Saturday, most of our group decided to be Philly tourists and where is the first place a tourist would go? The Rocky steps! All of us had a nice little victory dance after we raced up the step in memory of Rocky. Then it was down to some more serious sites. We walked to City Hall and visited a cathedral. Our next stop was the Liberty Museum and the historic sites. The liberty museum was very powerful, meaningful, and emotional. There were dedications to people who died for liberty and those who were killed as a result of injustice. The walls were filled with inspirational people who overcame great obstacles to become who they needed to be in order to stop injustice. One exhibit was about religion and freedom the expression. It commemorated how our country was created largely because of the need for freedom of religion. Another exhibit discussed world leaders who fought injustice and made a great difference in the world and, not so surprisingly, most of them were religious and used that religion to help them achieve their goals of peace and justice. Those who caused pain and suffering were also recognized and what was even more moving is that many of them had been crossed off because they were in power in the past but there was a whole list of those who are in power today and who are doing harm now. This reminds us to keep fighting the good fight because the battle is not over. We took comfort from seeing how the “good guys” outnumbered the “bad guys” significantly but shook our fist at God when we saw how close the numbers were and realized how close the battles come some times. But that gives us hope because, as Lynn quoted earlier in the week, “We are the ones we have been waiting for” so we need to keep working for justice if we ever hope to win the good versus evil struggle.
One very moving exhibit was about violence against children and it was terrible and terrific at the same time. Half a million children die every year worldwide because of violence. It’s scary to think about because we bring these innocent beings into our world and then they are mutilated and abused. It’s difficult to see hope for the future if we are currently doing so much damage to those who will inherit it. Understanding is key when it comes to knowing a conflict and how to approach it but understanding why children have to die is very hard to wrap you head around. Gun violence was specifically mentioned and there was a very disturbing image of a six year old boy’s X-ray showing the bullet lodged in his rib cage. And once again, we shook our fists at God. And then we pray and turn our prayer into action. Kim, Hannah, and Talia decided to have an authentic Shabbat experience and truly experience the day of rest. Our goal was to catch up on all the sleep that we didn’t get during the week, but knowing us we spent the day talking.
Later in the day we talked to an Orthodox Rabbi who taught us about Justice and charity. We talked about Maimonides’ principle that part of justice, or Tzedakah in Hebrew, is restoring a sense of self worth and dignity to a person. We then applied that lesson to the work we did at New Jerusalem Now and it was a great way to bring the week together. We then drilled the Rabbi on tough questions like accepting gays and lesbians into the community and even marrying them. He handled all our questions very well and we really appreciated his honesty. After Shabbat, we decided to walk around Manayunk for a little while. We found out that the Flyers lost game 1 of the Stanley Cup finals and were devastated, so we consoled ourselves with some Chloe’s ice cream. While we were eating, Krishna taught us about Hinduism. It was fascinating and we learned a lot from her. When we got back to Talia’s house we all tried to stay up for our last night together, but most of us couldn’t make it much past 3 AM.
Good night or Good morning,
Talia and Elizabeth
Monday, May 31, 2010
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Coming to Know the Craziness Before Shabbat...
Friday, with heavy hearts, we packed our bags and said farewell to the Mishkan Shalom community, which we had come to know and love. We'll miss the food they gave us, the piano ghost (Rena exploring her piano talents unbeknownst to the other breakers), the pleasantly purple teen room, the chapel, which held our late night pillow talk, and most of all, their warm smiles that greeted us each morning! We wish them all well in their further endeavors!
We arrived at the Interfaith Center of Greater Philadelphia to participate in a workshop on the controversy surrounding the Cross at Wren Chapel of William and Mary. Danielle did an amazing job leading us in a inquisitive discussion around present-day Interfaith conflicts, despite her recent loss of wisdom (teeth). Going into the discussion, we all felt that there seemed to be a clear answer to the problem, but when we analyzed the situation from multiple perspectives, we realized that the issue was more complex than it first appeared to be. Thank you Danielle!
We got to speak with Marjie, the project director of Walking the Walk, a program that encourages active Interfaith service in the community, especially amoung the youth. It was interesting to hear about the recent issues that have come up in the Interfaith center. We learned that symbols can be very powerful and must be used with caution and that Interfaith work is new and many aspects are still being worked out each day. It gave meaning to what we have been talking about and pushed us to understand the importance of sharing what we have learned on the trip with others.
After the workshop, we got the chance to visit the Cathedral that is next to the Interfaith Center. We were all awestruck by it's beauty, especially the stained-glass windows, the pipe organ, the floor, and the fountain of holy water.
