Bay Area Interfaith Connect
Headline articles from 2009:
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About the Editor: D. Andrew Kille is director of Interfaith Space in San Jose, working to develop and strengthen interfaith relations throughout the Bay Area. Send your calendar items, comments and suggestions to calendar@interfaith-presidio.org. We try to keep the ICP Update and Calendar as current as we can, but if you want your item included in the monthly newsletter, it needs to be in our hands a week before the end of the month. |
November- Spiritual ResourcesThe Interfaith Center at the Presidio is proud to announce a new webcast series featuring Bettina Gray interviewing local and global interfaith leaders. Spiritual Resources had its debut on October 22nd, as Bettina interviewed Dr. William Lesher, Chair of the Committee for a Parliament of the World's Religions (see picture on right). Also featured was a brief history of the original Parliament in 1893 by Paul Chaffee, and a reading of the closing address given by Swami Vivekenanda, read by Prem Sujan of the Fremont Hindu Temple. In addition to her work as an interviewer and producer, Bettina Gray is currently Chair of the North American Interfaith Network (NAIN). This month, she will interview Sarah Talcott, Youth Programs Director for the United Religions Initiative (URI) on November 5th, and Dr. Michael Nagler, Founder of the Metta Center for Nonviolence Education on November 19th. The live webcast is at 6:00 pm, Pacific Standard Time, on the ICP Webcast page. At this point, we are not able to make archive copies available, so be sure to check it out in person. See more details on our website. WINTER GALA. Sally Porter Munro, a gracious supporter of the Center and accomplished musician will again bring her musical friends to the Presidio Chapel to “Welcome the Winter with Song and Good Cheer!” On Sunday, November 22nd, you are invited to join them for an evening of music, fun, food and wine, beginning at 4:00 pm. There will be a silent auction and raffle, as well. Tickets are $25 per person or $100 for Patrons, with special seating. Catering will be by Rt. Rev. David Ponedel, and hospitality by St. Peter’s Episcopal Church. All proceeds go to benefit the Presidio Interfaith Chapel. For reservations (credit cards accepted), information, and pickup of items to be donated for the raffle & auction, call Jan at (415) 292-7059. PARLIAMENT OF THE WORLD'S RELIGIONS. The Parliament is nearly upon us! The Bay Area will be well represented, with some 40+ people attending, many of whom will be involved in presentations in Melbourne. If you are interested in being included in an e-mail listing of attendees, send your name and e-mail address to Rev. James DeLange, Chair of the San Francisco Interfaith Council, . More information about the Parliament is available on the Parliament website. The Parliament is also seeking nominees for the Paul Carus Award for Interreligious Understanding to be awarded in Melbourne. The Paul Carus Award seeks to honor "outstanding work in the international interreligious movement and celebrate the efforts of an individual, community or organization that work effectively toward the creation of a more just, peaceful and sustainable world." The deadline for nominations is November 15, 2009. More information on the Award may be found online. News stories about Silicon Valley becoming a member of the Parliament Partner City Network have appeared around the web: On the Parliament website: San Jose, The First Partner City; in the Tri-City Voice (Fremont); and on Examiner.com. There will be a special update and send-off for the Santa Clara County delegation on Thursday, November 11th, 8:00 am at the County Government Center. See details from the San Jose Interfaith Examiner. INTERFAITH YOUTH CORE. The IFYC conference, "Leadership for a Religiously Diverse World," meeting October 25-27 in Chicago, drew together over 650 people from around the world to celebrate and inspire emerging young leadership in the interfaith movement. Participants left Chicago with a commitment to "change the conversation about religion start projects in interfaith cooperation, and transform our environments from religious diversity, division and discord into interfaith cooperation." IFYC has created a new website to enable creative collaboration among interfaith leaders, with resources (including audio and video), discussion groups, and blogs. You can join the conversation at bridge-builders.ning.com/.
