INFORMATION SOURCES
* The Kansas City Star (also on line)
* Helen Gray, faith editor
* Faith announcements, Saturday
* Bill Tammeus, Saturday faith columnist and daily blogger
* Vern Barnet, Wednesday free-lance columnist and occasional blogger
* Faith columnists from many traditions appear in rotation
* Regular news and features often include topics of diverse faiths
KC Muslim News Digest (email)
The National Catholic Reporter
This outstanding weekly (also on line) occasionalyl
reports interfaith stories and special profiles of non-Christian faiths.
KC Jewish Chronicle (Fridays)
Despite its biased, often anti-Muslim reporting
and editorial stance, it is essential reading to keep abreast of local
Jewish organizations. Columnist Rabbi Margolies's column is always worth
reading.
Camp (monthly)
Vern writes the “Sacred Paths” column.
Many Paths (CRES monthly journal)
Each issue routinely contains
*an essay to guide understanding issues of pluralism,
*calendars of community events,
* CRES programs, and
* holidays,
*comments,
*humor,
*quotations,
*poetry,
*reference resources in the supplementary insert, and
*reports from the now-independent Interfaith Council.
KCPT Channel 19 Public Television
Occasionally the Friday KC Week in Review
with Nick Haines present local religious issues with reporters and clergy.
Wednesday's Talk Back Live with Steve Rose
occasionally features guests from the field of religion.
ANNUAL INTERFAITH EVENTS
Some events may migrate from one month to another.
Mayors’ Prayer Breakfasts. — Area observances vary from decidedly Christian
to deliberately interfaith events. The Raytown Community Interfaith Alliance’s
observance truly is a prayer event embracing every faith.
JANUARY.
The annual Martin Luther King observance brings folks together from
many faiths.
Salaam Shalom Dinner (see).
Journey toward Understanding (high school program).
FEBRUARY.
Jan 30 - Apr 4 The Season for Non-Violence, an observance of 64 days
between the memorial anniversaries of Gandhi and King, is hosted in Kansas
City by the Center for Spiritual Living.
National Council of Jewish Women luncheon
(Greater KC) Mayors’ Prayer Breakfast, KCMO
MARCH.
Raytown Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast
Harmony Week Luncheon
SEPTEMBER.
Annual Conferendce on Health and Spirituality, Community of Christ
Temple.
NOVEMBER.
Greater Kansas City Interfaith Council Table of Faiths luncheon.
Harmony Choral Concert.
Crescent Peace Society annual dinner.
CRES Thanksgiving Sunday Family Interfaith Thanksgiving
Ritual Meal (the Sunday before the holiday, 6p), since 1985, a full meal
in liturgical style with greetings from American Indian, Bahá'í,
Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim, Pagan, Sikh, Sufi, Unitarian
Universalist, Zoroastrian and Freethinker traditions and American history
and aspirations. Awards for distinguished interfaith leadership are presented.
Raytown Community Interfaith Alliance Thanksgiving Service (Tuesday
evening before Thanksgiving).
Pilgrim Chapel Interfaith Thanksgiving Service (Wednesday evening before
Thanksgiving).
DECEMBER.
Interfaith World Peace Celebration” Dec. 31 at 6a (gather at
5:30a), Rime Buddhist Center.
|
ORGANIZATIONS
-- Part One: Intro
This list does not include groups like the Greater
Kansas City Coalition for Worker Justice, the Independence Ministerial
Alliance, Raytown Community Inter-Faith Alliance, Wyandotte Interfaith
Sponsoring Council, Project Equality, or More2 which develop their membership
and plan their programming to be religiously inclusive but may have economic,
racial, collegial, civic, or other issues as their primary focus. They
may be interfaith in the sense that they involve people from several traditions,
but not in the sense that their focus is the sacred as revealed through
different faiths.
