Sustainability rather than Christ is focus of Inter-religious seminar in Austria.

Innsbruck: Conference underlines relevance of religion

Tenor at interreligious conference: It is essential to play an active role in shaping society - New theological "expert database" makes knowledge and contacts accessible

A central question of church and religious representatives as well as theologians was the focus of an interreligious conference that ended yesterday at the University of Innsbruck: How can churches and religious communities as well as theology not only make their relevance clear in social and political discourse, but also contribute in such a way that it is to the benefit of state and society? This question was discussed at the interreligious conference "Relevance of Churches and Religious Communities in Socio-Political Discourse" at the Catholic Theological Faculty of the University of Innsbruck on 10-11 May.

The tenor was that religions as well as theology must be actively involved in the shaping of society - "for the good of society in respect of the legal framework provided by the state", as the faculty said in a statement on Friday. "A democracy without a sense of religion also threatens to ignore the fundamental questions of life and society." All religious communities and state-registered denominations were represented at the conference, with the exception of the Old Alevi religious community, the Hindu religious community and the Jewish religious community.

All in all, it became clear that the representatives of the churches and religious communities "see the social relevance of their churches and religious communities dwindling" and that the willingness to engage in discursive debate as well as cooperation among and with each other is "an important element in solving the relevance problem", summarised the initiators of the conference, Innsbruck church law expert Prof. Wilhelm Rees and Prof. Johann Bair from the Department of Legal History of the Institute for Roman Law and Legal History at the University of Innsbruck. The conference was the continuation of a series of events that have taken place since 2015 under the general theme "Religion and State in Focus".

Thinking sustainability more broadly

As a representative of the Catholic Church, the President of the Catholic Lay Council, Wolfgang Mazal, referred to the ability of believers to engage in discourse. Only if they are in a position to "argue at the cutting edge of the times and actively raise concerns" will they be perceived and taken seriously by the public. "Religiosity" should not "evaporate" in society, therefore religious communities should also express themselves on all social issues with a religious background. "Sustainability, for example, is a question of the vitality of society. We have to think about this much more broadly, not just limited to the environment, the climate - work, family, reproduction are also part of it," Mazal reminded. Similarly, the Superintendent of the Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession, Oliver Dantine, pointed out that believers first had to gain "discourse skills" in order to engage productively. To this end, it would be helpful to "seek allies" and "forge alliances".

The President of the Islamic Religious Community (IGGÖ), Ümit Vural, explained that "religion always has a political dimension" and is "not a private matter". If it were to become a private matter, one would "fall back into the tolerance thinking of times long past". Today, "religious life is problematised" in various ways, and it is also implied that "the followers of Islam are striving to seize political power". In general, one has the impression that the religious community is being denied "sovereignty over the interpretation of its religion". What is overlooked in all this is that "the followers of Islam are a small minority" who, "like others, build bridges among themselves and to the people", help to shape and enrich "society" and ultimately also make "an important contribution to social peace".

Other speakers were Erdal Kalayci (Alevi Religious Community), Gerhard Weissgrab (Buddhist Religious Society), Walter Hessler (New Apostolic Church), René Alexander Krywult (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), Edwin Jung (Free Churches), Peter Haider (Unification Church), Johannes Beurle (Christian Community), Oliver Fichtberger (Seventh-day Adventist Church), Elias Metzel (Bahai religious community) and Gursharan Singh Mangat (Sikh Community Austria).

New "expert database" online

A new "expert database" of the Innsbruck Faculty of Theology offers a practical answer to the question of theology's participation in public discourse in particular. Under the title "You are looking for knowledge? We offer ...", topics and contact persons at the Innsbruck Faculty can now be found at the web address www.uibk.ac.at/theol/kommunikation/wissen.html.de.

"We see this as a contribution to a fruitful social discourse, especially in ideological and/or religious questions, and in this way we would like to make the competences that are available at our Faculty available to a broad public," says Dean Willhelm Guggenberger. "Especially in questions of sustainability, peace and interreligious dialogue, our faculty has outstanding, internationally renowned experts who are happy to be available for interviews, advice or further training."

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Cathcon:  The Catholic Church will dialogue with anyone, including Moonies, apart from their brother and sister traditionalists.