Why IGE? Why Now?
By Dr. Chris Seiple on 30 June 2009
The challenges of the 21st century can be distilled to a single question: how do we live with and work across our deepest differences? Every issue we face as a planet is foremost an issue of how we choose to engage one another.
If that engagement is defined by mere "tolerance," it is likely that we will not move past stereotypes. Tolerance is not enough. If our engagement of one another is based on respect and reconciliation, however, then there is a real chance for constructive candor—to name differences, identify common values, and build practical solutions that address the root causes of very complex issues.
The Institute for Global Engagement (IGE) is a Christian nonprofit organization that promotes religious freedom worldwide. For us, religious freedom exists at two levels. First, there is its basic definition, recognized in all international human rights covenants and most constitutions worldwide. Religious freedom is the opportunity to choose or not choose faith freely, to share and change one's faith, or to have no religious beliefs at all.
As a Christian organization, however, we also think about religious freedom as a gift from God that should be available to every person on this planet—irrespective of what that person chooses to believe. And as Christians we believe that God commands us to love our neighbor, that we become more fully human the more our own identity is rooted in our neighbor's. IGE promotes and tries to embody religious freedom as the responsibility to respect, and be reconciled with, our neighbor.
Religious freedom is the cornerstone of a prosperous society so civil that it includes the minority as an equal, and a stable state so strong that it protects that minority. Unfortunately, religious persecution, harassment, and discrimination remain rampant across the globe. Common government-sponsored and government-tolerated forms of abuse are psychological, spiritual, and physical. Those who believe differently from the majority are as hurt by a passive bureaucracy as they are by an active police force not subject to the rule of law. Those local faith communities who suffer for their religious convictions need to know that the rest of the world is not afraid to stand with and advocate for them, publicly and quietly.
At the same time, however, religious extremism threatens the political and social order of states. States need to engage these destabilizing threats without making the problems worse. Over-regulation or repression of religious groups can often inadvertently fuel radicalism. IGE also works with government officials to advance the understanding that religious freedom contributes to political stability and social harmony.
IGE uses "relational diplomacy" to simultaneously and transparently engage both governments and grassroots communities. This top-down and bottom-up approach first listens to, researches, and tries to understand the cultural context in which we work. Over time, relationships develop with local partners that yield a consensus about the role of religion in their society; and therefore about how best to promote religious freedom. Agreements result that formalize a partnership, as well as a roadmap of measurable and mutually accountable steps that we can take together. This approach of mutual respect creates a "win-win" for all parties, promoting the interests of marginalized religious communities as well as governments concerned about security and social cohesion.
In sum, IGE seeks to deepen and expand the global public square--a "radical middle" where we can be respectfully honest and agree to disagree (when necessary) while maintaining our relationships. As the world lurches from one religiously-infused conflict to the next, we can do much worse than to give this approach a chance.
Last updated 06 October 2009