Have you attended any interesting interfaith events lately?
Yes. I had the wonderful opportunity of representing the Working Group on Relations with Other Faiths, and the Uniting Church at an Interfaith Forum held by the Hindu Council of Australia just recently.Not only was it a chance to meet with many people from the Hindu Council, it also allowed me the opportunity to share with those assembled the work of the Uniting Church in Australia and all its agencies – and to represent ordained women.
Do you have any interesting interfaith work happening at the moment?
Well, aside from all the formal dialogue work that I (along with the Working Group) am involved with, I think some of the most interesting and exciting interfaith interaction comes in the personal, local context. I live in a highly culturally and religiously diverse community, and being able to greet strangers (and friends) on the street in their own language, or ways appropriate to their culture and religious tradition is perhaps the most important thing each of us can do: to welcome each person, recognizing that they are made in the image of God.
What direction would you like the Working Group on Relations with Other Faiths to take in 2010?
We heard today, during the weekly devotions held in the Assembly office, a reading from 2 Kings 5:1-14. One of the big messages to come out of that passage is that we need to be open to where God might take us, and not to always expect that we know what will happen or what we must do.
We (the Working Group) have lots of tasks already planned for 2010, but I hope that we can live the message of 2 Kings 5:1-14, and always be open to new possibilities: new relationships, new tasks and new directions that our work can take. It’s an exciting area, with endless possibilities.