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Different religious communities could one day share rooms in Zurich. The declining membership of the Reformed Church also gives impetus to this idea.
The conversion of churches is not new. For example, the city and cantonal parliaments have been meeting in the Bullingerkirche in Zurich’s district 4 since the beginning of the year. And yet the Zurich Reformed Church is already thinking about other, new uses, as announced by SRF. In concrete terms, an interreligious center could one day be built near the Saatlen church in Zurich Schwamendingen.
We have an interest in stronger cooperation.
There is already an exchange with the neighboring mosque in the Saatlen church and there are joint events. Michael Hauser, who is responsible for real estate at the Reformed Church in Zurich, says: “We are definitely interested in closer cooperation.” You could also imagine including other religious communities.
A new building would also be conceivable
The idea would be a place that different religious communities could use together. In addition to Christians, for example, also Muslims. What such a center would look like in concrete terms is still unclear at the moment. According to Hauser, various options are conceivable. An existing building could be converted or expanded, or a new one built. “That’s open – but it could well become a construction project,” says Hauser.
Should the vague idea become reality one day, as many rooms as possible should be shared by different religious communities. According to Hauser, common rooms that would be used for cooking or childcare would be possible, for example. On the other hand, they assumed that every community would need a retreat in the future.
Respond to fears of church members
In the next year or two they wanted to outline the idea of the interfaith center. “Then we would like to seek internal dialogue and also approach other religious communities,” says Hauser. It could take ten years for concrete implementation, he says. A concrete project probably needs a resolution of the church parliament and possibly also a vote among the members.
The fact that the Reformed Church in Zurich is considering converting and sharing rooms is also due to the declining number of members. However, such plans are not always well received by the remaining members.
In my experience, you can only deal with fears in a meaningful way if you create encounters.
A church survey of 500 members showed that around a quarter of those surveyed were skeptical of the suggestion that other religious communities also say their prayers in Christian rooms. They take these concerns and fears seriously, says Christoph Siegrist, pastor and president of the Zurich Forum of Religions. And he adds: “In my experience, you can only deal with fears in a meaningful way if you create encounters.” Pilot projects could help with this.