Surely institutions like
* the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art,
* the International Relations Council,
* the Center for Practical Bioethics,
* the American Civil Liberties Union, and
* the American Friends Service Committee are
significant resources for interfaith understanding, as are schools which
offer programs and instruction in world religions such as
* the Saint Paul School of Theology,
* the Nazarene Theological Seminary,
* Central Baptist Theological Seminary
* Unity Institute
* Ottawa University—KC
* Community of Christ Seminary
* Park University
* UMKC Center for Religious Studies
* KU Department of Religious Studies
* William Jewell College
(We cannot recommend Midwestern Baptist Theological
Seminary as its approach to non-Christian faiths is unreliable and hostile.)
We also omit private
groups open only by invitation, like the Interfaith Dinner group.
This list does include
some organizations with specific programs or directions aimed at interfaith
understanding even if their main focus is broader.
We want to salute the
impact of organizations which no longer exist as well, such as Ecumedia
and the KC Interfaith Peace Alliance, and interfaith relief efforts like
Shifa, Kansas City Helps, and Heart to Heart International.
Nowadays
hospitals, schools, religious organizations and others are helping us all
to recognizing the faiths of our neighbors through a variety of special
programs.
ORGANIZATIONS -- Part Two/List
Center for Spirit at Work
4310 Madison Av #204, KCMO 64111; 816.268.1077
centerforspiritatwork.org/
CSW, founded eight years
ago as the Cathedral Center for Faith and Work, then based at the Roman
Catholic Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, offers programs by people
of all faiths. Recent speakers have included Protestant, Catholic, Jewish,
and Muslim leaders in their fields, such as Henry Bloch, Irv Hockaday,
Gary Forsee, Tom McDonnell, Mike Haverty, Bill, Terry and Peggy Dunn, Dick
Miller, Carol Marinovich, Kay Barnes, Jim Stowers, Shirley and Barnett
Helzberg, Joan Israelite, Buck O’Neal, Alvin Brooks, Clyde Wendel, Adel
Hall, Tom Hoenig, Mahnaz Shabbir, and Vern Barnet.
These breakfast and
dinner sessions are open to the public. Those who attend get thinking of
the highest quality from folks of different faiths about how the spirit
informs, or can inform, the workplace.
Community Praying for Peace
communitypeace.com/id18.html
CPP provides opportunities
for people of many faiths to pray together for peace.
CRES
Box 4165, Overland Park, KS 66204
Box 45414, Kansas City, MO 64171
cres.org;staff@cres.org
Founded in 1982, its
many achievements include founding the KC Interfaith Council with American
Indian, Bahá'í, Buddhist, Christian-Protestant, Christian-Roman
Catholic, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim, Pagan, Sikh, Sufi, Unitarian Universalist,
and Zoroastrian members, organizing the 2001 Gifts of Pluralism conference
(attended by 250 youth and adults from these faiths as well as Christian
Orthodox and Free-Thinker traditions) and many other workshops and conferences,
planning the city-wide 2002 9/11 observances, networking with many other
organizations and staffing their programs, consultation, teaching, writing,
and civic leadership, including chairing a 5-county diversity study commissioned
by Jackson County, with a 77-page
report issued one day before the first anniversary of 9/11.
A 32-page Interfaith
Passport and other programs were the subject of a half-hour CBS-TV special
in 2002 and has been imitated in other cities.
Donna Ziegenhorn of
the CRES auxiliary Mosaic, wrote the play The Hindu and the Cowboy and
Other Kansas City Stories from a collection of over 80 interviews from
KC area residents of all faiths following the 2001 conference.
The 12-page monthly
color journal Many Paths and web site are key interfaith resources
for the metro area. Other publications are used nationally.
The CRES minister, the
Rev Vern Barnet, DMn, has won many awards from Buddhist, Christian, Jewish,
Muslim, Sikh, Hindu, and secular groups. He is a frequent speaker at area
churches and writes the Wednesday “Faiths and Beliefs” column in The
Kansas City Star.
