The following article by Religion Editor Francesca Norsen Tate was published in the Brooklyn Daily Eagle on Oct. 9, 2013. The original article can be accessed here.
Interfaith Forum Will Focus On Value of Preserving Hope
The Kane Street Synagogue joins with the Interfaith Center of New York to sponsor an inter-religious panel discussion later this month. Prominent Christian, Muslim, Jewish and Buddhist teachers and community leaders will explore the spiritual outlooks and religious practices of their traditions as they work to preserve hope in an often overheated and violent world.
They will examine the questions: “How do our diverse religious traditions understand hope? What are the similarities and differences between a hope for redemption, enlightenment, divine justice or Tikkun Olam? In the face of individual and collective suffering, is an attitude of hope rational?”
The Rev. Chloe Breyer, executive director of the Interfaith Center, shared the motivation behind the dialogue: “Too often, these days, when Americans reflect on the role of faith in society, they think of violence, conflict and division. That’s why we are so excited to convene an interfaith conversation about hope. A deep sense of hope lies at the core of religious efforts to build a more inclusive society, and the conversation at Kane Street will help religious leader to share their perspective with other New Yorkers.”
Panelists, as of press time for this column, include the Rev. Dr. T. Kenjitsu Nakagaki, president of the Buddhist Council of New York, and author of Diary of a Manhattan Monk:, Dr. Sarah Sayeed, director of community partnerships at the Interfaith Center, and a board member of Women in Islam, Inc., the Rev. Stephen Muncie, rector of Grace Church-Brooklyn Heights, an Episcopal parish; and Kane Street’s Rabbi Sam Weintraub, who before his appointment at the congregation, served as Interfaith Fellow at the American Jewish Committee. Dr. Henry Goldschmidt, director of education programs at the Interfaith Center, will moderate.
The panel discussion is part of the Kane Street Synagogue’s ongoing Tuesday evening “Open Beit Midrash,” community education initiative. It will take place at the Synagogue, 236 Kane Street, in Cobble Hill, and begins with a community dinner at 6:15 p.m. The panel discussion follows, from 7-8:30 p.m. and will include significant time for questions and conversation. At 8:30, all are welcome for a performance of new Jewish spiritual music with Joey Weisenberg and the Hadar Ensemble in the Synagogue sanctuary.
Nakagaki, D. Min., is a Buddhist priest, ordained in the 750-year-old Jodoshinshu tradition of Japanese Buddhism. He is also vice president of the Interfaith Center of New York. He is the author of two books in Japanese: No Worry, No Hurry, Eat Curry: A New York Buddhist Priest Walks in India (Gendai Shokan, 2003) and Diary of a Manhattan Monk (Gendai Shokan, 2010).
Sayeed conducts the Rabbi Marshall T. Meyer Retreats for Social Justice, a biannual conference that brings together New York’s diverse grassroots religious leaders with secular and city agencies. A long-time board member of Women in Islam, Inc., a social justice and human rights organization dedicated to the empowerment of women through knowledge and practice of Islam, she speaks regularly on Islam, Muslim women and interfaith relations.
Weintraub was ordained as a rabbi at JTS and has been spiritual leader of Kane Street Synagogue for 17 years. One of his favorite Biblical verses is “Hoi kol Tzamei L’chu LaMayim” “Let everyone who is thirsty (meaning searching) come for water (meaning Torah)!” (Isaiah 55:1) His main interest is the relevance of Jewish text for modern ethical issues, and his published articles have focused on interfaith relations, environmental and economic ethics, intermarriage and the interplay of Judaism and globalism.
Muncie began to serve as the 14th rector of Grace Church-Brooklyn Heights in 2004. After studies at Antioch College, Miami University and the Vanderbilt University Divinity School, he was ordained in the Diocese of Southern Ohio in 1982. Active in diocesan and national church ministries, Muncie currently serves as legislative secretary for the House of Bishops.
Kane Street Synagogue, the oldest continually functioning synagogue in Brooklyn, is a charter member of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, which celebrates this month its centennial anniversary, The Interfaith Center of New York is a secular non-profit organization, founded in 1997, that works with hundreds of grassroots religious leaders from over 15 different faith traditions to foster mutual respect and understanding and joint commitment to social justice.
* * *
http://brooklyneagle.com/articles/faith-brooklyn-october-9-2013-10-09-170000