BECOME A STAKEHOLDER IN THE INTERFAITH CENTER For more information about becoming an Associate or Affiliate, please contact Paul Chaffee, Executive Director, at 415-775-XXXX or at paul@interfaith-presidio.org. A flyer with more information is available on the ICP website (pdf). Bay Area Interfaith Connect is sent each month to nearly 2,000 subscribers, and is available online at the Interfaith Center at the Presidio website. If you do not receive the monthly updates and would like to do so, simply write to info@interfaith-presidio.org. Please include your name, and, if you are willing, your street address and phone will help us to keep you up to date on interfaith activities. Andrew Kille
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October- Gathering of BlessingsEach October, the community that makes up the Interfaith Center at the Presidio gathers together to mark the anniversary of the time when care of the Presidio Chapel passed from the U.S. Army to the newly-founded ICP in 1995. It is a time for reflecting how far we have come along our way, celebrating those who have partnered with us on the journey, and dreaming of possibilities that may yet come to be in the future. This year we will again gather together to honor and celebrate the work and gifts of all who are engaged in building a vital, interfaith relationships in our midst – starting with the Center’s sponsors, affiliates, and members. At the Sunday, October 4th Gathering of Blessings, representatives of the various communities involved in the ongoing work of the Center will offer prayers, blessings, and lighted candles. The celebration will begin in the Chapel at 4:00 pm; it will be followed by a reception with an opportunity to learn more about interfaith activities in our area. PEOPLE OF THE EARTH IN AMERICA: Unfortunately, the People of the Earth event planned for Saturday, October 24 has to be canceled. Illness on the part of the organizers combined with a general unavailability of interested parties in late October has resulted in expectations of a very small turnout. We still plan to have a People of the Earth event in the Spring of 2010. Please contact Don Frew if you are interested in participating in such an event or in helping to make it happen. UNITING NATIONS IN AN INTERFAITH WORLD
ICP Director Rev. Paul Chaffee was one of the speakers at the forum on "Building Global Peace: Overcoming the Constraints" sponsored by the United Nations Association – USA and held at Dominican School of Philosophy and Theology in Berkeley. Paul outlined some of the history of religiously-based peacemaking in the US, and described some of the things we have learned in the past several years. You can read highlights of his talk here, or download the full text as a pdf file. PARLIAMENT OF THE WORLD'S RELIGIONS. Only two months to go before the fifth Parliament of the World's Religions assembles in Melbourne, Australia. Many folks from the Bay Area will be attending, including members of the Silicon Valley Partner City Group, which has been working diligently over the past year on applying for the Partner Cities Network, a new program developed by CPWR that seeks to build and connect the Interreligious movement worldwide. The team was delighted to learn that the application has been accepted, and that San Jose and Santa Clara County will be inaugural members of the Network! The group will be presenting a workshop at the Parliament on what they have learned in the application process. STRETCHING THE MORAL IMAGINATION: NEW WAYS TO MAKE PEACE. Two weeks after 9/11, an Interfaith Center-sponsored program drew 300 citizens in Hayward, California, to a public forum with an imam, a priest, a rabbi, and a Protestant minister. In the raw emotional atmosphere that evening, they managed to explore how interreligious dialogue can be a healing influence. Since that evening the conversation has continued in hundreds of sites across the nation, with daily notices being posted on upcoming events. All to the good! But so much more than good conversation is required. A number of pioneering interreligious peace projects, to be featured in An Abrahamic Showcase, are going the next step. The dialogue deepens, transforming relationships develop, and the local environment takes a step forward – in short, constructive interfaith peacemaking. New disciplines contribute in the quest – holistic, integral learning, personal and community development, intercultural dynamics, building bridges, using new technologies, and being of service are among the transforming elements in this effort. An Abrahamic Showcase will be a series of interfaith programs profiling some of the most imaginative new ways people are making peace, and surveying how you can do likewise. They will be webcast from the Main Post Interfaith Chapel in the Presidio of San Francisco starting January, 2010. Learn more . . . BECOME A STAKEHOLDER IN THE INTERFAITH CENTER For more information about becoming an Associate or Affiliate, please contact Paul Chaffee, Executive Director, at 415-775-XXXX or at paul@interfaith-presidio.org. A flyer with more information is available on the ICP website (pdf). Bay Area Interfaith Connect is sent each month to nearly 2,000 subscribers, and is available online at the Interfaith Center at the Presidio website. If you do not receive the monthly updates and would like to do so, simply write to info@interfaith-presidio.org. Please include your name, and, if you are willing, your street address and phone will help us to keep you up to date on interfaith activities. Andrew Kille
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September- Practicing Appreciation
