Over 12 days, from February 18-29, 24 leaders of the Abrahamic faith communities in the United States and Indonesia undertook a journey across six cities and meet with senior government officials, NGOs and other interfaith leaders to engage in the challenges that confront us in promoting peace, mutual understanding and trust throughout the region and world. “The Interfaith Mission for Peace and Understanding” was an exploration of the role of religion in advancing peace and understanding in the world. A photoblog of the entire mission is available at http://missionforpeace.org/.
The mission objectives were:
- to explore the ways in which faith can serve as a bridge to peace and understanding in a world challenged by rising religious extremism; and
- to deepen the relationships between prominent American and Indonesian faith leaders and leading political, diplomatic and NGO leaders in two key regions of the world so as to set the stage for future cultural, religious and intergroup exchanges that will enhance efforts to advance religious liberty and intergroup harmony in those regions.
- Build close personal relationships within the delegation itself and a commitment to advance the principles of religious pluralism and intergroup harmony. The group will then play an ongoing advocacy role in the public square supporting those principles.
