Canada: Women Of Different Faiths Find Common Ground…

“It’s great to meet people from other communities, ethnic groups and religions to learn new points of view. But it’s exciting to know that, most of the time, we all feel the same. We all have good in common.”

Source/Credit: Ahmadiyya Times | News Watch |
The Spec | By Molly Hayes | June 10, 2012

Teach the women and they’ll teach their families; that was the idea behind a women-only interfaith symposium at Saltfleet High School this weekend.

Eighty five women from six religions with six different gods gathered Sunday afternoon to learn about each other’s faith.

“It’s so that we all feel free, enjoy the company of each other but also feel comfortable to speak freely,” said organizer Imrana Alamgir.

“There’s also a very important role for women in building a healthy society … mothers are very important. The more we know, the more we can tell our children and the more peaceful our world will be.”

The group heard from six different speakers representing Buddhism, Sikhism, Christianity, Islam, Judaism and Hinduism.

The point of the afternoon — titled God According to My Faith — was to learn about each religion’s God, and the differences between each. But they came to see just how much they all had in common.

“The (other) speakers were very informative and I find great joy in that,” said Linda Sanderson, a teacher at Hamilton’s Samudra Buddhist Centre.

“At the end of the day, we want the same things. At the very least, we want tolerance and at the very most, we want eternal peace.”

This was the second interfaith symposium put on by the Ahmadiyya Muslim community, the first held last year — also at Saltfleet — on the Role of Women in Building a Healthy Society.

The majority of Sunday’s attendees were members of that community, but organizers were also excited to see a number of new guests.

Adia Sahia, president of the regional Ahmadiyya Muslim Association, was pleasantly surprised by the talk.

“It’s great to meet people from other communities, ethnic groups and religions to learn new points of view,” she said.

“But it’s exciting to know that, most of the time, we all feel the same. We all have good in common.”

-- mhayes@thespec.com | 905-526-3214

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