WISDOM Birmingham Temple Interfaith event

Friday night, June 6th, WISDOM and The Birmingham Temple on Twelve Mile Road in Farmington Hills held a joint interfaith event. Over 100 Christians, Jews, Muslims, Baha'is, Hindus, Sikhs, and Jains (men and women) came together at a potluck supper to get to know other people of different faith traditions. The salads, pasta dishes, cooked vegetables and assortments of bread were wonderfully delicious, but what was more delicious than the food was the warm exciting feeling in the room of people reaching out to get to know others that they might never get the chance to meet in their own usual circles of friends and family. Following the potluck supper, about 150 people seated themselves in the sanctuary of The Birmingham Temple for a "Shabbat Shalom" Peaceful Sabbath service, led by Rabbi Tamara Kolton, senior rabbi of this congregation for Humanistic Jews. The service began with the singing of "Hayveynu Shalom Aleichem" followed by a poem by Judyth Hill entitled "Wage Peace." Other readings and Hebrew songs followed, including "We Shall Overcome," and the beautiful Friday night service ended with a memorial service for those departed and very spiritual candlelighting. The panelists for "Five Women: Five Journeys, How Different Are We?" were called up to the front of the sanctuary. Gail Katz, WISDOM President, was the moderator of the panel, which consisted of The Rev. Sharon Buttry (Christian), Sofia Begg Latif (Muslim), Padma Kuppa (Hindu), Paula Drewek (Baha'i) and Rabbi Tamara Kolton (Jewish). The panelists answered questions such as "How did your childhood impact where you are today with your own personal beliefs?" "How is your daily life impacted by the teachings of your religion?" "What do you believe is the most misunderstood part of your tradition?" and "What is it like to be a woman in your community, and what do you see as the biggest challenge for women in your tradition in the United States?" The answers from the panelists were thoughtful, touchingly personal, and very spiritual. What a most beautiful evening!! Below are some photos that were taken at the event.