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Jesus prayed "that they may all be one . . . so that the world may believe." (John 17:21)
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2008 GENERAL CONFERENCE
General Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns
21st Century Ecumenical Overview  Larry Pickens
GCCUIC survey of bi-laterals
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-  Conversion - Pluralism/Secularism
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 Declaration of Relationship
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WCC on Theological Anthropology
UM and ELCA approve FULL COMMUNION

Starting a UMC-ELCA grassroots conversation

ELCA-UMC Full Communion Local Formation Model  template for day-long local celebration, formation and theological reflection.,  

10th year Joint Declaration Doctrine Justification

World Methodist affirmation of JDDJ
2004  General Conf. study
Theology of Communion
This Holy Mystery
NCCC Faith & Order - Oberlin 2007 reports
50th anniversary of The Nature of the Unity we Seek
Ecumenical Formation of Youth  YOUTH TOOL KIT
Archive Articles
UMCOR  emergencies
Same God - ELH blog

Flash commentary UMC voice against provocative ads  

News - United Methodist Women Unveils Ad Countering Hate Speech in New York City Subway 

    
 
In NIC the CCUIC  (Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns continues
our Ecumenical / Interreligious work. http://www.gbgm-umc.org/interrelig/
CHICAGO AREA     THE 19TH MOST INTERFAITH CITY IN AMERICA
CONTACT US
NIC CCUIC Chairperson:  Linda Hickok    815-725-0570  Linda.Hickok@gmail.com 315 Crabapple Dr.  Joliet  60435
NIC Ecumenical/Interreligious Office Liaison:  Rev. Charles Emery  630-337-3183  charlese@ameritech.net
Conference Ecumenical/Interreligious Web Information: Rev. Edgar Hiestand  708-660-9168   ehiest@mc.net 
Office of Christian Unity and Interrelgious Relations
  of the Council of Bishops (OCUIR)       http://www.ocuir.org/
As of January 1, 2013, the GCCUIC General Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns ceased to exist and the  OCUIR was created. (Office of Christian Unity and Interreligious Relationships under supervision of the  Council of Bishops).   All  resources provided by the GCCUIC are available on http://www.ocuir.org/
Contact Info: http://www.gccuic-umc.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=237&Itemid=5
Phone: 212-870-3800   Fax:     212-870-3801  Mailing Address 475 Riverside Drive, Suite 300 New York,, NY 10115
Email: Questions@ocuir.org  .   All of our resources provided by the GCCUIC are available on http://www.ocuir.org/

      "We have inherited a big house, a great "world house"[oikoumene] in which we have to live together - black and white, Easterners and Westerners, Gentiles and Jews, Catholics and Protestants, Moslem and Hindu, a family unduly separated in ideas, culture, and interests who, because we can never again live without each other, must learn, somehow, in this one big world, to live with each other.
       This means that more and more our loyalties must become ecumenical [oikoumene] rather than sectional. We must now give an overriding loyalty to mankind as a whole in order to preserve the best in our individual societies.
       This call for a worldwide fellowship that lifts neighborly concern beyond one's tribe, race, class, and nation is in reality a call for an all-embracing and unconditional love for all men."
                                -     Dr. Martin Luther King Jr - Nobel Peace Prize Lecture - Dec. 11, 1964

                                                                                            

  SOME ECUMENICAL ETYMOLOGY    The root of the word "ecumenical" is oikos, a Greek word in the Bible meaning "house."  We find oikos in words like "economy" and "ecology."  Therefore "ecumenical" has to do with the "household" of God - and oikoumene  is a "world house"  (see MLK above).  I interpret various scriptures about the God's plan/telos/end as being that All (panta) people are to realize they are brothers and sisters in God's  household.  More
     Another Greek word tells us how to participate in God's goal -- that is, to turn strangers into com-panions around the table of dialogue.  Xenos means "stranger," as in xenophobia "fear of strangers (we see that as an overriding social/political pathology).  Paradoxically, the Greek word for "hospitality" is xenia which means a "stranger turned into a guest." 
     While the word "ecumenical" has traditionally described the movement for unity within the Christian house, as against the words "interreligious" or "interfaith" meaning relationships to religions outside Christianity, I believe "ecumenical" can be correctly used to in relation to other faiths.  (Hans Kung has written: “Ecumenism should not be limited to the community of the Christian churches; it must include the community of the great religions, if ecumenism—in accordance with the original meaning of oikumene—is to refer to the whole ‘inhabited world.’” Christianity and worlds religions)  As such it connotes, not a movement to co-opt into unity, but a recognition of the Holy Spirit working amid the whole household toward the telos/end of a world family reconciled in a just peace.  Interfaithing is a imperative verb for this whole household.  You can draw some ecumenical views from Ephesians 1:10; John 17:21; Acts 2;  Acts 9:10f; Acts 15:12f; Luke 4:24f; Mark 7:24-36. More
ELH




Quotable nuggets
     "What if the approach to the "other" -- (even in NW Pakistan) was not force, but respectfully being with and enabling aspirations--education, health, reverence for the best in each one's faith?"  from book: Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace  by Greg Mortenson 3 Cups   Central  Asia Institute CAI   

"Remember the rights of the savage, as we call him. Remember that the happiness of his humble home, remember that the sanctity of life in the hill villages of Afghanistan among the winter snows, are as sacred in the eye of Almighty God as are your own. Remember that He who has united you together as human beings in the same flesh and blood, has bound you by the law of mutual love, that that mutual love is not limited by the shores of this island, is not limited by the boundaries of Christian civilisation, that it passes over the whole surface of the earth, and embraces the meanest along with the greatest in its wide scope. "    - William E. Gladstone 1879

     "We are who we are not because we are separate from the others who are next to us, but because we are both separate and connected, both distinct and related; the boundaries that mark our identities are both barriers and bridges." from book:  Exclusion & Embrace: a Theological Exploration of Identity, Otherness, and Reconciliation by Miroslav Volf.  Miroslav Volf interview - Exclusion & Embrace
       

MY HERETICS AND YOURS Nearly every time friends get divorced, I have noticed, it is hard to preserve your relationship with both of them. This strikes me as sad, unfortunate, but probably almost inevitable, human nature being what it is, otherwise known as sin. One of the greatest challenges in ecumenical and interfaith work is navigating the treacherous waters that surround every denomination or faith community that has undergone any sort of split or schism - and haven’t we all? Should you invite those who have just broken away from the Catholic or Episcopal or Lutheran Church to your local clergy association? Should you invite a Mormon to an ecumenical Christian group? An interfaith one?. . .  So how should we relate to those who have broken away from another faith community?   :MORE  /www.ncccusa.org/Quote                                                                        The Rev. Thomas W. Goodhue Executive Director    Long Island Council of Churches

           l'll be a better Catholic, not if I can refute every shade of Protestantism, but if I can affirm the truth in it and still go further. So, too, with the Muslims, the Hindus, the Buddhists, etc. This does not mean syncretism, indifferentism, the vapid and careless friendliness that accepts everything by thinking of nothing. There is much that one cannot "affirm" and "accept," but first one must say "yes" where one really can.  If I affirm myself as a Catholic merely by denying all that is Muslim, Jewish, Protestant, Hindu, Buddhist, etc., in the end I will find that there is not much left for me to affirm as a Catholic: and certainly no breath of the Spirit with which to affirm it.  - Thomas Merton

