Talking about religion may solve world's big problems

Talking about religion isn't so taboo anymore, and may actually be the solution to otherwise unsolvable global problems, two authorities said this month.

Krista Tippett, host of "Speaking of Faith," which airs on NPR, spoke at the Salt Lake City Library Nov. 10 about the increasing popularity of religious conversations.

And Douglas Johnston, president of the International Center for Religion and Diplomacy, spoke at Brigham Young University last week about how those religious conversations are often the answer to identity-based conflicts, such as ethnic disputes, religious hostilities and tribal warfare around the world.

"The very complexity of our age is driving people back to the enduring repositories of ethical and spiritual thinking," Tippett said.

Often, the important questions, such as finding meaning in life and death or understanding good and evil can't be addressed by law, politics or economics. Religion, Tippett said, teaches mankind "what matters in life and in death, how to love and how to give service to one another."

Johnston's service focuses on conflicted countries such as Sudan, Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The International Center, a not-for-profit, nongovernmental organization, believes that only by involving religious leaders in political discussions can there be long-term, peaceful solutions. Visit www.icrd.org for more information. Johnston is also the author of "Religion: The Missing Dimension of Statecraft."

"Whatever political settlement emerges, if you want it to be lasting in nature, religious leaders must feel some ownership in that," said Johnston, who has an extensive military and government background. "They have unrivaled influence at the grass-roots level. They can make you or break you."

In the Middle East, the center conducts "faith-based reconciliation seminars" with American evangelicals, Muslim clerics and civic leaders. Individuals are asked to think deeply about their own religious views and their negative attitudes toward others.

"I've yet to see one of these seminars not end with people in tears, embracing," Johnston said. "And I'm talking about people who were pretty tough adversaries before."

Following the Salt Lake lecture, one woman wearing a burqa asked Tippett if there was a way to avoid being grouped with radicals of her faith.

Tippett told her that as a woman of piety she would need to stand out and speak up about her beliefs, even though "people leading lives of dignity are not the ones who typically stand out."

However, sometimes the best religious conversations may not even need words.