Because of the
CRES network, the nation's first Interfaith Academies were held here in
2007, in cooperation with Harvard University's Pluralism Project, Religions
for Peace-USA at the UN Plaza, the Saint Paul School of Theology, and the
Greater Kansas City Interfaith Council. Vern was a member of the international
faculty and coordinated the study-visits to six area sites to supple,emy
classroom experiences. Vern also signed the Certificates.
At the Academies, designed
for both students and professionals, Ellie Pierce, principal researcher
for The Pluralism Project at Harvard University, began her lecture by saying,
"At the Pluralism Project, we consider Kansas City to be truly at the forefront
of interfaith relations. This is — in no small part — due to the tireless
efforts of Vern Barnet, whose work and writings have been an inspiration
to all of us at the Pluralism Project."
Board chairs David Stallings,
Larry Guillot, and L Joseph Archias have helped to make interfaith work
a mainstream Kansas City priority.
For the CRES vision,
mission, values, programs, and other positions, visit the web site or turn
to page 8 of Many Paths, and examine the research program suggested by
the chart on the next page. CRES was founded as the [World Faiths] Center
for Religious Experience and Study, sometimes known as the [multifaith]
Community Resource for Exploring Spirituality. CRES is a unique approach
to interfaith work, joining together relationships and scholarship, theory
and practice. Its research program identifies
wisdom from the world's three great families of faith to address our environmental,
personal, and social crises.
Crescent Peace Society
Box 27023, Shawnee Mission, KS 66225
913-491-5509
CPS seeks to enhance
appreciation of Islam through educational and cultural activities
in the Kansas City area. It builds friendships and liaison with schools.
religious
groups, and media to better represent Islam’s peaceful nature.
Cultural Crossroads
Cultural Crossroads Inc
3605 Blue Ridge Boulevard
Independence, MO 64052; 816.737.5979
CulturalCrossroads@hotmail.com
www.culturalcrossroads-kc.org
Cultural Crossroads,
founded by Mary McCoy, was incorporated in 2001 and conducts cross-cultural
education in an interactive environment, designed to promote tolerance
and respect through understanding the commonalities across diverse cultures.
The focus of all programs is on common life experiences of people of all
cultures and an understanding of the unifying elements within an environment
of diversity. Volunteer opportunities are limitless and include creation,
scheduling, and presentation of educational programs, publicity and communication,
and promoting the organization. Cultural Crossroads is also seeking to
develop a cultural heritage center in the greater Kansas City area.
Diversity Coalition (Kansas City)
c/o Allan Abrams, aeabrams@yahoo.com
The KCDC was organized
in 1996 by the late Dr David Shapiro as an adjunct to his Minority Museum
which opened in 1991 in south Kansas City. It has no formal membership
and no dues. Its participants discuss international or national political
issues, particularly emotionally charged topics which could be affected
by one’s faith, ethnic, or regional perspective. Meetings usually are held
on the 2nd Wednesday of the month., 7-9p.
Festival of Faiths
www.villagepres.org
Initated by folks at
Village Presbyterian Church in consultation with interfaith leaders in
the metro area, Festival of Faiths brings a focus to the many faith communities
in our area for a fortnight in November. Its first year, 2007, began with
the Interfaith Council's Table of Faiths and concluded with the 23d annual
CRES Interfaith Thanksgiving Sunday Family Ritual Meal. Inspired in part
by a Louisville-type metro-wide collaboration to display, enjoy, and celebrate
our religious diversity, it has been adapted to the unique situation and
opportunities in Kansas City.
Greater Kansas City Interfaith Council
kcinterfaith.org
Shannon Clark, Executive Director, 913-548-2973
PO Box 415, Louisburg, KS 66053
Organized by Vern Barnet
in 1989, the Council was a program of CRES until 2005. A 5,000-word history
of this period is available at http://www.cres.org/now/ifc-hist.htm.
