The recent investigation into the stabbing of Stephen Lawrence has shown that there is still much discrimination and a big gap between policy and practice. I already wrote before in Current Dialogue about some of the initiatives that began in the UK and which helped to put the interfaith movement onto a global map. The ICC has been involved in developing programmes which combine international interfaith dialogue, academic research, information sharing, networking and community building. It has developed particular expertise in facilitating dialogue between people who may find that difficult when in situations of conflict, especially when religious communities are implicated. Thus opportunities were afforded for members of communities in conflict to come together in a supportive and friendly atmosphere and to share concerns.
Dialogue continues and links are maintained and built upon for peace-building.
The ICC and the WCF collaborated on a recent publication, Testing the Global Ethic. While it is acknowledged that religious differences may aggravate conflicts, there is hope that the moral values shared by people of faith can provide a basis for communities and nations to live together in peace and harmony. The WCF's recent publication All in Good Faith is another initiative in this sense, namely, a resource book for multifaith prayer. During its ten year history the Network has become a much respected organization. It can count on the complete loyalty and support of its member organizations, and also entertains fruitful links with government departments and other national or local bodies.