Our next stop on Friday was New Jerusalem Now where we had been building gardens. We finally got to plant the herbs that Sister Margaret was very passionate about and learned a lot from Nic's expertise in horticulture. We all felt that gardening can be very therapeutic (from Kim's perspective) and relaxing. It was great to talk to Mohammed about his knowledge of the plant and animal kingdoms of our planet; he was very smart. We felt a great sense of accomplishment and hope for the garden and the positive change it will bring. Alex, along with some of the other breakers, felt a sense of deep connection with the tiger-like kitten that joined us at the center. We were pleasantly surprised when the community presented us with fruit and cakes to thank us for our work. It gave us a chance to sit, talk and eat with the members of the community and we learned a lot. Before we left, we all joined hands and shared our experiences and thoughts about the connections we made and work we had done. The community then led us in the Serenity prayer as a way of saying goodbye. We won't forget this inspirational community and wish them all success in their journeys.
The rest of the night was filled with military showers and cooking, all in the spirit of the Shabbat preparations. We attended service at Beth Am Israel, a conservative Jewish congregation. The cantor led us in beautiful song and prayer and the Rabbi was very welcoming and informative throughout the service. Afterwards, all of the members of the congregation came up to us and spoke with us about our trip and their faith. When we arrived back at Talia's home, Sister Maria and Danielle joined us breakers and her parents for the traditional Shabbat dinner. For some of it was the first time experiencing a Jewish service and Shabbat dinner. It was delicious and we thank her family for being so welcoming. We followed dinner with some great reflections about faith and the New Jerusalem community. We were struck by the similarities between the Christian services and Jewish services and Shabbat dinner, specifically the inclusion of wine and the breaking of the bread.
Falling asleep, one by one, we slowly ascended to our beds bringing the peacefulness of Shabbat into our dreams :-)
Shabbat Shalom!!!
Love,
Kim and Manka
We arrived at the Interfaith Center of Greater Philadelphia to participate in a workshop on the controversy surrounding the Cross at Wren Chapel of William and Mary. Danielle did an amazing job leading us in a inquisitive discussion around present-day Interfaith conflicts, despite her recent loss of wisdom (teeth). Going into the discussion, we all felt that there seemed to be a clear answer to the problem, but when we analyzed the situation from multiple perspectives, we realized that the issue was more complex than it first appeared to be. Thank you Danielle!
We got to speak with Marjie, the project director of Walking the Walk, a program that encourages active Interfaith service in the community, especially amoung the youth. It was interesting to hear about the recent issues that have come up in the Interfaith center. We learned that symbols can be very powerful and must be used with caution and that Interfaith work is new and many aspects are still being worked out each day. It gave meaning to what we have been talking about and pushed us to understand the importance of sharing what we have learned on the trip with others.
After the workshop, we got the chance to visit the Cathedral that is next to the Interfaith Center. We were all awestruck by it's beauty, especially the stained-glass windows, the pipe organ, the floor, and the fountain of holy water.
Our next stop on Friday was New Jerusalem Now where we had been building gardens. We finally got to plant the herbs that Sister Margaret was very passionate about and learned a lot from Nic's expertise in horticulture. We all felt that gardening can be very therapeutic (from Kim's perspective) and relaxing. It was great to talk to Mohammed about his knowledge of the plant and animal kingdoms of our planet; he was very smart. We felt a great sense of accomplishment and hope for the garden and the positive change it will bring. Alex, along with some of the other breakers, felt a sense of deep connection with the tiger-like kitten that joined us at the center. We were pleasantly surprised when the community presented us with fruit and cakes to thank us for our work. It gave us a chance to sit, talk and eat with the members of the community and we learned a lot. Before we left, we all joined hands and shared our experiences and thoughts about the connections we made and work we had done. The community then led us in the Serenity prayer as a way of saying goodbye. We won't forget this inspirational community and wish them all success in their journeys.
The rest of the night was filled with military showers and cooking, all in the spirit of the Shabbat preparations. We attended service at Beth Am Israel, a conservative Jewish congregation. The cantor led us in beautiful song and prayer and the Rabbi was very welcoming and informative throughout the service. Afterwards, all of the members of the congregation came up to us and spoke with us about our trip and their faith. When we arrived back at Talia's home, Sister Maria and Danielle joined us breakers and her parents for the traditional Shabbat dinner. For some of it was the first time experiencing a Jewish service and Shabbat dinner. It was delicious and we thank her family for being so welcoming. We followed dinner with some great reflections about faith and the New Jerusalem community. We were struck by the similarities between the Christian services and Jewish services and Shabbat dinner, specifically the inclusion of wine and the breaking of the bread.
