| Workshop
4. Shifting gears - making a transition
from informal inter faith grouping to representative council
Facilitator: Rt Revd Michael Bourke, Bishop of
Wolverhampton
Reporter back: Dan Hawthorn
Minuter: Chris Hewer
Opening contributions: Jaswant Singh Heera
and Ruth Tetlow of the Birmingham Council of Faiths described the
development of inter faith structures in Birmingham. In the past there had
been a Birmingham Inter Faith Council and a Birmingham Fellowship of
Faiths. The Inter Faith Council had developed into the Birmingham Council
of Faiths and this was now looking to develop a relationship with the City
Council and other public bodies in the Birmingham area. Daphne Beale and
Gous Ali of the Loughborough Council of Faiths described the development
in Loughborough of the new formal Council of Faiths alongside the
Loughborough Inter Faith Group which had existed for some years and
continued after the formation of the Council, with the roles of the two
bodies being complementary. In the course of these presentations and in
the following discussion, the following key points emerged:
- If there is to be a development from an informal to a formal
structure for inter faith representation, then it is important that
there should be a natural progression based on the people and
relationships already in place. A development worker in the pay of a
local authority might be an important resource for taking such a
transition forward.
- A local authority might be an appropriate body to initiate such a
project because of its impartiality and the neutral ground it can
offer. It does avoid some of the issues around such projects being
seen to be led rather over much by the Christian Churches. So long as
they are not pressing their own agenda too hard, there is certainly a
role for the local authority there, even though not yet a clear one.
- Local authorities are custodians of power in an area. To enable a
council of faiths to be seen as having something to deliver within the
local society, there needs to be a willingness on the part of the
local authority to let it have some power (for example allowing it
some say in financial disbursement in relevant contexts and letting it
have an authoritative voice on certain questions).
- There is a clear difference between moral support offered by a local
authority to a council of faiths and financial support. Sometimes the
former may be all that is sought but at other times, financial support
may be appropriate and important.
- "Representation" is not a straightforward matter. The
rationale behind the pattern of membership needs to be carefully
thought out. How are the representatives chosen to represent their
constituencies? There might be different forms of representation
within different communities. It is important to ask to whom
representatives are representing their communities and how information
is channelled through them in both directions. To what extent are the
points of view expressed by representatives really representative? To
what extent must representatives demonstrate accountability to their
communities?
- There are arguments against representation on a council of faiths
being specifically in proportion to the numbers of a particular faith
in the local community. Attention needs to be paid to the
representation of minorities within faith communities.
- How is adequate representation of women’s voices and opinions to
be ensured?
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