Father Issac Arickappalil believes there is great misunderstanding and mistrust among cultures and religions.

That is why he is the driving force behind the Chavara International Center for Indian and Interreligious Studies, which will be inaugurated in Sacramento Oct. 18.

Father Arickappalil, a member of the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate, a religious community founded 150 years ago in Kerala, India, has been working since his arrival in June 2004 to develop the center for interreligious discussion. It is named in honor of his congregation’s founder, Blessed Cyriac Elias Chavara.

“Much can be learned from ecumenical discussion that explores the spiritual, mystical and theological aspects of faith,” said Father Aricappalil, who has been serving as parochial administrator of St. Mary Parish in east Sacramento since March of this year. “As the world becomes increasingly smaller, it is necessary that centers like Chavara, which provide a common ground for interfaith discussions, come into being.”

Father Arickappalil brings a wealth of experience to the project. He formerly served as professor of theology at the Center of World Religions at Dharmaram Vidya Kshetram, the Pontifical Athenaeum of Philosophy, Theology and Canon Law, run by his religious community in India. He received his doctorate in theology from the Pontifical Oriental Institute in Rome in 1992.

The responsibility of the Catholic Church at the present time to promote understanding among the world’s religions is crucial, he said.

The Catholic Church “has to cater to the spiritual needs of her own children, providing guidance and direction based on Gospel values,” he said. “At the same time it must also encourage peaceful coexistence and enrichment through mutual contact and dialogue with followers of different faiths and religions.”

The Chavara Center will be an extension of his religious community’s Center for Study of World Religions, Father Arickappalil said. From their inception, the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate have engaged in evangelization and in running educational, ecumenical and cultural centers. Inspired by the Second Vatican Council’s call to interreligious dialogue, the community has more than a dozen interreligious centers in India, one in Rome and one in Liberty, Tenn.

As the birthplace of four major world religions — Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism and Sikhism — and the third largest Muslim-populated country in the world, India provides a useful model of religious diversity, the priest noted.

“America has always been primarily a Judeo-Christian country,” he said. “It is not until quite recently that there has been the addition of those who practice Islam and the religions of Asia. Exposure to and discussion of a variety of religious experiences provides a venue for mutual understanding, acceptance and enrichment.”

The Chavara Center will have its formal inauguration and blessing by Bishop William K. Weigand on Oct. 18-19 with a seminar at St. Mary Church (in Giovanni Hall) titled “Christianity and Other Religions: New Horizons for Peace and Harmony.” The bishop will preside at the blessing on Oct. 18 at 6 p.m. and the seminar will run each evening from 6 to 9 p.m.

Among those presenting papers is Maria Jaoudi, associate professor in the Department of Humanities and Religious Studies at California State University, Sacramento. Her Oct. 18 presentation is titled, “Spirituality, Peace and Harmony in World Religions.”

In an interview, Jaoudi, who is the author of “Christian Mysticism: East and West,” said although there are considerable differences in how the world’s religions practice their faiths and their creeds vary greatly, the foundations share certain characteristics.

“By discoursing and developing a better understanding of one another’s religious traditions, people of different faiths can not only live together more harmoniously, but develop the ability to deepen and grow their faith,” she said.

Among the other presenters, some of who are traveling from India, include: Father Mathew Kaniamparampil, vicar general of the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate; Rosalie Amer, professor of humanities at Cosumnes River College; Joel Dubois, professor at California State University, Sacramento; Carmelite of Mary Immaculate Father Kuncheria, president of the Pontifical Athenaeum in Bangalore, India; Sant Baba Daljit Singh Khalsa, founder and chief of the Guru Nanak Sikh Mission of America; and Carmelite of Mary Immaculate Father James Pallathupurayidam, rector of Dharmaram College in Bangalore, India.

The center will devote itself to a variety of lectures, discussions and courses open to the public, which will be led by professors and leaders of various faiths, Father Arickappalil said. He added that he plans also to organize programs specifically for priests, religious and parish communities.

The priest said he hopes to facilitate an academic relationship with California State University, Sacramento, whereby religious studies undergraduates would have the opportunity to study in India and participate in a variety of religious rituals and festivals. He said the Pontifical Athenaeum in Bangalore already offers a one-month residential course each August on “Religions in Contemporary India.”

Father Arickappalil said he wants the Chavara Center to provide a place for discourse among Christians and those of other religions, with the goal of advancing mutual understanding and respect for religions and cultural diversity. The purpose of the center “will be to light a candle amidst the confusion, instead of blaming the darkness,” he said.

For more information on the Oct. 18-19 seminar or other events presented by the Chavara Center, call Father Arickappalil at (916) 452-0296, ext. 16 or send an e-mail to arickappalil@hotmail.com.

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