So writes Huston Smith, the venerable scholar of religion, in his recent autobiography Tales of Wonder: Adventures Chasing the Divine (Harper One, 2009). Smith traces his spiritual journey from his birth in China to a missionary family, his travels around the world, and his encounters with Hinduism, Buddhism and beyond. Smith was an honored guest at the NAIN Connect 2008 hosted by the Interfaith Center at the Presidio, proving an inspiration to the young people attending (see photo). While most of us may not be able to follow Huston's path into practicing multiple religions, most of us recognize that process of discovering hidden layers in ourselves as we create relationships with those of other traditions. DAYS OF INTERFAITH SERVICE. Speaking of young folks, Theodore Timpson, director of Go Beyond based on the peninsula, has organized two Days of Interfaith Youth Service this year. First in May, and again last month, thirty volunteers from ten faith traditions met to restore coastal habitat in Half Moon Bay. Afterwards, they were asked to choose their favorites from photos that were taken that day, and comment on what the picture meant to them. The result is a moving slideshow, which you can find at Go Beyond. Days of Interfaith Service is a program inspired by the Interfaith Youth Core of Chicago. We look forward to more opportunities to build interfaith relations among those of a new generation. AT THE INTERFAITH CENTER. Appreciative Marriage Workshop: Enough with the problems! What makes a really good marriage? What do we mean when we say good marriage? What makes a good marriage valuable? And what are the skill-sets and decisions that enhance long-term vital relationships? This Fall the Interfaith Center is offering a workshop in Appreciative Marriage this fall, beginning on September 9th and continuing on Sept. 14 & 21 and Oct. 19 & 26, 7:00-9:00 pm. Facilitators will be Paul Chaffee and Sandra Pilon. You can find a brochure with the details here. We will not be surveying all the issues of marriage, focusing instead on tools and skills for nurturing thriving, healthy relationships in a multi-cultural, multi-religious time. The workshop is open to married couples as well as those planning to be married or in a long-term committed relationship. A GATHERING OF BLESSINGS: THE WIDER CIRCLE. On Saturday, September 30, 1995, the U.S. Army held its final religious service in the Main Post Chapel in the Presidio. On Sunday, October 1, the newly incorporated Interfaith Center at the Presidio held its first service in what is now known at the Interfaith Chapel. a Gathering of Blessings commemorating the sanctuary’s transition from military to civilian care and use. It has become an annual event. This year we honor and celebrate the work and gifts of all who are engaged in building a vital, interfaith relationships in our midst – starting with the Center’s sponsors, affiliates, and members. Contact Paul Chaffee at 415-775-XXXX or paul@interfaith-presidio.org if you would like to light a candle and offer a blessing during the October 4th celebration. You are also urged to bring any literature and resource materials about interfaith work that you are engaged with. Come early and we can help you display them on tables downstairs where we will have a reception following the blessing celebration. 4:00 pm Celebration – 5:15 Reception Main Post Interfaith Chapel. PEOPLE OF THE EARTH IN AMERICA: Serving Our Communities & In Service to the Wider Community. The American community of faiths now includes an increasing number of practitioners of indigenous, Earth-based, nature-centered, polytheistic, and pagan traditions. Like many religious communities in today's economy, we have individuals and families who are struggling to get by and need access to appropriate social services. At the same time, as Earth-religionists we have unique gifts, skills, and insights that we can offer in service to the wider American community. The Interfaith Center at the Presidio invites us to come learn about each other, discuss how we can work together to better meet the needs of our communities, and explore what we have to offer to the wider society and how best to do so. This third People of the Earth in America event will include lunch, discussion, and ceremony. Saturday, October 24th, 10:00 am - 4:00 pm, Interfaith Center at the Presidio. We will be asking a donation of $10-20 to cover costs; any extra will go to the Interfaith Center. For more information or to RSVP, contact: earthpeople@ancientways.com Please RSVP, so we know how many to prepare lunch for. BUILDING GLOBAL PEACE. "Uniting Nations in an Interfaith World" will be Paul Chaffee's theme at "Building Global Peace," a celebration of the International Day of Peace on Friday, September 25, sponsored by the East Bay United Nations Association. Also on the program are Ambassador Tom Miller, President of the UN Association USA; Prof. David Holloway, Stanford, and Sarah Talcott, URI Youth director. See details at www.unausaeastbay.org/ EXAMINER.COM. A couple of weeks ago your editor took on another challenge as the San Jose Interfaith Examiner at Examiner.com. Every few days, I will be posting articles about events, people, and issues in interfaith relationships in the South Bay and around the world. I'd be delighted to hear from you about events in your area, or things you think need wider publicity. Write to me at calendar@interfaithspace.org, and come see me at the Examiner. RAMADAN. For the past few years, several Bay Area mosques have extended a traditional Ramadan custom of hospitality to their non-Muslim neighbors, inviting them to take part in an iftar, a meal that breaks the daily Ramadan fast. In our calendar listings below, you will find opportunities to visit a mosque in your neighborhood, from San Francisco to Oakland to San Jose. Take advantage of this time to meet your Muslim neighbors! BECOME A STAKEHOLDER IN THE INTERFAITH CENTER For more information about becoming an Associate or Affiliate, please contact Paul Chaffee, Executive Director, at 415-775-XXXX or at paul@interfaith-presidio.org. A flyer with more information is available on the ICP website (pdf). Bay Area Interfaith Connect is sent each month to nearly 2,000 subscribers, and is available online at the Interfaith Center at the Presidio website. If you do not receive the monthly updates and would like to do so, simply write to info@interfaith-presidio.org. Please include your name, and, if you are willing, your street address and phone will help us to keep you up to date on interfaith activities. Andrew Kille
