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Since the population of Moscow includes people of more than 166 ethnic groups, the Moscow House of Nationalities was established in 1998. This was the first public institution established for interaction with the national communities of the Russian Federation.
Father Moon had both a very clear vision for how he felt the UN could increase its effectiveness as a global peacemaker and, perhaps even more importantly, as to how individuals and non-governmental bodies could most effectively contribute to world peace.
Rev. Dr. Sun Myung Moon will be remembered passionately by the coming generations for his concerted efforts towards building a viable peace and harmony in the world. He was, in fact, an angel of peace, family unity, and interfaith dialogue who invented new traditions and ways to organize universal gatherings of diverse religions/faiths in the contemporary world both within the forums of the UN and without for the sole purpose of learning the basic lessons of living together harmoniously and with compassion for one and all. Father Moon was not an armchair philosopher who philosophized idyllically in the realm of mere dreams and thoughts, but a karmayogi (a man of action) who firmly believed in practical actions now and here in the real world of our day-to-day existence.
Interfaith should be viewed as a relevant and important instrument of soft power. Interfaith dialogue and cooperation may also be an effective instrument of “track II” or “multi-track diplomacy.” If religion is your enemy, it still may be wise to keep your enemy near. If religion is your friend, then cultivate that friendship.
So far, interfaith dialogues have been usually focusing on getting to know better one another’s faith; such interfaith dialogues have reached their limitations. They are important as a stage of growth, but after reaching this level, we can and should go beyond it. We should reach unity in heart, we should learn to embrace one another, and more than that we should learn to live for the sake of the other religions.
We need to adapt a new belief, that the center of life is heart, not our heart, but God’s heart, who loves and cares for everyone as parents care for their children. Of course, not everyone has a religious or spiritual view of life, so we must also recognize the rights of these people and work in harmony with them to the extent it does not violate basic principles of God. That is why we must also motivate and encourage people to develop the spiritual side of their essence, in order to be truly human.
This paper attempted to touch on research about interfaith activities and peacebuilding in the present reality. It focused on offering valuable conceptualizations on peacemaking through interfaith dialogue organizations as peace building actors. The goal is to reveal methods and explore new dynamics that have the potential to enhance interfaith dialogue and promote peaceful coexistence among people and nations.
Faith leaders who are guided by the love of God are crucial in leading the path to peace. The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. stated that he grew to understand non-violence through Gandhi, who was influenced by Tolstoy. He also says he was greatly influenced by Jesus and his teaching that we must love our enemy. But the end is reconciliation; the end is redemption; the end is the creation of the beloved community. It is this type of spirit and this type of love that can transform opposers into friends.
Let us gather around this book of David in the spirit of interfaith cooperation, exalting in the love of God. Here in Jerusalem, surely we will find courage to embark on the road of understanding and collaboration among the members of the family of Abraham. Let us start reading it together. Let us teach the Psalms/Tehillim/Zabur to our children, to the leaders of the next generation, so they know that we are not strangers to each other. We are kin, the children of Abraham who found favor with God the Almighty.
I would like to take part in a wider conversation in which Jews and Muslims—separately and together—offer each other their versions of peace’s meaning for careful and thoughtful consideration. The outcomes of these conversations might supplement the debate about the Middle East conflict and its proposed political solutions with new alternatives. Better still, this conversation might generate organically Jewish and Muslim motivations for putting an end to hostilities.
It is easy to talk about forgiveness, but I know how difficult it is even in ordinary life. I cannot begin to imagine how difficult it is for those whose loved ones have been killed or tortured, but the only hope for healing and lasting peace is for us to mirror the forgiveness of God.
As responsible parents, how can we lead our beloved sons and daughters to the rituals of slaughter? As really responsible parents, we should throw away the differences of our religions, nationalities, races, colors, and all boundaries. We must stop sacrificing our children. Our responsibility as religious leaders and as children of God is to be the conscience of our people and nations.