Commentary
Fifteen years ago, the Royal Canadian Chaplain Service was wrestling with the corollaries of pluralism in Canada, and how to tap into the benefits of true diversity in the Canadian multicultural context.
Even though I am an orthodox Lutheran, who does not believe that all religions are equally valid expressions of truth, I was a great advocator of true pluralism, participating in the writing boards and doctrine that has led to the government’s current policy on chaplaincy in the Canadian Armed Forces.
When I served on the Interfaith Committee on Canadian Military Chaplaincy, I supported the introduction of chaplains of non-traditional faith groups because they represented the diversity of the Canadian landscape and deserved respect under our charter and Constitution. Further, true pluralism theoretically protects the integrity of “absolutist” traditional mainstream faith traditions that are not inclusive of other belief systems due to the logical law of non-contradiction….