CRES support for 2004 included staff work by CRES administrative assistant,
Simon Gatsby, who then transitioned the Council to independence as part
of a cooperative plan for 2005 with advice from Religions for Peace-USA
which then provided some funding. The Council’s web site posted PDF versions
of the Council’s page in the monthly CRES journal, Many Paths, for
the year 2005.
That year on November
10, the Council awarded Vern its first “Table of Faiths” award, presented
by Mayor Kay Barnes, honorary chair and keynote speaker, at a luncheon
with over 600 people of all faiths. A 12-minute DVD with Vern, Governor
Sebelius, Huston Smith, and local political and business leaders was produced
and shown, and is available from the Council. David Nelson was the Council
convener and the luncheon co-charis were Alvin Brooks, Gayle Krigel, Mahnaz
Shabbir, and Chuck Stanford.
At the Council's Second
Table of Faiths Celebration, co-chaired by Mahnaz Shabbir, Sheila Sonnenschein,
and Chuck Stanford, with honorary co-chairs Kay Barnes, Alvin Brooks, Ben
Craig, and Peggy Dunn, and Advisor Gayle Krigel, with Co-conveners Caroline
Baughman and David Nelson, awards were given to Don and Adele Hall and
Ed Chasteen. A video narrated by Bill Tammeus presented the development
of the Council
The Third's Table of
Faiths Celebration, chaired by Sheila Sonnenschein and Susan Cook, with
honorary ch-chairs Dianne Cleaver, Mark Funkhouser, and the Rev Dr Bob
Meneilly, honored Alvin Brooks and The Kansas City Star. A video,
a portion of which can be seen at Sacred
Art includes a look at art from many faiths and the spirtual impulse
out of which all art arises.
The Council’s statement:
“We are growing a sustainable, pervasive culture of knowledge, respect,
appreciation, and trust amongst people of all faiths and religious traditions
in the greater Kansas City community.”
Its goals:
1. To develop deeper
understanding within the community of each other's faiths and traditions,
and to foster appropriate interfaith dialogue and interaction,
2. To model spiritual
and religious values, especially mutual respect and cooperation, in a society
often intolerant of cultural and religious diversity,
3. To develop and provide
resources, networking, and programs for the community through the arts
and education to increase appreciation for cultural and religious diversity,
4. To work with educational,
spiritual and religious leaders and the media in promoting accurate and
fair portrayal of the faiths within our community, and
5. To help the community
become more aware of the spiritual values that can help resolve issues
that occur in the environmental, social and personal realms of our lives.
The Council usually
meets the 2nd Monday of the month.
It offers two interfaith
book clubs. David Nelson facilitates the northland book club, Vital
Conversations, at the Mid-Continent Library, Antioch Branch 6060 N
Chestnut in Gladstone 1p the second Wednesday of each month; 816.454.1306.
Pam Peck facilitates the south club. It meets four times a year, 7p the
first Monday in February, May, August, and November, at the Christian Science
Center, 504 E. 112, Red Bridge Shopping Center, 111 (Red Bridge Road) and
Holmes; 816.268.8212.
Harmony
4901 Main, Suite 300
Kansas City, MO 64112
www.kcharmony.org
816-333-5059
When Harmony first debuted
in Kansas City in 1988, the mission was singular--to ease racial boundaries
in communities throughout the Kansas City metropolitan area. However, local
leaders Emanual Cleaver II and Drue Jennings had a broader perspective;
they envisioned a community-wide resource available to address all issues
of diversity in the region. Under the keen vision of these leaders and
other key supporters, Harmony quickly became a trusted resource offering
nationally acclaimed programming, training and consulting to schools and
workplaces.
Harmony acquired the
legacy of the National Conference for Community and Justice (NCCJ) when
the two organizations merged their resources in 2005. The result was a
comprehensive offering of programs and consulting resources that spans
a life-long learning cycle starting at the middle-school education level
and reaching into adulthood.
