NZ Interfaith Group

The Aotearoa New Zealand Interfaith Network is part of the New Zealand Diversity Action Programme and is a mailing list that brings together faith communities, interfaith groups, government agencies, academics and individuals interested in interfaith cooperation for peace and human rights.  It is facilitated by the Race Relations Commissioner in the Human Rights Commission.  To add your name or that of your organisation to the network email nzdiversity@hrc.co.nz

With more than 30 years of experience in interreligious affairs, the CIU is a trusted resource for insight, analysis and positive action.

Through educational programs and policy leadership, the CIU brings people of all faiths together to learn about our history, our shared values and why we must live and work together toward a society of justice and peace.

 

By exploring the theological foundations and common goals of the world's religions, the CIU fights religious stereotypes and intolerance to foster genuine understanding.

The mission of the Council for a Parliament of the World's Religions is to cultivate harmony among the world's religious and spiritual communities and foster their engagement with the world and its other guiding institutions in order to achieve a peaceful, just, and sustainable world.

 

Our group was formed here in Dunedin in the aftermath of the events of September 11th 2001 out of spontaneous expressions of solidarity and goodwill between leaders of our three faiths, the police and the Dunedin City Council. We exist to express a common heritage and concern, as people of faith in Dunedin.

 

Judaism, Christianity and Islam are all Abrahamic faiths. All three can trace their faith back to Abraham. Ordinary people from al three faiths share a deep desire for peace and justice. We seek to encourage and model friendship and respect for each other.

 

A list of some of the many organisations throughout the world which are involved in inter-religious activities.  Inclusion in the list does not necessarily imply approval by the IIC.

 

The list is an attempt to be representative of the many groups which are involved in creating better understanding between people of different faiths.

The International Association for Religious Freedom is a registered charity based in the United Kingdom which has the aim of working for freedom of religion and belief at a global level. Encouraging interfaith dialogue and tolerance is part of this agenda and we are proud of an over 100-year history in this work. We have over 90 affiliated member groups in approximately 25 countries from a wide range of faith traditions, including Christianity, Buddhism, Islam, Shintoism, Hinduism, and Sikhism, among others. With member organisations, regional co-ordinators, and national chapters around the world, the International Association for Religious Freedom is well placed to obtain local perspectives on religious freedom concerns and issues.

Building interfaith co-operation in the world.

 

The International Interfaith Centre was inaugurated in Oxford, UK on 6 December 1993, inspired by the 1993 Year of Interreligious Understanding and Cooperation. As a result of the increasing amount and variety of interfaith activity around the world, it was perceived that a need could be met by an international, interfaith centre which was informed about all these different efforts and able to encourage continuing interfaith understanding and cooperation.

 

A Trust was established by the two oldest international interfaith organizations, the International Association for Religious Freedom (IARF) and the World Congress of Faiths, together with Westminster College, Oxford, which had a highly regarded Department of Theology and the Study of Religions. The work receives continual support from the trustees, patrons, volunteers and international advisors and consultants.

The IIFWP (Interreligious and International Federation for World Peace) was founded in the hope of building a world in which peoples, cultures, races, religions, and nationalities could live together in harmony, mutual respect, cooperation, and universal prosperity.

 

This vision of world peace underlies all the programs and activities of IIFWP. Specific initiatives may pursue this quest from distinctive vantage points or in relation to a particular constituency, for example, youth, academia, religion, diplomacy, politics, community activism or the arts.

 

IIFWP recognizes that the task of achieving genuine peace requires an integrated, cross-disciplinary, and collaborative approach among all disciplines, various organizations, cultures and peoples.

 

That is, peace cannot be established merely by academics, by politicians, or by religious leaders alone. Therefore the tendency for peace efforts to be fragmented and disunified has to be overcome.

 

A unique feature of IIFWP's vision is the inclusion of the world's religious leaders, who bear the wisdom of their respective traditions, in the pursuit of peace. This affirmation of religion's contribution is fully interreligious in spirit, welcoming the participation of all the world's great religious traditions.

The Multifaith Action Society, a registered charity under the society's act, was founded in 1972 as an ecumenical society and has become fully interfaith in nature and purpose.

 

From the outset the Society has sought ways to bring together the many faith groups which characterize Vancouver and to sponsor socially responsible and relevant initiatives relating to the common good. It founded the first food bank program of Vancouver, for instance, and has sponsored, planned and carried out conferences dealing with such issues as public sector alternatives dispute resolution (bus strikes), ethical dimensions of clean water distribution and ways of supporting Vancouver's 4-pillar drug treatment program.

 

It has promoted interfaith dialogue by bringing together members of different faith communities. Our first Christian-Sikh dialogue was held in 2000 and currently we are involved in a substantial Christian-Jewish dialogue, both of which were designed to achieve a significant level of mutual understanding.

 

We recognize and respect our differences across our faith communities, while at the same time seeking to celebrate the values we hold in common. We expect to learn from each other and assume from our experience that the faith we each espouse will be enriched by interaction with those of other beliefs and traditions.