Falling asleep, one by one, we slowly ascended to our beds bringing the peacefulness of Shabbat into our dreams :-)
Shabbat Shalom!!!
Love,
Kim and Manka
W! E! L! Second L!
Thursday: An Epic Journey
by Kim and Kate
Thursday started off with a jolly and exhausted (we mean really exhausted) van ride to Al Aqsa, an Islamic school and mosque. The building was beautiful, and an interfaith art project decorated the outside walls. Members of the Jewish and Muslim communities came together to decorate tiles that had all the 99 Islamic names of Allah. Zeina from the Arab-American Development Corp and the school principal gave us a tour of the school and showed us their worship space. After the tour, they both talked to us about Islam and answered some of our questions. We really appreciated the time they took to speak with us despite their busy days, particularly Zeina, who stayed afterwards to tie up some loose ends and last questions from what the principal had discussed. It was nice to have two perspectives and hear two different interpretations of Islam - a great reminder that even within the same faith, people approach it differently.
After our time at Al Aqsa, we went to Philabundance, a Philadelphia food pantry (the largest in the city!!), for service. The Arab-American Development Corp receives food from Philabundance and distributes it to some members of the Al Aqsa community, so we were really happy to help out. Some members of our group made GREAT friends with our fellow volunteers from Wells Fargo. They were a very enthusiastic team, and even had their own cheer. It went a little like this:
GIVE ME A W! (W!)
GIVE ME AN E! (E)
GIVE ME AN L! (L)
SECOND L!
and then it dissolved. Despite the fact that one woman offered to help out with the spelling of "Fargo," the second part of the cheer often got left off. However, we found this even more hilarious and "SECOND L" has since provided us with absurd amounts of laughter. It has become our rallying cry for any situation, no matter now unapplicable it is. Example, you ask?
Kate: "Hey Kim, what time to we have to wake up tomorrow?"
Kim: "Around 8:30."
Kate: "That's early.... but we can do it. GIVE ME A SECOND L!"
Kim and anyone else in earshot: "SECOND L!"
Aside from this hilarity, we were happy to help out by packing supplemental food boxes. This food goes to the elderly who do not have enough food for the month. With the help of Philabundance's snazzy new assembly line technology, we packed boxes, built boxes, and stacked boxes. (Except for Kate and Emily, who had sandals on and were relegated to the back Receiving Office instead of working the warehouse. we loved doing the paperwork though. did you know that 25,000 lbs of whole beef heads were recently recalled because they hadn't had their tonsils removed!? Apparently, that can cause diseases! who knew.)
That afternoon at Mishkan Shalom, Rabbi Linda spoke to us in the sanctuary. We got a great explanation of the different movements of Judaism - Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and Reconstructionist. Rabbi Linda focused on Reconstructionist, and talked a lot about her journey and story as a lesbian rabbi. It was, for lack of a better word, inspirational. (Kate's opinion: I thought Reconstructionism was amazing. I loved the focus on an individual approach to faith and really liked the progressive mindset all the while maintaining the beautiful traditions and history of Judaism. Kim's opinion: It seemed radical socially but still a logical application of the Torah to the modern world.) In short: we loved Rabbi Linda. She was so informative, so welcoming, and also a very funny woman with a great perspective on life. :)
That night we met with the YES Coalition! This is an organization in Philadelphia that lists/organizes communities of all different religions and faiths that self-identify as LGBT friendly. The wonderful people who spoke to us were:
-Matt, a recent college graduate and member of the Orthodox Jewish community
-Celeste, a Christian pastor who started her own congregation
-Pat, who runs a Zen Buddhist temple
-Shelly, who is an LGBT ally in the Jewish community
-Sister Lyngine, an Independent Catholic nun
All of these five people shared their incredible stories with us. Throughout the week, we've been talking about LGBT issues with all of the religious communities we've encountered. It was great to meet people who tackled this issue head on while maintaining their faiths. They worked through so much and still felt a connection with a higher power. It's hard to really describe this night because it was so deeply moving and powerful to listen these five journeys. We are so, so grateful that they came to share their stories with us. Another theme from this week has been talking to people and letting them share their stories. These stories are really important and we think they represent what will be a major issue/question/topic of consideration in religion in the years to come.
