Holy Scripture and Religious Violence: A Forum Discussion among the three Abrahamic faiths took place at First Baptist Church in Ottawa on April 6th at 7p.m. Three panelists representing the three major Abrahamic faiths (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam) discussed religiously sanctioned violence in their respective scriptures at this year’s first Stuart Ivison Memorial Lecture. Jewish representative Rabbi Idan Scher (Congregation Machzikei Hadas), Christian representative Dr. Brian Butcher (St. Paul University), and Muslim representative Dr. Jasser Auda (Carleton University and International Peace College South Africa) considered the history of violence in the name of religion, the endorsement of violence by the respective scriptures, current day implications for extremists and terrorists, and how best we might interpret scripture in the 21st century. Moderator Scott Kindred-Barnes (Minister, First Baptist Church) also asked each panelist how their respective traditions might move beyond the current trends of violence in some sectors and support a multi-faith, universal peace.
