Representatives from 11 religious denominations, including The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, met in Timaru, New Zealand Saturday, 27 June 2015 to discuss ways to work together to serve New Zealand communities.
The group included participants from Christchurch, Dunedin and Timaru.
Diane Downward, president of the Christchurch Interfaith Society, opened the meeting by saying, “Coming together as an interfaith group is like a vase filled with a bouquet of beautiful flowers. The more diverse the flowers, the more interesting it is to look at.”
Diane went on to explain that Interfaith councils can be a force of goodness in the community.
“One of the goals of the Christchurch Interfaith Society is to attract more young people by inviting them to participate in service projects within their communities, such as those organised by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.”
“Interfaith is bringing people together from all different faiths, respecting one another and working together on a common goal of trying to do good for the community,” said Tom Hedges, a Latter-day Saint participant.
"It’s about having respect for each other and understanding that we’re all going to operate, practice and worship in our own ways, but at the end of the day, our common goal is that we are actually all trying to serve our fellowmen and women, improving peoples’ lives and help people feel there is hope.”
“Ultimately the end result should be love,” said Jennifer Beck, vice president of the South Island Interfaith Society. “It’s about loving each other and having differences without fear of rejection. Love is the universal language and universal need—service is the language of love.”
Read more about Latter-day Saints and interfaith relations.