Harmony provides resources,
programs and events including a week-long Harmony Youth Leadership Institute;
Manytown and Unitown, two day programs for middle school and high school
students; Campus Leadership Institute; and professional services to assist
corporations, organizations and government entities with strategic planning
and communication enabling a more inclusive and global enterprise.
--Information provided by Harmony,
2008 July
In 1988,
KCMO Mayor pro-tem Emanuel Cleaver and KCPL’s president/CEO Drue Jennings
led an 18-month effort to improve race relations and civic comity. Maggie
Finefrock, now Director of The Learning Project and CRES CLO and was then
co-director with Luther Washington. As part of the exploration of diversity,
a Religions Task Force produced a covenant redrafted by Vern to be inclusive
of all faiths, signed 1989 Aug 21 in Loose Park by members of 10 faiths.
CRES was commissioned to prepare an account of religious diversity in the
area for the Teacher/Student Study Guide.
The cantor
at Beth Shalom initiated the Harmony Choral Celebration Concert, the only
known interfaith concert in the United States that features both a mass
choir and demonstration choirs.
Kansas City would not let Harmony go out of existence after 18 months,
and it has become a permanent and increasingly valuable leader in educating
about diversity in the metro area for business, government, the media,
and congregations.
In 1996,
Cleaver, now mayor, commissioned a task force on race relations. Maggie
was chair of the religion/spirituality cluster, and Vern was assigned the
task of drafting its recommendation, paragraph 6 of which, inspired by
John Weston, called for the creation of a Congregational Partners Program
to assist congregations of different faiths to build relationships of trust.
Dozens of such partnerships were developed, at first as an independent
program, then for a time under Harmony auspices, including one three-way
with Catholic, Muslim, and Jewish congregations.
The 2001
Citistates Group reported that Harmony “consistently produces the nation's
most ambitious array of programs aimed at building better relations across
racial lines.” That year CRES invited Harmony and NCCJ (see below) to cosponsor
the area's first interfaith conference, The
Gifts of Pluralism. Following the 9/11 attacks, Diane Hershberger,
then Harmony executive director, joined with others when asked by
Jackson County to study the state of religious prejudice in the five county
area; the Diversity Task Force, chaired by Vern, issued its report
on Sep 10, 2001.
In 2005,
after excellent staff preparation by Harmony and NCCJ, Vern, on the board
of NCCJ, made the historic motion for the two organizations to merge. The
National Conference for Community and Justice (NCCJ) was begun in 1927
as the National Conference of Christians and Jews to “fight“ bigotry. Kansas
City’s office began in 1953. In 1999 the name was changed to the National
Conference for Community and Justice. Locally its expert summer programs
for youth have included dealing with religious prejudice. For four years
NCCJ and CRES staffed a day-long “Journey toward Understanding” for high
school students to spent a day exploring their different faiths.
--Additional perspective from CRES
HateBusters, Inc.
Box 442, Liberty, MO 64069
www.hatebusters.com
816-792-2272
HateBuster@aol.com
HateBusters, developed
by Ed Chasteen, now CRES Amity Shaman, helps people who have been hurt
because someone hated them. “We never say no when asked for help. We get
more publicity for the good guys than the bad guys. We teach people how
to like people who are not like them. We bring people together.” It produces
the Human Family Reunion dinners.
The House of Menuha
801 E 77 St, KCMO 64113
www.menuha.org;
816.444.2434
Annie Loendorf SCL and Diane R Hershberger, co-directors
A description of the organization is pending.
House of Menuha was founded in 1992 as an
independent non-profit corporation not affiliated with any religious or
parent organization, when Annie Loendorf, a Sister of Charity of Leavenworth,
realized a great need for the women in the parish she served was to have
a place and the time to care for themselves that was away from the never
ending demands in their lives. “Menuha” is a Hebrew word meaning to rest
in purposeful contemplation.
