In the age of globalized human community and shrinking world, interfaith dialogue and action is no longer just commendable endeavor but a historical necessity. Dialogue is not mere communication of words, but a new way of understanding, thinking and reflecting on the religious belief of others and their meaning. The faith community now have to move further the agenda from inter-religious tolerance to understanding, acceptance, respect, celebration and action.  Developing a new initiatives and agenda for cooperation are essential in our age of history.

In the aftermath of 9/11, media in the U.S. and the Arab and broader Muslim worlds became weapons of war, driving polarization through coverage that often provided only one perspective. As a result, journalists also became targets of war, victims of both governments and insurgent groups.

Too often in history, as well as in the contemporary world, religions – or at least religious symbols - have been used to motivate division, hostilities and fan conflicts. Are religions fuel or water for conflicts? This question must lead our reflection as men and women who want to make religion play a positive role for world peace.

Actually the true causes of violence are to be searched in a complexity of reasons. One is the relationship between poverty, lack of future perspectives, economic stagnation or decline and violence. Violence is fed by injustice.

I start my submission with a quotation written by Mahatma Gandhi, which was published in one of his magazines, Harijan Sewak, on 23.06.1946 on page number 186-87.

"Today people in West speak of Jesus but in fact their lives are being guided by the inspiration which is totally against Jesus.  Just as in the same way there are people who talk of Islam but in reality they follow the "Shaitan."  This is the miserable position of we people believing in religion (I would like to add that the same contradictory lives are being led by Hindus, Buddhists and Jains etc.).

Violence – whatever else it may mean – is the ultimate means of communicating the absence of love.

Early in the path towards violence, there is a break down in connection to home, school and family.

Alexander Graham Bell wrote, “I feel in this child I have seen more of the Divine than has been manifest in anyone I’ve ever met.”