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Religious Pluralism and Interfaith Literacy

Between and among persons who identify themselves as members of a collective religious tradition, two important dialogues exist. Within the same tradition, there are waves of change through lineage and interpretation that oscillate around a core experience of beliefs, belongings, and behavior. These dialogues can keep the internal understandings fresh and shared among religious leaders and followers.  That internal dialogue is both challenged and enhanced by then striving to create friendships and promote understandings across difficult differences without causing fear and strife.   

The DI principles provide guidelines for how to think and to behave in order to grow and change in the inter- and intra-religious dialogues. You can read the Dialogue Institute’s Ten Principles of Dialogue HERE and also find links to translations in multiple languages.

Learning Activities:

Buddhism

Buddhism has existed in the world for thousands of years, and currently is the fourth largest religious group on the planet, encompassing a population of approximately 520 million people (almost 7% of the world population).

Buddhism first emerged in the 5th Century B.C.E. in the Indian subcontinent with the birth of Siddhartha Gautama, later to be known as the Buddha, or the “Enlightened One.” Born in the foothills of the Himalayas (now known as Nepal), Gautama was thrust into a life of nobility, as his father was the ruler of the Shakya tribe, a population made up mainly of warriors and nobility (“kshatriya” caste). Prophesied at birth of being either a great king or a great warrior, Gautama was kept sheltered by his father in order to protect and preserve his son’s destination. Living a life of extravagance and happiness, Gautama grew and began a family of his own through marriage and bearing a son. Yet there was a part of him that was curious about what existed outside the confines of his home. Eventually he left for a day and witnessed four examples of somewhat painful realities that had been kept from him all of his life: aging, illness, death and asceticism. These revelations were the catalyst that led to Gautama’s renouncing of his family and life status, and led him to become the founder of what we now know today as Buddhism.

  • For the first several years of his new lifestyle, Gautama lived among Hindu ascetics, entirely devoted to religion and practiced extreme self-denial and discipline. 

  • Eventually, Gautama realized that in order to live a life of serenity and enlightenment, one must strike a balance between self-indulgence and self-denial, later known as the “Middle Path.”

    • Under the Bodhi Tree, now seen as sacred to Buddhists, Gautama meditated and achieved enlightenment, undergoing a new identification as the Buddha.

  • Buddhism, though a worldwide religion, is made up of many philosophical foundations that were taught by the Buddha himself.

    • Four Noble Truths:

      • 1. All life has inevitable suffering, or “dukkha.”

      • 2. The source of this suffering is desire.

      • 3. Once desire for impermanent things is destroyed, suffering will end.

      • 4. The way to achieve enlightenment is the Eightfold Path.

    • Nirvana: the final goal of Buddhism (the blowing out of the candle); to be relieved of “self” and false senses of reality, sometimes referred to as a “heaven-like state.”

Types of Buddhism:

  • Theravada Buddhism - known as “monastic Buddhism”; in order to reach nirvana, one must live as a monk or nun and withdraw from family, work, sex and money. This is perceived by many as extremely close to the teachings of the Buddha, very conservative in nature.

  • Mahayana Buddhism - more inclusive view on reaching enlightenment, presenting a stronger role for lay people and new forms of ritual. The idea of a bodhisattva emerged from this branch of the faith.

    • A bodhisattva is one who has attained enlightenment but renounces nirvana in order to help others relieve themselves of suffering.

  • Vajrayana Buddhism - commonly associated with the Dalai Lama, this branch tends to favor only a select group of individuals who teach of certain “shortcuts” that are available on the journey to reach enlightenment. The impermanence of existence is stressed heavily, illustrated by the creation and subsequent destruction of sand mandalas.

  • Pure Land Buddhism - originated in Japan, this branch of Buddhism relies on the Amida Buddha (“Buddha of Boundless Light”) for help in seeking enlightenment; Amida Buddha is seen as a savior, similar to Jesus Christ in the Protestant Christian faith.

  • Engaged Buddhism - different from other forms of Buddhism as it concerns itself with this world only, this branch stresses the interbeing of all humans and adopts Buddhist principles to problems of social or economic nature. Founded by Thich Nhat Hanh, a Vietnamese Zen Buddhist monk born in the early 20th Century.

  • As early as the 1850s, Buddhist temples and followers were found in the United States, primarily on the West Coast in areas such as San Francisco; this was influenced greatly by the presence of Chinese immigrants working within mining and railroad construction, bringing with them not only Buddhist religious traditions, but also traditions of Daoism and Confucianism. 