The New Zealand Sikh Society (Wellington) Inc. was Incorporated on 24 June 1991. The main objective of the society is to preach the teachings of Sikhism, to provide religious services and ceremonies, to foster a better understanding among the people of New Zealand about Sikh religion, to promote harmony among the followers of various religious creeds in New Zealand and to promote Punjabi language. (Punjabi is spoken by roughly 5,600 people in New Zealand)

Hosted by veteran journalist Bob Abernethy and produced by Thirteen/WNET New York, the acclaimed one-of-a-kind TV show examines religion's role -- and the ethical dimensions -- behind top news headlines.

 

Correspondents Saul Gonzalez, Fred de Sam Lazaro, Tim O'Brien, Deborah Potter, Betty Rollin, Lucky Severson and Judy Valente, along with managing editor Kim Lawton, travel around the nation and the globe to explore how issues of faith, religion and ethics shape both national and international events. Newsmakers, scholars and policy analysts also provide insightful perspectives in roundtable discussions from the show's studio in Washington, DC.

 

Winner of more than 115 industry awards -- including the Sigma Delta Chi, the Gracie Allen, the Chicago TV Fest, New York Festival and CINE Golden Eagle -- the program has been hailed by the Religion Newswriters' Association for setting "a national standard for balanced and fair coverage of religious topics." Phil Mushnick with The New York Post says, "Week after week, R & E similarly delivers, helping restore one's faith in, of all things, television." And Charles Honey of The Grand Rapids Press writes, "As far as news stories go, there are none better."

 

To complement the program's weekly broadcast, RELIGION & ETHICS NEWSWEEKLY offers a Web site, pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics, and a companion viewers' guide. The Web site features individual show transcripts, streaming video of weekly reports, full transcripts of interviews with notable guests, related articles dealing with significant issues in religion and ethics news, a list of related resources and an online pressroom featuring downloadable versions of the program press kit and quarterly newsletter, as well as detailed summaries of individual stories. Audio and video podcasts of the program are also available. The Viewers' Guide, which includes essays, discussion questions and resources, may be downloaded from the Web site or ordered free of charge by writing to "Religion & Ethics Guide," P.O. Box 245, Little Falls, NJ 07424-0245.

REonline is a new initiative, which has incorporated theREsite, and will grow to become a complete Virtual RE Resources Centre. The latest developments and additions to REonline are listed on the 'New on the site' page.

The project is supported by a number of educational trusts and charities, and a team of specialist contributors and technical developers maintain the site.

The Council exists to promote dialogue and respectful understanding between the two faith communities, and to work together towards the elimination of racism and religious discrimination in NZ society. CCM has been established for ten years.

Valerie Jabir

09 6245940

The Interfaith Alliance and The Interfaith Alliance Foundation - the national non-partisan advocacy voice of the interfaith movement. Our 150,000 members are from more than 70 faith traditions and people of good will united to: Promote democratic values, Defend religious liberty, Challenge hatred and religious bigotry and Reinvigorate informed civic participation.

 

We are The Interfaith Alliance and The Interfaith Alliance Foundation. Founded in 1994 by an interfaith group of religious leaders, we work to promote interfaith cooperation around shared religious values to strengthen the public’s commitment to the American values of civic participation, freedom of religion, diversity, and civility in public discourse and to encourage the active involvement of people of faith in the nation’s political life. We are local religious leaders and activists, some with years of political experience, some just starting out. We work in our communities, in state capitals, in Washington, DC and wherever else our voice is needed.

 

Our 150,000 members across the nation represent diverse religious and spiritual traditions – Jews, Christians,Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs – 70 faith traditions in all, as well as many Agnostics and Atheists. In Washington, DC, our national office works on Capitol Hill and with the White House, in coalition with denominational bodies and other activist organizations to make sure our unique message is communicated when and where it matters most. Our 47 local Alliances are active in their communities on local issues, carrying The Interfaith Alliance message to decision-makers, the media, and the public at large.

Radha Sahar's site that has information on many of the world's faiths. Also has useful links to information on many faiths: http://www.thesacredsite.com/links.htm

The World Conference of Religions for Peace is the largest international coalition of representatives from the world's great religions who are dedicated to achieving peace. Respecting cultural differences while celebrating our common humanity, Religions for Peace is active on every continent and in some of the most troubled places on earth, creating multi-religious partnerships that mobilize the moral and social resources of religious people to address their shared problems.

 

Religious communities are, without question, the largest and best-organized civil institutions in the world today, claiming the allegiance of billions of believers and bridging the divides of race, class and nationality. They are uniquely equipped to meet the challenges of our time: resolving conflicts, caring for the sick and needy, promoting peaceful co-existence among all peoples.

 

Religions for Peace helps these communities unleash their enormous potential for common action. Some of Religions for Peace's recent successes include mediating dialogue among warring factions in Sierra Leone; building a new climate of reconciliation in Bosnia and Kosovo; organizing an international network of religious women's organizations; and launching an extraordinary program to assist the millions of children affected by Africa's AIDS pandemic, the Hope for African Children Initiative.

The World Faiths Development Dialogue was set up in 1998 as an initiative of James D. Wolfensohn, President of the World Bank and Lord Carey, then Archbishop of Canterbury. Its aim is to facilitate a dialogue on poverty and development among people from different religions and between them and the international development institutions.

 

The focus is on the relationship between faith and development and how this is expressed, both in considering decisions about development policy and in action with impoverished communities all over the world.