Interfaith in the age of Trump

In the aftermath of past atrocities I have felt compelled to say something, to reflect on how the work which I do is connected to, or responds to, or intersects with those shocking and horrendous events.

So, following the events of 6th January 2021, where am I, where is interfaith, what can I say or do?

Just over five years ago, in the days following terrorist outrages in Paris, I sat down and wrote about how, in crisis, it is easy to pull away from one another. I said that in spite of that, it was more important than ever that spaces for dialogue existed. Furthermore, I said that there was a need for courageous dialogue: to listen to and hear stories and experiences which we might find uncomfortable. Achieving such a dialogue was and is not easy for it demands that barriers (both physical and, critically, emotional) to participation be removed.

That’s easier to write than to achieve for in practice it means creating a space where all feel welcome and safe, which in turn requires reflection on why some spaces and places might be more or less welcoming than others. It means considering the needs of those participating, and valuing the experiences and unique identities of all participants. It means recognizing that some people simply have the luxury of time and financial security to take part in such processes while others do not. It means considering that such spaces often mean less for those in the majority than those in the minority (after all, there are more spaces where someone in the majority will feel more comfortable than someone in a minority). Fundamentally, it means creating a space in which multiple truths can be articulated and be heard, having established a level of trust which makes that truth telling safe. In other words, to achieve such a space is a radical and hard undertaking, but that is the standard to which I believe interfaith can and must aspire.

This week, and after four and a half years of unchecked lies and intolerance, what does interfaith have to say or contribute? One thing is clear to me (as if it even needs to be said) there can be no dialogue with people willing to murder in pursuit of a supremacist agenda. There can be no accommodation of those values.

For me, creating a space which brings perpetrators and victims together and then which seeks to ‘understand’ the motivations of the aggressor serves only to violate the victim further, and protect the perpetrator. For me, that is the opposite of what interfaith dialogue is for. With that said though, I do wonder about the following question: is it more than just those willing to perpetrate physical violence who should be excluded from dialogue, is it also those whose actions and inactions enable that culture of violence to take root? Surely an essential pre-requisite of engaging in dialogue is an opening which enables reflection on ones own actions in perpetuating hate and violence.

So what can interfaith contribute at this time when the divisions within societies are so starkly laid out before us?

The promise of interfaith dialogue has always been that aspiration towards inclusion. Indeed, in my experience, it is that radical inclusion promised by interfaith dialogue which makes interfaith both so tantalizing and vital. To create a space where minority and majority status can be subverted, that is the promise of a true interfaith space even if such a space can only exist in the minds of those who believe that such a space is possible. And we need some radical thinking. We need new ideas, for the path we are on has led us astray and we must look for a new one.

In seeking that new path though we, I, must be more attentive to the voices that I am not hearing, and not hearing for so many, many reasons. I, we, must seek a way to draw closer to those voices, so that they might be heard and then in doing so, for a new way forward to be found. That is my hope, and that is my promise. I would love to hear what you think.

As a footnote, I feel compelled to ask, where has interfaith been for the last four and a half years? It’s not an excuse to say that many people and organisations have not lived up to the promise of their visions, but I feel that interfaith and religious engagement work has a great deal more to offer than it has achieved in these years of tumult and pain.