       "For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus -- and nonbelievers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.   Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested, we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back, nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations. - President Barack Obama Inaugural  January 20, 2009

Bishop  Hee-Soo Jung at National Workshop on Christian Unity  "Unity" sermon  video







CALENDAR OPPORTUNITIES
2013  Christian 2013; Jewish 5773; Muslim 1433
To check holidays of various religions    Online 2013 Calendar
  Order Interfaith calendars    Chicago Center for Cultural Connections          Festival Shop UK Poster Calendar  
2013
50th Anniversary of Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican which began Oct. 11, 1962.  Aggiornamento "A bringing up to date" was one of the key words during the three years of II Vatican Council.
National Council of Churches envisions reinvented NCC model in 2013- DETAILS IN CALENDAR BELOW



May  UMEIT - United Methodist Ecumenical Interreligious Training event is scheduled for  in the Philippines. 
June 9 Sunday  - Ecumenical Sunday sponsored by Ecumenism Metro Chicago
October 10th Assembly of the World Council of Churches (WCC) “God of life, lead us to justice and peace”  at Busan, South Korea.

2014 Council for a Parliament of the World's Religions CPWR in Brussels  More
2010 - 20s 20  Decade - 2nd % of the 3rd millennium (The Ecumenical Millennium) -   
2011 to 2020 United Nations Decade of Interreligious Dialogue and Cooperation for Peace Decade of Interreligious 
                                                                     CALENDAR DETAIL BELOW
                                                            Return to top

Ecumenical Sunday Reception and Service

June 09, 2013
4:00 PM - 6:00 PM
St. Thomas Syro-Malabar Catholic Cathedral
5000 St. Charles Road   Bellwood, IL 60104-1041

    United Methodist Churches are invited to attend  its 13th annual celebration “Ecumenical Sunday” 
by Ecumenism Metro Chicago, founded in 1999 to pray for and to promote ecumenical relations among Christians in Chicagoland.
     Church leaders and laity of twenty denominations, including Northern Illinois Conference United Methodist Church which is a member of EMC, will participate in the event, whose theme is based on that of the 2013 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, “What Does the Lord Require of Us?” (Micah 6:6-8)
    The Reverend Deborah Paton, 2012 Moderator of the Presbytery of Chicago, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and Pastor of Rogers Park Presbyterian Church,
  The reception in will highlight community-based ecumenical endeavors from several local parishes and congregations
who hosted ecumenical observances during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (January 18 – 25, 2013).
    St. Thomas Cathedral, the host of this year’s Ecumenical Sunday, is part of the Syro-Malabar Church, the second largest church among the Eastern Catholic Churches.
St. Thomas the Apostle founded the Syro-Malabar Church.

For information - Edgar Hiestand charlese@ameritech.net, Charles Emery   charlese@ameritech.net, Amos Oladipo   oladipoamos@yahoo.com       NIC-UMC representatives to EMC  
 Ecumenical Sunday Poster
  Bishop's Interfaith Bus Tour - March 22-23, 2013   MORE PHOTOS on FACEBOOK                                             https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=640049536011097&set=a.640042116011839.1073741825.189543851061670&type=1&theater      
                                                     
- Photograph at Hindu BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, Bartlett, IL       
More photos -    http://www.flickr.com/photos/37007345@N03/with/8685250146/#photo_8685250146          


On May 11, 2013, CPWR begins its anniversary festivities with an interfaith celebration, in collaboration with the Sikh Religious Society of Palatine, IL. This initial event will be followed with others as the Looking Back to Move Forward initiative continues. The Council invites you to join us for the interfaith celebration, but to also attend a special roundtable event beforehand. From 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM on May 11, 2013, the Council will convene a roundtable to discuss how the Parliament’s past can inform its dreams for the future.
World Council of Churches 10th Assembly
The Assembly will take place Oct. 30 – Nov. 10, 2013, in Busan,
under the theme: “God of Life, Lead Us to Justice and Peace.” 
For more information, see the World Council of Churches Assembly website.

Congregational resources

A new online publication from the World Council of Churches invites parishes and congregations
to explore the themes of Christian unity, justice and peace leading up to the 10th Assembly in Busan, South Korea.
The six-unit resource, “Pilgrimage to Busan: A Journey into Ecumenical Christianity,”
is designed for use by congregations in study groups, adult forums or for a day-long retreat. 
Participant and leader guides are available for download.



Join Southlawn United Methodist Church Tour
to the
THE WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES

Contact Pastor Rev. Dr. Larry Pickens
Larry Pickens <larrypickens@me.com>

Advisor on South Korea context is
Rev. Ouk-Yean Kim Jueng, District Superintendent of Rockford District

For information 773-734-7708  slawnumc@sbcglobal.net
Est costs: airfare $1600, registration $350, daily room/board $150-200

About NIC's Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns (CCUIC)
What is the missional portfolio?
    The United Methodist Church is committed to the ecumenical movement which seeks unity among the churches in Jesus Christ, and interreligious dialogue and cooperation which promotes understanding and shalom among all peoples and cultures. The United Methodist Church is a connectional church. This connectional dimension is part and parcel of the gift of diversity and unity expressed in Christian koinonia and the interreligious linkage.-- a plan for the fullness of time, to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth Ephesians 1:10.
MAKE the missional portfolio LOCAL  - United Methodist clergy and laity need to continue being the sparkplugs in local communities for thriving ministerial associations, clusters, and community and dialogue events,  Often it will be your initiative in recognizing a need and urging others by telephone calls, that can ground the  "household" - "ecumene" in your parish (Wesley said something about that.)  And let laity share that vision in mission, social action, hospitality and worship.

As the United Methodist denomination, the missional portfolio is enabled by the
Office of Christian Unity  and Interrelgious Relations   of the Council of Bishops (OCUIR)       http://www.ocuir.org/
formerlly the
General Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns   Phone 800-653-8936 

 UMEIT - United Methodist Ecumenical Interreligious Training  network   UMEIT resources local CCUIC mission   http://www.gccuic-umc.org pdf publication            
Contribute $ Support ecumenical and interfaith ministry of The United Methodist Church.- Bridges of Unity - Ecumenical and Interfaith Endowment Fund
  GCCUIC Powerpoints:   Conciliar Ecumenism, Pan Methodists, Neighbors/Witnesses,   Interfaith images, Muslim dialogues order CD by email  

