Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Interfaith relations, pt 1

Omaha will be hosting an interfaith event in March of next year. The Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church will be presentas well as the chief rabbi of the Reform movement and the head of the Islamic Society of North America. It'll be an exciting time here!

It's all being put together by a local interfaith organization. The director of my internship program said that such great cooperation between local congregations of the Abrahamic faiths (to the point that they plan on buying property together and building houses of worship there) is only possible here in the Midwest, and I can see why.

There's a degree of hospitality that's unique, it seems, to the region. From what I hear (and have yet to experience), even the rabid Husker fans won't boo or harass the opposing team. Husker fans tend to be devoted to Nebraska football but aren't so fanatical that they'd go so far as to denigrate others.

This might be food for thought in our multireligious country. Can we be hospitable to others without giving up our identity and devotion? Can we be gracious to others without worrying that they'll think we're insane Huskers fans?

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