Was there ever a once upon a time when we were more tolerant and open towards those we perceive as different?
There was a golden age in Spain 1,000 years ago when Jews, Christians and Muslims lived in mutual harmony. Now, however, there are indications of an increasing global intolerance within and between nations. We are stumbling into a 21st century wilderness of both secular and religious fundamentalism born of fear.
Where do we find the strength we need, after the 6 o clock news, to stave off fear, to keep dreaming, to ask questions? What is the point of religion? Is it really loving acceptance or is it dogma?
Historically, people have interpreted religion as suggesting that we have the answers and they must come over to our side, or else. The underlying implication is that we have the inside scoop on who God is and what God wants. If God is on our side, we can justify shunning others, or even violence in the name of our truth. It is a long road from self-righteousness to respecting the rights of others.
In a town by the ocean, in a house on a hill … begins a journey that helps illuminate the way forward. Written in English, Hebrew and Arabic, Paul Harbridge s children s book, “Helena s Voyage, promotes religious tolerance with simplicity ? appealing to children who ask questions and to adults whose concern it is to foster children s natural openness.
Harbridge wrote eloquently about what spurred him to write “Helena s Voyage. My daughter Helena died in her sleep in 2006. As I grieved, I thought of how her mother was from Spain and how Helena very likely had ancestors of the Christian, Jewish and Muslim faiths. At the same time I saw TV images from the Middle East of mothers carrying their dead children from the wreckage of bombed buildings, and for the first time, I knew that grief. Out of these impassioned thoughts, ‘Helena s Voyage’ was born.
Helena is a sick girl who yearns for more life and vitality. She is visited by a muse, or messenger, who travels with her to three cities ? Jewish, Christian and Muslim. In each city, Helena is invited to stay, but the angel accompanying her on the journey calls her onward. By being open to other ports of call and by asking, How can I know which of these beliefs is true? Helena discovers commonalities among the faiths. She learns that all religions promote the same values, though clothed in different traditions.
Helena s Voyage is rooted in the holy teachings, from all faiths, that affirm humanity s inter-connectedness.
A Muslim prayer for peace asks that we get to know each other, rather than despise each other (Quran 49:13). A Jewish prayer from the Torah asks for wisdom, that it may be with us, work with us, and guide us discreetly in our affairs (Book of Wisdom 9:1-3). St. Paul, the envoy of Christianity, urged followers to bear with one another charitably and do all we can to preserve the unity of the Spirit that binds us together because we are one Body, one Spirit (Ephesians 4:2-4).
Sufi mystics tell us that once someone truly encounters God, the glimpse of God carries a person beyond the narrowness of denominations, or mere human distinctions. This, according to British religious scholar Karen Armstrong, allows one to feel equally at home in a synagogue, a church, or a mosque. As the 14th century Muslim mystic, Hafiz, proclaimed:
I have learned so much from God
That I can no longer call myself
A Christian, a Hindu, a Muslim
A Buddhist, a Jew.
Helena s Voyage is powerful because it reveals that we are not alone, or exclusive, in our quest to know God. By realizing that adherents of the major faiths share more in common than they think, we find the wisdom to guide us, one act at a time, to tolerant choices on the personal, local and international levels.
That children s books impart such wisdom should come as no surprise.
After all, it was Jesus Christ who encouraged us to learn from our young: Whoever humbles themselves as a child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 18:4).
Sharon J. Doyle is a counselor and lecturer of an interfaith spirituality course at St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, Nova Scotia. “Helena s Voyage is published by O Books (www.helenasvoyage.com). This article was written for the Common Ground News Service (CGNews) and can be accessed at www.commongroundnews.org.
