Tri-Faith News and Updates

Photos from the Dinner in Abraham’s Tent are available on line by clicking here:

http://jlphoto.exposuremanager.com/g/2009_0327_tfi

You can order prints on-line directly from that website.  For press/media requests for photos, please contact Nancy Kirk at nancykirk@trifaith.org.

The Dinner in Abraham’s Tent: Conversations on Peace, was a remarkable night.  If you missed dinner, we have a solution for you — a replay of the live webcast that was on last night. 

To watch the webcast which runs just over an hour go to this link:

mms://209.200.118.182/tfi032709

We had an overflow crowd at the Qwest Center in Omaha — almost 1100, including 141 high school and college students who served as Tri-Faith Ambassadors — greeting people at the doors, stuffing and handing out programs, ushering people to the Worship Service and the Dinner in Abraham’s Tent.

There was so much energy in the room and there was a real sense of being in the presence of God.  Please share this experience by watching the replay of the webcast and let us know your response.

Leadership Omaha added religious inclusivity to their schedule yesterday with a panel from The Tri-Faith Initiative.  Bob Freeman, chairman of the Tri-Faith board and member of Temple Israel, Bilal Khaleeq, board president of the Islamic Center of Omaha, The Rt. Rev. Ernesto Medina of Trinity Cathedral, and Executive Director Nancy Kirk spoke to Class 31 about the history of the project, the natures of the three faith groups and plans for the future. 

The class asked good questions — was there opposition among the congregations? Yes. 

What were the fears?  We discussed them. 

Why not involve Hindus and other faiths?  Partly a practical consideration — the Omaha Hindu community had just built a new large temple and partly the idea that the three Abrahamic faiths have a shared heritage as a starting point.  The vision for the interfaith center on the property leaves open the possibility for use by all faiths, and depending on the size of the land parcel, could even accomodate other houses of worship as space permits and interest grows.

At the “debriefing” at the day’s end, the participants said they were glad religious diversity/inclusivity had been included in the day.  As one person said “It’s something we don’t talk about a lot, but it affects everything.”