Message from ICNY Executive Director
Dear Friends,
According to the recent Pew Forum’s February study “Latest Trends in Religious Restrictions and Hostilities,” more than three-quarters of the world’s people – 77% – live in nations where religious restrictions are either high or very high. There has also been an increase in the number of countries in which Jews were harassed. According to the study, “Jews, who make up just 0.2% of the world’s total population, were harassed either by governments or social groups in 77 countries in 2013, up from 71 in 201 2 and 51 in 2007. As in previous years, the world’s two largest religious groups faced harassment in the largest number of countries: Christians were harassed in 102 countries, and Muslims in 99.”
Against this backdrop, we read of ISIS’s targeting of Christians in Egypt and Assyria, and learned of the murder of three Muslims students in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Religion and violence appear too closely connected.
We know that this is not the end of the story, however. As our guest blogger and ICNY Board Member Rabbi Joseph Potasnik (Executive Vice President of the New York Board of Rabbis) writes, “The recent courageous example of Muslims in Oslo forming a human shield around the synagogue to protect Sabbath worshippers is a symbolic sign of … collective spirit [combatting hatred].” Likewise, last week, New York religious leaders met with the Danish Ambassador to the United Nations to express their support for the victims of the recent attack on a Synagogue in Copenhagen. And finally, diverse religious leaders at Princeton University met on the ethics of drones warfare (see Dr. Sarah Sayeed’s reflections here). Religious hatred is not the last word.
Looking ahead locally this month, we have many reasons to hope. Opportunities for youth stand out. The Stony Point Summer Institute is seeking Jewish, Christian and Muslim young adults to live and work together over the summer months. Also, ICNY is still accepting applications the 2015 Learning Together Interfaith Youth Fellowship Program – a unique opportunity for New York high school students to collaborate with their diverse peers, and contribute to public discussions of religious diversity.
On a final note, we wish to honor the extraordinary life and work of ICNY Board Member Tanya Frichner who passed away on February 14, 2015. A member of the Snipe Clan and citizen of the Onondaga Nation, Frichner was a global indigenous leader and President and Founder of the American Indian Law Alliance (AILA), since 1989. She was also appointed as the North American Regional Representative for a three year term from 2008-2010, to the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII). The Interfaith Center of New York mourns her passing deeply.
Best Wishes,
Rev. Chloe Breyer
Executive Director
The Interfaith Center of New York
