Dalai Lama hopes for a 'true kinship of faiths' - an essential ingredient for peace

Posted on Wed, May 26, 2010 : 7 p.m.

Dalai Lama hopes for a 'true kinship of faiths' - an essential ingredient for peace

By Pam Stout

Photo by flickr user FerneMillen

Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama and Nobel laureate, expressed the essential need for harmony among the major faiths in an opinion editorial in the New York Times this week.

He shared that growing up as a boy in Tibet, he believed that his Buddhist religion was superior to other faiths. "Now," the Dalai Lama said, "I see how naÃ¯ve I was, and how dangerous the extremes of religious intolerance can be today."

As the world becomes more interconnected, such tensions are likely to increase, the article asserts, "but I believe there is genuine potential for mutual understanding." The Dalai Lama stated, "I am a firm believer in the power of personal contact to bridge differences, so I’ve long been drawn to dialogues with people of other religious outlooks."

The leader of the Tibetan Buddhist religion shared personal stories of connection with spiritual leaders of other faiths, such as Trappist monk Thomas Merton. He noted principles of compassion in the Jewish, Hindu and Islamic traditions as examples where different cultures can come together.

"Finding common ground among faiths can help us bridge needless divides at a time when unified action is more crucial than ever. As a species, we must embrace the oneness of humanity as we face global issues like pandemics, economic crises and ecological disaster. At that scale, our response must be as one."

Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, is the author, most recently, of “Toward a True Kinship of Faiths: How the World’s Religions Can Come Together.” Read the full text of the Dalai Lama's editorial in The New York Times.

Do you have a faith story or news to share? Pam Stout coordinates Faith and Home & Garden coverage for AnnArbor.com. She can be reached as pamstout@annarbor.com.