If interreligious discussions are to take place, then all participants must let go of their personal belief and be receptive to new points of view. I was born and raised a Catholic. Everything we did in our life was based on Catholic religious rites, holidays, and celebrations. The Catholic way of life was embedded into my soul.
As I grew older and began to form my own opinions, I became detached from Catholicism because of its conservative views about women and the LGBTQ+ community. Since religion provides a basis for moral beliefs and behaviors, I declared myself a non-practicing Catholic. I rebelled by not going to Church and eating meat on Fridays. I lived my life spiritually but not religiously. However, since Catholicism was the only religion I knew, it became the subconscious basis of my spirituality.
In recent years, too many wrong turns led me to call on a higher power for help. When I began the process of talking with God, I realized that the only way I knew to do that was through the prayers I learned in Catholic school and Catholic Church.
I did not find any relief in those prayers. I began talking with the people around me and I began listening to their religious experience. I began reading self-help books about spirituality, and I set out on a spiritual journey to find my own God. When I heard about the ICJS Justice Leaders Fellowship, I jumped at the opportunity because I saw it as my chance to sit among religious scholars and leaders and find my own way.
In the beginning of the fellowship as we discussed different religious viewpoints with other fellows, I felt at odds with myself. I found it difficult to fully embrace other viewpoints because subconsciously I was measuring everything up to a religion I no longer followed. The most significant part of this fellowship and a turning point for me were our visits to churches, mosques, and temples.
Those visits, which included introductions and panel discussions with their leaders, showed me something I had not seen before: these congregations played a huge part in their community. Most memorable was the pre-Thanksgiving’s line to collect turkeys at the mosque.
This experience brought back memories of my childhood church and school, Saint Francis of Xavier Church in Newark, New Jersey. Their free evening English classes helped my parents learn English. The bake sale that helped buy the robes for our 8th grade choir. I realized I was approaching these interreligious discussions the wrong way.I was stacking everything against my Catholic upbringing and discounting other points of view. I was not making myself available for the opportunity of a new experience. Once I let go of my personal beliefs, I began to see similarities in our religions: the community work; the beautification of the space; the dedicated people; the chanting and singing; the prayer spaces like altars; and the words of scripture like the Torah and Bible. These are all similar things. Successful interreligious dialogues are possible if we leave our baggage at the door. We need to come without blame and be vulnerable to be receptive.
Religions provide a perspective to view the world and a set of basic principles to live out. Religion can also provide a sense of belonging and connection to tradition and culture. They have been a fundamental part of human history and have influenced how people perceive the world and the values they accept. Like the ethics and values of Catholicism are instilled in me, the ethics and values of Islam, Judaism, and Christianity are instilled in others. I learned that if I check my religion at the door, and I am open to others without judging them for my own beliefs, then I will be more receptive to dialogue.
Peter Lomuscio is an ESOL Educational Associate at Baltimore City Public Schools, and he was a 2023-2024 ICJS Justice Leaders Fellow. Learn more about the ICJS programs for community and nonprofit leaders here.
Baltimore is part of a national conversation around questions of justice, race, and community. Members of the ICJS Justice Leaders Fellowship consider how Jewish, Christian, and Muslim teachings and practice can contribute to the public conversation about (in)justice. Opinions expressed in this blog are solely the author’s. ICJS welcomes a diversity of opinions and perspectives. We do not seek a single definition of justice between or within traditions.