What is the missional portfolio of CCUIC in NIC conference?    
The Discipline of the United Methodist Church describes the functions of both the General Commission and the Conference Commission in  Pars. 1901-1903 and Par. 641. 2004 UM Discipline   NIC CCUIC Mission Statement
Current Agenda Work by CCUIC - ICC, EMC, CIOGC, AJC, CUIC, Niagara, district training, interfaith bus, ecumenical award, NWCU, WPCU
Reporter article on CCUIC  activities NIC Reporter Ecumenical Feature
  NIC CCUIC's ministry- PPT    This PowerPoint is temporarily un-downloadable -Please order CD by email 
Other churches such as Roman Catholic have similar job descriptions Ecumenical Directory

 CCUIC Chairperson: Ms. Linda Hickok  815-725-0570    Linda Hickok linda.hickok@gmail.com
NIC Ecumenical/Interreligious Office Liaison: Rev. Charles Emery  630-337-3183  charlese@ameritech.net
NIC Ecumenical/Interreligous Web Information   Rev. Edgar L. Hiestand Jr  708-660-9168, ehiest@mc.net    BLOG
NIC Staff assigned to CCUIC -
Rev. Chris Pierson, 847-931-0710  cpierson@umcnic.org   Chris Pierson Blog http://justpeacecafe.wordpress.com/
Rev. Michael Mann 630-747-9047    mailto:mmann@umcnic.org

2013 CCUIC Members Roster

NEXT CCUIC MEETING -  Saturday: April 20, 2013,  9:30
Woodridge United Methodist Church, 2700 75th Street  •  Woodridge, IL 60517
CCUIC Resources   
NIC Media Library 847-931-0710 Ext. 17 Media center catalogue
Susan Gieseler sgieseler@umcnic.org   
NEW AT NIC MEDIA CENTER
“Three Faiths, One God: Judaism, Christianity, Islam
Film Information
This documentary compares similarities and differences in religious beliefs and practices that Islam has with Christianity and Judaism
 Imam shows how Muslims pray.
“Jews reading from Torah 		Christians in Prayer"
  Resource Person Available for local churches Program Topics Click for a parable  to keep in the back of your ecumenical mind
Please let us know events via email for posting here on Calendar or Idea Exchange.  If you see a need for a program in your local church, please let us know.
  .
Locations for ecumenical/interreligious studies and degrees:
* Switzerland WCC Ecumenical Institute Bossey  * Tantur Ecumenical Institute for Theological Studies - Jerusalem Tantur offers programs of continuing education and spiritual renewal for clergy and laity * Ukraine Institute for Ecumenical Studies Lviv   and *  Cambridge University Interfaith Program
CCUIC Resolutions at Northern Illinois Conference

2011  RESOLUTIONS  Toward Common Conversations - Jewish-United Methodist  
   Resolution on DuPage County    
Resolution in Support for Aspirations of Peoples

2008 NIC Passed Resolution Local United Methodist congregations/Jewish synagogues initiative UM-Jewish dialogue initiative
          Change to Standing Rules III-D-10  (p. 290,  2007 NIC Journal) to specify ex-officio members on the Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns Standing Rules  Referred to rewrite task force -CCUIC  to act  as if  passed .
2007 NIC Resolution Pursuing Peace and Justice in the Holy Land "Therefore, Be It Resolved, that the Northern Illinois Conference Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns is requested to develop and promote wider avenues of engagement between Christians, Muslims and Jewish communities pursuing justice and peace."   Palestine Resolution   CCUIC encourages churches to engage in the 2007-2008 Mission Study Israel-Palestine GBGM-umc study book
GBGM Women's Division answer to questions about mission study Response to critique
  See also: Peace links (Below) and specifically our peace web page references:  "Viewpoints" Views, and "Jewish, Muslim, Christian Groups on Mideast Peace-Israel/Palestine Mideast
2006  Resolution Bridges not Walls     Continuation of previous ecumenical and interreligious resolutions  Previous
 2005  Support for National Workshop on Christian Unity  NWCU    Encouraging Local Church Ecumenical/Interfaith Dialogues  Dialogues
2001 Resolutions  1. Steps Toward Wholeness --Pan Methodism - six session local church study on racism 2.  Celebrating the Birth of Churches Uniting in Christ (CUIC) 3.  Dialogue on Scriptural Authority for NIC during 2002 4. Yom HaShoah - Encourage churches to observe  5. : Ecumenical Cooperation expanding cooperation with Catholics, Evangelicals, Pentecostals and others
  Support CCUIC Conference Advance Specials 2010-2011 Rainbow choices      See page 26
Support organizations in Northern Illinois that enhance Christian unity and interreligious collaboration through six Advance Specials:  Protestants for the Common Good (PFCG) thecommongood.org,,  Chicago Religious Leader Network on Latin America (CRLN) crln.org,    Greater Chicago Broadcast Ministries (GCBM) gcbm.org,   You Tube - NIC youth on TV   In addition NIC membership supports the Illinois Conference of Churches. ilconfchurches.org  and Ecumenism Metro Chicago  Facebook. EMC
See CCUIC activities through the year in the Commission reports to the Northern Illinois Annual Conference
Historical Reports of CCUIC activity: 2010 REPORT  2009  2008  2007  2006    2005      2004    2002    2000           
CCUIC  Yesteryear -  Annual Conference Banquets and guest speakers Program book -1996   Bishop's Ecumenical Interreligious Awards and speakers     
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Northern Illinois Annual Conference
VISIT OUR NORTHERN ILLINOIS CONFERENCE WEB PAGE  http://www.umcnic.org/ 
See particularly the NIC calendar link for interchurch and interfaith events   http://www.umcnic.org/ecumenical_and_interfaith.php
THE BISHOP’S 2012
ECUMENICAL and INTERRELIGIOUS AWARD
In recognition of your witness by word and action to God’s purpose for human community
Awarded to
AMY LAWLESS AYALA — DuPage United
PHOTOS OF AWARD AT ANNUAL CONFERENCE  
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.480443455305040.136408.189543851061670&type=1
  •  Through your work as lead organizer of DuPage United, churches, synagogues, mosques, and non-profits have been brought together to build relationships, develop leaders, and take action for justice for the common good.
  •  You enabled congregations and groups to effect change by utilizing Industrial Areas Foundation community orga-nizing principles, such as, one-on-one relationships, listening sessions, analyzing power structures, identifying fresh leaders and resources.
  •  You defended the right of the Muslim Education and Cultural Center of America (MECCA) community to build its mosque and community center in unincorporated DuPage County in the face of strong opposition.
  •  Likewise, through DuPage United’s opposition, a proposed ban prohibiting places of assembly and worship from being built or expanding in residential unincorporated DuPage County was dropped.
  • As you encouraged collaboration across diverse religious boundaries, congregations developed an interfaith awareness that has resulted in common witness for justice in challenging economic times. This led them to confront growing suburban poverty by job creation and training, after-school programs for youth, English as a Second Language at the College of DuPage, affordable housing for seniors, and support groups for adults and disadvantaged school children.
  •  Through all these actions church disciples have been empowered to realize the world-transforming vision we proclaim as our mission.
“Blessed are the peacemakers“ - Matthew 5:9
The Commission on Christian Unity and Interreligious Concerns
Northern Illinois Conference of the United Methodist Church
June 8, 2012
_________________________________________
Bishop Hee-Soo Jung

Bishop Hee-Soo Jung comes with ecumenical and interreligious gifts.  He writes, "I think my calling today is in some ways bringing Christian unity as a gift."   Jung holds a doctorate in philosophy and comparative religions, and he wrote his dissertation on a Buddhist text. It's one manifestation of what he says is a passionate commitment to interfaith relations and bridge-building between factions in his own church.

