The CORE Forum organized a conference for Nordic interfaith dialogue actors on October 23-24. Representatives from the Forum’s board and the Executive Director have visited every Nordic country over the past year, meeting with organizations and ministries responsible for interfaith cooperation. Now, this network was invited to gather in Helsinki. The project to strengthen Nordic interfaith cooperation is supported by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs for 2023-2024.
Guests arrived in Helsinki from Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and Iceland. Interfaith cooperation is organized somewhat differently in each Nordic country. In Denmark, for instance, activities are structured under the Evangelical Lutheran Church, while in Iceland, an informal yet highly active interfaith network (Interfaith Forum of Iceland) operates. In Sweden, umbrella organizations of religious communities collaborate within the Swedish Interreligious Council (Sveriges interreligiösa råd, SIR). SIR operates independently but, due to limited resources, relies on the Evangelical Lutheran Church. Alongside representatives from SIR, the conference welcomed attendees from a government agency (Myndighet för stöd till trossamfund) under the Ministry that allocates funding and supports interfaith relations. In Norway, a body similar to the CORE Forum, STL (Samarbeidsrådet for tros- og livssynssamfunn), facilitates interfaith cooperation.
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During the two-day gathering in Helsinki, the network members met each other for the first time. Each organization presented its activities, and participants shared insights on good practices and learned with interest how interfaith dialogue is conducted in other Nordic countries. While the Nordic nations share similar traits and trends within the religious field, there are notable differences as well.
The conference program began with a session at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, where the network met with Ambassador Jan Wahlberg from the Center for Peace Mediation. Continuing at Eurooppasali, the CORE Forum’s Executive Director, Katri Kuusikallio, presented the Forum’s recently published report on cooperation of religions in Nordic countries. The report’s material had been gathered from earlier visits to the Nordic countries. Additionally, the program included visits to the Uspenski Cathedral and the Finnish-Islamic Congregation’s mosque. An interesting panel discussion on religions in conflict resolution and peace building concluded the program. The panelists were CORE Forum’s Executive Director Katri Kuusikallio, STL’s General Secretary Birte Nordahl, Finnish Parliament Member Pekka Haavisto and the moderator of the panel, chair of Forum’s Youth Commission Anne Heikkinen.
The conference aimed to lay a foundation for future collaboration. During workshops, participants discussed shared current needs and challenges in the field of religion, potential cooperation ideas, and hopes for the next steps. Cooperation was considered essential for the future as the fields of religion and politics continue to change. The network’s key roles were seen to be in providing opportunities for sharing and co-creating ideas as well as supporting other faith communities.
