To Sit at the Table or Not: How to Respond in Australia’s Multi-Religious Context
Friday, 5 March 2010
| David Turnbull - Senior Lecturer in Intercultural Studies, Tabor Adelaide
The challenge of this multi-religious environment for the Christian community requires a response. Should Christians sit at the table with people from other religions and engage them, or stay away and still attempt to communicate the good news of Jesus Christ? These two options were evident as I walked into the Convention Centre each day as an evangelical participant at Parliament, passing banners organised by the Acts 4: 12 Committee advocating that Jesus is the only way.
Numerous times Christians asked why I wanted to attend such an event. My inspiration came from the examples of Jesus’ desire to engage religious leaders and Paul’s willingness to dialogue in the marketplace of Athens and engage religious thinkers and spiritual seekers in discussion, exploring the fundamentals of life (Acts 17) and gaining contextual knowledge to use in his communication of the good news. This forum provided a valuable learning opportunity to achieve this by identifying the key contemporary questions about life that were being asked and generating ideas for possible responses.
So in attending was I compromising my own faith? I don’t believe so. There was no expectation in dialogue that one needed to forsake one’s own faith. It was more about learning from others which provided opportunities to present one’s own faith. The extent to which learning impacts on one’s own faith was where debate can occur. The challenge is in presenting the Christian distinctive of the uniqueness of Christ and the question of how to express this truth in such a way as to overcome historical and contemporary perceptions of Christians being arrogant, exclusive and culturally insensitive. Romans 15: 7 is an important Scriptural passage to consider in regards to acceptance. So being at the table assists this and allows relationships to develop where God, through the Holy Spirit, sows seeds of the good news that can take root and grow. The role of prayer is vital during this process. In light of this what are the consequences if God’s people do not come to the table and engage?
With globalisation and the resultant rise of secularization there are some wonderful opportunities to speak on religious issues. The challenge before Christian communities is to participate and seize opportunities to engage by sitting at the table.