Jews, Christians, Muslims, and other spiritual enthusiasts filled a packed auditorium at the Koffler Institute for Pharmacy Management on Tuesday to hear speakers from three faiths discuss “The Concept of Messiah.”
“Events of recent history have made it easy for Jews, Christians and Muslims not to get along with each other,” said Professor John Kloppenborg, who teaches religion at the University of Toronto, and who served as moderator for the event. “This is why it’s even more important for us to be able to hold this symposium.”
David Novak, professor of Religion and Philosophy at U of T, presented the Jewish perspective. He explained that the concept of the Messiah is very much related to the role of a Jewish state. “The Messiah is basically a political doctrine and has political ramifications,” he stated, “It is the reason for the split between Christianity and Judaism.”
Professor David Neelands, the Dean of Divinity at Trinity College, recognized Christianity’s intertwined history with Judaism: “More and more, Christians become detached from an understanding of their Jewish roots.”
Mukhtar Cheema, Professor of Islamic Studies, presented the perspective of the Ahmadiyya Muslim community, a sect of Islam that is unique among Muslims in its belief that the Messiah has already come. Although he affirmed that “Nobody can be a Muslim unless he believes in Jesus, son of Mary,” he explained the Ahmadi belief that Christ died a natural death and went on to fulfill his God-given duty of reaching the remaining lost tribes of Israel. According to Cheema, the Promised Messiah who would eventually unite all faiths under his banner lived and died in the 19th Century, fulfilling spiritual similarities with Jesus Christ.
After the speakers, the floor was opened for discussion with the audience.
The Reverend Canon Alice Medcof commended the Ahmadiyya Muslim Students Association (AMSA) for organizing the event: “I think it’s courageous of them to do it, and a wonderful idea.”
“I think these kinds of events are important to educate people about other religions,” said Quratul-Ain Mirza, who is pursuing her B.Ed at OISE, “And education can eliminate ignorance, as well as a lot of other problems that divide society.”
