by Sofia Sayabalian
Having the opportunity to visit Reykjavík, Iceland was a special one. I always thought of Iceland as an isolated place–far, freezing, and frosted with whispers…
by Frank DiGirolamo
“Wow! … You just listened to my whole anthem.” It was late at night, years ago, on North Broadway in Capitol Hill. “Miguel” had just recited his life story to me for a good 20 minutes…
by Camila Torres
When I was a child, I was terrified of the dark. I hated going to sleep, because, once the lights turned off, the sheer possibility of encountering a monster kept me awake…
by Amina Malkin
When talking about religion, my father will sometimes talk about “the chosen people,” a title that Jewish people have historically adopted as a way to reference being descended from…
by Marcus Braybrooke
During times of violence and war, it can seem like humanity is on a downward slide. And yet there are those who look past the present state and envision something greater emerging. Such is the case with Sri Aurobindo (1872-1950).
by Vicki Garlock
While numerous creation stories center on how the entire world came to be, others focus on particular aspects of creation. Many stories center on celestial features. How did we get night and day? Why are there clouds? Why is the appearance of the moon constantly changing? Why does the sun appear to move across the heavens?
by Ryan Polsky
“World Religions” is being taken to a whole new level in high schools across the country. Young interfaith activists are bringing it beyond the classroom to engage not only mind, but heart as well. These young grassroots activists are inspiring their peers to learn about different religions through clubs that promote dialogue and service.
by Patrick McInerney
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.” These opening lines from Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities could equally describe our times.
by Ruth Broyde Sharone
Tension can be at a rolling boil during interfaith encounters, but Rabbi David Rosen, a modern Orthodox Rabbi, born and educated in England, who lives with his family in Israel, has never been intimidated by the heat.
by Megan Weiss
Very few religious, much less interfaith news publications have a related social arm, an active presence in the community they address. But Spokane Faith and Values (SpokaneFāVS), a small digital interfaith news platform in Spokane, Washington is proving it can happen.
by John Hewko
We’ve all heard of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), launched to much fanfare in New York in September 2015. Yet less well known are the Bristol Faith Commitments, adopted just a few weeks earlier, when representatives from 24 different faith traditions launched 100 ten-year pledges as a response to the SDGs
by Bud Heckman
When I first started working for interfaith cooperation, I could not find or figure out much of anything. I was hungry to learn, but it was more intuition, inductive reasoning, and plain old dumb luck of “finding” some of the trails of pioneers that moved me forward in figuring out what interfaith was.
by Paul Chaffee, Editor
Potpourri? This month’s TIO, concluding our sixth year of publication, begins with a profile of Sri Aurobindo, an historic, pioneering religious thinker who helped open humankind to the possibility of a peaceful interfaith world.
by Audri Scott Williams
Recently I decided to run for political office in 2018 for the state of Alabama. I will be a progressive Democratic candidate in Alabama’s Congressional District 2, for the U.S. House of Representatives. Friends who know me well have asked me, “Why are you running for a political office?”
by Brie Loskota
We are in a period of flux, a period of rapid and continuous change, where the old order is being torn down, where people are disaffiliating from groups, and where institutional life is being stressed and stretched.
by Ruth Broyde Sharone
In the heart of the city sits a sprawling central mosque and the burial site, Dargah, of the revered Sufi Saint Khwaja Moinuddin Hasan Chishty – responsible for bringing Sufism to this part of the world hundreds of years ago.
by Vicki Garlock
Increasingly, both Muslims and non-Muslims are using Ramadan as a chance to forge friendships across religious boundaries. Since iftar is a community meal anyway, it provides a ready-made way to change negative stereotypes about Islam and the world’s 1.6 billion Muslims.
by Bud Heckman
Researchers tell us one of the most important assessments made by young people in sizing up any faith is “authenticity.” They are discerning consumers in a marketplace of ideas. Does this tradition/scripture/institution/leader/group appear authentic? One mark of authenticity is its vitality. Is it “vital” in the sense that it has relevance to the ways of the very diverse world we all now live in? It must pass a sniff test.
by Seán Rose
As an interfaith educator, trainer, and dialogue facilitator, Don’t Think Twice got me thinking about what improv can teach us about intercultural and interfaith work. Here are five principles which I believe can shape and inform great interfaith encounters.
by Jeff Genung
From the moment a frustrated Neanderthal said to herself, “How am I supposed to cut this meat without a knife?” to the day Gutenberg’s boss blurted “I need thirty copies of this document by noon,” our species has been creating tools that transform life as we know it.
by Paul Chaffee, Editor
Oxford Dictionary writers say that vitality is “being strong and active,” and the word comes with all sorts of synonyms – lively, energetic, exuberant, growing, dynamic, enthusiastic…
by Paul Chaffee
So, what does it mean to live well in an interfaith culture? This issue of TIO suggests that making peace with ‘the other’ is a daily task for all interfaith activists.
Press Release
Toronto – acclaimed the most diverse city in the world and home to six million Canadians – has been chosen as the host city of the 7th Parliament of the World’s Religions, to be convened in November 1-7, 2018. The selection of Toronto was made by the Board of Trustees of the governing organization at its April 2017 meeting.
by Dawn Anahid MacKeen
The following is a chapter from MacKeen’s book recounting how she finally meets the descendants of Sheikh Hammud al-Aekleh, whose family welcomed in her grandfather, saving his life. Some members of the family that greeted her in 2007 today are Syrian refugees themselves.
