What is "interfaith"?

Interfaith recognises that we are all of "one spirit", whether we have a particular faith or not. It's about having an awareness of our sacredness, or being "spiritual" beings, rather than being religious or having any particular belief.

Interfaith means different things to different people. Whilst it's developed its purpose well beyond this now, the seminary that offered my ministry training, the One Spirit Interfaith Foundation, began as a group of leaders from different faith traditions (Judaism, Christian, Hindu and others), who wanted to start exploring the boundaries of their own faiths by learning about the beliefs of others. The common purpose of each faith, as well as the typically shared principal teachings quickly became apparent to them (even if expressed in different ways and using different stories and metaphors). Hence, rabbis, ministers, imams and others were soon working together in the interests of bringing compassion, healing and spiritual meaning into the world, rather than acting in some sort of competition.

What is my "interfaith"? In this brief video I attempt to answer this common question. Simply click on the play button above to watch.

Interfaith could just stop at this idea of inter-working, comparing, sharing prayer and works of compassion, and learning from each others’ faiths. Certainly, interfaith respects the views and peaceful practices of people of all faiths and none. However, for individuals who come together from different faiths, (e.g. wanting a meaningful blessing for their marriage) or perhaps where one person in a couple has a faith whilst their partner tends toward agnosticism, interfaith provides a way for both persons’ backgrounds to be honoured. So too, is it a welcome sacred space for people who often feel alienated by traditional religion to be received fully equally, e.g. because of their sexuality, ex-marital status or gender.

For me, interfaith goes even further, taking in non-religious beliefs such as spiritualism, love for Mother Earth and Carl Jung’s theories about the Collective Unconscious. It is about ‘mixed spirituality’ (those of us who pick and choose how we view and connect with the Divine, perhaps from mixing from different faiths, but without being tied to particular images of God, rituals, orders of service or practices). It can apply to mystics of any persuasion, and to those who look into their hearts to find meaning and purpose for their lives. In short, it’s about the infinite number of ways of finding our true selves and our place and connection in the Cosmos in whatever way is most meaningful and, typically, unique for us. Gender is sacred. So is each one of us.

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