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August- Lazy Days of SummerWell, maybe not so lazy, but Summer does seem to be a time for fewer big gatherings or major programs. But the work of building and strengthening relationships among religious communities goes on. In this issue of BAIC we'll scan the web for news and resources about interfaith events. Did you know that the ICP website includes archives with links and online goodies related to interreligious encounters? Many were originally showcased in the "Special Opportunities" section of BAIC and have not lost their usefulness. You can find them on the Bay Area Interfaith Connect page. AROUND THE INTERFAITH CENTER:
Read the rest of Paul's comments here. We're also in the process of updating our website. Over the years, with the dedicated efforts of many volunteers, the website has become outdated, somewhat haphazard, and limited in its capabilities. We hope that the new design will be more attractive and useful for all. Stay tuned! A delegation of leaders from India were hosted on July 20th by the Interfaith Center and the San Francisco Interfaith Council as part of a program sponsored by the Institute of International Education, affiliated with the US State Department. The intent was to acquaint the delegates with the religious diversity of the Bay Area and the organizations that promote interfaith relationships. SFIC Executive Director Michael Pappas and Executive Vice Chair Rita R. Semel met with the delegation to exchange information about the history, mission, vision and programs of the SFIC/ICP and discussed the nature and status of interfaith relations in the Bay Area. AROUND THE BAY: Last month's "Taking It to Melbourne" event attracted the interest of Robert Siegel, Interfaith Spirituality Examiner for the SF Examiner online. It's not the most comprehensive article, but shows that people are watching. You can read it here. On July 18, the Bay Area Family Church was host to an interfaith breakfast “Youth in Service to Our Community and Our World,” featuring Tesia Bobrycki and Theodore Timpson. Tesia spoke of her experiences volunteering with a youth organization in Africa, and Theodore noted from his experience as a High School teacher that young people have a need for "imagination, feeling, and mystery" in order to get engaged with learning and each other. Theodore is director of Go Beyond, which sponsors Days of Interfaith Youth Service (the next one is scheduled for August 16. See the write up by Mark Denni, longtime supporter of the Interfaith Center. The Interfaith Sacred Music concert on July 30th sponsored by the Marin Interfaith Council prompted an appreciative article on the front page of the Lifestyle section of the Marin Independent Journal. The concert featured "a Jewish female a cappella group, a kirtan chanter from the Hindu tradition, a Native American flute player, a Christian gospel choir and a Peruvian-style ceremonial sound healer." A Faith & Neighborhood Partnerships Day opened with an Interfaith Prayer Service organized by the San Francisco Interfaith Council and the Interfaith Center of the Presidio. Participants included several ICP supporters,including Sarah Talcott, URI’s Director of Youth Programming, Rev. Heng Sure, Rita Semel, and Paul Chaffee. Prayers represented the diversity of faiths in the Bay Area: Islam, Judaism, Methodist, Christian Science, Buddhism, Catholicism, and Brahma Kumari. Read more about the event at the United Religions Initiative website. INTERFAITH BLOGS
BECOME A STAKEHOLDER IN THE INTERFAITH CENTER For more information about becoming an Associate or Affiliate, please contact Paul Chaffee, Executive Director, at 415-7756-XXXX or at paul@interfaith-presidio.org. A flyer with more information is available on the ICP website (pdf). Bay Area Interfaith Connect is sent each month to nearly 2,000 subscribers, and is available online at the Interfaith Center at the Presidio website. If you do not receive the monthly updates and would like to do so, simply write to info@interfaith-presidio.org. Please include your name, and, if you are willing, your street address and phone will help us to keep you up to date on interfaith activities. Andrew Kille
