My experience as a Human Fraternity fellow has been a transformative experience which has continued to shape the way I create relationships and engage in dialogue. As a government and justice & peace studies major, I have learned about conflict resolution and international relations in the classroom. However, this was a unique opportunity to travel to Jakarta, Indonesia and put my theoretical learning into practice.
One of my favorite parts of the trip was visiting the Istiqlal Mosque and the Jakarta Cathedral, which were connected by a tunnel known as the Brotherhood Tunnel. Meeting with Grand Imam Nasaruddin Umar and Archbishop of Jakarta Ignatius Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo showed me how religious leaders spearhead interfaith relations within the community. Not only did these two religious buildings stand side by side, but these religious leaders ensured that its people would be living in this community, side by side. The mosque hosted an interfaith exercise program which allowed for both Muslims and Christians to engage in fitness together and then share a meal at the end of it. While I thought that interfaith coexistence was only seen in conferences and dialogues by religious leaders, this experience showed me that successful religious coexistence is simple, communal activities shared in local communities.
Moreover, the workshops we participated in taught us lessons on active listening, honesty, and trust which helped us tackle controversial and complex topics. These spaces challenged me to open myself up to hard conversations and think critically about the preconceptions I have. The hands-on nature and the way I was forced to be an engaged listener are skills that I will carry with me as I continue my education and career moving forward.
The greatest thing I have gained from this fellowship was our cohort of nine fellows. Coming from all around the world, we worked together to create a vision of the world we all hoped to live in. Our conversations, in workshops and casually, were a reflection of the global human fraternity we hope to create in the future. While we, at times, disagreed, we worked through resolution techniques to create a sense of cohesion and community amongst ourselves. To this day, our fellowship cohort remains strong and personally reminds me of the reward of human fraternity.
This fellowship has given me clarity on what human fraternity and interfaith dialogue looks like when applied on a national scale. Learning directly from local organizations and leaders within Indonesia, I learned about the importance of community organizers who seek to make a difference and hope that I can one day make a similar impact on my community. While I entered with many questions about real-world applications of interfaith dialogue, I leave not knowing every answer but with a commitment towards engaging in conversations which help me answer them. In polarizing times, this fellowship has been a light which continues to show me the importance of my future career path and how we can all create change among our communities and around the world.
