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World Congress of Faiths     [1]

The World Congress of Faiths, an educational charity established in 1936 by Sir Francis Younghusband.

The objects of the World Congress of Faiths (WCF) are to advance religious education by promoting knowledge and understanding of the beliefs and practices of the religious faiths, sects and denominations of the world and by promoting the study of comparative religion.

The spirit of "many Faiths - a common Trust" is nurtured in meetings of the Executive Committee,in regular programs in the London Area, and by participation in International Conferences. For current programs <www.worldfaiths.org>. The annual meeting and Younghusband Lecture is usually in May.

WCF publishes a Journal called "Interreligious Insight" and a newsletter for members called "One Family."

History

The History of the World Congress of Faiths is told in Marcus Braybrooke's two books,
A Wider Vision: A History of the World Congress of Faiths, 1936 - 1996
(provided free on website http://www.religion-online.org/showbook.asp?title=3378)
and
Interfaith Witness in a Changing World: The World Congress of Faiths 1996-2006
(provided free on website http://www.religion-online.org/showchapter.asp?title=3378&C=2785)

1. Beginnings [2]

There are several roots from which the World Congress of Faiths (WCF) was to grow. One was the World’s Parliament of Religions, which was held in Chicago in 1893. A second root was the Religions of Empire Conference, held in London in 1924. A third root was the unusual spiritual experiences of Francis Younghusband.

2. Younghusband's life

Francis was born on May 31st, 1863. As an infant, he was taken home to Britain to Bath by his mother, who wished to care for her dying mother. When she returned to India Francis, now four and a half, was sent to live with two austere and strictly religious aunts. In 1876 he started at Clifton College, Bristol. There he was expected to conform to the rather conventional public school version of Christianity. In 1881 he entered Sandhurst. He was a solitary figure, spending his spare time reading biographies or going for long walks by himself.

The following year in 1882, Younghusband set sail for India.

With Lord Curzon’s appointment as Viceroy of India in 1899, Younghusband’s prospects improved and in 1903, he was asked by Lord Curzon to lead a mission to Tibet. This was a difficult and dangerous undertaking. Controversy has continued to surround what happened. At Lhasa, where he met the Dalai Lama’s Regent, he successfully signed a treaty, but his work was repudiated by the politicians. It was as he was leaving Lhasa that he had a spiritual experience, which was to be a decisive turning point, and which he describes in one of his books, Vital Religion. Elsewhere he mentioned other mystical experiences.

During the next years, he was involved in many activities and societies. He wrote a number of books. He was a well known public figure but did not have a steady career.

A continuing interest was the wish to see a greater sense of fellowship between members of different religions. It is clear that this was inspired by Younghusband's own mystical experiences. The human fellowship that he sought to promote was inextricably linked to communion with the divine. WCF, therefore, was an attempt to give practical expression to a mystic's vision of unity.

3. The 1936 Congress.

Formal preparations for the World Congress of Faiths began on 16th November 1934. It opened less than two years later at University College, London, on July 3rd and lasted until July 18th, 1936. The Congress was not residential and this restricted the social intercourse between participants. Discussion was encouraged and was carried on in good humour. Speakers included Abdullah Yusuf Ali, Principal of the Islamic College at Lahore and a translator of the Qur’an into English;
Dr D. T. Suzuki, Professor of Buddhist philosophy at Otani University, Kyoto;
Professor Malalasekera, from Ceylon;
Professor Nicolas Berdiaeff (Nikolai Berdyaev), a Russian philosopher;
Dr S N Das Gupta, author of a History of Indian Philosophy;
Sir Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, who was about to take up the Spalding Chair of Eastern Religion and Ethics at Oxford;
Professor Judah Leon Magnes, President of the Hebrew University;
Sir Abdul Qadir, a High Court Judge and a Member of the Council of the Secretary of State for India;
Sirdar Mohan Singh, from the Punjab;
Mr S I Hsiung (Hsiung Shih-I), who gave a talk on the teachings of Confucius;
Dr J S Whale, President of Cheshunt College, Cambridge and
Rev P T R Kirk, who was Director of the Industrial Christian Fellowship.
Shoghi Effendi, the Head of the Baha’is, sent a paper that was read for him.
The chair was taken by distinguished scholars, such as Sir E Denison Ross and Professor H G Wood or leading figures, such as the Chief Rabbi Joseph H. Hertz, the Aga Khan III, Dr C. E. M. Joad and Lord Samuel.
Two women were asked to chair sessions: Dame Elizabeth Cadbury and Dame Ogilvie Gordon.

In general it was agreed that the aim of the Congress was not to create one new synthetic religion, but to generate understanding and a sense of unity between the religions of the world. Sir Francis mentioned that through discussion and reflection, the conception of God grew greater and that by coming closer to each other, members of different religions deepened their own spiritual communion.

4. Development At the 1936 World Congress of Faiths, it was agreed to hold another in 1937 in Paris, and the pattern continued until war broke out in 1939. In 1939, although it was suggested that such meetings be suspended, the organisation was already in place, and Younghusband insisted that the need for WCF would be greater than ever when the war was over. 'By 2036', he said, 'We may be holding our centenary celebrations in a Europe where war is unthinkable'. Throughout the war, a programme of meetings and conferences was maintained. At the same time, Younghusband started a Chairman's newsletter, which continues to this day as the members' journal One Family. Francis Younghusband died soon after the Birmingham Conference in 1942.

5. Continuation The organisation has continued to exist, although difficulties of defining its role have hampered succeeding generations of officers and leaders. Where once the WCF and the IARF (International Association for Religious Freedom) were the only 2 international interfaith organisations, it is now one of over 200 in Britain and many more exist around the world. It remains true to the original ideal of involving individual people in their search for understanding of each other's beliefs and religion. In 2001, the WCF celebrated its 65th anniversary and continued to look forward to the centenary that Younghusband predicted, despite the apparent setbacks.

Today

For current details see the website http://www.worldfaiths.org

President: Rev Dr Marcus Braybrooke

Patrons: His Holiness the Dalai Lama Archbishop Desmond Tutu Professor Diana Eck Dadi Janki of the Brahma Kumaris

Chairman: Rabbi Jackie Tabick

Secretary: Rev Feargus O'Connor

Treasurer: Pejman Khojasteh

International Secretary: Imam Abduljalil Sajid

Links

WCF is closely linked with the Interfaith Network http://www.interfaith.org.uk/
and the International Interfaith Centre [3]
and many of its members are involved with local interfaith groups, and also travel internationally to interfaith events.

References

The History of the World Congress of Faiths is told in Marcus Braybrooke's two books,
A Wider Vision: A History of the World Congress of Faiths, 1936 - 1996
(provided free on website http://www.religion-online.org/showbook.asp?title=3378)
and
Interfaith Witness in a Changing World: The World Congress of Faiths 1996-2006
(provided free on website http://www.religion-online.org/showchapter.asp?title=3378&C=2785)

Marcus Braybrooke has written or edited over 20 books of Multifaith Understanding, all of which express the vision and hopes of the WCF. Among these are:

PILGRIMAGE OF HOPE, 100 YEARS OF GLOBAL INTERFAITH DIALOGUE, SCM PRESS, 1992

365 MEDITATIONS FOR A PEACEFUL HEART AND A PEACEFUL WORLD, A GODSFIELD BOOK, 2004