2012 NIC photos of award to DuPage United - facebook.
2009 Northern Illinois Annual Conference  2009 Ecumenical/Interreligious Award to Niagara Foundation
Archives of previous Annual Conference awards and  pictures ARCHIVE

Northern Illinois Conference United Methodist Church is a member of
The Ecumenical Millennium Committee of Metropolitan Chicago,
The Council of Religious Leaders of Metropolitan Chicago,
The Illinois Conference of Churches.
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PRAY IN CONGREGATION FOR ECUMENICAL AND INTERRELIGIOUS BROTHERS AND SISTERS
For the peace and unity of the Church of God
For respect and collaboration among religions
For Peace in the Holy Land
  Christ is Born - Glorify . Him
 Bethlehem, the city of Jesus' birth, is under occupation. All its residents, including Palestinian Christians, are suffering. Behind the wall that separates neighbor from neighbor, patient from hospital, student from school and farmer from land, Palestinian Christians will continue to bear witness to their faith this Christmas, as they have done for generations.
http://www.diyar-consortium.org/films/PALESTIME.mpg

Pray for the ecumenical meetings
World Council of Churches
World Methodist Council Executive Committee
National Council of Churches of Christ -


Pray for the meetings of sister churches' annual assemblies, synods, conferences
Pray for the church, synagogue, mosque, temple down the street		 Northern Illinois Conference United Methodist Church  2009
United Church of Christ Illinois Conference
Presbytery of Chicago
Catholic Conference of Illinois
Pray for the Bi-laterals
More complete list

 ELCA/UM Agreement Interim Eucharistic Sharing
Lutheran/United Methodist dialogue		 UMC /Episcopal
UMC/Lutheran
UMC/Catholic
UMC/Orthodox
Episcopal/Presbyterian
Presbyterian/Reformed
Lutheran/Catholic



ECUMENICAL/INTERRELIGIOUS LATE BREAKING NEWS and COMMENTARY

FLASH COMMENTARY -  
UMC VOICE against provocative ads                                                                  News - United Methodist Women Unveils Ad Countering Hate Speech in New York City Subwa

       
CAIR respone (see below My Jihad ad campaign  )
Chicago Tribune Religion Writer Blog - Manya Brachear
NPR Speaking of Faith Krista Tippett Krista Tippett
Cross Cultural windows:  Bridges TV    &  Al Arabiya  & BBC  &   Linktv Mosaic  & .Aljazeera
  &  Haaretz newspaper  &  Radio Islam on WCEV  1450AM  daily 6-7  m  Radioislam.com
 pzZXcc
http://www.interfaithradio.org/   

Krista Tippett  On Being Radio Show + Podcast:   Civil Conversations Project (CCP)   http://www.onbeing.org/  
Pro-Life, Pro-Choice, Pro-Dialogue  
The Future of Marriage  
Political Bridge People: Restoring Civility to the Debt Discussion

Different Drummers features 3 generations of Sikhs sharing their reaction to the killings at a Sikh temple in Wisconsin, and how their faith has guided their response.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZkObdK0o7k&feature=share&list=UUFmdJL5HLTU3U7SBOt9u34g Greater Chicago Broadcast Ministries  
A communications ministry of the Protestant, Episcopal and Eastern Orthodox churches in the Chicago area  

Religion and Ethics Newsweekly on PBS  http://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/          http://www.facebook.com/PBS.ReligionEthics/info   TV show examines religion’s role — and the ethical dimensions — behind top news headlines. Correspondents travel around the nation and the globe to explore how issues of faith, religion and ethics shape both national and international events.
What the Mainline Ecumenical Church Achieved interview by Amy Frykholm with David Hollinger  Christian Century 7-2-2012 

Parliament of Worlds Religions news to your email   .parliamentofreligions.org/

Building Hope Conference: The Reconciliation Program of the Yale Center for Faith and Culture hosted a 10-day conference in June that brought together Christians, Jews, and Muslims  http://www.yale.edu/divinity July 2011

CAIR rep. condemns Afghan violence (CNN) - 4/1/11  video. : CNN transcripts

Thanks for UM support DUPAGE COUNTY BOARD voted  March 22, 2011 to approve the MECCA  mosque.    chicagotribune.com/video
[Update - Thursday, July 19, 2012 10:00 a.m. MECCA will break ground for the mosque at 16W560 91st Street, Willowbrook 60527.

We should celebrate with the Egyptians. Governments and religions alike must undergird the God-given unalienable dignity of the human soul; which soul has an unquenchable passion for liberation. That is “the moral force that bent the arc of history toward justice” which President Obama just spoke of. I think we saw and heard that arc from the Egyptian people on TV in Tahrir Square = ”Liberation.” I hope/trust that in every society, in the Middle East, Arab, Israeli, etc. etc, or anywhere in the world, the “arc” will be honored. May none of the diverse voices and diverse communities be quenched or co-opted. - ELH

Bishop Jung on Afghan violence and NIC UMC relations with Muslims. NIC news

 


INTERFAITH  THANKSGIVING  IN AURORA
-Emmy Lou John lighting candle


SIC et NON - Differing perspectives on an issue
The issue: What is the meaning of religious freedom?
Re: Compulsion in Religion

What is it really in America/   Shariah101- Soundvision info By Abdul Malik Mujahid  The Sharia that Americans Live  pamphlet .pdf

Institute on Global Engagement globalengage  and journal  Review of Faith and Internaitonal Affairs

ProgressIslamConference2006.pdf   Conference on Progressive Islam and the State in contemporary Muslim Societies, Nanyang University  Singapore.

CAIR Council on American-Islamic Relations Position Paper on Islam and Apostasy 8/09  "Islamic scholars say the original rulings on apostasy were similar to those for treasonous acts in legal systems worldwide and do not apply to an individual's choice of religion. Islam advocates both freedom of religion and freedom of conscience.... Before issuing this position statement, CAIR consulted with members of the Fiqh Council of North America, an association of Islamic legal scholars that interprets Muslim religious law.

