Committee for Interreligious Dialogue
The Scottish Bishops' Committee for Interreligious Dialogue exists to make Catholics and others aware of the importance of interreligious dialogue within the life of the Church. Enjoy browsing this site to discover more about the work of the Committee and how you might get involved.
Interfaith News & Events from the Scottish Bishops' Committee
19 April - See the Letters of Greeting for Ramadan from Bishop Brian and from the Pontifical Council; read our latest Guest Blog from Fr Victor Edwin SJ on Ramadan; read the statement from Scotland's Religious Leaders concerning the CoP26 Climate Conference in Glasgow; see the notice below from Focolare about their next monthly interfaith dialogue meeting on April 19th; visit "JC Relations" - a website dedicated to study and other resources on Jewish-Christian relations.
Focolare host monthly interfaith meetings on zoom and the next session will be entitled: Aspects of Judaism. It will take place on Monday 19th April 2021, 7:30pm - 8:30 pm. For more information and booking, please contact yolanda.matro@focolare.org.uk
Reflecting on the Ramadan Fast
Dear Friends,
I would like to extend my greetings of the Holy month of Ramadan.
As many sent their Ramadan greetings before the start of this month. I thought I'd share this message after my first fast. I closed fast today at 3.50 am and opened the fast at 8.28 pm. I have to admit I did struggle. I did practise fasting when my family were away however it seems that practise was in vain. I either blame them or the fact that I didn't drink a lot of water. To be on the safe side I'd probably say the latter 🙂
On a serious note, this is perhaps the holiest month for Muslims. We endure the pangs of hunger so we can empathise with the marginalised. We are encouraged to give lots away in charity. We spend the nights in worship and the days in reciting scripture. The Iftaar meal has always been an important meal since we break bread with others. I fondly remember my Interfaith Iftaar meals with people from different faiths.
I pray you and your loved ones are safe.
Sallam,
Hassan Rabbani
Food For Thought...
Dialogue is born from an attitude of respect for the other person, from conviction that the other person has something good to say. It assumes that there is room in the heart for the person’s point of view, opinion and proposal. To dialogue entails a cordial reception, not a prior condemnation. In order to dialogue, it is necessary to know how to lower the defenses, open the doors of the house, and offer human warmth.
Pope Francis
