Each faith community shared its tradition, culture and practices and these values were connected with peace, compassion and unity. Photo: Pescila Magdalin
Interreligious Dialogue (IRD) continues to be an important part of my ministry in Fiji. It is a ministry of meeting people of different faith traditions, listening to their stories, learning from one another, and discovering the values that we share. Through these encounters, I am continually reminded that dialogue is not simply about talking about religion; it is about building relationships, friendship, understanding and peace.
One of the recent highlights of this ministry was the Women’s Interfaith Gathering, held in Suva on 29 August 2026. The gathering's theme was “Sharing Our Faith with Other Religions.” Women from different faith communities – including Hindu, Muslim, Christian and Bahá’í participants – came together in a spirit of openness and respect.
The gathering began by creating a welcoming space where participants could introduce themselves, their faith communities and one hope they had for the dialogue. An opening prayer was led by members of the Bahá’í Faith. From the beginning, there was a sense that everyone had something valuable to share and something to learn from the other.
The heart of the gathering was the opportunity for each faith community to share something of its tradition, culture and practice. Personal stories, experiences and reflections helped participants to speak about what is meaningful in their own faith journeys.
As we listened to one another, we discovered that although our religious traditions are different, there are important values that bring us together. One shared teaching that emerged was the call “to respect, love all and serve all”. These values were connected with peace, compassion and unity.
For me, this is one of the gifts of interreligious dialogue. We do not need to erase our differences in order to walk together. Instead, we can respectfully appreciate our differences while recognising the values that can unite us and enable us to work together for the good of our communities.
The gathering also reminded us that genuine dialogue should lead beyond conversation. Time was given for silence and reflection, and participants engaged in questions and discussions with respect and openness. There was also a practical expression of compassion. Participants brought groceries and clothing items for vulnerable students. This simple act of sharing gave concrete expression to the values we had been discussing – generosity, service, care and compassion.
The Women's Interfaith Gathering reminded me that there is much that can be built when people come together with open hearts. Peace, compassion, unity, service and friendship are values that can provide a strong foundation for living together in harmony.
Visits to temples: Continuing the journey
The journey of dialogue continues here in Suva in the month of October 2026. As part of the ministry and support of Fr Ben Mckenna, I have also been involved in temple visits and educational tours. A course on World Religions is being taught at the Pacific Regional Seminary, where I have been invited to arrange visits to different places of worship and engage with religious leaders. I have also been invited to share with the students about Interreligious Dialogue and my experience of this ministry. Dr Jill, the President of the Association in Oceania, has a similar project as above for the Pacific Community University students, both local and overseas groups. I also arranged a few worship places and am involved with this group in relation to this spiritual walk.
Looking ahead, the IRD ministry will continue through a number of activities with themes such as “building relationships through dialogue” and ‘living together in harmony” in Labasa. These include IRD awareness programmes with Holy Family School students, a women's interfaith gathering, a meeting and sharing with religious leaders, dialogue with Holy Family Parish youth, and an interfaith peace prayer and Prayer for Creation. Walking together in hope.
Interreligious dialogue is a journey. It requires patience, openness, humility and a willingness to listen. It invites us to move beyond simply knowing about another religion towards knowing and appreciating the people who belong to that tradition.
The Women's Interfaith Gathering reminded me that there is much that can be built when people come together with open hearts. Peace, compassion, unity, service and friendship are values that can provide a strong foundation for living together in harmony.
As I continue this ministry, I am grateful for the many people and communities who are willing to walk together in dialogue. Each encounter is an opportunity to learn, to grow in understanding and to build bridges of friendship.
Pescila Magdalin is the coordinator of the Interreligious Dialogue Columban Mission Office in Suva, Fiji.
- Read more from the current Columban Interfaith eBulletin.