       The Future of U.S. International Religious Freedom Policy (Recommendations for Obama Administration)  by Institute for Global Engagement
     Why Freedom of speech must include the right to defame religions  Economist 4-4-09
      Organization of The Islamic Conference 1990 Cairo Declaration of Human Rights in Islam  oicun.org  oic-oci.org
      UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights 1948 Declaration of Human Rights  
      United States seeks seat on UN Human Rights Council  Diplomacy Faith and Freedom -   Economist 4-4-09
      UN Human Rights Council - passes 3-29-09  VS Defamation of religion   
      World Conference Against Racism 4-09  WCAR    
     View s on the right to change one's religion   7 26 08    Economist "Apostasy"   Economist "Conversion"    
     Muslim scholars re Apostasy and the right to change religions (many links)  http://apostasyandislam.blogspot.com/
    November 2009 Buxton Roundtable regarding issues of free speech, blasphemy and religious  Muslim Public Affairs Council
     November 14-15, 2009 Course on Muslims & Others in a Multi-Religious World,  Lombard Note aspects of issue in course description

FROM THE INSTITUTE FOR GLOBAL ENGAGEMENT
http://www.globalengage.org/  

Mission

The Institute for Global Engagement is a think-and-do tank at the forefront of the emerging field of religion and global affairs. IGE's research, education, and relational diplomacy works worldwide through local partners to encourage flourishing societies and stable states through sustainable religious freedom. Toward that end, IGE studies the impact of faith on state and society, it enables governments to protect religious freedom, and it equips citizens to exercise that freedom responsibly.


New From RFIA: “The Rise of Shari’a: Implications for Democracy and Human Rights”


 
Guest-edited by Robert W. Hefner (Director of the Institute of Culture, Religion, and World Affairs at Boston University), the just-released Winter issue of The Review of Faith & International Affairs examines shari'a politics in seven countries: Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Indonesia. Two articles are free online. Full online access is available via library subscription. Click here to subscribe and here to recommend to your library.

Read more: New From RFIA: “The Rise of Shari’a: Implications for Democracy and Human Rights”
 

Model Syllabus on International Religious Freedom Advocacy


 
As a free companion resource to the Fall 2012 issue of The Review of Faith & International Affairs, IGE has published a new model syllabus on the philosophical, religious, and political underpinnings of international religious freedom, and strategies to advance it in diverse settings. Written by Allen Hertzke, Thomas Farr, Jason Pudlo, and Dennis Hoover, the syllabus can be used as the basis of a freestanding course, or the modules may be integrated as needed into other classes.

Read more: Model Syllabus on International Religious Freedom Advocacy
 

IGE President Interviewed for CBS Special on Religious Freedom, Video Available Online


  The CBS special "Working for Religious Freedom" is now available for online viewing. Among the experts interviewed was IGE's own Chris Seiple. The video special considers the rising tide of intolerance in our own country toward religious minorities, and why this intolerance is a threat to everyone's religious liberty. In this season of geo-political births among persecuted minorities, please take the time to consider why religious freedom is not only the right thing to do, AND WHY it is also in the self-interest of each of us. We are all minorities somewhere.

Read more: IGE President Interviewed for CBS Special on Religious Freedom, Video Available Online
VS  the MYTH that Muslims are SILENT ABOUT TERRORISM 
Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago condemns assassination of Shahbaz Bhatti, Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Minorities, in Islamabad  March 3, 2011
Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri, leader of a global Muslim movement Fatwa against terrorism 2010
Council of Islamic Organization of Greater Chicago "Jihad Against Terrorism"  Crescent Feb. 2010 p. 2 Dr. Z. Sahloul 
also  CIOGC collected statements  and  NPR Speaking of Faith - Islamist  and  Muslim Public Affairs Council  .
IF ASKED WHETHER "THEY" SPEAK OUT AGAINST TERRORISM
2004 - Ulama scholars re intra-Islam fatwas and interfaith  http://www.ammanmessage.com/   A fatwa is religious opinion concerning Islamic law issued by an Islamic scholar.
Deoband, a Muslim university,  issues Fatwa against terrorism - Council of North America 2008   A Fiqh Council makes interpretations of sharia law .
Azam Nizamuddin - our speaker at the NIUMC/CIOGC  dialogue dinner April 8, 2008 - passed along this column about Muslim Scholars in Deoband, India declaring a fatwa against terrorism http://www.newstatesman.com/religion/2008/06/terrorism-fatwa-india-islam  
U.S. Muslims issue Fatwa against religious extremism   Fiqh Council of N.A.  2008
 Chicago area Musilims endorse anti-terror Fatwa 2005
2004 - Ulama scholars re intra Islam fatwas and interfaith  http://www.ammanmessage.com/
Muslim organizaions statements and fatwas against terrorism Collected statements
American Muslims counter stereotyped definition of Jihad as violence with definition as struggle for doing good.
View Myjihad Ad Campaign  Website here: myjihad.org  12/12/2012  the first bus ad campaign appeared on 25 Chicago buses.  MyJihad Ads on Chicago Buses Live Shots
On Being with Krista Tippett  -- Spiritual Boundaries in Modern Turkey with Fr. Alberto Ambrosio and Metropolitan Elpidophoros Lambriniadis  August 2, 2012  The second show from our recent trip to Istanbul. We meet a Dominican friar whose Christianity is inspired by the mystical tradition of Islam. And, an Eastern Orthodox bishop is creating what he calls a “dialogue of life” as a religious minority in this crucible of the ancient church.  

Silk Road Theater Online Play (set in Naperville)  http://www.silkroadrising.org/video-plays/mosque-alert  Mosque Alert tells the story of two suburban American families living in Naperville, IL -one Christian, the other Muslim- who find their lives torn apart by a proposal to build a new mosque in their community. Silk Road Rising and playwright Jamil Khoury invite you to join us on a unique journey, a first in new play development history. We want you to become co-creators of Jamil’s new play, Mosque Alert. Through your active participation we hope that you that will influence and assist Jamil as he develops a new play that will be both a work of art and a tool for civic engagement.

NPR Diane Rehm Show - Nov. 6
How religious beliefs are informing political convictions in the 2012 election.   http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2012-11-06/religion-and-politics-2012  

GUESTS E.J. Dionne Jr.  senior fellow, Brookings Institution. Author of "Our Divided Political Heart: The Battle for the American Idea in an Age of Discontent."
Michael Gerson syndicated columnist, author of "City of Man: Religion and Politics in a New Era."
Jonathan Haidt social psychologist and author of The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion

listen

  • Radio Show/Podcast
    (mp3, 51:07)
    • Unedited Interview
  • » Alberto Ambrosio
    (mp3, 78:48)
  • » Metropolitan Elpidophoros Lambriniadis
    (mp3, 33:52)
  • Show Playlist
    •

    Vatican II  50th - address Larry Pickens The Charter for Compassion

    http://charterforcompassion.org/

    Islamophobia: We need to accept the ‘other’  -Karen Armstrong   Theglobeandmail.com/

    9/11 10th anniversary   Council of Bishops statement

    UM supports Mosque permit in DuPage

    Shoulder to Shoulder Campaign  Standing with American Muslims; Upholding American Values

    The-real-Muslim-problem_ by Joyce S. Dubensky
    Tanenbaum Foundation  https://www.tanenbaum.org/  - named after Rabbi Marc H. Tanenbaum, the human rights rabbi.

    911 10th anniversary - Woodridge UMC opens doors to Muslim congregation

    Jewish/Muslim Initiative to be aware of - http://abunooralirlandee.wordpress.com/2010/01/22/jewish-muslim-community-building-initiative-text-study/  from an interesting blog by Chicago lawyer, Fenian Islamist Abu Noor Al-Irlandee.