Sister Lyngine, Celeste, Matt, Pat, Shelly, and Rabbi Linda were all great demonstrations of how you can make your faith work for you when faced with challenges: if you come up against a challenge or some part of your faith's teachings that causes you struggle, you don't need to give up. And we think we can speak for the whole group when we say that message is SO inspirational, and these people in particular were especially uplifting.
good night and a shout-out to the lbgt community - give me a w!
love,
Kate and Kim
by Kim and Kate
Thursday started off with a jolly and exhausted (we mean really exhausted) van ride to Al Aqsa, an Islamic school and mosque. The building was beautiful, and an interfaith art project decorated the outside walls. Members of the Jewish and Muslim communities came together to decorate tiles that had all the 99 Islamic names of Allah. Zeina from the Arab-American Development Corp and the school principal gave us a tour of the school and showed us their worship space. After the tour, they both talked to us about Islam and answered some of our questions. We really appreciated the time they took to speak with us despite their busy days, particularly Zeina, who stayed afterwards to tie up some loose ends and last questions from what the principal had discussed. It was nice to have two perspectives and hear two different interpretations of Islam - a great reminder that even within the same faith, people approach it differently.
After our time at Al Aqsa, we went to Philabundance, a Philadelphia food pantry (the largest in the city!!), for service. The Arab-American Development Corp receives food from Philabundance and distributes it to some members of the Al Aqsa community, so we were really happy to help out. Some members of our group made GREAT friends with our fellow volunteers from Wells Fargo. They were a very enthusiastic team, and even had their own cheer. It went a little like this:
GIVE ME A W! (W!)
GIVE ME AN E! (E)
GIVE ME AN L! (L)
SECOND L!
and then it dissolved. Despite the fact that one woman offered to help out with the spelling of "Fargo," the second part of the cheer often got left off. However, we found this even more hilarious and "SECOND L" has since provided us with absurd amounts of laughter. It has become our rallying cry for any situation, no matter now unapplicable it is. Example, you ask?
Kate: "Hey Kim, what time to we have to wake up tomorrow?"
Kim: "Around 8:30."
Kate: "That's early.... but we can do it. GIVE ME A SECOND L!"
Kim and anyone else in earshot: "SECOND L!"
Aside from this hilarity, we were happy to help out by packing supplemental food boxes. This food goes to the elderly who do not have enough food for the month. With the help of Philabundance's snazzy new assembly line technology, we packed boxes, built boxes, and stacked boxes. (Except for Kate and Emily, who had sandals on and were relegated to the back Receiving Office instead of working the warehouse. we loved doing the paperwork though. did you know that 25,000 lbs of whole beef heads were recently recalled because they hadn't had their tonsils removed!? Apparently, that can cause diseases! who knew.)
That afternoon at Mishkan Shalom, Rabbi Linda spoke to us in the sanctuary. We got a great explanation of the different movements of Judaism - Orthodox, Conservative, Reform, and Reconstructionist. Rabbi Linda focused on Reconstructionist, and talked a lot about her journey and story as a lesbian rabbi. It was, for lack of a better word, inspirational. (Kate's opinion: I thought Reconstructionism was amazing. I loved the focus on an individual approach to faith and really liked the progressive mindset all the while maintaining the beautiful traditions and history of Judaism. Kim's opinion: It seemed radical socially but still a logical application of the Torah to the modern world.) In short: we loved Rabbi Linda. She was so informative, so welcoming, and also a very funny woman with a great perspective on life. :)
That night we met with the YES Coalition! This is an organization in Philadelphia that lists/organizes communities of all different religions and faiths that self-identify as LGBT friendly. The wonderful people who spoke to us were:
-Matt, a recent college graduate and member of the Orthodox Jewish community
-Celeste, a Christian pastor who started her own congregation
-Pat, who runs a Zen Buddhist temple
-Shelly, who is an LGBT ally in the Jewish community
-Sister Lyngine, an Independent Catholic nun
All of these five people shared their incredible stories with us. Throughout the week, we've been talking about LGBT issues with all of the religious communities we've encountered. It was great to meet people who tackled this issue head on while maintaining their faiths. They worked through so much and still felt a connection with a higher power. It's hard to really describe this night because it was so deeply moving and powerful to listen these five journeys. We are so, so grateful that they came to share their stories with us. Another theme from this week has been talking to people and letting them share their stories. These stories are really important and we think they represent what will be a major issue/question/topic of consideration in religion in the years to come.