Elizabeth Gilbert, author of “Eat, Pray, Love”,
says that people turn to spirituality when their lives are in transition
because fragility and dislocation make us more open to the wondrous power
of grace moving deeply in our souls. House of Menuha is a spirituality
center for women, a safe nurturing environment where women walk in their
own unique mystery continuing to discover ever more deeply their piece
of truth...their authenticity. Carl Jung says that a person’s vision will
become clear when they look into their heart. This kind of looking needs
silence, stillness, reflections and then the challenge of giving voice
to what is heard and what is felt. Menuha’s mission is to provide the atmosphere,
sacred space, companionship, guidance, and nourishment to look deeply into
one’s soul.
Through weekly “Reflection” programming when
women gather to learn about self-care, spirituality, or dealing with change
in their lives; through workshops addressing topics of purpose and self
expression; through “Villager” programming teaching women to become more
self-led and less dependent on cultural values of materialism, competition
and self-centeredness; and through a “Pioneer Retreat” program supporting
women who live with domestic abuse, addiction or homelessness, Menuha meets
women where they are in their religious and personal journeys and equips
them to bring spiritual wisdom and compassion more fully into their lives
and the world.
The Human Agenda
The Rev David E Nelson, DMin, president
www.humanagenda.com;
816 453 3835
Dr Nelson has served
as convener of the Interfaith Council and leads one of its interfaith book
groups. His skills in teaching "Appreciative Inquiry" were evident at the
2001 "Gifts of Pluralism" conference. His "Vital Conversations" are designed
for people of different faith perspectives to discuss both comfortable
and difficult topics, news movies, books, personal experiences. It is designed
for people committed to celebrating the possibilities of the pluralistic
society in which we live. David is a gifted speaker who enjoys addressing
interfaith topics.
Institute for Interfaith Dialog
www.interfaithdialog.org
IID seeks to “unite
the global communities through interfaith dialogue by sharing the differences
and similarities in cultures and religions in an effort to achieve world
peace.” IID is inspired by controversial Turkish figure Fetullah Gulen,
who advocates a “moderate” form of Islam.
Institute for Spirituality in Health
Steven L Jeffers, PhD, 1948-2008, founder,
whose loss we mourn
Shawnee Mission Medical Center
9100 W 74 Street, SM, KS 66204
www.shawneemission.org/content/view/94/278/
913-676-8104
The vision of the ISH
is to deliver health care within an environment that values medical skills
complemented by spirituality, often expressed in the language of faith.
Led by religious, medical, civic, and business leaders of various faith
traditions, ISH advocates addressing spiritual care in medicine and health
care.
ISH provides community
and professional education, publications and research on the topic of spirituality
in the health care setting. In addition, the Institute leads interfaith
prayer teams, which provide encouragement and support for SMMC associates
and physicians, as well as local, state and national civic and religious
leaders. Annual events such as the Community Prayer Breakfast, Physician/Clergy
Conference, and symposiums on various topics allow community members to
explore their spirituality and determine where it fits within their health
care needs.
JCRB/AJC
5801 W 115th Street #203
Shawnee Mission, KS 66211
www.jewishkc.org/agencies/jcrb
913-327-8126, jcrbajc@jewsihkc.org
The Jewish Community Relations Bureau/American
Jewish Committee fights anti-Semitism, racism, and bigotry.
Mainstream Voices of Faith
www.mainstreamvoicesoffaith.com
MVOF is a religious
coalition promotes an inclusive approach to issues of faith and public
policy through education and advocacy.
Midwest Center for Holocaust Education
5801 W 115th Street #106
Overland Park, KS 66211
www.mchekc.org
913-327-8190; mcekc@org;
The Midwest Center of
Holocaust Education teaches the history and lessons of the Holocaust
to people of all races and faiths in the Midwest to prevent its recurrence
and perpetuate understanding, compassion, and mutual respect.
National Council of Jewish Women
Greater Kansas City Section, 913 648-0747.
