A Walk to Remember with Faithful Footprints (23 October 2022)

A Walk to Remember with Faithful Footprints (23 October 2022)

A story of harmony, diversity and lasting legacies By John III Cruz Rosado and Kathryn Vasquez

Gimli (dwarf): “Never thought I’d die fighting side by side with an elf.”

Legolas (Elf): “What about side by side with a friend?”

Gimli: “Aye, I could do that.”

Even in fantasy stories such as The Lord of the Rings – an epic tale interweaved about men, elves, dwarves, orcs, and hobbits, find resolution of conflicts by commonality and agreement towards a common cause.

Key Takeaways: Mutual understanding, mutual respect, living with gratitude and the Golden Rule – “Do unto others as you would want them to do unto you”. 

We endeavour to live in harmony despite our diverse backgrounds, wide-ranging cultures, and beliefs – yet there was always a way to find common ground and learn about shared experiences.

This Interfaith Heritage Programme Faithful Footprints by Humanity Matters is central to advocating harmony for all – exploring and discovering the different faith-based groups in Singapore.  It centres on the evolution of multiculturalism in Singapore, highlighting contributions of migrant and faith communities towards peace, progress and prosperity across the last 200 years in Singapore.

Faithful Footprints is not about religion or lack of it. It is about a journey to the past to appreciate the contributions of the men and women belonging to various religious institutions. Their positive impact in the community made Singapore to what it is now – a place where a multi-cultural and diverse people can call home.

Kathryn Vasquez of UPAAS, Marivic Clarin of OWWA Singapore, and Crisanta Guiquing of OFW Kindness Movement welcoming participants.

A curated Trail of the lost Kampong Bencoolen

Green, Maroon and those in between walking together

Maghain Aboth Synagogue: memorable visit filled with warm welcome and generosity. Thank you for this rare opportunity to learn about Juadaism in Singapore and their pioneers’ lasting contributions to the community.

Many Faiths – One People: A guided Tour of Harmony-in-Diversity Gallery

While the majority of residents in Singapore are affiliated with Buddhism (31.1%), the next big group are those with no religious affiliations (20%). Here’s the breakdown from the Singtat website:

  • Buddhism (31.1%)
  • No Religion (20%)
  • Christianity (18.95)
  • Islam (15.6%)
  • Taoism (8.8%)
  • Hinduism (5.0%
  • Others (0.6%)

Source:

https://www.singstat.gov.sg/-/media/files/visualising_data/infographics/c2020/c2020-religion.ashx

A fire-side chat led by Mr Hassan Ahmad, Humanity Matters, to foster a deeper understanding of the past vis-à-vis the prevailing challenges faced in sustaining racial and religious harmony – striving for Singapore’s continuing peace and socio-economic development.

A candid sharing among participants – to be heard, to be understood and finally to realise we related to one another in more ways than we thought.

As one of our participants puts it: “Fostering awareness of various religions and cultures together with the understanding and appreciation of harmonious co-existence of these institutions leads to stability.  And such is important to Singapore, for a stable political and social situation, and for a better economy.”

We thank the organisers of Faithful Footprints, Humanity Matters, for this enriching and memorable activity. We are humbled by this experience and will continue to play our part to uphold and protect peace and harmony.

The University of the Philippines Alumni Association Singapore (UPAAS), together with the OFW Kindness Movement and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) Singapore, and friends came together to witness Faithful Footprints.