Sister Lyngine, Celeste, Matt, Pat, Shelly, and Rabbi Linda were all great demonstrations of how you can make your faith work for you when faced with challenges: if you come up against a challenge or some part of your faith's teachings that causes you struggle, you don't need to give up. And we think we can speak for the whole group when we say that message is SO inspirational, and these people in particular were especially uplifting.
good night and a shout-out to the lbgt community - give me a w!
love,
Kate and Kim
Baha'i Five!
Wednesday 26th May 2010
today's blog brought to you by Hannah and Kate.....after very little sleep
Wednesday was an intense and packed day for us. We started off the day with a workshop on pluralism with Nicole. We read a story about a giraffe and his super giraffe friendly house.. which featured skinny hallways and high ceilings. Which is great. If you're a giraffe. If you're an elephant, however, you're gonna have some trouble. And yes, this happened in the story. The elephant broke stairs and walls and even though the giraffe and elephant wanted to get together and talk in the giraffe's house, things were just not going to work out. Obviously, this story isn't just about elephants and giraffes (good job guessing, because you probably did). It's a metaphor for pluralism! How can people with different faiths and religious beliefs interact in a way that's fair for everyone? The giraffe had good intentions wanting to hang out with the elephant, but maybe he wasn't accomodating enough. When dialoguing with people of different faiths than ours, we have to remember that what's good for us might not be good for everyone else. We have to come to some common ground and understanding. Not just tolerance! We also talked about diversity too often being just percentages of different people, without those people interacting and appreciating/understanding each other. We decided that we should strive for acceptance instead of tolerance and appreciation of difference instead of the presence of diversity.
After pluralism fun, we drove on over to New Jerusalem Now for our second day of service with them. This day was BY FAR the hardest ... and hottest. Under the blazing Philly sun, we built two more garden beds, filled 8 beds with soil, wheelbarrowed, and dug out many many bricks from the soil. (PS, say soil instead of dirt. Soil has nutrients!) Some of us were more adept at managing the wheelbarrow than others, but we got it done in the end. The power drill continued to be a bit angry but I (Kate) loved using it and by the end felt like I truly bonded with the tool. An SAB Interfaith participant who will remain nameless came up with a creative new way to wear his t-shirt under the hot summer sun. There are pictures, but for the sake of his pride, we'll keep them to ourselves. During our lunch break, we also talked with Sister Maria about her experiences in Africa and how to approach interfaith dialogue. She had so much wisdom to share with us, and we were truly grateful to be able to talk to her and learn form her. We were also happy to have some of the residents from New Jerusalem join the conversation and share their experiences. They had a lot to teach us as well - both of the men who talked with us were Muslim, and since we have no Muslim students on the trip, it was really awesome to have this new religious perspective. One shared how he had been taught, but eventually overcame, certain prejudices in his own life. As always, the time spent at New Jerusalem was a lot of work but incredibly rewarding and inspiring. (and a little sweaty)
Speaking of sweat, we had only a little time back at Mishkan Shalom to get ready for our Baha'i encounter. But with some good planning and skillful 3-minute Army showers, all 11 of us shared the one shower in record time and successfully got ourselves presentable for a great evening.
Gity, a member of the Baha'i faith community here in Philly, graciously opened her home to us for the evening. She cooked us a delicious dinner, and afterwards, her son Cambeez gave an in-depth presentation on the history and tenets of the Baha'i faith. We were all wowed by this new, relatively unfamiliar religion that emphasizes community, social justice, and an incorporation of all religious traditions that came before it. Fun fact: a Baha'i cannot be a member of a political party!! This is because they believe that being a part of partisan politics would compromise their ability to follow the faith and truly live out their beliefs effectively. We could go on for pages on the ins and outs of this inspirational faith but it is late and we would not do it justice. Basically, we were impressed and loved learning about this community. Back at Mishkan, we had a great reflection before crashing for the night (and for some of us, "crashing" really means staying up far too late talking and THEN going to sleep)
that's all for Wednesday!
peace and love,
Hannah and Kate
today's blog brought to you by Hannah and Kate.....after very little sleep
Wednesday was an intense and packed day for us. We started off the day with a workshop on pluralism with Nicole. We read a story about a giraffe and his super giraffe friendly house.. which featured skinny hallways and high ceilings. Which is great. If you're a giraffe. If you're an elephant, however, you're gonna have some trouble. And yes, this happened in the story. The elephant broke stairs and walls and even though the giraffe and elephant wanted to get together and talk in the giraffe's house, things were just not going to work out. Obviously, this story isn't just about elephants and giraffes (good job guessing, because you probably did). It's a metaphor for pluralism! How can people with different faiths and religious beliefs interact in a way that's fair for everyone? The giraffe had good intentions wanting to hang out with the elephant, but maybe he wasn't accomodating enough. When dialoguing with people of different faiths than ours, we have to remember that what's good for us might not be good for everyone else. We have to come to some common ground and understanding. Not just tolerance! We also talked about diversity too often being just percentages of different people, without those people interacting and appreciating/understanding each other. We decided that we should strive for acceptance instead of tolerance and appreciation of difference instead of the presence of diversity.