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July- I'm Ready for My Close-up!With apologies to Nora Desmond in Sunset Strip, we want to announce some exciting news—the Interfaith Center at the Presidio now has the capacity to do live webcasts from the Center. The technology comes to the Center by way of the generosity of Junaid Islam, a local developer of webcasting tools. Junaid and his team at Vidder.com are developing capacities for simple, easy to use webcasting that does not require the huge investments in video equipment previously needed for online video production. When thinking about how to "field test" his system, Junaid remembered the work of the Interfaith Center (he's the nephew of long-time ICP supporter Iftekhar Hai), and immediately saw how the Center's activities could be made available to a wider audience through the webcast technology. He has contributed the hardware to the Center and made the software available to make it all work. ICP first went "live" on Sunday, June 7, as St. Peter's, San Francisco, an Episcopal Church which is using the Chapel while their church building is being renovated, celebrated Holy Communion, led by Rev. Dave Rickey. People across the country were able to watch and listen. Soon after, we were able to webcast the Reunion and Blessing Celebration organized by the United Religions Initiative and ICP on June 11th. People from around the world were able to come to the ICP website and share in the experience. Following the ceremony, several of the URI leaders took a moment to send a greeting to their constituencies across the globe. Plans are to have a continuous single-camera webcast (if you go to the media page now, you will see a real time video of the Interfaith Chapel). Additional cameras (shown in multiple windows) and sound can be added for special events, workshops, concerts, and weddings. In time, we will be able to include off-site events, and even present interfaith events from several different locations around the world simultaneously. A new Internet Oversight Committee has been developed to deal with the new possibilities, challenges, policies, and concerns related to our expanding web capacity. Our thanks to Junaid for making all this possible! We are continually improving the software and webcasting process, and working to make your experience as headache-free as possible, so please tune in, take a look, and let us know how we're doing! "TAKING IT TO MELBOURNE"
Join us for Taking It to Melbourne, a pre-Parliament event, and find out! We’ll feature videos and photos, along with personal stories of people who have journeyed to past Parliaments of the World's Religions. And especially, we will feature brief presentations from those in our area who have proposed workshops for Parliament, which will take place December 3-9, 2009, in Melbourne, Australia. WHEN: Sunday, July 12, 4:00-7:00 (Pacific Standard Time) WHERE: Main Post Interfaith Chapel, 130 Fisher Loop, Presidio, San Francisco. LIVE WEBCAST: If you can’t come to San Francisco, go to www.interfaith-presidio.org/Media/vidder.html to join the event at 4:00 pm (PST)! WHY GO TO NAIN? Anyone willing to pay airfare, registration, room, and board to spend three days outside of Kansas City with 70 people preoccupied with interreligious relationships has to nurse a deep commitment to the cause! Even for the committed – Why spend the money? As a veteran of a dozen NAIN (North America Interfaith Network) summer gatherings, I’ve several answers to that question, starting with old friendships and new. That’s personal, though. The reason I make it my business to keep going is what I learn. At Unity Village last month, an hour south of Kansas City, two workshops I attended tell the tale. Read more . . . QUICK NOTES Antioch Mosque Reopens. Congratulations to the members of the Islamic Center of the East Bay, who inaugurated their rebuilt mosque on June 27 in a ceremony that included the Mayor and Police Chief of Antioch, along with representatives from Muslim and Interfaith groups. The mosque had been destroyed in an arson fire in 2007. Community and interfaith leaders quickly responded with a show of support for ICEB. Understanding Kirpans. The California Assembly has passed a bill requiring law enforcement agencies to train officers in understanding the meaning and purpose of the kirpan, the ritual dagger carried by Sikhs. Although carrying a kirpan is legal in the U.S., some Sikhs have experienced harassment and even arrest from overzealous law enforcement personnel. The bill now goes to the California Senate. BECOME A STAKEHOLDER IN THE INTERFAITH CENTER For more information about becoming an Associate or Affiliate, please contact Paul Chaffee, Executive Director, at 415-7756-XXXX or at paul@interfaith-presidio.org. A flyer with more information is available on the ICP website (pdf). Bay Area Interfaith Connect is sent each month to nearly 2,000 subscribers, and is available online at the Interfaith Center at the Presidio website. If you do not receive the monthly updates and would like to do so, simply write to info@interfaith-presidio.org. Please include your name, and, if you are willing, your street address and phone will help us to keep you up to date on interfaith activities. Andrew Kille
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June- How Pluralistic Should We Be?"The greatest barrier to pluralism in the United States," writes sociologist Robert Wuthnow, "is not the expansion of differences in our midst, but our reluctance to acknowledge that there are indeed differences." He goes on to say:
By its very nature, interfaith encounters involve differences— of belief, of tradition, of worship. Creating relationships of authentic pluralism involving people of diverse traditions cannot be based in suppressing or denying those differences. Neither can it simply allow those differences to explode into hostile conflict. Rather, it requires shaping an environment and developing skills that can hold the diversity, honor it, and channel it into a shared respect and common purpose. That is why the Interfaith Center at the Presidio has sought not only to be a safe place for religious traditions to meet, but has focused on developing group skills like Appreciative Inquiry and on finding ways to further the community's understanding and respect for our many traditions. ICP Executive Director Paul Chaffee reported from last month's North America regional assembly of the United