Expert: George A. Card,sfo, M.I - 11/25/2007

Question
1. How do you define inter-faith dialogue?
2. Have you or your parish taken part in any inter-faith dialogue, if so what did u take part in?
3. Do you feel it is important for youth to get involved in inter-faith dialogue?
4. How do you feel we can benefit from inter-faith dialogue?  
 These questions are to help me with a school assignment and would be greatly appreciated if you could answer them as soon as possible and with as much detail as you can thankyou for your time
                                                    Regards Jessica  

Answer
Peace

dear Jessica
    1.Based of my understand of the term, it means a dialogue between two people that don't confess the same religious creed basics. For an example: a Catholic and a Muslim. An Ecumenical dialogue is between those who confess the same religious creed basics. For example: a Catholic and a Protestant of some kind. Properly speaking it should be done with the permission of the local bishop or those he appoints to over see such things.

   2-3. I will skip this question for a moment.
    4. I feel they can help non-Catholics to come closer to Christ and to remove any hostile prejudices between the groups involved with the "dialogue"
    2-3. In the above answers I wrote of professional dialogues. I feel that anytime we need to share the Gospel, entrusted to the Church,whenever we can and are clearly called to given a mandate to proclaim the truth. Like partaking of letter drive to get a change in a law, that would prevent abortion or some other evil in our society.
I have several relatives that are Mormons. The Catholics (and most Protestants) don't consider them Christians.  I dialogue ( share my Faith with them, and allow them to share as well) with them regularly. As for youth, if they are well grounded in the Faith and have some basic apologetic/polemic training, then perhaps they to can enter into a dialogue. In my case and theirs, its to be a one on one witness to the Gospel.
 Blessed John XXIII( the pope who called Vatican II)  once said that true ecumenical dialogue is where the Catholic Church is Teacher and Mother.
                your servant but His First