  • In the 1890s missionaries brought Pure Land Buddhism to areas such as Hawaii and California, appealing to many Americans as they could see similarities between Christianity and this new Eastern faith.

    • Popularity grew in the early 20th Century, and in 1944 the movement became known as the Buddhist Churches of America (BCA), holding Sunday services similar to Christian establishments.

  • Zen Buddhism, a branch of Mahayana Buddhism, was introduced to the United States in 1893; this school of Buddhism stressed awareness, strict meditation and enlightenment.

    • The “Beat Generation” of the 1950s were influenced by this style of Buddhism, and through writers such as Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg it was brought into the makings of what would turn into the counterculture of the 1960s.

  • Derived from Theravada Buddhism, vipassana, or “insight meditation,” has been successfully promoted in the United States.

    • In 1975, the non-profit organization the Insight Meditation Society was founded, and is rooted in the study of Theravada Buddhism in the U.S.

Site Visit

Buddhist Meditation service: Chenrezig (Tibetan) Buddhist Temple 953 N. Marshall St.,  Philadelphia, PA 19123.

Learning Activities:

Judaism

Judaism is the oldest of the three monotheistic religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

  • All three trace back their roots to the patriarch, Abraham.

  • Monotheism - belief and worship in one god.

    • Early Judaism recognized more than one god, yet only worshipped one.

Jews claim to have been chosen by God as his people, a relationship formed based on a covenant revealed to Abraham by God; this agreement stated that God would fulfill the promises of his followers if they remained faithful to Him always.

  • This has been represented within the faith as being held in high regard, setting an example for others.

  • Both ethnic and religious identity began combined, then after the Enlightenment period were perceived as two separate aspects of identification.

  • As opposed to Eastern religions who view time in cycles, Judaism views time as linear, with a constant presence of God from beginning to end.

  • Morality stems from the belief that God is entirely “good” and created the world that way, and “evil” is a choice made by human beings.

Tanakh: the title for Jewish scriptures. These include: Torah (teachings), Nevi’im (prophets), and Ketuvim (writings).

  • Referred to as the Hebrew Bible within Judaism, and the Old Testament within Christianity.

Moses: called upon by God to lead the Hebrew people out of Egypt where they had been enslaved (commemorated by Passover).

  • Also was spoken to by God atop Mount Sinai and given the sacred Ten Commandments.

“Promised Land”: the land originally given to Abraham by God during the covenant, becoming the center of Judaism and home to the Hebrew Tribal Confederacy; the twelve Hebrew tribes were led by the twelve sons of Jacob, patriarch and grandson of Abraham.

  • Within this land was Jerusalem, center of Judaism and home to the first Jewish Temple built by King Solomon in the 10th Century B.C.E.; this was the site of most Jewish ritual and practice until its destruction in 586 B.C.E. by the Babylonians.

Biblical vs. Rabbinic Judaism: After the temple was rebuilt, renovated, and destroyed again during the common era, many Jews dispersed to areas around the world. Many reasons for the conflicts Jews were involved in during Biblical times were due to their tradition of sacrifices. Rabbinic Judaism emerged through the teaching of rabbis, those who asserted leadership over Jewish communities but were not considered priests. These teachers were trained to lead worship and readings in synagogues or homes depending on the size of their congregation.

  • In 90 C.E., the Tanakh was organized and studied by a gathering of rabbis, incorporating the sacred texts into Jewish law. This event was called the Midrash.

    • Talmud: central text of Rabbinic Jewish law and theology. Contains early rabbinical writings and later commentary, known as Mishnah and Gemara.

      • There are claims of two different versions of the Talmud: one written down but incomplete in 400 C.E. (Jerusalem Talmud), and one primary version written down in 500 C.E. (Babylonian Talmud).

Halakah: totality of Jewish law, the “way” to live as laid down in sacred texts by observing 613 laws, or mitzvot.

Synagogues in Philadelphia

Mikveh Israel  (Orthodox) - Founded in 1740 by Sephardic Jews -- 44 N. 4th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106

Rodeph Shalom (Reform) -  Founded in 1795 by German-speaking, Ashkenazi Jews -- 615 North Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA 19123

Beth Sholom (Conservative) - Founded in 1918, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright -- 8231 Old York Road, Elkins Park, PA 19027

Learning Activities:

Extra Resources