After pluralism fun, we drove on over to New Jerusalem Now for our second day of service with them. This day was BY FAR the hardest ... and hottest. Under the blazing Philly sun, we built two more garden beds, filled 8 beds with soil, wheelbarrowed, and dug out many many bricks from the soil. (PS, say soil instead of dirt. Soil has nutrients!) Some of us were more adept at managing the wheelbarrow than others, but we got it done in the end. The power drill continued to be a bit angry but I (Kate) loved using it and by the end felt like I truly bonded with the tool. An SAB Interfaith participant who will remain nameless came up with a creative new way to wear his t-shirt under the hot summer sun. There are pictures, but for the sake of his pride, we'll keep them to ourselves. During our lunch break, we also talked with Sister Maria about her experiences in Africa and how to approach interfaith dialogue. She had so much wisdom to share with us, and we were truly grateful to be able to talk to her and learn form her. We were also happy to have some of the residents from New Jerusalem join the conversation and share their experiences. They had a lot to teach us as well - both of the men who talked with us were Muslim, and since we have no Muslim students on the trip, it was really awesome to have this new religious perspective. One shared how he had been taught, but eventually overcame, certain prejudices in his own life. As always, the time spent at New Jerusalem was a lot of work but incredibly rewarding and inspiring. (and a little sweaty)
Speaking of sweat, we had only a little time back at Mishkan Shalom to get ready for our Baha'i encounter. But with some good planning and skillful 3-minute Army showers, all 11 of us shared the one shower in record time and successfully got ourselves presentable for a great evening.
Gity, a member of the Baha'i faith community here in Philly, graciously opened her home to us for the evening. She cooked us a delicious dinner, and afterwards, her son Cambeez gave an in-depth presentation on the history and tenets of the Baha'i faith. We were all wowed by this new, relatively unfamiliar religion that emphasizes community, social justice, and an incorporation of all religious traditions that came before it. Fun fact: a Baha'i cannot be a member of a political party!! This is because they believe that being a part of partisan politics would compromise their ability to follow the faith and truly live out their beliefs effectively. We could go on for pages on the ins and outs of this inspirational faith but it is late and we would not do it justice. Basically, we were impressed and loved learning about this community. Back at Mishkan, we had a great reflection before crashing for the night (and for some of us, "crashing" really means staying up far too late talking and THEN going to sleep)
that's all for Wednesday!
peace and love,
Hannah and Kate
Whatever you start others will continue.
Tuesday, May 25th 2010
By Krishna and Noah :)
Today was our mid-week day of rest. In the late morning, we traveled a short distance to Germantown to St. Vincent de Paul Church for a Catholic mass. Lynn, a lay leader at St. Vincent’s met us and gave us a quick tour of the church and introduced us to Father Richie Rock. Lynn explained us her tenants of Catholicism. Father Richie Rock told us his experience of being a Catholic priest and his decision to push back upon the larger Church and the teachings of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Both Lynn and Father Rock further told us how Catholicism has shaped their lives.
After a Q and A session with Father Rock, Lynn led us to a chapel where a mass took place. It was surprising to see that besides the eleven people from our AB crew and Rev. Nicole, there were only five other people, who may have identified themselves as Catholics. This could have been due to the fact that it was a normal weekday and many others were at work, but what was surprising was the fact that mass would still take place every day at the set time regardless of the number of people present. As non-Catholics, we were a little bit lost during the mass as we did not know the proper call and response; however, Lynn and Sister Judith provided explanation.
After the mass, we headed to the dining room, where we had our lunch (peanut butter and jelly sandwich (for vegeterains) and Tuna (for Noah and Kim)). At the lunch, both Lynn and Sister Judith shared their stories with us and how through a structured religion they both found personal meaning and reconciled their beliefs with those of Vatican. Throughout the day, most of the participants in the AB crew noted how inspired they were with these two women.
