Dianna Wolfson, Convener of the Scottish Inter-Faith Counciladdressed the Church of Scotland at its General Assembly in Edinburgh. Diane, who is the former head of Calderwood Lodge Jewish Primary School in Glasgow, paid tribute to her colleagues who set up the Inter-Faith Council. She described her introduction to interfaith activity at the International Flat in Glasgow, and her excitement on first discovering that, whilst each faith is different in terms of theology, worship, rituals and customs, they all share common values such as peace, charity, concern for the environment and caring for the weak and vulnerable in our society.
Dianna told the Assembly that she was standing before them as an Orthodox Jew, proud of her own religious heritage, who "could not be true to my own religious principles if I could not reach out in friendship to those of other faiths and cultures". She noted that "interfaith dialogue strengthens the faith of its participants, rather than weakening it or watering it down", and welcomed the Church of Scotland's recent appointment of an Interfaith Officer.
Dianna wished more young people had the opportunity to experience interfaith activity and praised the work of the Inter-Faith Council youth committee, whose members have produced a booklet Our Sacred Earth, which provides information about the environment alongside relevant texts from each faith's holy writings. Copies of the booklet were presented to the Moderator, Rev. Sheilagh Kesting and to the Lord High Commissioner, His Royal Highness Prince Andrew, the Duke of York.
Click here to read the full text of Dianna's speech.
