SHARING FAITHS: Program brings sacred Jewish texts to mosques
June 29, 2007
BY DAVID CRUMM
FREE PRESS RELIGION WRITER
A national pilot program to link Jews and Muslims with sacred books kicked off in Detroit on Thursday with the delivery of 17 Jewish books to one of the city's leading mosques.
"I hope this idea extends from Detroit across the U.S. and even throughout the world," Dawud Walid, Michigan director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said as a Jewish delegation from Oakland County delivered the first collection of Jewish books to a local mosque.
The books included translations and commentaries on the Torah, which Christians regard as the first five books of their Bible. Many of the early figures in the Jewish Bible, including Abraham, are considered sacred figures in Islam.
The idea of combating bigotry by sharing sacred texts isn't new. In 2002, Walid's Washington, D.C.-based group kicked off a three-year campaign to place Muslim books in nearly 8,000 public libraries across the country.
The effort launched Thursday is designed to bring Jewish books directly into Muslim centers across Michigan and eventually other parts of the United States.
Imam Abdullah El-Amin, head of the Muslim Center of Detroit, said he already had his eye on several books he plans to read as the first borrower in the new Jewish-books section of his mosque's library.
A half-dozen Jewish leaders delivered the books to El-Amin's center, then the delegation drove to the Islamic Organization of North America mosque in Warren to deliver a second collection.
"Dialogue is the only hope for humanity," Suzy Farbman of Franklin said at the Detroit stop. Her family, which owns commercial real estate in Detroit, donated money for the first three collections of books to the American Jewish Committee, which is coordinating the pilot project. A third set of books will be delivered to the American Muslim Center in Dearborn in August.
Farbman said her family agreed to underwrite the first three collections because they realized that their own congregation, Temple Beth El in Bloomfield Township, already has collected many books on Islam in its extensive library. However, many mosques don't have such extensive religious libraries for their members.
El-Amin said, "This is opening up new doors and windows for our communities."
Contact DAVID CRUMM at 313-223-4526 or dcrumm@freepress.com
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
USING THE BLOG FOR WISDOM
Dear WISDOM WOMEN:
We are going to be publishing our WISDOM newsletters on this blogspot.com account to make the WISDOM news easier to post and easier to access. You can get to the blog in the near future by clicking on the blog button on the WISDOM website. You can also add your own information and comments on the blog by registering with Google.
Below is the information about WISDOM's July 8th event called "Peace Through WISDOM".
Gail
WISDOM
(Women’s Interfaith Solutions for
Dialogue and Outreach in MetroDetroit)
www.interfaithwisdom.org
invites you to
PEACE THROUGH WISDOM
Dinner, Dialogue and a Movie
With Peace X Peace
JULY 8, 2007
3:00 – 7:00 PMCHURCH OF TODAY WEST32500 W. 13 MILE ROAD
FARMINGTON HILLS 48334
Cost: $15.00 for dinner
Make checks out to Church of Today West
Mail to: PEACE THROUGH WISDOM
P.O. Box 7519
Bloomfield Hills, MI 48302
Contact Gail Katz for more information
gailkatz@comcast.net 248-978-6664 RSVP BY July 3rd
3:00 PM - Registration
3:30 PM – “Women on the Frontlines”
5:00 PM – Presentation about Peace X Peace
5:30 PM - Vegetarian Dinner and Dialogue
6:15 PM - Sister Circles
More than a year in the making, PEACE by PEACE: Women on the Frontlines premiered at the United Nations on October 30, 2003, and has been the centerpiece of film festivals, conferences, and celebrations around the world. Women are more likely than professional soldiers to be the casualties of war. From genocide and rape to displacement and starvation, they bear more than their fair share of the suffering. But amongst all this hardship, women around the world are standing up for peace. By advocating justice and educating future generations that war is not the answer, they are at the forefront of reconciling their communities. This special one-hour version of the documentary follows women peacemakers from four different conflict/crisis zones: Afghanistan, Argentina, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Burundi. Narrated by Academy-Award winning actress Jessica Lange, this film redefines the role of women in war. For more information, visit www.peacexpeace.org.
PEACE THROUGH WISDOM!!
WISDOM WOMEN PARTNER WITH PEACE X PEACE
TO CONNECT WITH SISTERS AROUND THE WORLD
On Sunday, July 8th from 3:00 – 7:00 PM WISDOM (Women’s Interfaith Solutions for Dialogue and Outreach in MetroDetroit) will invite women of all faiths to come together at the Church of Today West on 13 Mile Road in Farmington Hills to partner with Peace X Peace. The mission of Peace X Peace is to form women’s Sister Circles, where women in the United States communicate with circles of women in other countries in order to help improve the status of women worldwide and build sustainable peace. This global online network of Sister Circles will meet on a regular basis to support each other and share their stories.