In the mid-afternoon we were introduced to a non-profit organization housed in St. Vincent de Paul Church called Face-to-Face. We met with the executive director of the organization, Mary Kay, who told us the importance of service in her life as well how the organization helped shaped the lives of those in need. She also spoke about the importance of empowering her clients with personal interactions. We toured their facilities, including a Health Center, Legal Center, Art Studio, and Washeteria. We then spent the afternoon playing with and tutoring the elementary-aged kids in their After School Program.
We returned to Mishkan Shalom around six . After dinner ( Noah made excellent wilted spinach with garlic and oil- it was amazing), we watched a documentary – Pray the devil back to hell – that focused in Women’s peace movement during Liberian Civil War. The movie highlighted the inter-faith coalition of Muslim and Christian women in the country to advocate for peaceful ending and democratization of their country.
The movie was followed by a Reflection session, where the group discussed the message of the movie and how putting aside faith and coming together to fight for common ground was important in achieving the desired goal. Some of the quotes that stood out in the documentary were:
“Bullets do not distinguish between Muslim and Christian.”
“We are the ones that we have been waiting for.”
“Words are more harmful more than bullets.”
After this, a reflection on Catholic encounter took place. Although some Catholics believed that St. Vincent de Paul church was one of the most liberal churches of Catholicism, others believed it was a welcoming and what they were missing from their Catholic faith. All in all, we found it to be an inspiring day and we look forward to tomorrow’s adventure with our continued service with New Jerusalem Now and our introduction with Baha’i faith.
By Krishna and Noah :)
Today was our mid-week day of rest. In the late morning, we traveled a short distance to Germantown to St. Vincent de Paul Church for a Catholic mass. Lynn, a lay leader at St. Vincent’s met us and gave us a quick tour of the church and introduced us to Father Richie Rock. Lynn explained us her tenants of Catholicism. Father Richie Rock told us his experience of being a Catholic priest and his decision to push back upon the larger Church and the teachings of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. Both Lynn and Father Rock further told us how Catholicism has shaped their lives.
After a Q and A session with Father Rock, Lynn led us to a chapel where a mass took place. It was surprising to see that besides the eleven people from our AB crew and Rev. Nicole, there were only five other people, who may have identified themselves as Catholics. This could have been due to the fact that it was a normal weekday and many others were at work, but what was surprising was the fact that mass would still take place every day at the set time regardless of the number of people present. As non-Catholics, we were a little bit lost during the mass as we did not know the proper call and response; however, Lynn and Sister Judith provided explanation.
After the mass, we headed to the dining room, where we had our lunch (peanut butter and jelly sandwich (for vegeterains) and Tuna (for Noah and Kim)). At the lunch, both Lynn and Sister Judith shared their stories with us and how through a structured religion they both found personal meaning and reconciled their beliefs with those of Vatican. Throughout the day, most of the participants in the AB crew noted how inspired they were with these two women.
In the mid-afternoon we were introduced to a non-profit organization housed in St. Vincent de Paul Church called Face-to-Face. We met with the executive director of the organization, Mary Kay, who told us the importance of service in her life as well how the organization helped shaped the lives of those in need. She also spoke about the importance of empowering her clients with personal interactions. We toured their facilities, including a Health Center, Legal Center, Art Studio, and Washeteria. We then spent the afternoon playing with and tutoring the elementary-aged kids in their After School Program.
We returned to Mishkan Shalom around six . After dinner ( Noah made excellent wilted spinach with garlic and oil- it was amazing), we watched a documentary – Pray the devil back to hell – that focused in Women’s peace movement during Liberian Civil War. The movie highlighted the inter-faith coalition of Muslim and Christian women in the country to advocate for peaceful ending and democratization of their country.
The movie was followed by a Reflection session, where the group discussed the message of the movie and how putting aside faith and coming together to fight for common ground was important in achieving the desired goal. Some of the quotes that stood out in the documentary were:
“Bullets do not distinguish between Muslim and Christian.”
“We are the ones that we have been waiting for.”
“Words are more harmful more than bullets.”
After this, a reflection on Catholic encounter took place. Although some Catholics believed that St. Vincent de Paul church was one of the most liberal churches of Catholicism, others believed it was a welcoming and what they were missing from their Catholic faith. All in all, we found it to be an inspiring day and we look forward to tomorrow’s adventure with our continued service with New Jerusalem Now and our introduction with Baha’i faith.
Monday May 24th
This morning we went to New Jerusalem Now, a recovery facility for adults in Philadelphia overcoming addiction. We met Sister Margaret, who runs the facility. Imagine your favorite relative and this is what Sister Margaret is like - immediately inviting you into her family. Obviously, a perfect person to run a recovery home. She seemed very passionate about her work and the programs she helps to run, and she clearly lives for others. Other People who are part of the program seem to represent a spectrum in terms of how committed they were and their attitude on life. One guy named Mike seemed particularly well-adjusted, peaceful, and self-aware, while others that we worked with were only a week into the program and clearly had a lot of personal growth yet to come.
