40th Francophone Scriptural Reasoning, Sunday 15 September 2024, from 5 to 6.30pm.
On Sunday 15 September 2024, the Dialogue & Alliance interfaith circle held its monthly meeting on the theme of ‘Co-creators’.
Mr Patrick JOUAN, Vice-President of UPF-France, led the main meeting from the Espace Barrault in Paris. People from nearly ten countries followed the programme by videoconference.
The first reading brought a Buddhist perspective; it was the Brihadaranyakopanishhad, which was read and commented on by three disciples of Venerable Thao Chan, President, Cercle de Réflexion des Nations, Paris, France.
The second reading, from a Christian perspective, was taken from the Book of Revelation 21.1-5. It was read to us by Mr Modeste AMOUSSOU, who is from Benin and a member of an Evangelical church, and then commented on by Monsignor NICOLAS, Orthodox Patriarch of the Nations, Paris.
We then had a short musical break, ‘Petals of Peace’, by the Russian classical pianist Nikolay KHOZYAINOV (video recording).
On a day when the Muslim world was commemorating the birth of the Prophet of Islam, the third reading brought a Muslim perspective. It was Verse 11 of the 13th Sura of the Koran, entitled ‘Thunder’, which was chanted and then commented on by Sheikh Amadou BA, President of the National Council of Imams of France.
The meeting concluded with a question-and-answer session, moderated from Paris by Dr Laurent LADOUCE, director of the Centre for Culture and Peace, Paris, and some remarks by Mr Jean-François MOULINET, coordinator of the Dialogue & Alliance circle.