WSF Participants Discuss Religion, Conflict, Peace
Representatives of more than fifteen confessions and religions gathered at a Sunday morning inter-religious celebration at the Fifth World Social Forum (WSF) in Porto Alegre, Brazil.
Representatives of more than fifteen confessions and religions gathered at a Sunday morning inter-religious celebration at the Fifth World Social Forum (WSF) in Porto Alegre, Brazil. Organized by the Inter-religious Coalition Porto Alegre and its partners, the celebration brought together members of the Brazilian Lutheran Church, the Anglican Church, the Roman-Catholic Church and the Episcopal Church as well as members of the inter-religious community.
"Religious conflicts are a reality that societies all over the world have to live with," said Rifat Kassis, the international coordinator of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Ecumenical Accompaniment Program in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI). Kassis pointed to areas like Northern Ireland, the Sudan, Sri Lanka, emphasizing, "What is happening in the Middle East is not unique."
Siddharta, leader of an inter-religious Ashram in Bangalore, India, recounted an incident two years ago in the West Indian State of Gujarat when a train compartment was bombed and 58 people were killed by unknown offenders.