Religions Initiative : "The soft spring-green graciousness of the Blue Ridge hills and valleys was surpassed by the hospitality Henderson County volunteers offered from the moment we arrived. Not just a beautiful site but a safe, sacred space to do our work. The amazing chanting and singing Fran McKendree drew from us, and Michele Skeele’s American Indian flute, its melodies surrounding the outdoors full-moonrise ceremony, both came on the breeze of the Spirit. The Trail of Tears team sharing their remarkable walking tour and embracing URI-NA. Good food. Good fellowship. Bishop Swing’s stories of the journey so far gave everything else historical context, a new depth, encouragement, and a continuing challenge. We left Henderson appreciatively, refreshed and inspired as we returned home to help grow a miracle of a community in our midst." Paul's reflections on the gathering include seeing the "rebirth" of the region and pondering the potential for developing the Interfaith Center's ability to share Non-Violent Communication, Moral Imagination, and Affirmative Inquiry. Read more . . . NAINCONNECT 2009. It's nearly upon us! The annual gathering of the North American Interfaith Network will unfold from June 25-28, at Unity Village in Kansas City, MO. This year's conference, Experiencing the Spirit in Education: The Challenge of Religious Pluralism, is an official Pre-Parliament Event for the Parliament of the World's Religions. You can read all about NAINConnect2009 and find the latest updates in the special edition of the NAINews. AN INVITATION TO THE FAITH AND NEIGHBORHOOD PARTNERSHIPS DAY
BECOME A STAKEHOLDER IN THE INTERFAITH CENTER For more information about becoming an Associate or Affiliate, please contact Paul Chaffee, Executive Director, at 415-7756-XXXX or at paul@interfaith-presidio.org. A flyer with more information is available on the ICP website (pdf). Bay Area Interfaith Connect is sent each month to nearly 2,000 subscribers, and is available online at the Interfaith Center at the Presidio website. If you do not receive the monthly updates and would like to do so, simply write to info@interfaith-presidio.org. Please include your name, and, if you are willing, your street address and phone will help us to keep you up to date on interfaith activities. Andrew Kille
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May- Faith and Interfaith in a Global AgeMarcus Braybrooke titled his 1998 book on the Parliament of the World's Religions Faith and Interfaith in a Global Age (Grand Rapids: CoNexus Press). In the Foreword John Hick writes:
Now, more than ten years further on into that "unknown future," we find ourselves enjoying a wide variety of opportunities for joining together with others in that "spirit of mutual respect," and reminded again and again that the whole world begins at our own feet. URI REGIONAL ASSEMBLY. ICP Director Paul Chaffee and Jan Chaffee will be traveling to Asheville North Carolina this coming week to attend the North America Regional Assembly of the United Religions Initiative. Delegates from many of the 48 Cooperation Circles in the US and Canada will gather under the theme "The Year of Reconciliation with Self, Others, and The World," in keeping with the United Nations' declaration of 2009 as the Year of Reconciliation. They will be sharing ways to grow and nurture peace within and among ourselves and our earth. THE URI YOUTH LEADERS PROGRAM will be sponsoring a Youth retreat June 12 – 14 at the Anubhuti Retreat Center in Marin. NAINConnect 2009. Next month, June 25-28, 2009, Unity Village in Kansas City, MO, will be the location for the annual North American Interfaith Network conference. Hosted by the Greater Kansas City Interfaith Council and SpiritPath at Unity Village, the conference theme is “Experiencing the Spirit in Education: The Challenge of Religious Pluralism." Bay Area interfaith leaders Sara Talcott of the URI Young Leaders Program, Rev. Judith Fleenor and Rev. Susan Strouse will be leading workshops. Full information, including registration materials and listings of all 35 workshops can be found in the current NAINNews. Early bird registration is available until May 15. PARLIAMENT OF THE WORLD'S RELIGIONS. It might be a "long, long time from May to December" in the popular song, but for many around the world and in our local community, it's coming on faster and faster! The fifth Parliament of the Worlds Religions (if you count the original 1893 event) will be meeting in Melbourne, Australia, December 3-9, 2009. The theme is "Make a World of Difference: Hearing each other, Healing the earth," and over 8,000 people are expected from around the world, including many from the Bay Area and the Interfaith Center at the Presidio. Information and registration can be found at the website for the Council for a Parliament of the World's Religions. PARTNER CITY APPLICATION. As part of their preparation for the Parliament, a multifaith group in the South Bay has been working on an application to join the "Partner Cities Network" of the Parliament. The process involves a self-assessment of its local interreligious movement and its interaction with the wider community. The working group has submitted a program proposal to the Parliament to do a workshop on "What We Have Learned in the Partner Cities Process." The convener of the group is Rev. Ellen Grace O'Brien of the Center for Spiritual Enlightenment in San Jose, who is on the Board of Trustees of CPWR. If you are interested in finding out more about the process, you can contact the group through southbainterfaith@yahoo.com. MORE LOCALLY, don't miss out on the many opportunities coming up at the Interfaith Center at the Presidio, Here are some of the upcoming events.
