Interfaith dialogue to return to city
8th annual World Religions Conference will discuss 'Forgiveness, Punishment and Justice'
James Goldie
Northern News Services
Friday, September 4, 2015
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
Forgiveness, punishment and justice can be divisive topics - especially when discussed in relation to religion or spiritual belief - and yet that is precisely what one group plans to do in Yellowknife later this month.
Public accountant Biswanath Chakrabarty will be sharing his perspective as a Hindu at the upcoming World Religion Conference. He has lived in Yellowknife for ten years and has always felt welcome. "Yellowknife is one of the best places where religious differences are set aside." - photo courtesy of Kalim Ahmed |
The gathering is known as the World Religions Conference (WRC), an annual event organized by the Ahmadiyya Muslim community in Calgary with the goal of bringing together people of different faiths and seeking commonalities between their views, ultimately to promote peace.
"The reason I support it is there's too much conflict and division between people in the world that traces back to their religion," said Brian McCutcheon, a practicing Buddhist who has lived in Yellowknife since 2000. He first participated in the WRC three years ago.
"If people can simply share their religious experiences and their beliefs in a positive way and show how that connects them to issues that are important to everyone, I think that's a positive thing," he said.
Similar WRC events are held across Canada.
"Whether it's a small city or a large city, we in Canada are a multicultural society and there are always misunderstandings about each other, about each faith," said organizer Sultan Mahmood.
According to Mahmood, Yellowknife has become a popular stop among volunteers from Calgary's Ahmadiyya Muslim community who help with presentations.
"When we talk about the welcoming attitudes of Yellowknifers, then there are other people who want to join us," he said. "We are so comfortable in Yellowknife. It's very peaceful."
That was what Biswanath Chakrabarty, a public accountant, experienced when he moved to Yellowknife 10 years ago. This year will be his first participating in the conference, sharing his insights from the perspective of Hinduism.
"I think Yellowknife is a great place, one of the best places where religious differences are set aside," he said.
This year, presenters from five religious or spiritual backgrounds - aboriginal, Hindu, uddhist and Christian -- will share their perspectives on the topic: "Forgiveness, Punishment and Justice."
Both McCutcheon and Chakrabarty pointed out that they do not speak on behalf of all Buddhists and Hindus, respectively.
"You have people who might come from Southeast Asia (for whom) it's their traditional family practice. And others of us, something in Buddhism has attracted us much later in life, so we didn't grow up with it," McCutcheon said.
Similarly, Chakrabarty wanted to be clear that he is not an expert or religious scholar.
"Hinduism is a 10,000-year-old religion, right? So the sky's the limit in terms of things to learn," he said.
However, he is happy to share what he does know.
Chakrabarty said the conference's message of peace and commonality between religions is why he agreed to participate.
"I don't think any religion should have any difference when we really think about creating a good human being in society," he said.
The WRC is set for Sept. 13 at the Tree of Peace Friendship Centre from 3 to 5:00 p.m.
The event will be moderated by Mayor Mark Heyck.
