Interfaith is a Two-way Street

February 25, 2015 by Leave a Comment
This really happened to my friend. From Shutterstock

Safaa told us that, in her native language, she could tell us so much more about what Women of Faith means to her, but what she does say is perfectly clear. "This group is my life." Members of our local Islamic Center continue to be threatened, but when she's with us, she feels safe. We are safety. She tells us about the death threats and that it doesn't make any sense to her because she's been here since 1982. Her children were born and raised here. This is her home. Understandably, she's … [Read more...]

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Interfaith as a Pagan: Un-quo the Status

February 24, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Still Image from The Craft Columbia Pictures, 1996

In my last post, I introduced a series on my experiences as an Interfaith Pagan.  Today, that series continues.Let's be honest with each other for a moment:  we've all probably seen it.  I know Pagans who weren't even born in 1996 who've still seen The Craft.  I remember watching it on premium cable while I was in high school and I'm not ashamed to admit ... okay maybe I'm a little ashamed to admit ... that I own it on VHS, DVD, and I have the soundtrack.But, in case you're unfamiliar (an … [Read more...]

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Interfaith as a Pagan: an Introduction

February 10, 2015 by Leave a Comment
a Venn diagram showing intersections between circles labeld with a Christian cross, a Jewish start, and the Islamic crescent

A lot of interfaith events are structured like the image to the right.  Their goal is to find points of intersection, i.e. common ground, between the world's largest monotheistic faiths.  Let me be clear:  such an event is 100% interfaith and the world would stand to benefit from more dialog between Christianity, Judaism, and Islam.Here's a question, though:  what are the top five world religious in terms of population?If your guess was (essentially) Christianity, Judaism, and Islam plus … [Read more...]

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Peer Network

January 18, 2015 by Leave a Comment
IMG_20150112_105240_744

(January 12, 2015) I’m on a cold, rainy drive back from the Washington, DC, area following the annual conference of the COMISS Network. It’s gloomy all up and down the East Coast today, but the warmth of the group I just left has left me smiling down the miles of I-95. Judy Harrow used to attend the COMISS meeting each year, and David Oringderff of Sacred Well Congregation has been a member for ten years. David is Chair of the Cherry Hill Seminary Department of Pastoral Care and Counseling. We al … [Read more...]

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An End to a Faith-full Life

January 13, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Photograph by revwarheart from morgueFile.

My maternal grandmother, whom we called Mammy, died on December 21.  I got the phone call only a few minutes before I was going to begin my Yule celebrations.  Somehow, I didn't feel "in the mood" after that.Rev. Sanders at Church of the Good Shepard in Alburtis, PA--where Mammy was a member of the choir for many years until her health prevented her from doing so--shared a side of my grandmother that I knew very little about:  her faith.Rev. Sanders shared some of his own memories of Ma … [Read more...]

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Making Peace in 2015

December 30, 2014 by Leave a Comment
GatheringofFaiths2013 218

Taking a look back at religion in the news this year reinforces my commitment to interfaith work. The self-named Islamic State is definitely the most alarming source of a seemingly bottomless well of cruelty and violence. But religion-based conflict continues to span the globe, from kidnapped schoolgirls in Africa, to court battles with Hobby Lobby. Everything is not bad, but given the nature of media coverage, it’s easy to overlook the good news.Speaking of Hobby Lobby, although I disagree w … [Read more...]

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The Spirit of the Season

December 19, 2014 by Leave a Comment

As we enter the winter holiday season I am struck by the discord that seems to arise each year at this time over whom the holiday “belongs to”. It’s as if there is a conclusion that the celebrations of the season are limited to one religion only, that the celebrations are a finite commodity to be “owned” by one group or another. How silly. Just because I celebrate Yule, someone else celebrates Christmas, and another joins with family to honor Kwanzaa doesn’t mean that any of us impacts the meanin … [Read more...]

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Hometown Pilgrimage – 2014

November 21, 2014 by Leave a Comment

Every year the Interfaith Mission Service (IMS) here in Huntsville sponsors a Hometown Pilgrimage with the express purpose of celebrating and embracing the religious diversity of the City of Huntsville. This year's Hometown Pilgrimage is co-sponsored by the University of Alabama-Huntsville Office of Diversity and the City of Huntsville's Office of Multicultural Affairs. The Hometown Pilgrimage began on 2 September 2014 and runs until 2 November. This year the Pilgrimage has included a number of … [Read more...]

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