October 13, 2022
Dear Peace Families,
Over the weekend, I had the privilege of taking our Confirmation students on a World Religions Retreat. On Saturday we visited a Hindu temple, a Buddhist meditation center, and an Islamic mosque, while also stopping to eat some Middle Eastern food for lunch at the Holy Land Deli.
The retreat was an opportunity for our students to gain a richer understanding of who our neighbors are and what they believe. When we pray for our neighbors, we are praying for them! Furthermore, our neighbors of other religions are our classmates and our coworkers, our friends and sometimes our family, and yes, our literal neighbors too.
I’ve had experience learning multiple languages—Spanish, Italian, Hebrew, and Greek. While I’m not as proficient as I was once with any of them, learning these languages also gave me a better understanding of English. The same logic also applies to religion—learning about other faiths helps us to hone what we do and do not believe ourselves.
And it’s important that we both embrace our commonalities and respect our differences. Both are significant. Muslims also worship the God of Abraham and believe in Jesus, but they view Jesus as only a prophet and not as a Savior. Buddhists have many centering practices like meditation and yoga, which can be important spiritual and prayer practices for Christians too. However, Buddhists believe in a philosophical path to enlightenment rather than a theological embrace of salvation. Hindus have 10 Yamas, that express similar values to our 10 Commandments; it includes things like truthfulness, non-injury, not stealing. But Hindus also believe in reincarnation, whereas we believe in resurrection. These are important similarities that can help us to build bridges across faiths. They are also meaningful differences that steer us from the all-too-common thought that “all religions are basically the same.”
However, my biggest takeaway was the feeling I felt in each house of worship—an immense feeling of welcome and hospitality. Our hosts were so gracious and kind to us, each willing to share personal stories from their lives and important beliefs they hold dear. I pray that we would all embrace that welcome and hospitality in our own lives and extend it to others—whether it be at home, school, work, church, the grocery store, or anywhere in between. Life is better when it’s lived together.
Grace and Peace,
Joe
PS. Trunk or Treat is about 2 weeks away, and we are expecting over 200 kids from around the community to join us. Which means we need your help! Would you be willing to host a car and give candy during the event? How about your extended family or neighbors? How about the people who sit near you in worship? Everyone is welcome, and we need your help to provide an abundant welcome to our neighbors around us. This is our biggest outreach opportunity of the fall! Please register here.
Family Tip Of The Week
Spend some time learning about another faith with your family. Better yet, share a conversation with someone who has different beliefs than you!