Sophia Magazine vol.3 / SUMMER 2016

18/32

Shimazono: You named interfaith dialogue and partnership as one of the essentials of Applied Religious Studies. Though you are both practitioners of different faiths, I would say that your background is truly one of interfaith dialogues.Minegishi: My father was a Buddhist priest, but I wanted to choose a path based on my own convictions. So I chose to go to Sophia and study philosophy, and was introduced to Catholic teachings. Even after I entered Buddhist religious life, the relationships I built then led to an opportunity to study at a German monastery. I also realized there that there was common ground between the roots of the monastic life and the ancient ideals of Zen Buddhism. Having recognized an urgent need to learn from one another, I later founded the Institute for Interreligous Dialogue.Yamaoka: Though I was born into a devout Pure Land Bud-dhist family, I was drawn to the teachings of the Bible and became a Protestant. Around the same time, I also studied at a Zen Buddhist temple for about two years, and that was a very valuable experience for me. Later on, I converted to Catholicism and joined the Jesuit order.Shimazono: I think both your perspectives are very impor-tant to Applied Religious Studies. In contrast to the two of you, most Japanese have trouble understanding inter-reli-gious conflict let alone the need for interfaith dialogue, due to the fact they exist in an environment of daily contact with many and sundry religions and religious cultures, where their coexistence is the default accepted state. As a result, when they are exposed to media reports about terrorism and armed con-flicts that involve religion, they interpret them as having been caused by the strength of religious conviction, often leading to distrust and revulsion towards religion per se.Minegishi: We must understand that religious differences do not cause armed conflicts, but that there are people who start conflicts using religious differences as an excuse. Yet, I think religion itself does indeed possess an aspect of being against religion, or rather, against other religions. At their core, religions are meant to connect people, but by distin-guishing between believers and non-believers, religion can end up dividing people. Unless religion acknowledges this danger, actively takes in unfamiliar things and makes an ef-fort to resolve contradictions, it will end up turning its back on real-world societies.Yamaoka: Catholicism underwent a sea change with the Second Vatican Council of 1962–1965 in terms of recogniz-ing other religions and civilizations. With the Christianiza-tion of the world proceeding hand in hand with modern history, there was a growing sense among the faithful that Christianity was the one and chosen faith, but alongside it were growing doubts that the faith was truly in step with so-ciety. Having previously accrued a great deal of experience in the non-Christian world, Pope John XXIII felt that it was a mistake to continue on the same path and his decision over-ruled strong objections from those around him.Shimazono: On that point, Buddhism has always had a con-Abbot of Choraku-ji, Soto Zen Buddhist TempleShoten MinegishiDean of the Graduate School of Applied Religious Studies and Director of the Institute of Grief Care, Sophia UniversitySusumu ShimazonoOvercoming Anti-Religious Sentiments Bred Within Faiths18Special Talk

※このページを正しく表示するにはFlashPlayer10.2以上が必要です