US Attorney
Scott W. Brady said:
The actions … represent the worst of humanity
It is appalling
that the person who murdered the eleven people and wounded others have used
bible quotations on social media to fuel his anti-Semitism. This is of course
nothing new, which makes it even worse. We who confess ourselves to be
Christians need to work even harder to stop this abuse of God’s name.
 |
| Late Archbishop Nathan Söderblom, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate in 1930, looks down on the panel. I think he would have been pleased with the conversation. |
With this outrageous
background it felt as a positive and constructive initiative that the
Archbishop of Church of Sweden, Antje Jackelén, gathered a group of deacons and
pastors on Friday around issues of dialogue between Jews, Muslims and Christians.
We who are ordained and employed by Church of Sweden on national level stand
under her oversight. Hence she gathers us twice every year for deliberations.
This time the theme was
Learning and teaching in our different traditions
The panel
consisted of Morton Narrowe, former Rabbi of the Stockholm Synagogue, Mohammad
Fazlhashemi, professor of Islamic Theology and Philosophy at Uppsala University
and Antje Jackelén, Archbishop of Church of Sweden.
It is
difficult to cover a one and a half hour long conversation in a blog post.
Suffice it to say, most of the time they were in agreement. To me that in
itself was a good thing. That religious leaders from different traditions meet
in peace and understanding.
One thing I
would like to comment, though. The moderator, Jakob Wiren, theological secretary
at the Archbishop’s office, has published a book on Christian Education, where
he also speaks about the way different religions teach faith. He claimed that textbooks
in school often describe people of faith in a stereotype way. If there for
instance is a photo of a Jew, he is often orthodox with ringlets. The same with
Muslims and Christians. Always the extremes. He wished for the education of school
teachers to take this into account and safeguard that they are aware of this
risk. Religious people are often alienated or exoticized.
Right now
my wife is studying religion at Mid Sweden University. She shares a lot with me
and I am under the impression that her studies are taking this into account.
The literature and the teacher portrays the different religious traditions with
respect and in their web seminars they discuss exactly the issue that Jakob
Wirén pointed to. That is reassuring to know.
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| The illustration shows Judaism as a Tree of Life. |
My wife
also showed me a report she and her study group produced while she studied at
Sigtuna Folk High School in the early eighties. She trained to become a Parish
Educator and this study had the title:
Judaism. What can the roots teach us?
She has
been working with Christian Education since then. With every age – from infant
to old aged. In Sweden and Southern Africa. This also belongs to the full
picture. While we as preachers have struggled with our theology on the relation
between Christianity and Judaism, the Parish Educators have known better. It is
important to know that this challenge lies with every Christian. How to look at
the other with respect and curiosity.
I am also
happy to be part of the Preaching Blog named Tala väl. (Literally: Speak well -
meaning that we have to talk about other people of faith in a benevolent
manner. And especially about our Jewish siblings.)
Let us
continue the good work and always avoid describing the other in a way that is
untrue. The rules of late Bishop Krister Stendahl still stands:
1. When trying to understand another religion, you should ask the adherents of that religion and not its enemies.
2. Don't compare your best to their worst.
3. Leave room for “holy envy.”
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