Overcoming fears of the "others"   

The 2009 Parliament of the World’s Religions (Melbourne, AU)

Overcoming fears of the “other”

by Alexandra Pleshoyano[1]

Last December, I went to the other side of the world (Quebec, Canada to Melbourne, Australia) to attend the 2009 Parliament of the World’s Religions – the world’s largest interfaith gathering – where thousands of people coming from a wide range of religious and spiritual traditions met to ‘Make a World of Difference’. To account for my experience during those six intensive days would take too long, but I will share one event that contributed to sweep some of my fears away.

During the very first program I attended, we were asked to name our actual feeling and I spontaneously answered: “fear”. A couple of days later, I was having lunch with Peta, an Orthodox Jew, and I shared with her this story. During my early teenage years, I was living in a Jewish neighbourhood in Outremont. My next door neighbour, Nina, was an Orthodox Jew about my age, but could not spend time with a Catholic. Nevertheless, we would meet in secret until the day her brother found us out. Nina never talked to me again. She had told me beforehand that I must never enter into a Synagogue because God’s curse would fall upon me. This fear got printed within me.

After hearing my story, Peta shared hers with me. When she was a child, she attended a summer Camp where she befriended with a Catholic girl. At the end of the Camp when the parents came to get the kids, her friend ran into Peta’s arms and said in tears: “Peta, please convert otherwise you will burn in hell!”

I thank Peta because her story instantaneously took the drama out of my own story. I met many other people who generously shared with me their personal and moving stories and I thank them all for these unique and intense moments. My thanks go to John Dupuche, to my new Jewish friends, to this Iranian Muslim woman who gave me a praying mat, to the Aboriginal people, to this Buddhist Master who stared within my soul, and to so many others. I returned home feeling transformed and to my biggest surprise: my silent fears of the “other” had vanished away.