Reflecting on Parliament of the World Religions 2023

Vesper Society believes that a just society begins when everyone is well and respected as a human being. Our spiritual life is an integral part of being well and we reflect on the Parliament of World Religions (PoWR) that was held in Chicago, the week of August 14, 2023. 7,000 practitioners of faith, academicians, faith seekers, and activists from 95 countries and 210 faith traditions gathered to reflect on the theme “A Call to Conscience: Defending Freedom and Human Rights.”

PoWR was convened 130 years ago at what is now the Art Institute of Chicago. Swami Vivekananda introduced Hinduism to the US in 1893 and called for religious tolerance and an end to fanaticism. One hundred years later the Parliament was incorporated in Chicago with the 1993 gathering exploring how to address the critical issues facing the world. One of Vesper Society’s early supporters, the late Rev. William Lesher (president of PLTS – Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary 1973-1979 and Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago 1979-1997) was president of PoWR from 2003-2010.

Christianity has dominated the American landscape and that is changing. Pew Research Center projects that by 2070, Christians could fall below 50% of the US population. On a global scale, Islam is growing faster than any other major religion and if this trend continues, Muslims will nearly equal the number of Christians by 2050. That is why it was fascinating to see hundreds of faith traditions at the Parliament.

Rev. Dr. Moses Penumaka leads the Theological Education for Emerging Ministries at PLTS in Berkeley that has long been promoting interfaith studies and will soon be introducing groundbreaking curriculum for Native Americans. We asked him to reflect on these questions.

The Sikh community provided daily vegetarian meals called langar for the convention participants. Why is this significant?

Guru Nanak Singh started the Langar (means anchor) to connect the Sikh community to the Gurdwara where volunteers prepare the meals. It is both a community and spiritual ritual. At this year’s Parliament, Sevaks (volunteers) from Chicago and 120 Sevaks from London served 2 to 3,000 attendees per day. It was a great witness of hospitality. However, I did notice that white people were served more courteously than people of color and that was disheartening. It is a reminder that implicit bias continues to be present in all our lives.

Was there a particular message that impressed you?

I was impressed by the large presence of women. We listened to voices of women defending and upholding “Jameen, Jan, and Janam: land, people, and life (Hindi).” We heard from those impacted by climate change, we learned about violation of human rights in many parts of the world, and the rights of Indigenous peoples were highlighted.

In this fragmented polarized world, why is a global ethic essential?

The Parliament states “The Global Ethic responds to an urgent practical need as well as a deep spiritual hunger for clear moral guidance on the most fundamental issues of human life and conduct. It expresses a minimal set of principles for committed action in a world torn by violence, religious and racial hatred, oppression of women and minority groups, extremes of wealth and poverty, and the growing threat of climate change and destruction of the natural world…. There must be changes in people’s minds, hearts, and ways of life.”

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the English version of Gustavo Gutierrez’s A Theology of Liberation. His writing remains prophetic. Why is this relevant today?

Freedom and liberation are at the core of all faith traditions. The purpose of freedom is celebrating, defending, and upholding the dignity of all life on the planet and the universe. One of the pivotal points of liberation theology emphasizes that God takes the side of the poor, the marginalized, and the exploited. Praxis of faith in today’s world can make or break the world. Therefore, all faith traditions with a global ethic need to give preferential option for defending and upholding the freedom and dignity of all life.

At Vesper Society, we believe the act of reflection and the act of doing social justice will bring us closer to our vision of a world that protects human dignity and enhances human potential.