About St Ethelburga's Centre

To inspire and equip people to pursue reconciliation and peace-making in t

2. Going deeper

Wisdom

Focusing the wisdom of diverse faith traditions on a particular area of concern or interest can be a powerful way to deepen our collective understanding of the issues that matter to us, as well as to build relationships. Listening to different approaches and insights of faith traditions to key questions (such as humanity’s relationship with the earth, how we share resources, how to develop inner peace, or how to respond to conflict) can take us beyond habitual ways of thinking and create space for a very rich and productive form of collaborative enquiry. Dialogue in this context becomes less about understanding each other and the differences in our belief systems, and more about applying the full range of religious
knowledge and philosophy to the issues of the day.

Strengths

• Can potentially be both an enriching learning experience for the individual, and also a practical way to develop our thinking and move towards collective solutions.
• Collaborative enquiry is engaging and can build strong respectful relationships, particularly if those involved are motivated by similar personal needs or shared concerns.

Potential Issues

• Can require a willingness to enter into the teachings or practices of another faith in depth, thus may work best for those who are secure in their own faith identities and already open to learning from others.
• This kind of approach cannot be rushed – it requires time and commitment to be of real value.

Points to consider

• Which questions and concerns in your community might usefully be explored with this approach?
• What kind of research might be needed to make such an enquiry productive? Could a well planned consultation help to shape your ideas and to identify appropriate contributors? Should the consultation include people from a mix of disciplines as well as faith practitioners?
• Is it possible that as individuals we can find all we need within the one tradition to which we belong, but that as a global community we may need to draw on all the faiths to solve our current problems? How open would members of your community be to this kind of approach?

Resources

Youth refusing violence project at St Ethelburga's

Peace from Within: A six week course applying the wisdom of contemplative traditions to the development of inner peace
Most recent course
More info on future courses

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Case Study:
Young people and knife crime

A conference held at St Ethelburga’s on Martin Luther King Day entitled ‘Can nonviolence be cool?’ applied wisdom of faith traditions to the growing concern of knife crime on our streets. The event brought together youth workers and other professionals (such as educators, chaplains, police and local authority representatives), with faith practitioners and young people, with the aim of exploring whether spiritual insights on responding to violence can be made relevant to young people today. Faith contributions included discussions on the Jain philosophy of ahimsa or
nonviolence; a Christian prison chaplain who linked the teachings of Jesus to the field of restorative justice; and a Sufi Muslim who discussed with young people the meaning of the ‘greater jihad’. The rich mix of participants and the diverse approaches of the faith traditions generated a lively enquiry and helped to expand the sense of possibilities
for many of those present. Enquiries will continue within single faith youth groups and the fruits of the process will be used to shape training resources for young people.

heir own comunities and lives