The work we did consisted of constructing and installing raised beds for an herb garden. It was tough work, but we had a great afternoon. We definitely had to take showers when we got back, and the van stunk! Alex was driving the van and hit the same curb for the second time in two days, despite the fact that we should not have even been on that street. And we had great fun naming the GPS system and playing with accents.
In the evening we wen to the Sikh Gurdwara (place of worship) and were welcomed with great hospitality by a board member from the Interfaith Center of Greater Philadelphia. When we arrived, we took off our shoes and everyone covered their heads with shawls or turbans. A different experience for all of us, but Elizabeth claims that she will do this all the time because she doesn't have to worry about her hair! We were then served our first meal of the day (dinner #1) and had a chance to talk with members of the Sikh community. (Dinner #2 came after the service - they clearly knew that they were hosting college students...)
Want to know some tenets, beliefs, and misconceptions of the Sikh faith? Well, first of all, they are not Muslims. Wearing a turban does not make you Muslim, and in fact in the United States, most people wearing colored turbans are Sikh (because Muslims were black or white turbans). Most importantly, however, the Sikh faith accepts anyone who comes to the religion, and everybody can participate in all aspects of the service. An important idea is that everybody is equal and no member of the faith is "higher" or designated as a leader. Women and men, children and adults can participate in all aspects of their services. When you think Sikh, think equality.
It was interesting to learn that the older and younger generations seem to have different views on practical applications of the religion, including arranged marriages, jewelry and piercings, and hair. I guess there is a generational gap in all religions and communities! (Alex says way-to-go for interfaith connections!)
Overall it was a good day, but tiring. And Alex and Emily want to sleep. So peace out,
Alex and Emily
On behalf of all the AB Summer Philly Crew
The work we did consisted of constructing and installing raised beds for an herb garden. It was tough work, but we had a great afternoon. We definitely had to take showers when we got back, and the van stunk! Alex was driving the van and hit the same curb for the second time in two days, despite the fact that we should not have even been on that street. And we had great fun naming the GPS system and playing with accents.
In the evening we wen to the Sikh Gurdwara (place of worship) and were welcomed with great hospitality by a board member from the Interfaith Center of Greater Philadelphia. When we arrived, we took off our shoes and everyone covered their heads with shawls or turbans. A different experience for all of us, but Elizabeth claims that she will do this all the time because she doesn't have to worry about her hair! We were then served our first meal of the day (dinner #1) and had a chance to talk with members of the Sikh community. (Dinner #2 came after the service - they clearly knew that they were hosting college students...)
Want to know some tenets, beliefs, and misconceptions of the Sikh faith? Well, first of all, they are not Muslims. Wearing a turban does not make you Muslim, and in fact in the United States, most people wearing colored turbans are Sikh (because Muslims were black or white turbans). Most importantly, however, the Sikh faith accepts anyone who comes to the religion, and everybody can participate in all aspects of the service. An important idea is that everybody is equal and no member of the faith is "higher" or designated as a leader. Women and men, children and adults can participate in all aspects of their services. When you think Sikh, think equality.
It was interesting to learn that the older and younger generations seem to have different views on practical applications of the religion, including arranged marriages, jewelry and piercings, and hair. I guess there is a generational gap in all religions and communities! (Alex says way-to-go for interfaith connections!)
Overall it was a good day, but tiring. And Alex and Emily want to sleep. So peace out,
Alex and Emily
On behalf of all the AB Summer Philly Crew
Friday, May 28, 2010
Sunday May 23
We drove to Philadelphia. We had a fun time getting to know each other during the car ride. We played lots of car games, that made Manka really frustrated (but she got them eventually :) ). When we got to Mishkan Shalom, the synagogue where we were staying, we met up with the rest of the group from the Philly area. We met Rev. Nicole and had a workshop about asking curious Interfaith questions, rather than judgemental or intolerant questions. Apparently, we were pros, because we did very well. By that time, we were ready for bed. We blew up our air mattresses, picked our rooms, and went to sleep.
From,
Runs Swift like the wWnd (an anonymous member of our group who prefers to remain unidentified) and Hair like the Sun (Emily)
From,
Runs Swift like the wWnd (an anonymous member of our group who prefers to remain unidentified) and Hair like the Sun (Emily)
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