WISDOM women will first watch the 86 minute award-winning documentary entitled “Peace by Peace: Women on the Frontlines,” which follows women peacemakers from four different conflict/crisis zones: Afghanistan, Argentina, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Burundi. Following the movie and a presentation about the mission of Peace X Peace (Peace By Peace), WISDOM women will discuss forming Sister Circles to reach out through e-mail to connect with circles of women in other parts of the world based on shared interests and identifications. In this way, women whose cultures or governments discourage public gatherings or travel outside their communities can take advantage of a safe and productive opportunity to interact with sisters across the globe. WISDOM women will gain access to a wider world, and learn about each others customs, faiths, families, and problems. Strangers will become friends, and friends will become family. Stumbling blocks of miscommunication and stereotypes that women of different faiths and cultures have of each other can be changed into building blocks of peace. Together WISDOM women, through the partnership of Peace X Peace, can take on peace-building projects in areas such as education, health, micro-enterprise, social equity, and leadership development.
REGISTRATION
PEACE THROUGH WISDOM
July 8, 2007
NAME: ________________________________________
ADDRESS: _____________________________________
CITY AND ZIP: __________________________________
PHONE NUMBER: _______________________________
E-MAIL ADDRESS: ______________________________
Please make your check out to Church of Today West for $15.00 for the lunch.
Please mail your check and this form to:
PEACE THROUGH WISDOM
P.O. Box 7519
Bloomfield Hills, MI 48302
For more information please contact:
Gail Katz gailkatz@comcast.net 248-978-6664
We are going to be publishing our WISDOM newsletters on this blogspot.com account to make the WISDOM news easier to post and easier to access. You can get to the blog in the near future by clicking on the blog button on the WISDOM website. You can also add your own information and comments on the blog by registering with Google.
Below is the information about WISDOM's July 8th event called "Peace Through WISDOM".
Gail
WISDOM
(Women’s Interfaith Solutions for
Dialogue and Outreach in MetroDetroit)
www.interfaithwisdom.org
invites you to
PEACE THROUGH WISDOM
Dinner, Dialogue and a Movie
With Peace X Peace
JULY 8, 2007
3:00 – 7:00 PMCHURCH OF TODAY WEST32500 W. 13 MILE ROAD
FARMINGTON HILLS 48334
Cost: $15.00 for dinner
Make checks out to Church of Today West
Mail to: PEACE THROUGH WISDOM
P.O. Box 7519
Bloomfield Hills, MI 48302
Contact Gail Katz for more information
gailkatz@comcast.net 248-978-6664 RSVP BY July 3rd
3:00 PM - Registration
3:30 PM – “Women on the Frontlines”
5:00 PM – Presentation about Peace X Peace
5:30 PM - Vegetarian Dinner and Dialogue
6:15 PM - Sister Circles
More than a year in the making, PEACE by PEACE: Women on the Frontlines premiered at the United Nations on October 30, 2003, and has been the centerpiece of film festivals, conferences, and celebrations around the world. Women are more likely than professional soldiers to be the casualties of war. From genocide and rape to displacement and starvation, they bear more than their fair share of the suffering. But amongst all this hardship, women around the world are standing up for peace. By advocating justice and educating future generations that war is not the answer, they are at the forefront of reconciling their communities. This special one-hour version of the documentary follows women peacemakers from four different conflict/crisis zones: Afghanistan, Argentina, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Burundi. Narrated by Academy-Award winning actress Jessica Lange, this film redefines the role of women in war. For more information, visit www.peacexpeace.org.
PEACE THROUGH WISDOM!!
WISDOM WOMEN PARTNER WITH PEACE X PEACE
TO CONNECT WITH SISTERS AROUND THE WORLD
On Sunday, July 8th from 3:00 – 7:00 PM WISDOM (Women’s Interfaith Solutions for Dialogue and Outreach in MetroDetroit) will invite women of all faiths to come together at the Church of Today West on 13 Mile Road in Farmington Hills to partner with Peace X Peace. The mission of Peace X Peace is to form women’s Sister Circles, where women in the United States communicate with circles of women in other countries in order to help improve the status of women worldwide and build sustainable peace. This global online network of Sister Circles will meet on a regular basis to support each other and share their stories.
WISDOM women will first watch the 86 minute award-winning documentary entitled “Peace by Peace: Women on the Frontlines,” which follows women peacemakers from four different conflict/crisis zones: Afghanistan, Argentina, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Burundi. Following the movie and a presentation about the mission of Peace X Peace (Peace By Peace), WISDOM women will discuss forming Sister Circles to reach out through e-mail to connect with circles of women in other parts of the world based on shared interests and identifications. In this way, women whose cultures or governments discourage public gatherings or travel outside their communities can take advantage of a safe and productive opportunity to interact with sisters across the globe. WISDOM women will gain access to a wider world, and learn about each others customs, faiths, families, and problems. Strangers will become friends, and friends will become family. Stumbling blocks of miscommunication and stereotypes that women of different faiths and cultures have of each other can be changed into building blocks of peace. Together WISDOM women, through the partnership of Peace X Peace, can take on peace-building projects in areas such as education, health, micro-enterprise, social equity, and leadership development.
REGISTRATION
PEACE THROUGH WISDOM
July 8, 2007
NAME: ________________________________________
ADDRESS: _____________________________________
CITY AND ZIP: __________________________________
PHONE NUMBER: _______________________________
E-MAIL ADDRESS: ______________________________
Please make your check out to Church of Today West for $15.00 for the lunch.
Please mail your check and this form to:
PEACE THROUGH WISDOM
P.O. Box 7519
Bloomfield Hills, MI 48302
For more information please contact:
Gail Katz gailkatz@comcast.net 248-978-6664
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