Many Faiths – One Family
Connecting: The power of genetics and genealogy in bringing people together. David Rencher, Chief Genealogical Officer, Family Search. This was a most appropriate inclusion from the genealogy capital of the world. Mr. Rencher gave a fast-moving and fascinating glimpse into DNA genealogy which proves that we are indeed one family. By the 50th generation back, we are all connected to Moses, Jesus, and Mohammad through common DNA.
After this introductory presentation, there were two sets of breakouts on the topic of Working Together for the Common Good.
WISDOM
- Five Women, Five Journeys: How Different Are We? Women’s Interfaith Solutions for Dialogue and Outreach in MetroDetroit (WISDOM) Gail Katz, President and Co-Founder; Patricia Harris, Co-Founder; Paula Drewek, President-elect. Three leaders from WISDOM told the story of how they formed and wrote their book. They then demonstrated how they present their program. http://www.interfaithwisdom.org/ http://www.readthespirit.com/friendship-and-faith-book/
- Refugee Resettlement Program of Interfaith Works, Dr. Jim Wiggins, Interfaith Works of Central New York. http://interfaithworkscny.org/blog/ There are 11 million refugees worldwide and InterFaith Works is currently working with refugees from Afghanistan, Burma, Burundi, Colombia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Cuba, Ethiopia, Iran, Iraq, Rwanda, Sudan, Somalia, Ukraine, and Vietnam. Refugee Services: Great Projects That Cross Lines of Religion and Culture. Amy Wylie, Volunteer Coordinator, Utah Refugee Services Office. http://refugee.utah.gov/about/index.html
- Awaken the Dreamer – Be the Change. Derek LaCroix and Maureen Jack-LaCroix, Multifaith Action Society (MAS) of Vancouver, B.C. The intended result of this session is to activate environmental change through personal and social awareness, while providing a connecting point for faith-centers and the broader community to develop common goals and collaboration. http://www.multifaithaction.org/
Building a Global Family, photo Tomiko Nojima
- Our Challenges; How to Build a Global Family, Rev. Paul Chaffee, Director of the Interfaith Center at the Presidio www.interfaith-presidio.org, Mrs. Prabha Duneja, Hindu teacher and chair of the Women’s Interfaith Circle of Service (WICS) of the United Religions Initiative (URI) http://www.uri.org/cooperation_circles/detail/womensinterfaithcircleofservice , Pastor Kevin Thompson, Regional Director of Universal Peace Federation UPF http://us.upf.org/ . This panel will be joined by NAIN Scholarship recipient Peter Frank Womack. Mr. Womack has a BA degree in Economics, an MBA in Entrepreneurial Studies, and a JD in International Governance and is the Founder and Executive Director of Interfaith Settlement Foundation, an interfaith organization dedicated to the establishment of a municipality specifically predicated upon interreligious cooperation.
- Can Faith-based Work Really Make a Difference? Getting Beyond the Quick Fix. Benefit from lessons learned from 41 years of tackling some of the most systemic problems facing a city. Rabbi George Stern, Executive Director of the Neighborhood Interfaith Movement, and Eric Wilden, Assistant Director. http://www.nimphilly.org/ Rabbi Sterns and Eric spoke of their successfully diverse staff. A beautiful mural has enhanced their visibility. Their services include older adult programs, long-term care resources, childcare and youth programs.
- Respectful Contestation of Irreconcilable Differences, Dr. Randall Paul, Founder and Exec.Director of the Foundation for Inter-religious Diplomacy. http://www.fidweb.org/home
Ralph Singh
- Changing the Narrative: Using Stories From Our Traditions and Music to Build a More Compassionate, Engaged, Pluralistic Society. Ralph Singh, Director of Publications and Public Relations for Gobind Sadan Institute and Society for Interfaith Understanding http://www.gobindsadan.org/usa-website/usa-home.html , will share progress of his project “Nurturing an Ideal Citizen of the State of Virtue” using the audio CD “Stories to Light Our Way, Journey to the World of Good” and study guides. He will be joined by NAIN Scholarship recipient
Judy Wight & Skyler Oberst
- Teaching Children and Youth Respect for Others. Rosemary Baron, Interfaith Chaplain, Former Middle School Principal, co-developer of The 3 R’s Project.(Rights, Respect, Responsibility) http://www.schools.utah.gov/curr/socialstudies/teachers/pdf/3R.pdf ; Jacqueline Thompson, REACH (Respecting Ethnic And Cultural Heritage) coordinator for the Davis School District http://www2.ed.gov/pubs/EPTW/eptw8/eptw8h.html ; Judy Wight, The Ulster Project http://www.ulsterprojectutah.com/joomla/ Northern Irish teens from Omagh arrived in Utah on Tuesday June 29, 2010 and along with their US host teens engaged in activites and service projects; Skyler Oberst, NAIN Scholarship recipient. (Skyler is a student at Eastern Washington University working on a double major in philosophy and anthropology, founder of Compassionate Interfaith Society and recipient of one of EWU’s prestigious Student Excellence Awards.) http://www.ewu.edu/x62902.xml?printer_friendly=1
Advertisement
Filed under: NAINConnect 2010 Tagged: | interfaith, multifaith, NAIN
