CCCB and Hindu Federation Hold Spring Interfaith Meeting
Tuesday, June 3, 2025The spring meeting of the CCCB-sponsored Hindu-Catholic Dialogue took place on 26 April 2025, in Brampton. The longstanding co-sponsor of this Dialogue is the Hindu Federation of Canada, and participants were blessed to gather on the 26th at Triveni Mandir, one of the Federation’s newest temples. Participants on the Catholic side included the co-chair, the Most Rev. Daniel Miehm (Bishop of Peterborough), along with Fr. Joseph Chandrakathan (St. Augustine’s Seminary, Toronto), Fr. Prakash Lohale (Interfaith Officer, Archdiocese of Toronto), Dcn. Benny Augustine (Archdiocese of Montreal and Syro-Malabar Catholic Eparchy of Mississauga), Dra. Ana de Souza (McGill University) and Subdeacon Dr. Brian Butcher (CCCB). The Hindu cohort included co-chair Dr. Uday Lohakare, as well as three members of Scarborough’s Kailasa Canada/Nityananda Meditation Academy: Raynosan Edmond, Sri Shivajnana Swaroopananda and Ma Nithya Lalitambikanada; in addition to Hindu Federation Vice-President Thushy Thirun; Ram Mandir (Mississauga) President Indira Sharma; and Dr. Narhari Timilsina of the Nepalese Shree Pashupatinath Mandir.
The focus for the day’s discussions was mental health, particularly how it is understood in our different faith traditions—and, more poignantly, how contemporary crises on this front are being addressed in our respective communities. As their guest speaker, the Dialogue welcomed Teresa Hartnett, from the Diocese of Hamilton’s Family Ministry Office, who shared from the wealth of her education and experience in the field. Teresa’s presentation was complemented by that of Thushy Thirun, elucidating a Hindu perspective: participants were struck by the similar challenges faced on the ground, in church and temple alike. A future meeting of the Dialogue may host a public event on this topic, as it seems likely only to increase in relevance.
In addition to the customary gathering with the Hindu Federation, the Catholic members of the Dialogues added to their programme an encounter, on the preceding evening, with the International Society of Krishna Consciousness (more commonly known as the Hare Krishna), at their Toronto temple. This informal meeting involved a tour of the premises; observation of a period of kirtan (devotional chanting), during which arti was also offered; a discussion with community members, including a number of young people who live on-site, studying and practicing their faith for a semester-long intensive known as the Bhakti Academy; and a meal at the adjoining restaurant Govinda’s, which caters to the unique Krishnatarian diet—vegetarian, with added abstinence from plants belonging to the allium genus—kept by ISKON devotees.
The Hindu-Catholic Dialogue looks forward to its next meeting on 13 September, to be hosted next in a Catholic venue. Members will resume their study of the Hindu classic, the Bhagavad Gita, which began in the fall of 2024.
