All posts tagged: interfaith

Faith groups seek out founding documents in bid to rescue democracy

Faith groups seek out founding documents in bid to rescue democracy

Published by Sam Flores

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (RNS) — The prompt for the after-dinner discussion was a familiar phrase: “We hold these truths to be self-evident.” Some 90 members of nine religious congregations gathered in the fellowship of hall of University Baptist Church recently to begin a study of the Declaration, with its foundational claim that “all men are created equal.” They are just one of some 30 interfaith “clusters” in 16 states participating in Faith250, a new initiative intended to mark the country’s 250th anniversary, or semiquincentennial, this July 4th. These clusters are now pouring over “America’s sacred texts” as part of a mission to revive democratic values they feel have been eroding. “People are really concerned about what’s happening in our democracy,” said Meg Peery McLaughlin, the co-pastor of University Presbyterian Church and a program organizer. “They have been hungry for a place to bring their concerns about what’s happening and encounter what our shared faith may have to say to it.“ In addition to the Declaration of Independence, the faith clusters will study other foundational texts …

An interfaith vigil kicks off NYC’s ‘No Kings’ march

An interfaith vigil kicks off NYC’s ‘No Kings’ march

Published by Sam Flores

NEW YORK (RNS) — Hundreds gathered at Central Park’s Columbus Circle entrance on Saturday morning (March 28) for an interfaith vigil ahead of New York City’s “No Kings” march to protest the Trump administration.  The Rev. Paul Raushenbush, president and CEO of Interfaith Alliance, kicked off the event by noting the importance of faith communities taking a place within the “No Kings” movement. “Faithful people from all different backgrounds have to show up for ‘No Kings’ because authoritarians and would-be kings … their main pillar is often religious folks who want to prop up autocracy so they have proximity to power and impose their idea on what faith is on all the rest of us,” he told the crowd gathered in front of the USS Maine National Monument. In his hands, Raushenbush held a sign that read “Yes to religious freedom for all” and “Christian Nationalism” crossed out. Saturday was the third edition of the No Kings rally and drew millions across the country, and in Europe, for protests in more than 3,500 cities, including …

In Minneapolis, Augsburg University 2026 interfaith symposium will focus on healing

In Minneapolis, Augsburg University 2026 interfaith symposium will focus on healing

Published by Sam Flores

Faith Matters Network founder Rev. Jen Bailey to headline annual symposium MINNEAPOLIS —Augsburg University will offer its fourth annual Interfaith Symposium at noon on Wednesday, March 25, 2026, featuring Rev. Jen Bailey. The Interfaith Symposium is an annual invitation to students and community members to learn about religious, spiritual, and worldview diversity and connect with exceptional interfaith leaders.  Bailey’s keynote address, “Healing the Earth, Healing Ourselves,” will draw on her work as an ordained minister, public theologian, and national leader in the multifaith movement for justice.  “Jen Bailey is the right voice for our times,” said Professor Najeeba Syeed, El-Hibri Endowed Chair and executive director of Interfaith at Augsburg. “She not only believes in building a better world for all, she embodies it in her ministry, professional work, and personal life.” Bailey’s career has been anchored in service to community and a commitment to justice. She is the founder of Faith Matters Network, a Womanist-led organization equipping community organizers, faith leaders, and activists with resources for connection, spiritual sustainability, and accompaniment, and a co-founder of …

I fasted for friendship during Ramadan and Lent. Here’s what I learned.

I fasted for friendship during Ramadan and Lent. Here’s what I learned.

Published by Sam Flores

(RNS) — I visited Lahore just as the month of Ramzan (or Ramadan) and the season of Lent were about to begin.   For me, a question loomed. How do I balance my religious obligation as a Sikh with my desire to have solidarity, especially with my Muslim friends with whom I was staying?    As a Sikh, I believe I am prohibited from fasting for religious reasons. For example, Siri Guru Granth Sahib says:   pujaa vart tilak isnaanaa pun daan bahu dain   Kahun na bheejae swami bolhae methae bain   (“Worshiping, fasting, ceremonial marks on forehead, cleansing baths, generous donations to charities and self-mortification: God is not pleased with any of these, no matter how sweetly one may speak.”)   For the first few days, I observed my Muslim friends eating the morning sehri (or suhur) meal before sunrise, fasting until iftar at sunset and performing the five daily namaz (prayers). Then,I decided I would undertake a fast for one day — not for religious reasons, but for friendship.   At my request, around 4 a.m., my Muslim friends woke me up, and we had a light meal of sehri with our servant sitting with us …

Amid ICE raids, Minneapolis rabbi and pastor show solidarity in action

Amid ICE raids, Minneapolis rabbi and pastor show solidarity in action

Published by Sam Flores

(RNS) — Amid a massive immigration crackdown in Minneapolis these past two months, hundreds of clergy joined crowds of demonstrators to protest the violent arrests and detentions of thousands of the city’s immigrants as well as the killing of two U.S. citizens. But apart from the demonstrations — often met with smoke grenades, tear gas and bullets lobbed by federal immigration agents in military gear — a Reform rabbi and a Lutheran pastor of a mostly Latino church found another way to resist federal immigration officers — by deepening their partnership, building relationships and extending solidarity. Rabbi Arielle Lekach-Rosenberg and Pastor Hierald Osorto were out on the streets demonstrating too. But in the wake of the deployment of as many 3,000 immigration enforcement agents in their city, they moved beyond public declarations. Over the past few weeks, they’ve held two joint prayer services — one at her synagogue, the other at his church. They are writing a play together. Last week, the two congregations announced they are jointly raising $1 million by Sunday (Feb. 22) …