    Islamaphobia interview with  Kareem Irfan, President of the Council of Religious Leaders of Metropolitan Chicago 
    YouTube     on Greater Chicago Broadcast Ministries "Different Drummers    " TV     in December

    GOD IN AMERICA   - PBS SERIES  - OCTOBER 2010         http://www.pbs.org/godinamerica/

    WBEZ  NPR May 2010 World View - Weeklong serices on Islam Jerome McDonald interviews

    National Day of Prayer May 6 2010   About from NDP Task Force  web site  Comment about NDP Edgar Hiestand comment re Franklin Graham 
    Pentegon disinvites Rev. Franklin Graham     to National Day of Prayer An American Muslim Journal

    Chicago Council of  Islamic Organizations  Springfield April 2010 Lobby

    Tariq Ramadan - at CAIR annual dinner Drury Lane The Seeker - Chicago Tribune 4-16-10

    Voodoo - Hollywood / Interreglious  NPR Speaking of Faith

    National Prayer Breakfast 2010 President's Feb. 4 remarks

    Report of Council for a Parliament of Religions Dec. 2009 meeting in Melbourne CWPR

    The Politics of Minarets - Chicago Tribune article by Zaher Sahloul, president of the Coucil of Islamic Organizations, with comment by Edgar Hiestand Tribune Dec. 28, 2009

    Chicago Muslims decry Fort Hood shooting  Chicago Council of Islamic Organizations dinner - Nov. 7, 2009   including video of Governor Quinn statement

    Letter of NIC Bishop Hee-Soo Jung, Rev. Amos Oladipo CCUIC chairperson, and Edgar Hiestand Ecumenical Office Liaison to Dr. Zaher Sahloul CIOGC On  Ft. Hood shooting .pdf
     
    Commentary on Dec. 25 terror attempt  by Council on American Islamic Association Executive Director Nihad Awad   C-Span 1-9-2010
      
    Bethlehem Christmas 2009 - Palestinian Document   Patriarch Emeritus Michel Sabbah, Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, Lutheran Bishop of Jerusalem Munib Younan, and Archbishop Theodosios Atallah Hanna of Sebastia, Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem, on Dec. 11, 2009 called on churches to support an end to occupation.
     
    POPE AND ANGLICANS  October 21, 2009  The Pope issued a constitutional change that facilitates Anglicans disaffected by the issues of gay or women bishops return to Rome while keeping certain Anglican practices. Vatican text  and RC ecumenist viewpoint  and Wall Street Journal analysis       Some issues of reciprocity and subsidiarity.
     
    New World Countil of Churches General Secretary Olav Fykse Tveit Sets Unity Priority
     
    World Council of  Churches call for justly resolving Israeli  settlement issues  WCC Statement 9-2-09
    Holocaust still a political football    Truthout 9-4-09 by Ira Chernus

    Lutherans OK Full Communion with United Methodists  August 20, 2009

    We are all Hindus now  Newsweek August 15, 2009

     WHENCE MID EAST ISSUES 2009 ? 
        President Obama June 4  Cairo video  Calls for a new beginning
        Northwestern University Buffet/Crown Centers establish Middle East Forum  
        Israeli rationale on settlements Jerusalem Center

    Hadith (sayings of Prophet) being translated by Turkish scholars.  Islamonline  

    National Workshop Christian Unity - Workshops: Living the Lund Principle Racism as an Impediment to Ecumenism Implications of Post-Modern Thought Common Words Among Christians and Muslims,     NWCU Audio files
     UMEIT (United Methodist Ecumenical and Interreligious Training) Network Dr.. Stephen Kim presentation, Part 1  and Dr. Stephen Kim presentation, Part 2
     
    Two items from Jonathan Schwartz,  Assistant Director,  Chicago Chapter American Jewish Committee:
         April 9, 2009--The first Arab Christian university in Israel, Mar Elias, is slated for Nazareth.  Mar Elias, founded by Archbishop Elias Chacour, has numerous Methodist connections.  First university
          April 23. 2009 - Jerusalem Post article by David Harris AJC Durban Conference human rights double standards  Review Conference on Racism  Web site Report 

    United for Peace and Justice  Afghanistan statement 3/2009
    Aerial bombing Pakistan/Afghanistan Makes Terrorists Abdul Malik Mujahid - 5-24-09
    Lifting the Veil (Afghanistan)     Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy 5-09    Pakistan Frontline 2009
     Chicago Muslims & Jews Speak with One Voice on Peace & Justice  2/4/09

    The Gaza siege
    January 14, 2009 NIC Board of Church and Society need for ceasefire BCS statement and proposed NIC resolution 2009 Peace With Justice in the Holy Land 
    Interfaith statement on Gaza in Boston Post December 2008 Statement
    The Economist analysis of Gaza January 8, 2009
    Council of Religious Leaders of Metropolitan Chicago Gaza statement January 19, 2009

    Response of March 3, 2008  Mairead Maguire, Nobel Peace Laureate  Read Lift the Siege
    Ms. Maguire,      Ms. Mairead Maguire of Peace People Belfast, www.peacepeople.com will be visiting Chicago for a Radio Islam dinner April 6.
    CCUIC urges support of our 2008 NIC Advance Special:  Ecumenical Accompaniement Programe in Palestine Israel   EAPPI

    1/20/09      National Prayer Breakfast - Obama, Blair

    1/09 Annual Meeting Christian Churches Together In The USA:  statememt     “Implementing the Call to Cut Poverty in Half” Poverty statement

    NY Times - Iran scholar Abdulkarim Soroush on Qu'ran source  - sacred scripture: Prophet/Revelation distinction Article 12-7-08
    12/2/08      The 100th anniversary of The Social Creed - NCC 21st century revision Bulletin insert revision and UM litany insert
    11-26-08  7th Assembly of the Asian Conference of Religions For Peace GBGM article

    12/08 The Review of Faith and International Affairs - (Council on Faith and International Affairs ) Islam and Pluralism - and - A Common Word

    7/29/09 Jewish Journal Tikkun - by Asma Uddin editor-in-chief of Altmuslimah  Religious-pluralism-in-todays-muslim-world
    http://www.altmuslimah.com/
    9-25-08 Mass distribution prior to election of biased film on Islam (see "Obsession" discussion below in "Living in Multifaith World")   Rebuttal

    NEW 9-10-08 Yale Divinity School Conference on  Loving God and Neighbor in Word and Deed - Implications for Christians and Muslims.  Miroslav Volf, the founder and director of the YDS Center for Faith and Culture, was a key organizer of the conference, along with Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad of Jordan. The conference followed the Center’s coordinated Christian response by several hundred signatories, published in a full-page advertisement in The New York Times, to an historic declaration in October 2007 by 138 Muslim clerics, who had urged reconciliation between the two faiths based on Christians’ and Muslims’ mutual emphasis on loving God and neighbor.

