Parliament of Worlds Religion 2009 Melbourne Australia

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

Page 313

PROGRAM OF
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
of our tradition would we like to share with the others? The workshop will conclude by inviting each participant to reflect on one for more] gift[s] received from listening to the religious Other.
Maria Reis Habito is the International Program Director at the Museum of World Religions and Director of the Global Family for Love and Peace. She has studied in Taiwan, Munich and Kyoto, and completed her PhD at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität in 1990. She has organised many international, interfaith conferences, notably a series of Buddhist-Muslim dialogues published under the title 'Listening: Buddhist-Muslim Dialogues 2002-2004 (Taipei, 2005).
Alon Goshen-Gottstein is the director of the Elijah Interfaith Institute, and director of the Centre for the Study of Rabbinic Thought, Beit Morasha College, both in Jerusalem. He was ordained a rabbi in 1977. Projects of the Elijah Interfaith Institute include the bi-annual meeting of the board of World Religious Leaders, the Educational Network, as well as the Jewish and the Muslim Theology of the Religious Other. He has published two books and many articles in academic journals.
Cohesion and Unity in the Sikh Community
Bhai Sukhbir Singh, Moderator Roop Singh
Bhai Sahib Mohinder Singh
Jathedar Gurbachan Singh Avtar Singh Makkar
Harbans Lal
Balwant S Hansra Room 207
This panel considers how Sikhs are coming to terms with issues of cohesion and unity essential to their survival and success. In particular, the panel will consider how the Sikh Diaspora can attain a sense of unity and what role Sikh religious institutions in India have in forging such unity. There are significant points of difference between Sikh institutions in India and elsewhere. This panel seeks to understand how a culture of unity can be propagated at a time when new institutions and organisations are being spawned for political purposes. The role of Sikh youth and their unique problems will also be explored.
Bhai Sukhbir Singh has previously been a school teacher in London. He is currently a businessman and volunteer of the Guru Nanak Nishkam Sewak Jatha.
Jainism and the Environment
Pravin K Shah
Sohan Lal Gandhi
His Holiness Sri Sri Sri Vasanth Gurudev Ji Room 208
Panel Discussion
This panel will discuss the Jain philosophy and its approach to the environment and the welfare of all living beings. The Jain lifestyle is based on ecological ethics. Philosophers, ecologists and other thinkers have emphasised the centrality of reverence for life, tolerance, and
9:30-11:00am INTRARELIGIOUS SESSION
other values needed for environmental sustainability. We need to identify a framework of responsibilities, challenges and opportunities to support ecological harmony that respects not only humans, but all of nature, and that reduce wants and wastes. We have to reconsider the relationship between man and nature. Science and spirituality should be integrated. A Jaina model of nonviolent lifestyle embedded in essential values will be presented that can lead to a clean planet and peaceful society.
Pravin K Shah is a founding member of Jain Study Center of North Carolina and is a Jain scholar and activist against animal cruelty. He chairs the Education Committee of the Federation of Jain Associations in North America IJAINA), serves as an advisor to youth organisations, and has published several books, CDs and articles on Jain philosophy and comparative religions.
Dr Sohan Lal Gandhi is the President of Anuvrat Global Organization, a transnational center for ahimsa associated with the UN's Department of Public Information. He has been at the forefront of national and international campaigns for interfaith harmony and has presented papers. at more than thirty international conferences held in different countries. He is the editor of the 'Anuvibha Reporter' and has authored, edited and translated several books.
His Holiness Sri Sri Sri Vasanth Gurudev Ji was born in a small Indian town named Krishnagiri where he spent his entire childhood in discovering various aspects and truths of life by means of prayers. meditations and chants. Sri Parshva Padmavathi Shaktipeet Tirth Dham, a Jain Temple located in the holy land of Krishnagiri, was founded by His Holiness Sri Sri Sri Vasanth Gurudev. With his divine powers he has. blessed lakhs of devotees worldwide and solved problems of many.
Rastafari: the Livity of Spirituality
Yasus Afari
Room 209
This program will present the worldview of the Rastafarian faith. It will discuss the history of Rastafari including its origins in Jamaica, its African retentive roots, and its struggles and visions from the time of its early pioneers to its current international development and impact. The growth of this faith will be linked to Reggae music, Rasta Ambassadors and other developments that are of great importance to Jamaica, the Caribbean, Africa, the Black Diaspora and the world. This program will also represent the Rastafari way of life and worship. It will focus on the Rastafarian approach to family life, its involvement in the arts, and its philosophy of political and environmental liberation. This presentation seeks to demonstrate how building love, justice, and confidence can secure social harmony, peace, and a sustainable future.
Yasus Afari represents the immortal vision of the ancient future, stimulating the revolutionary will to conquer poverty, ignorance, and injustice, by releasing positive vibrations in harmony, with words, sounds and power. Yasus works tirelessly to bring together people from many diverse backgrounds. Yasus testifies to his Rastafarian beliefs and his profound faith in Jah as a dub poet, author, philosopher and Reggae artist promoting Roots Reggae in line with traditional Rastafarian values.
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