NCJW works through research,
education, advocacy and community service to improve the quality of life
for women, children and families, and strives to ensure individual rights
and freedoms for all. Its annual February luncheon has been focused on
Jewish Christian Muslim exchange.
OpenCircle
www.opencircleonline.com,
816.931.0738
Among OpenCircle’s programs
are occasional film showings of interfaith interest at the Tivoli Theatre.
Pathways
Pathways was founded in 1999 by Gene Flanery
(flanerman@aol.com) to promote
interfaith dialogue, foster respect for all religions, and celebrate diversity.
Its members include the Hindu, Christian, Sikh, and American Indian traditions.
Monthly meetings are held at the Cross Point Church in Shawnee, KS. While
there is no official membership in Pathways, participants strive to achieve
balance between the various participating faiths. Each year the group presents
both an annual interfaith picnic in the summer and an annual dinner in
January.
Pathways Goals: To learn
to listen with respect to those who are different *To promote racial harmony
and fight against negative stereotyping in society *To provide a receptive
place to speak about faith in God *To foster an attitude of respect for
all religions *To educate others about the benefits of a multicultural
perspective *To celebrate diversity in culture and appreciate religious
differences.
Person to Person
www.communitypeace.com/id15.htm
Mahnaz Shabbir and Sheila
Sonnenschein offer a powerful presentation as Muslim and Jewish leaders
and mothers about their friendship and learning about each other’s faith.
Salaam Shalom Celebration
www.salaamshalomcelebration.org
The annual KC area dinner
originated as a twin to a gathering, or hafla, in Israel begun by Fouad
Salman, Samir Dabit, and David Leichman in an effort to bring together
Jews and Arabs. Fouad, Samir, and David come here and cook an amazing feast
(with dietary laws observed). A clergy breakfast is also held. Both
the first dinner in 2004 and the second attracted 500 guests at Leawood’s
Ironwoods Park Alpine Lodge. The next is planned in KCMO.
Sustainable Sanctuary Coalition
Jerry Rees, 913-568-4250
Margaret Thomas, mgt84roe@aol.com
www.sustainablesanctuary.org
The mission of the Sustainable
Sanctuary Coalition is to encourage sustainable living initiatives, i.e.,
""Care for Creation" in faith communities, through education
about and promotion of sustainable actions.
We live in a time where there
is denial of the global climate change that is fueled by humankind’s ever
growing demands upon our Earth. The Sustainable Sanctuary Coalition does
not accept as inevitable these wasteful ways continuing to cause ecological
disasters to happen all around us. We also believe that if we are to change
our collective behavior, we need to accept an accurate and positive vision
of everyone's reality.
This vision of reality celebrates
all humankind as the stewards of this diversity of life on Earth and supporters
of the natural systems on which all life depends. We believe that to cherish
what has been created is our spiritual and moral responsibility – our ultimate
responsibility to all children and all grandchildren.
We believe what we can do
here and now is to build a coalition of faith communities that rapidly
begin to reflect on what humankind is doing. We will gather, share, and
urge others to join us in the same spirit that embraces change so stewardship
and earthkeeping will soon become the sacred responsibilities for all.
The Urantia Book Fellowship
Susan Cook, 816-716-4944
415 Shannon Avenue, Smithville, MO 64089
The Urantia Fellowship
sponsors an on-line class in Interfaith dialogue. The intent of this course
is learning to listen and exchange in healthy dialogue with people of other
faiths and cultures. This course is 8 weeks long and involves reading before
each “class.” We then meet via conference call to discuss learning opportunities,
growth, difficulty, and ideas for further development. This course is in
process and involves students from New York to Hawaii. Please contact us
if you are interested in this course for 2007.
Coming up is an on-line
course, “You want to learn about Different Religions?” This course will
have different facilitators each week that represent their faith. A reading
will be sent out the week before each conference call where we’ll then
have the opportunity to be taught and ask questions. Why a conference call?
So people and facilitators from different cities can come together. Please
call for questions about enrollment in 2007. |
