James (second from left) with fellow delegates, visiting a Mosque in Blantyre, Malawi
James Ellman, CTII Director, recently represented the Cape Town Interfaith Initiative at the United Religions Initiative (URI) Regional Assembly in Malawi. The Regional Assembly brought together all the Cooperation Circle (CC) leaders, from South Africa, Mozambique, and Malawi. The Cape Town Interfaith Initiative has been a Cooperation Circle of URI since 2014. James described the experience as follows;
“The Malawi experience with URI has brought together people from various backgrounds throughout Southern Africa. It was an opportunity to learn from the various representatives about the challenges they face and how they respond to these challenges. I was inspired by the way they deal with their challenges using non-violence as their vehicle to respond.
CTII also shared experiences and participants were encouraged by the way CTII makes interfaith interaction a reality. CTII is seen as a beacon of hope to them guiding the way of getting involved in interfaith dialogue.
The 2017 URI Regional Assembly Delegation
The one challenge I found that most of the organisations present shared, was getting funding for the great work being done. People in Malawi and Mozambique live in extreme poverty but they are positive and keep moving forward making a difference one step and one person at a time. Living in South Africa, I also see poverty and I am re-inspired by these CCs to stay faithful to the vision of CTII.
One of the main outcomes of the regional assembly was that a work plan was set up for the journey forward into 2018 and beyond for URI Southern Africa.”
Thank you James for sharing the experiences of CTII and being a voice for interfaith dialogue at this important gathering!