    Interfaith Conference of Muslim, Christian, and Jewish clerics July 16-18, 2008 in Madrid.by Saudi King Abdullah.Christian Science Monitor  Comment by Arthur Waskow Rabbi Waskow    Michael Lerner Rabbi Lerner -Tikkun    and David Twesky New York Sun

    Guidelines on Eucharistic Sharing - with United Methodist Church  dialogue/unitedmethodist/Guidelines
    United Methodist ELCA Dailogue dialogue/unitedmethodist
    United Methodist -Episcopal Church Interim Eucharistic Sharing

    Pan-Methodists re-evaluate board roles UMC news 3/12/08

    February 28, 2008  Gallup Poll survey of Muslim attitudes around the world
    February 18 - 5th Annual US-Islamic Conference in Doha, Qutar US-Islamic
    February 28 /Gallup-Center-Muslim-Studies
    February 28 Gallup Poll Book 5 years in making Who Speaks for Islam    Commentary CAIR LINK
    February 2008 ABC- TV "Encountering Prejudice" - Will bystanders speak out against discrimination against a Muslim woman customer Primetime Webcast
     July 2  Aspen Ideas Festival - Who Speaks for Islam - varied viewpoints of      Irshad Manji and Dalia Mogahed      -- video clips theatlantic.com/islam-speaks-for-itself.

    Protestants for the Common Good (A CCUIC 2008 Advance Special) is launching a new program. Find out about the Academy - Training program for social policy involvement       The Academy for the Common Good will function as a new resource for providing education and advocacy in areas of social justice.  The challenges demand that we recruit and others to be trained and to share in the work of transforming our society into one that is more humane and infused with justice.

    Schaumburg Churches have Abraham study based on Feiler book March 2008 series

    Over the next two years, The United Methodist Church and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America will ask its members to approve "full communion" UMC.0rg news article January 2008

    CBS documentary  In God's Name

    Re Annapolis Conference on Israel/Palestine
    National Interreligious Leadership Initiative for Peace in the Middle East: From Crisis to Hope To Secretary Rice
    Mosiaic  World News from the MiddleEast -- Not hopeful  Link TV

     A Common Word Between Us and You (letter from 138 Muslim scholar/leaders to world's Chr istian leaders - Oct. 13, 2007)  Common Word letter
    Response from the Council of Religious Leaders of Metropolitan Chicago December 2009
    Response from the United Methodist Council of Bishops Council of Bishops
    Response from Yale Divinity School Yale Center for Faith and Culture response
    Other Responses: Lutheran       ELCA  National Council of Churches October 8, 2008
    Muslims point to Common Ground Christian Century news     Nov. 13, 2007


    National Council of Churches 2007 General Assembly  Nov.  6-8, Iselin, New Jersey  NCCC      Wrap up Wrapup report
    New General Secretary in Michael Kinnamon,  President is Archbishop Vicken Aykazian. For information: UM Delegates from NIC were Catiana McKay and Ed Hiestand




    Current President Michael Livingston Churches of the NCC
    		 Michael Kinnemon installed
    		New President Aykazian (r.)
    Michael Kinnemon is installed as General Secretary Nov. 2007  kinnamoninstalled.html
    NCCC calls on Congress to recognize Armenian Genocide Armenia news
    100 year old Social Creed to be revised 2008  History of creed and Methodist connection      lFeberal Council of Churches founding

    Vatican ecclesiology statement
       UM Council of Bishops response July 2007
       Bishop Jung/CCUIC cover letter

    Supreme Court justice analysis defines "fundamentalist" mindset re the absolutes underlying cultural divides in world chicagotribune.com/opinion/101407

    Vatican, World Evangelical Alliance, Orthodox churches, historic Protestant and Anglican communions, and Pentecostal and independent churches will gather     for a Global Christian Forum 2007,    November 6-9 at a conference center outside Nairobi. Christian Century Aug. 21 2007

    The Pope and Islam New Yorker April 2, 2007 by Kramer
    Clear and thoughtful article post Regensburg lecture.

    Chicago Tribune Thomas J. McNulty Public Editor article on newspaper coverage "Readers' Faiths Merit Discussion,  Nov. 27, 2006

    Bishop Jung statement with Imam Malik on Korean Hostages NIC-Muslim release on Korean hostages

    July 2006 - Perspectives on Israel/Palestine news - Gaza, kidnappings, etc. from  Jerusalem YWCA/YMCA and Jerusalem American Jewish Committee
    YWCA/YMCA Advocacy Project
    AJC Gaza - Shalit kidnapped
    J Street is the political arm of the pro-Israel, pro-peace movement.     -  http://www.jstreet.org/ 
    AIPAC American IsraelPublic Affairs Committee, pro-Israel movement - http://www.aipac.org/

    Christian Peacemaker Team mourns the loss of Tom Fox in Iraq - March 10, 2006 Statement

    Illinois Conference of Churches PUBLIC POLICY RESOLUTION “ABANDON THE DEATH PENALTY”
    Unanimously approved by the General Board Nov. 30, 2005 Judicatory Executives ratified Jan. 31, 2006 ICC Abandon Death Penalty

    4th Consultation on Orthodox-United Methodist Spirituality     http://gbgm-umc.org/global_news

    Feb. 9, 2006 Tribune Perspective of a Western Muslim on Danish Cartoons and Reactions by F-Chicago -  Ahmed M. Rehab CAIRinthenews

    Feb. 19 Tribune    Cartoonist Pat Oliphant   When cartoons inflame

    Pew research American Muslim attitudes 5/22/07
    Full report on Pdf.  Note also non-Muslims attitudes re agression.

    Int. Herald Trib. 11/0706 about Chicago CAIR

    Ingrid Matteson - new head of Islamic Society of North America  Newsweek article and her  Thoughts on women leaders in Islam

    Muslims view Jesus at Christmas

    Reading Scripture Across Interfaith Lines 
    Christian Century 9/5/06 A Scriptural Reason Hermeneutic

    Tariq_Ramadan 9/22/06  Pope -reason Violence-
    Reporterinteractive 9/9/06  UM viewpoints - Islamic related violence
    also, Pickens and  reference NIC and CIOGC relationship

      PBS "Not in Name of Islam"

     Review of Movie Water by Deepa Mehra

    Bitter Lemons -Yossi Alpher:  Israeli and Palestinian Views re  Hizbollah 

    Issues of proportionality  Hizbolah/Israel  Ministry of Foreign Affairs


    Eboo Patel Tribune article


    Bishop Jung and  NIC delegation  to Palestine for justice and peace. January 2006


    Speaking of Faith - Interview with Miroslave Volf   2005 - Volf, a Croatian theologican at Yale wrote Exclusion and Embrace: A Theological Exploration of Identity, Otherness, and Reconciliation.  Significant thinking here to break out of the downward spiral of violence and despair on the world scene.




