The Squamish United Church is holding a meeting of the minds with an interfaith dialogue entitled East Meets West: Zen, Taoism and Christianity on Wednesday (Jan. 23).People of all faiths are invited to take part in the discussion guided by the Right Rev. Michael Ingham, bishop of the Greater Vancouver Diocese of New Westminster, along with Taoism and Zen Buddhism scholar Ray Grigg.
The talk, which is the fourth in a series that began nearly two years ago, will explore the differences and commonalities between traditions with the goal of achieving new perspectives, according to Rev. Daniel Bogert-O'Brien of Squamish United Church.
"My sense of what happens in the conversations is a deepening of appreciation for difference and for beginning to understand and see how people see the world differently in the various traditions," said Bogert-O'Brien. "It's also seeing the kinds of commonalities we share and how we begin to engage in taking the things that we hold as central and applying them to our lives and to our culture."
Bogert-O'Brien said he expects a solid turnout considering the first discussion on religious fundamentalism drew over 100 people in the fall of 2006. Since then, representatives from most of the town's religions contribute consistently. Both guest speakers write and study extensively on religious topics. Ingham is the author of Mansions of the Spirit: The Gospel in a Multi-Faith World, an introduction to interfaith dialogue. Meanwhile, Grigg has published seven books on Taoism and Zen Buddhism which have been translated into eight languages and printed around the world. Grigg said he's curious to see how the Eastern systems converge with the West.
"One possibility is a more metaphorical understanding of Christianity," he said. "Taoism is interesting because it really isn't a faith system at all, and we in the West have two categories - religion and philosophy - and really it doesn't fit into either because it isn't a belief system. It's more of a way of life."
Grigg said the interfaith dialogue will give people a chance to reflect on their own traditions in the context of others, and as a result, hopefully gain a better understanding of both. Since Taoism and Zen are fundamentally different than Western religions, it should make for an interesting evening for anybody looking to explore their own spirituality or simply interested in religious issues.
"There are people who are searching and there are also people who may be refining their own spiritual tradition, whatever that may be, and they're checking that out against others to find similarities or they're questioning their own tradition and wondering if there are alternatives or how it can be refined," said Grigg. "The first 100 years of Christianity was full of divergent views, so it's always been in the process of searching and finding and interpreting. So people can definitely use Zen and Taoism for that process."
East Meets West begins at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday (Jan. 23) at the Squamish United Church. Tickets are $5 at the door or in advance from Squamish United or St. John the Divine Anglican Church.