As Walk for Peace reaches DC, Buddhist monks share interfaith message with thousands

As Walk for Peace reaches DC, Buddhist monks share interfaith message with thousands

Published by Sam Flores

WASHINGTON (RNS) — Thousands of onlookers gathered at Washington National Cathedral on Tuesday (Feb. 10) to see and hear from the venerable Buddhist monks who have completed a 108-day, 2,300-mile walking journey from Texas to the nation’s capital. Surrounded by leaders from several faith traditions, including Washington Episcopal Bishop Mariann Budde, who began the gathering with a peace prayer from St. Francis, the monks talked about how the practice of compassion can transcend religious differences. “In front of you all, you can see all religions’ leaders here together for the same mission: peace,” said Venerable Bhikkhu Paññākāra, the monks’ leader, who spoke for a half-hour on a sunny day. “This is the first time to me, that we are working together. We are walking together on this path to find peace for ourself, to share that to our nation and the world.” At the event, called “A Sacred Stop on the Walk for Peace,” the 19 monks from the Huong Dao Vipassana Bhavana Center in Fort Worth were welcomed by a cheering crowd of people …

At Mamdani’s interfaith breakfast, NY clergy condemn Trump’s immigration crackdown

At Mamdani’s interfaith breakfast, NY clergy condemn Trump’s immigration crackdown

Published by Sam Flores

NEW YORK (RNS) —  New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani hosted his first interfaith breakfast at the New York Public Library’s midtown location on Friday morning (Feb. 6). For this year’s breakfast, local clergy joined the mayor in condemning the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement policies. During the event, Mamdani signed an executive order to prevent U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents from entering city property without a judicial warrant. “ICE is more than a rogue agency. It is a manifestation of the abuse of power,” Mamdani said before signing the document amid applause. “In fact, there is no reforming something so rotten and base.” Executive Order 13 will also prevent the federal government from accessing New Yorkers’ private data and create an interagency response committee on immigration, the mayor said. During the traditional breakfast, Mamdani, who began building ties with local faith leaders during his campaign, made clear that he hoped to work with them to implement his affordability agenda and support the city’s immigrant communities amid ICE operations in the city. Throughout the event, speakers …

Trump’s framing of Nigeria insurgency as a war on Christians risks undermining interfaith peacebuilding

Trump’s framing of Nigeria insurgency as a war on Christians risks undermining interfaith peacebuilding

Published by Sam Flores

(The Conversation) — Nigeria “must do more to protect Christians,” a senior U.S. State Department official demanded on Jan. 22, 2026, during a high-level security meeting in the African nation’s capital, Abuja. The comment followed an attack just days earlier in which more than 160 worshipers were kidnapped from three churches in Nigeria’s northern Kaduna state. The security meeting came a month after the United States, in cooperation with the Nigerian government, launched an airstrike from a U.S. Navy ship in the Gulf of Guinea on the northwest Sokoto state. During the Christmas Day incident, 16 Tomahawk missiles costing around US$32 million hit several locations the U.S. claimed were being used by extremist groups. There were no verifiable casualties, although the strike did send a signal that the U.S. administration is willing to take military action when it is deemed necessary. President Donald Trump heralded the attack a “Christmas present” to Christians and later warned that there would be more strikes if the killings of Christians continued. As a scholar of African politics, I know …

Inside the effort to organize clergy nationwide to resist ICE

Inside the effort to organize clergy nationwide to resist ICE

Published by Sam Flores

MINNEAPOLIS (RNS) — As she stood at the pulpit at Westminster Presbyterian Church on Thursday (Jan. 22), the Rev. Rebecca Voelkel, a United Church of Christ minister, looked out at the packed sanctuary with tears in her eyes. Far from the typical flock of Presbyterian worshippers who frequent the church on Sundays, the more than 600 people who filled the pews represented a wide range of faiths — Christians of all kinds as well as Buddhists, Jews, Muslims and Indigenous practitioners, among others. All were religious leaders who had traveled to Minnesota on short notice, spurred by their faith to oppose President Donald Trump’s mass deportation campaign in the city. “In the face of all the pain and suffering in our cities and our country, you are a beautiful, beautiful sight,” Voelkel said. Beneath her, on the pulpit, sat a sign that referenced Scripture from the biblical book of Micah, but added a decidedly timely twist. “Do justice. Love kindness. Abolish ICE.” Hundreds of clergy convene at Westminster Presbyterian Church, Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026, in …

In Pittsburgh, pro-immigrant interfaith efforts emerge amid concerns about ICE

In Pittsburgh, pro-immigrant interfaith efforts emerge amid concerns about ICE

Published by Sam Flores

PITTSBURGH (RNS) — On an unseasonably warm, drizzly Friday morning in early January, nearly 200 people of faith stood outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement field office in Pittsburgh’s South Side neighborhood, singing religious songs and praying. Some wore yarmulkes, and others wore clerical collars and held posters depicting Mary, Jesus’ mother, being detained by ICE agents. One sign read: “Who Would Jesus Deport?” “I’m here because Renee Good cannot be here, and her mother and daughter are weeping,” said the Rev. De Neice Welch, executive director of the Pennsylvania Interfaith Impact Network, referring to the woman killed a few days earlier by an ICE agent in Minneapolis. “I’m here because my faith drives me, my God compels me, and my Scriptures remind me that where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.” In between verses of “This Little Light of Mine” and “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” the Rev. Dave Swanson, a pastor at Pittsburgh Mennonite Church, reminded attendees that Good was killed less than a mile from where George Floyd …