical challenges that face humanity at this moment in history? This workshop engages members of all faiths and humanist traditions in a conversation, based upon a respect for the diversity of deeply held views. It will open up new energies, resources and skills to envision and enact alternatives to the present structures of hegemonic domination. Reverend Harry Kerr, is Convener of Pax Christi Victoria, a branch of the International Christian Peace Movement. Pax Christi International Larry Marshall is the Project Officer for the Centre for Dialogue at La Trobe University where he is responsible for two projects involving the Muslim Community in Victoria. He coordinates the Young Muslim Leadership Training Program and the visits by Islamic Scholars to Australia. Larry is also the Project Officer for the International Network of Universities (INU) on a project to coordinate a Master's Program in Global Citizenship and Peace across eight international partner universities Dr Chandra Muzzafar is President of the International Movement for a Just World (JUST), an international NGO based in Malaysia, which seeks to critique global injustice and to develop an alternative vision of a just and compassionate civilisation guided by universal spiritual and moral values. He is also the Noordin Sopiee Professor of Global Studies at the Science University of Malaysia (USM) in Penang and has published extensively on a variety of subjects. Joseph Camilleri is the founder and director of the Centre for Dialogue at La Trobe University in Melbourne and one of Australia's leading International Relations scholars. Professor Camilleri has pursued a wide range of research interests in the International Relations discipline These include regional and global governance, the political economy of Asia-Pacific, the role of religion and culture in international affairs, the politics of oil and the Middie East, and security policy lincluding weapons non-proliferation)
The State and Religious Freedom Rabbi David Saperstein Room 211 What is the role of the state in protecting religious freedom? What is the role of religious communities in asserting their religious freedoms in the civic realm, and where may those efforts best be focused? What collaborations can enhance the ongoing work of protecting religious freedom? Rabbi David Saperstein, the director and counsel of the Religious Action Center for Reformed Judaism, is an expert in church/state issues. His expertise covers issues such as hate crimes, discrimination, free exerci equal rights, and the role of religious communities in active engagement in political processes. The religious community cannot be complacent. Too much is at stake. Designated in Newsweek's 2009 list as the most influential rabbi in the United States and described in a Washington Post profile as the quintessential religious lobbyist on Capitol Hill', Rabbi David Saperstein represents the national Reform Jewish Movement to Congress and the Administration as the Director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism
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