Congress Needs an Interfaith Caucus
The National Prayer Breakfast, an annual gathering of inspiring speeches and solemn moments of silence, recently drew President Bush and hundreds of lawmakers when it was held in Washington. This year, the event was unusual in that it was attended by much of what is the most religiously diverse Congress in American history.
The 110th Congress includes one Muslim and two Buddhists. The U.S. Senate is now led by a Mormon. All of these are firsts. The new Congress also includes more Jews than Lutherans, Congregationalists or Episcopalians.
The writer G.K. Chesterton famously remarked that America is "a nation with the soul of a church." One look at Congress, indeed one look around the country, shows that Chesterton is only partially correct. Throughout the centuries, America has remained a devout
country, with uniquely high rates of belief in God and attendance at religious services, when compared to Europe. But we have also become the most religiously diverse country in the world. To be true to our 21st century demographics, we have to amend Chesterton's line by adding "mosque, synagogue, temple and gurudwara" after “church.”
In this era of global religious conflict, when religious tensions travel in nanoseconds over the Internet, America's religious diversity can be a great opportunity or a great danger.
It is not impossible that violence engulfing Shiites and Sunnis in Baghdad, Hindus and Muslims in Bombay, or Catholics and Protestants in Belfast could have ripple effects in Boston. Already, there are too many examples of religious communities who refuse to talk to one another on
college campuses in America because they come down on different sides of the political debate on issues ranging from domestic spying, to immigration, to aid to Israel.
America was founded partly on the idea of religious diversity. We are a nation of ideas formed by people who wanted freedom to worship God as they felt called. In a world where conflict between faiths threatens to set off a centuries-long clash of civilizations, Americans would do well to remember this heritage of reverence combined with tolerance. Indeed, this tradition has played an important role throughout American history. Take, for example, the famous picture of Martin Luther King Jr. marching through Selma with Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, both called by their different faiths to extend the American promise to all people. Heschel later
acknowledged the religious differences between him and King, but still claimed that the march was worship: "I felt like my legs were praying."
The U.S. Constitution has protected the free exercise of religion at the same time as it has prevented any one religion from defining the public square. As such, America is in a position to draw strength from its ethnic/religious diversity instead of having it threaten its social fabric. This is a compelling model for a world enmeshed in religious conflict.
Congress can play an important leadership role in this effort by starting a bipartisan Interfaith Caucus. If a few members from each party and from different faiths formed such a Caucus, it could be a focus for discussion, a platform for outreach and a symbol of religious
cooperation for the world.
An Interfaith Caucus could meet regularly to discuss the positive role that religion plays in people's lives and in communities across the country and the world. It could also explore how religion is misused by demagogues of all faiths to fuel conflict around the world. The Interfaith
Caucus could interview leaders from a range of faith backgrounds, widening their understanding of the various faiths that call America home. In case of another attack like the bombing at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, perpetrated by someone loosely affiliated with the Christian Identity movement, or a second 9/11, the Interfaith Caucus could be a platform for a cooperative,
balanced response.
Even if the Interfaith Caucus met only rarely, its formation would still be of enormous symbolic value. It would show the world that America is proud to recognize its religious diversity at the highest levels of its government. In an era where too many religious minorities suffer discrimination, and many outsiders wonder how American Muslims are treated in the aftermath of 9/11, an Interfaith Caucus would say to the world that America is committed to dialogue, not division.
America's religious diversity has the potential to be either a source of strength or a challenge for the United States in the coming years. People of faith can cooperate and help save our world, or continue killing one another and hasten the destruction of all. As representatives of the three Abrahamic faith traditions, we have seen in our own work the value of interfaith dialogue. We hope Congress will use its own diversity to lead in this area. An Interfaith Caucus would be a good first step.
The authors of this essay are:
The Rev. David Gray, director of the Workforce and Family Program at the New
America Foundation
Dr. Eboo Patel, executive director of the Interfaith Youth Core
and author of the forthcoming book, Acts of Faith
The Rev. Paul Raushenbush, associate dean of Religious Life and the Chapel
at Princeton University
Rabbi Sid Schwarz, president of PANIM: The Institute for Jewish Leadership and Values, and author of Judaism and Justice: The Jewish Passion to Repair the World
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