[Episcopal News Service]
Archbishop of Canterbury George L. Carey has underscored the importance of dialogue and the promotion of understanding through interfaith relations. At a recent interfaith meeting in North London, Carey said that the interfaith dimension had been a large and unexpected aspect of his own ministry.
'You may have heard me say it before, but I cannot resist saying again, how surprised I would have been, when I became archbishop over 11 years ago, to know just how much of my time was going to be spent in developing understanding, friendship and cooperation between the different faiths,' he said.
Carey expressed his sadness that the Church of England's General Synod debate on Christian witness had been misinterpreted as a drive for conversion. 'What our debate affirmed was that, as Christians, we have a responsibility to share our faith sensitively and respectfully. The Christian message includes a gracious invitation to others to hear the words of Christ. But that is a very different thing from crusading belligerence, or any attempt to coerce others to believe what we believe.'
Carey said that personal friendships had developed among different faith leaders. 'We have learned that there is no substitute for personal contact in encounters which lead to firm friendships; no substitute for hospitality, graciously given and graciously received; no substitute for wisdom and learning, shared amongst us; no substitute for differences honestly expressed and courteously heard,' he added. 'But above all, as we struggled to cope with the challenge of September 11th and all that it has meant for our different faith communities, no substitute for standing together when one of us is threatened.'
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