by Paul Chaffee, Editor
“It makes me crazy!” my pastor cried out, more than once, in last week’s sermon. She was responding to a New York Times article about American Christian nationalism she’d read the day before.
Opening the Door to Collaboration
by Paul Chaffee
The most important thing to know about Reimagining Interfaith (RI), the upcoming conference in Washington DC (July 28-August 1), is how collaborative it is.
Who Isn't at the Table?
by Paul Chaffee, Editor
“Who isn’t at the table yet, who isn’t here?” P. Gerard O’Rourke’s voice, a gruff and gentle Irish brogue, asked the question each month at the start of interfaith board meetings.
Review: The Life of Yogananda by Philip Goldberg
by Paul Chaffee
The religions of India – Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism – are less familiar and stranger to most Americans than the Abrahamic religions, which have dominated America since Columbus.
Setting the Interfaith Agenda
by Paul Chaffee
For all the Global Ethic has and has not achieved, much discussed in this issue of TIO, the document set the agenda for the interfaith movement that has blossomed around the world in the quarter-century since it was published.
An Evolving Dialogue for Promoting the Global Ethic
by Paul Chaffee
If the 1893 Parliament of the World’s Religions in Chicago made history by opening the door to interreligious relationships, the 1993 Centennial Parliament made history by endorsing and promoting Towards a Global Ethic – An Initial Declaration.
A Sampler of Where We Have Come
by Paul Chaffee, Editor
Growing up 100 years ago meant knowing almost nothing about the world’s spiritual traditions except your own. That world is mostly gone from us, never to return.
Differences & Disagreements: Crossing the Final Bridge
by Paul Chaffee, Editor
Anyone in recent years who has seriously organized local interfaith activities knows about the boundaries of dialogue. There is often pressure to focus on shared values and easy issues; to master easy topics before jumping into disagreements that are unlikely to be solved.
Opening Doors to Africa
by Paul Chaffee, Editor
What we don’t know we oversimplify. As a pre-teen, I had a few desolate images of India – a really hot climate, vast arid deserts, cows wandering down city streets, and overwhelming poverty. Little more.
Donna Bollinger Tapped to Lead Religions for Peace-USA
by Paul Chaffee
She was raised in a home on a dirt road in rural western North Carolina, without indoor plumbing or a telephone. The family lived off the land and had never sent a child to high school before. Asked if there was some seminal moment, a particular experience as a youngster that influenced her for the rest her life, Donna Bollinger says “Yes!”
Spiritual Exploration in Tough Times
by Paul Chaffee, Editor
Squeezing in a prayer on a comfortable day in a self-satisfied life is more difficult than turning to the Spirit (however that happens on your path) in times that seem bleak, broken, and hopeless.
REPORT: Religion Communicators Convention Dives Deep
by Paul Chaffee
A largely unknown treasure for interfaith activists is the convention held each year by the Religion Communicators Council (RCC). Founded in 1929, the RCC has given annual awards to religious communicators and to secular communicators working on religious subjects since 1949.
A Sea of Change and a Silver Lining
by Paul Chaffee
From the halls of the White House to community discussion groups, for the past eight years the United States has been generally open and supportive of interfaith dialogue.
Huston Smith – The Passing of a Giant in Our Midst
by Paul Chaffee
If Swami Vivekananda’s clarion voice at the 1893 Parliament of the World’s Religions introduced us to the challenge of living happily in an interfaith world, it was Huston Smith’s voice in The Religions of Man (1958) which taught us what that meant.
Who Cares About Living Peacefully?
A TIO Editorial
Who Cares About Living Peacefully?
by Paul Chaffee
Interfaith dialogue is sometimes characterized as wine ‘n cheese talk-fests for progressive religionists. In fact, the interfaith movement is strongest in countries where people are at risk, though their stories don’t often get told. Preparing for TIO’s launch, we discovered the painting below, the work of at-risk children in Pakistan who yearn to grow up in an interfaith-friendly, peaceful land. TIO is a site where voices like theirs will be heard.
“Multicultural Harmony” was painted by Sara, 10, Zehra, 12, and Ayla, 11, students at Funkor Childart Centre for disadvantaged students in Islamabad, Pakistan. In a troubled world, their clear yearning for friendship and goodwill among the world’s races and religions shines like a beacon for the rest of us. The mural was painted under the guidance of artist Fauzia Minallah. Learn more about Funkor’s work and ways to support it at www.funkorchildart.com.