The South Pacific Division’s Adventist Mission department, in collaboration with the Greater Sydney Conference, held an interfaith symposium aiming to equip Christians to connect with people of other faiths.
Themed “Building Friendships in a Diverse World: Connecting with our Hindu and Muslim friends”, the event aimed to equip attendees with the understanding, confidence and cultural awareness needed to have respectful conversations about faith with Hindus and Muslims.
Held January 22-23, the symposium was designed primarily for pastors, chaplains and teachers who work in multi-faith environments and gathered 40 attendees.
Two international speakers were invited to give workshops at the event. Pastor Umesh Nag, director of the Centre of South Asian Religions, highlighted the importance of learning about various religions, “as God’s commission was to reach all the nations”. “My major objective was to give training to the pastors and leaders, to understand how we can serve Hindus and bring them to Christ,” he said.
Jess Stekla, chaplain at Hills Adventist College, said she attended in order to understand the pre-existing assumptions students may have and how she can explain the Bible better for them to understand. “We have a lot of kids of all religions and backgrounds,” she said. “Understanding where they’re coming from helps me explain our beliefs better.”
As a part of the symposium, Castle Hill church hosted an afternoon event on January 24 where members of the community were welcome to attend. The program featured many of the same themes that had been discussed on the previous two days.
Global Mission director Dr Wayne Krause said it is important for Adventists to engage with this topic. “It helps us build healthier communities when our chaplains, teachers and pastors learn to relate to these other major world religions in a positive way,” he said.
