Chicago 1893:
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Was undoubtedly going to be a great event in the history of the world. Though a part of the World's Columbian Exposition, to be held in commemoration of the four- hundredth anniversary of Columbus's discovery of America, the Parliament has been described as the best event among all the programmes of the Exposition and caught the interest of people the world over.
This was the first time that an attempt was made to arrange a dialogue among the representatives of all the religions of the world.
Delegates came from all parts of the world representing perhaps every form of organized religion. Venue of the Parliament was at a newly constructed building in Chicago, the Art Institute. The main sessions were to be held at the Hall of Columbus which had a capacity of four-thousand.
For Scientific and other auxiliary sessions there was the Hall of Washington and other smaller halls The proposed objectives of the Parliament were, among others, to find common grounds of truth among different religions of the world and to explore what light each religion had afforded or might afford to the enrichment of other religions of the world.
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Such ideas should be welcome at all times, not alone in the context of the Parliament. But strangely enough, the reaction the Christian community was not completely favorable. To many, the Parliament appeared as an attempt to ur Christ by comparing his religion with others. Archbishop of Canterbury did not mince words to express his inability to join the Parliament on this ground and to a Minister, in Hong Kong, the Parliament was a treason against Christ Though the organizers were not so narrow in outlook, the spirit of Christian evangelism worked in their minds also.
It was clear in what Dr. Barrows, the prime organizer of the Parliament, said in reply to one of the criticisms against the Parliament. Barrow said: "We believe that Christianity is to supplant all other religions because it contains all the truth there is in them and much besides, revealing a redeeming God. Though light has no fellowship with darkness, light does have fellowship with twilight...
Those who have the full their of the cross should be r brotherly heart towards al grope in a dimmer illumination.' This was the t of liberalism that the Christian ministry could at e best afford.
Swamiji did not miss this attitude of theorganizers and said later, The Parliament of Religions was organized with the intention of proving the superiority of Christian religion.
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