Muslims, United Methodists pledge to work for peace
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Hadja Fauziah Musa and the Rev. Julius Camanong, participants of
the Muslim-Christian Peace Building Dialogue, sign a covenant pledging
to continue efforts to improve relations between the faith groups. The
July 8-10 dialogue, held in Davao City, Philippines, included 20
delegates each from The United Methodist Church and from Muslim
communities. UMNS photos by Kathy L. Gilbert.
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By Kathy L. Gilbert*
July 24, 2007 | DAVAO CITY, Philippines (UMNS)
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The Rev. Jonathan Ulanday, a dialogue co-convener.
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As news of the killings of 14 Philippine Marines was splashed across
newspapers, a group of United Methodist Christians and Muslim religious
leaders met to discuss how to build a peaceful community.
The killing of the marines and other violent events are part of a
cycle of bloody conflicts that have been raging in Mindanao, an island
in the Philippines, for decades, according to Rebecca Asedillo, an
executive with the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries.
"The ones who suffer the most are innocent civilians," she added.
The Muslim-Christian Peace Building Dialogue was held July 8-10 at
the Marco Polo Hotel. The dialogue -- which included 20 delegates each
from The United Methodist Church and from Muslim communities -- was
sponsored by the denomination’s Davao Episcopal area and the Board of
Global Ministries.
Participants were invited from 10 areas around Mindanao where United
Methodist churches are established, explained the Rev. Jonathan Ulanday,
assistant to Bishop Leo Soriano, Davao area.
Ulanday and Aleem Mahmod Mala L. Adilao, regional chair of the Ulamas
of Southern Mindanao, were co-conveners of the event, which was
attended by all three United Methodist bishops in the Philippines:
Soriano, Solito K. Toquero, Manila area; and Benjamin A. Justo, Baguio
area.
"It is our hope that on this journey as children of one God we may realize genuine shalom," said Soriano.
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"I am convinced that peace is contagious--that it can spread from small as well as large examples," says the Rev. R. Randy Day.
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Soriano added that the unstable peace in Mindanao is not a religious
one. "But religion can be an important instrument," he said. "It is our
hope our churches will be one of the pieces that leads to peace."
Christians and Muslims were placed together as roommates for the
event and Ulanday joked, "Please don't change your room assignments. We
are attempting to blend two cultures, two faiths. It is good to see
sultans and bishops in the same room."
The Rev. R. Randy Day, top executive with the Board of Global
Ministries, told the participants, "the promotion of justice, peace and
freedom is a primary goal of my organization. This includes the building
of communities of peace involving people of different religious
backgrounds."
Day told the gathering his understanding of God was strongly
influenced by his experiences in the Philippines as a student at
Silliman University, Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental.
"I am convinced that peace is contagious--that it can spread from
small as well as large examples," he said. "I also believe that we who
are religious people bear a major responsibility for setting the
examples, the models, of peace."
The delegates worked together to create and sign a covenant pledging
to act together to bring a peaceful end to human rights violations; to
continue to hold peace dialogues; to education of members of local
churches and masjids, especially children, about each other's faith; and
to understand and respect each other's religious practices.
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United Methodist bishops from the Philippines, Solito K. Toquero (left) and Leo Soriano, sign the covenant.
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The covenant ends with: "We pray for grace and guidance as we spread the
good news of peace, understanding, respect and appreciation between
Muslims and Christians throughout Mindanao and the whole world."
"We need to start with our own people, our own faith communities of
United Methodists," said Asedillo. "Our intent is to motivate them to
extend a hand to their Muslim neighbors that together they may be
enabled to hear each other's stories."
One conference won't answer all the misunderstandings between Christians and Muslims she said, but there is hope.
"Through many turbulent times, people of different faiths have come
together, oftentimes against the tide of public opinion to dare to
believe that dialogue can happen, and when it happens, it can open up
spaces for relating genuinely with each other and working together in
efforts that would benefit the communities and build trust."
*Gilbert is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in Nashville, Tenn.
News media contact: Kathy L. Gilbert, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org.
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