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Being part of interfaith solutions, not problems

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Message: If you are having trouble reading this email, you may view this article online at: http://www.jweekly.com/26549/full/26549/being-part-of-interfaith-solutions-not-problems/ Being part of interfaith solutions, not problems Thursday, July 21, 2005 | by rita r. semel In Korea, a scant two weeks ago, a Muslim from Tehran, a Christian from Jordan and a Jew from Jerusalem prayed together for peace. The occasion was the Global Council meeting of the United Religions Initiative and some 70 of us from 50 countries around the world gathered in Seoul. Fast forward to last week and I was in a mosque on San Francisco’s Jones Street with Muslims, Christians and two rabbis as the Bay Area Muslim community met with the press to express their sorrow at the London bombings, their concern that their American loyalty was being questioned and their uncertainty about their safety and well-being. For Jews, the concerns expressed by the Muslims can only ring a familiar note. We’ve been “the other” in so many countries in so many centuries so many times. Here in the United States, at least since World War II, the Jewish community has enjoyed unprecedented success and acceptance. But surely we can remember and be sympathetic to the uncertainty being felt by the Muslim community which is largely a first generation community. That rabbis, priests and ministers stood together with the Muslim imams was a sign of hope that we know that only by standing together can we defeat extremists and zealots who would threaten our democratic way of life. And that same solidarity is beginning to happen all over the world. The United Religions Initiative meeting in Seoul was another manifestation that good people — whatever their faith tradition — recognize that there must be change if our world is to survive. When our group walked across the Freedom Bridge at the Demilitarized Zone between North and South Korea, only to be stopped halfway by a barrier, that lesson become clear. The barrier fence was filled with messages of both despair and hope, despair at not knowing what happened to loved ones, hope that the country might someday be reunified. Does that not strike a familiar note in a Jewish heart? How many times in our history have families been torn apart? How many times have we been forced to leave a place to make a new life somewhere else? The United Religions Initiative Global Council meeting is only the tip of the iceberg. Some 300 “cooperation circles” all over the world prove that every day. Each cooperation circle has members of at least three different religions and what they do to make their own communities better is up to them. In Israel, there are 10 cooperation circles in Jerusalem, Hadera, Nazareth, Haifa, Tel Aviv and the Negev. While each group does different projects, the aim is the same — people of different faiths can and do work together to make a better world. And they meet with cooperation circles in Egypt, Iran, Jordan and the Palestinian territories in regional meetings to share ideas and projects. Here in San Francisco, we have a proud tradition of interfaith cooperation. And on Aug. 16, a new chapter will begin with the groundbreaking ceremony marking the beginning of the first interfaith Habitat for Humanity project in our city. Congregation Emanu-El is one of the lead congregations for that effort, which involves Christians, Muslims and Jews. Is it all sweetness and light? Of course not! There are differences, not only religious but political as well. But — and it’s an important but — those differences are discussed, not fought, recognized, not swept under a rug. Ways are found to work with them. Jews are told that it is not for us to finish the job but only that we are required to begin it. There are beginnings, here in our community and all over the world. Let’s make sure that each of us is a part of the solution, not part of the problem. Rita R. Semel is the executive vice chair of San Francisco Interfaith Council. Local voices welcomed j. welcomes your local voice on timely Jewish issues and events of the day. Submissions will not be returned and are subject to editing or rejections. Approximate length: 750 words. E-mail text, not attachments, to the attention of: Woody Weingarten at <a href="mailto:mailto:woody@jweekly.com"><a href="mailto:woody@jweekly.com">woody@jweekly.com</a></a>. Fax to (415) 263-7223. Mail to j. the Jewish news weekly, 225 Bush St., #1480, San Francisco, CA 94104

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