    PEACE AND JUSTICE 
      "Peacemaking is a full time vocation that includes each member of God’s people." - Henri Nouwen Full Quote

    "There will be no peace among the nations without peace among the religions. There will be no peace among the religions without dialogue among the religions."
    -     Hans Kung     Full speech

    American Friends Service Committee  AFSC 
      Northern Illinois Conference End the Occupation endtheoccupation.org/
    2007 NIC Resolution Pursuing Peace and Justice in the Holy Land  Resolution 

    North Suburban Peace Initiative      http://www.nspipeace.org   West Suburban Peace Initiative  http://www.faithpeace.org

    Jewish Two State Peace Groups  Peace Now       J Street D.C. Lobby

     Fellowship of Reconciliation  FOR  12 ways to save the lives of Abraham's Children provided by The Shalom Center http://www.shalomctr.org

    Book recommended by AJC staff Holy Land Mosaic: Stories of Cooperation and Coexistence between Israelis and Palestinians

    2010 Travel as a Political Act Rick Steves

    Peace pole information at  www.worldpeace.org
    United States Institute of Peace Washington D.C. http://www.usip.org  - Iraq Study Group report 2006 

    PERSPECTIVES
    Rev. John T. Pawlikowski, OSM: .Significance of the Holocaust for ethics today.
     The Kairos Palestine Document  2009  A moment of truth: A word of faith, hope and love from the heart of Palestinian suffering Download the English version as pdf
    Life Story of the Olives by Dr. Annie Higgins, Arabic professor at UIC writing from Jenin, Occupied Palestine7 January 2003 http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article1038.shtml
    Sabeel in Palestine-Israel http://www.sabeel.org/
    Christian positions on war (according to Roland Bainton's typology Theology Today review) have historically been of three types: 1. Crusade, 2. Just War guidelines 3. Pacifism. Each draws upon scriptural bases. Islamic position on war is also nuanced. United Methodist teachings are listed in the Discipline, Social Principles and General Conference Resolutions. See Catholic conservative George Weigel, also John Kelsay author of The Just War and Jihad Kelsay article and Middle East Quarterly What does Jihad mean? jihad.htm
    Church/State and Mosque/State relationships by Lamin Sanneh Muslim-Christian Encounters Governments under God.htm  muslim-christian%20encounters%20governments%20under%20god.htm
    Bitter Lemons Israeli-Palestinian internet dialogue by Yossi Alpher, former Director of the Jaffee Center for Strategic Studies at Tel Aviv Univ. http://www.bitterlemons.org/


     
    Church and State / Religious Right / Rapture/ Christian Zionism
     America and the World generated several web sites concerned about responsible faith and citizenship such as.
    The Interfaith Alliance http://www.interfaithalliance.org/
    International Council of Christians and Jews http://www.iccj.org/en/
    United States Institute of Peace http://www.usip.org/
    United States Interreligious Committee for Peace in the Middle East  http://www.usicpme.org/usicpme.html
    Christian Alliance for Progress (CAP) http://www.christianalliance.org
    Walk the Road to Peace (in Chicago formation) Google  huml cached
    Meeting of religious leaders June 1 with Colin Powell report from ELCA http://www.districtnet.org.uk/news/elca/2004/june/02.htm

    Religious Right
    Read   Why the Right Gets it Wrong and the Left Doesn't Get It by Jim Wallis Sojourners
    Read Americans United for Separation of Church and State commentary on The Council For National Policy  http://www.au.org/
    The Institute for Religion and Democracy has been sending (Spring 2007) a book negative about Islam out to pastors. To sample author Karsh views  Wall Street Journal   To read a critiques of the IRD motivation and author link Episcopalchurch.mysterium        UM Nexus
    Rapture
    Read Bill Moyers "Welcome to Doomsday" in The New York Review of Books about Rapture Theology effect on environmental concerns. Moyer
    Read The Rapture Exposed, a recent book by Barbara Rossing.  The popular Rapture series novels which tie in with dispensational theology popularized by John Darby (c. 1830).  More information on PBS Frontlinehttp://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/apocalypse/ show  and WTTW or  or http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/apocalypse/explanation/amprophesy.html
    Christian Zionism
    Northern Illinois Conference 2005 Resolution Fiction about the Rapture
    Read     critiques of Christian Zionism theology by various denominations http://www.christianzionism.org/    William Blackstone, an Oak Park, Methodist, in 1887 set up a Hebrew mission in Chicago to convert Jews prior to Christ's Second Coming , and in 1891 created an international petition support establishing a Zionist state as a precursor for the Coming.  Blackstone
    Listen to NPR chicagopublicradio Worldview discussion on  "Christian Zionism and U.S. Foreign Policy “Israel, the Bible, and the Future: Premillennialism and Christian Zionism in American Culture and the Church”  Jerome McDonnell interviews Donald Wagner  from the North Park University Center for Middle Eastern Studies 
    Holy War: A Texas Preacher Leads Campaign to Let Israel Fight (Post Gazette July 27, 2006) http://www.post-gazette.com


    LIVING IN A MULTI-FAITH WORLD
    Why do United Methodists dialogue and meet our neighbors? 
    A CHOICE 
    A fractured world 
    		OR empathy and household?
    "Ralph Peters said, 'If we want to avoid the needless, thankless deaths of our own countrymen, we must learn to watch others die with equanimity.' ... Would it make  a difference to U.S. security if every Hutu killed every Tutsi, or vice versa; every Palestinian killed every Israeli, or vice versa; or if Serbs, Croats, and Bosnians exterminated each other to the last person? . . .All evoke empathy and stir emotion, but it is, as always a cruel world and each nation's one mandatory duty is to care for and defend itself."  Imperial Hubris  - Michael Scheuer                   
    		"A sad truth of human nature is that it is hard to care for people when they are abstractions, hard to care when it is not you or somebody close to you.  Unless the world community can stop finding ways to dither in the face of this monstrous threat to humanity those words NEVER AGAIN will persist in being one of the most abused phrases in the English language and one of the great lies of our time."   An Ordinary Man, Paul Rusesabagina,  manager in Hotel Rwanda
    "Ubuntu" -- An African word and proverb meaning "I am human because you are human."

    DIALOGUE RESOURCES

    Scriptural Reasoning (contextual interfaith studing of texts)
    Christian Century 9-5-06 Reading  Scripture Across Interfaith Lines an SR Hermeneutic 
         Scriptural Reading Society - philosophy underlying  SR
    : Scriptural Reasoning Society UK  index
    Journal of Scriptural Reasoning - Univ. VA
    Scriptural Reasoning.org at Cambridge Univ.
    Cambridge Univ. Interfaith Program   - facilitor of SR and A Common Word

    Internet Resources Internet resources document
    Beliefnet http://www.beliefnet.com/
    Book Resources Books for Multifaith
    NIC Media center Resources Multifaith videos and CD
    Workshop model Dialogue model used at 2004 Conference
     Interfaith Relations Newsletter from National Council of Churches December 2006 Pdf
    U.S. Institute of Peace What Works? Evaluating Interfaith Dialogue Programs
    ELCA articles "Our ecumenical and interreligious world"  March 2007 Ecumenical Life
    Interfaith Relations Toolkit

    Bishop Jung's Interfaith Bus Trips  (see archives below)

    Expanding understanding can come from travel.  One agency that can provide arrangements  to historical religious sites in Turkey is Magical Steps