It’s February the 1^st, and big day for us at the CTII.

For one, it’s the UN World Interfaith Harmony Week. We have a strong tie to this event: in 2019, the CTII were the joint recipients of its prize, for our “Prayers in the City” held in Elsies River (together with FHLM), a grassroots version of what had been a regular annual event. (The banner picture for our site is from this event).

Secondly, we have launched a 2-month fundraising campaign “CTII Schools Project 2026” on the BackaBuddy platform in which we hope to enable our very successful Youth Interfaith Program (YIIP) to run this year. This is a new step for us; up until now our funds have been via private donations.

We now want to expand our reach to meet the demand for interfaith education and organisation, and actively take up our responsibility as a competent and empowered NGO. Our goal is to raise R120,000 to make the two-year Schools Program possible for 70 Grade 10 and 11 learners in 2026. It costs approximately R1700 per learner.

As a key evidence to the effectiveness of the 2025 program, here are 2 quotes, from a Muslim and a Jewish learner respectively:

“Before I entered the Interfaith Programme, I pretty much saw my religion … as the only correct religion … But interfaith really … changed the way I viewed life. The Programme really helped me create friendships… those are friendships that will last a lifetime.”

“It taught me that different faiths don’t have to divide us, they can bring us closer through understanding and respect. I’m grateful to have had this opportunity to learn, to connect, and to see the world through new eyes.”

Interfaith is, by its very definition, an act of giving. Falling between recognised religious groupings, it can be viewed with skepticism and even suspicion. Believers are not quick to associate with those outside their circles, and religious leaders are often duty-bound to keep people inside their folds. To merely be present to “the other” requires a generous heart.

Giving is a universal virtue. And there are many ways to give. Pippa Jones quotes a profound teaching by August Gold of the Sacred Centre New York. Simply put, it is list of 4 ways to give:

• Time
• Talent
• Ties
• Treasure

Time means overcoming your busy-ness for the greater good. Being available, available for works of service, for prayerful considerations, for beautiful, or for brave conversations, for building a friendship.

Talent means bringing your strengths, your experience and expertise, and using these to build community. True leadership is not about gaining an upper hand in a game of power, but in doing the thing in which you excel. It also means collaborating where your talents might be limited.

Ties are our connections, the heart of ubuntu – I am (a node) because we are (a network). When we share not just what, but who we know, magic often happens. The sum becomes greater than the parts, and we can as the African proverbs says, go far together, not just fast, alone.

complete your task
seek no reward
make no claims [Daodejing 30]

The CTII is a thriving organization precisely because it is comprised of volunteers having given freely of their time, talent and ties. Our big challenge now, especially with our flagship YIIP program, is funds.

Treasure, then, is our resources in goods and money, are often the weak point in the life of NGO’s. Traditional religious organisation have their ways of doing this, for example through Christian tithing, Islamic sadaqah and zakat, and even barter-like giving systems like the Buddhist dana.

“The example of those who spend their wealth in the way of Allah is like a seed which grows seven spikes; in each spike is a hundred grains…” [Surah Al-Baqarah 2:261]

And sadly, due to many kinds of corruption, money it is too often the cause of great suffering and disrepute rather than the alleviation of that suffering.

So, despite these challenges, we are embarking on a program of fundraising and we invite you to be involved. You may be well-off and can afford to support us. Please do and take direct part in a better future for our world. Or you may have little or nothing in the way of money to contribute. There is no shame at all in this.

“All these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had.” [Luke 21:4]

 

But together, via our pooled resources – time, talents, ties and treasure – we can reach our target and continue building the interfaith and intercultural leadership of tomorrow.

Thank you for reading, and may you have a blessed week of harmony!

• “CTII Schools Project 2026” BackaBuddy campaign page – give directly here.
• Our video hearing it from the learners directly
• The 2025 schools report
• All the 2025 YIIP events
• CTII general donations