BECOME A STAKEHOLDER IN THE INTERFAITH CENTER For more information about becoming an Associate or Affiliate, please contact Paul Chaffee, Executive Director, at 415-7756-XXXX or at paul@interfaith-presidio.org. A flyer with more information is available on the ICP website (pdf). === Bay Area Interfaith Connect is sent each month to nearly 2,000 subscribers, and is available online at the Interfaith Center at the Presidio website. If you do not receive the monthly updates and would like to do so, simply write to info@interfaith-presidio.org. Please include your name, and, if you are willing, your street address and phone will help us to keep you up to date on interfaith activities. Andrew Kille
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April- Finding Compassion
The renowned religious scholar Karen Armstrong quotes Ibn al-Arabi in her memoir, The Spiral Staircase: My Climb Out of Darkness (Anchor Books, 2004). Armstrong is the author of many outstanding books on comparative religion, including A History of God; Holy War: The Crusades and their Impact on Today’s World; Muhammad: A Biography of the Prophet; Jerusalem: One City, Three Faiths; and The Great Transformation: The Beginning of Religious Traditions. I’ve just finished reading her memoir and was profoundly struck by her observations of the vital role that compassion plays in the encounter with religious traditions:
At the Interfaith Center at the Presidio, compassion, hospitality, and an open heart are at the core of our relationships. Our theologies, rituals, and customs may different, and might often be grounds for disagreement, conflict, and even hostility. By creating a safe space into which we can bring our authentic selves, we offer a space for developing the compassion without which interreligious relationships are difficult, if not impossible. === ICP in the News. ICP was featured in a recent online article by friend and supporter Diana deRegnier at Religion and Spirituality.com. She tells the story of the Presidio Chapel, and about interfaith programs sponsored by ICP. You can find it at religionandspirituality.com. Don't forget the opportunities for gathering, study, food and fellowship at the Interfaith Center at the Presidio. Here are some of the upcoming events; see details below. ON PLURALISM AND DIVERSITY BREAD AND SOUP BOOK STUDY JOSEPH CAMPBELL FILM SERIES EASTER WEEK SERVICES
=== Looking for a way to volunteer in the SF Bay Area? The Jewish Community Relations Council is sponsoring a Volunteer Fair on Wednesday, April 29, 2009 at the Jewish Community Center, 3200 California Street, San Francisco. ICP is co-sponsoring this event. === Bay Area Interfaith Connect is sent each month to nearly 2,000 subscribers, and is available online at the Interfaith Center at the Presidio website. If you do not receive the monthly updates and would like to do so, simply write to info@interfaith-presidio.org. Please include your name, and, if you are willing, your street address and phone will help us to keep you up to date on interfaith activities. Andrew Kille
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March- At the Presidio CenterThe Interfaith Center at the Presidio is delighted to host a number of rich and challenging opportunities for building connections, engaging in dialogue, and enjoying our heart-connections with one another. Plan to be with us to share our sacred space. BREAD AND SOUP BOOK STUDY
Acts of Faith (2007) by Eboo Patel has been called the best interfaith book since Diana Eck’s A New Religious America. It is at once extremely readable and inspiring. Patel, founding director of the Interfaith Youth Core, was recently appointed by Barack Obama to be one of 25 advisors to the newly created Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships. Our study is co-sponsored by St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, which will prepare a simple meal for these discussions. Please contact Father David Rickey (415-336-1097, david.rickey@prodigy.net) if you wish to attend these free events, so we’ll know how much food to prepare. You can purchase the book through David, over the internet or at a store. BROWN BAG LUNCH WITH URI HEROES Charles Gibbs, executive director of United Religions Initiative, will introduce and begin our conversation with Sheik Musa Khalil from northern Uganda and Sister Marites Africa from the Philippines, members of the URI family who have repeatedly put their lives on the line for interfaith bridge-building. Musa is one of a handful of religious leaders who has brokered a peace between Uganda’s government and the Children of God army, who have warred for more than two decades, decimating the life of civilians. Marites’ peace education for young people and work to reconcile the violent relations between Christians and Muslims is a model of what is possible for interfaith activists. PEOPLE OF THE EARTH: The American community of faiths is beginning to include an increasing number of practitioners of indigenous, nature-based, Earth-centered, polytheistic, and Pagan traditions. The San Francisco Bay Area is uniquely blessed with an exceptionally large number of such communities. As the growing interfaith movement turns its attention to “intra-faith” communication, we invite practitioners of indigenous traditions to come to the Interfaith Center at the Presidio to meet their neighbors. This is an opportunity to build new relationships locally and learn about ways to connect with fellow Earth- religionists around the world through the United Religions Initiative and the Parliament of the World’s Religions. A special invitation will be presented from a coalition of indigenous tribes of Latin America to join them in Pan-American networking of the peoples of the Serpent, the Eagle, and the Condor. The day will include lunch and ceremony. We ask a donation of $10-20 to cover costs; any extra will go to the Interfaith Ceenter. For more information or to RSVP, contact: earthpeople@ancientways.com. JOSEPH CAMPBELL FILM SERIES During the final years of his life, Joseph Campbell embarked on a lecture tour in which he drew together all that he had learned about what he called the “one great story” of humanity. The lectures were filmed for the Mythos series, hosted by Susan Sarandon. Mythos I: The Shaping of Our Mythic Tradition will screen the first five of these lectures. They have never been broadcast in the Bay Area. Robert Walter, long-time Campbell colleague and now president of the Joseph Campbell Foundation, hosts the screenings and leads discussions afterwards. On Monday, April 13, the opening session features a one-hour documentary about Campbell’s life and contribution. For more details, contact Sandi Pilon at 415-561-3930. You can see a brief excerpt of the film on the Amazon.com website. === INTERFAITH SPEAKERS BUREAU THE ARTWORKS in this issue of BAIC are more of the work of Rev. Gina Rose Halperin, D.Min, Founding Director of the Chaplaincy Institute for Arts and Interfaith Ministries in Berkeley, an Interfaith seminary preparing clergy to serve a spiritually and culturally diverse world. Thanks to Gina for permission to use the images. === Bay Area Interfaith Connect is sent each month to nearly 2,000 subscribers, and is available online at the Interfaith Center at the Presidio website. If you do not receive the monthly updates and would like to do so, simply write to info@interfaith-presidio.org. Please include your name, and, if you are willing, your street address and phone will help us to keep you up to date on interfaith activities. Andrew Kille
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February- Four ChaplainsDo you recognize these names: Father John Washington, Reverend Clark Poling , Rabbi Alexander Goode and Rev. George Fox? They are the "Four Chaplains," the honorees of what is perhaps the longest-standing interfaith observance in the United States— Four Chaplains Day on February 3. The chaplains were all aboard the USAT Dorchester on February 3, 1943 when it was torpedoed by a German U-Boat. They worked together to help evacuate the ship, kept the men calm, and assisted the wounded. Finally, they gave their life jackets to men who didn't have them. As the ship sank, survivors recalled the four chaplains (Catholic, Jewish, Dutch Reformed, and Methodist) standing arm in arm on the deck, praying together. The Four Chaplains were awarded the Distinguished Service Cross and Purple Heart posthumously, and received a Special Medal for Heroism (equivalent of the Medal of Honor) in 1961. They were honored with a US stamp in 1948, and Congress proclaimed February 3rd as Four Chaplains Day. You can find out more about them online at the Immortal Chaplains Foundation, the Four Chaplains Memorial Foundation, and Wikipedia A DECLARATION FOR PEACE
The declaration was signed by 46 representatives of Jewish, Muslim, Catholic, Protestant and other religious organizations. You can read the full text of the statement at SouthBay Interfaith. THE SPECIAL ARTWORKS here and below were done by Rev. Gina Rose Halperin, D.Min, Founding Director of the Chaplaincy Institute for Arts and Interfaith Ministries in Berkeley, an Interfaith seminary preparing clergy to serve a spiritually and culturally diverse world. She writes "Each month at the Chaplaincy Institute, a particular world religion is our focus of study in the Interfaith Ordination program. In Spring 2008, I began a project of exploring each of the religions being studied through an artistic process anchored in that religion's essential symbols. This is in the sacred tradition of illuminations: artistic elements or pictures that appear in books alongside the text. I have delighted in this process: spending time in prayer, researching the particular religion's symbology, and talking with people of that particular faith to search for the essential elements to convey artistically." The image to the left "A Basket of Blessings," and the one below, The Lotus and the Breath," will be on display until February 6th as part of "Simply Divine," a showing of art related to the divine at Expressions Gallery, 2035 Ashby Ave. in Berkeley. THE WORLD'S FIRST TEMPLE COMING SOON TEACHING WISDOM, HONORING DIFFERENCE === Bay Area Interfaith Connect is sent each month to nearly 2,000 subscribers, and is available online at the Interfaith Center at the Presidio website. If you do not receive the monthly updates and would like to do so, simply write to info@interfaith-presidio.org. Please include your name, and, if you are willing, your street address and phone will help us to keep you up to date on interfaith activities. Andrew Kille
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January- New Beginnings
Recently, my family and I have been watching old episodes of The West Wing. I was particularly touched by these words spoken by presidential candidate Matt Santos, played by actor Jimmy Smits:
It is perhaps fitting that the calendar we share does not belong to any one religious tradition. The sacred year begins at different times for different communities, but in this time we all share together this pause on the threshold, ending one year and beginning the next. Our faiths unfortunately do "collide as often as our weapons." Events in Gaza, in India, in Nigeria, conflicts in our own denominations, "culture wars" in the public arena all remind us that our world is still wounded and hurting. Yet it is our religious traditions that call us to hope, to a realistic hope that recognizes and engages the evils of this world. As we gather together, finding safe, sacred space, we again look forward with hope to what lies ahead. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. & PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURATION APPRECIATIVE MARRIAGE: A WORKSHOP FREMONT: A STUDY IN INTERFAITH RELATIONS A SEASON FOR NONVIOLENCE
TURN OVER THAT CALENDAR
=== Bay Area Interfaith Connect is sent each month to nearly 2,000 subscribers, and is available online at the Interfaith Center at the Presidio website. If you do not receive the monthly updates and would like to do so, simply write to info@interfaith-presidio.org. Please include your name, and, if you are willing, your street address and phone will help us to keep you up to date on interfaith activities. Andrew Kille
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