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From Xaverian Mission NewsletterMay 2008
US Chinese Catholics Seek Dialogue Beyond Christianity
Fr. Michael Davitti, Xaverian Missionary working in Chinatown, Chicago, relates:
“I use to introduce myself as: ‘Fr. Michael, the happy Pastor of Chinatown. I am
not happy because the situation is perfect. No, I am happy because there is a
spring inside of me, welling up gently, overflowing and reaching out to people.
It constantly amazes me to know this, and to realize it is not of my doing’.”
Dialogue as a Ministry of the Parish
That wellspring of the Holy Spirit flows from the entire community of St.
Therese Chinese Catholic Mission in Chinatown, Chicago, where the Xaverian
Missionaries have been running the parish for more than ten years now. One of
the many fruits of the vibrancy and outreach of the parish is in the Ministry of
Buddhist-Catholic Dialogue.
This extraordinary interfaith commitment is sponsored by the Buddhist leaders
and by the Archdiocesan Catholic Office of Ecumenical and Interreligious
Affairs. Started some years ago, it has become an unofficial, on-going, core
group for dialogue. Fr. Davitti shares: “We realize that there are vast
differences in our histories and spiritual lives. Yet, we hope to enter into
dialogue with a spirit of openness.”
The initial step toward understanding each other's tradition was about learning
the vocabulary that is used to express oneself. This proved to be more difficult
than one might have expected, because religious vocabulary comes from such
diverse worlds and distinct ways of thinking, often based in vast cultural
differences.
“The new questions arising from the dialogue and the fresh approaches we have to
take require us to look anew at our own traditions. We are challenged to share
what we take for granted within our own faith traditions in ways understandable
to the Buddhist Community, giving us new perspective on our own beliefs.”
Each of the religious traditions seeks to draw people towards a greater, purer
more loving reality than that found in the ordinary human context of life, so
that we may realize what exceptional love we are really capable of.
Catholics and Buddhists, Side By Side
All the major Buddhist schools and ethnic traditions, each with its own language
and customs, can be found in Chicago. The coming of His Holiness, the Dalai
Lama, and the renewed interest in Buddhism with its different schools, stimulate
the dialogue and expand the opportunities available to come together.
Ongoing interchange with the Buddhist community, especially with the Buddhist
Council of the Midwest Council, and collaboration with the Council for a
Parliament of the World's Religions (CPWR), based in Chicago, offer rich
opportunities for interreligious programs. St. Therese hosts bi-monthly
Catholic-Buddhist meetings and the opportunity for silent meditation weekly.
