Interview with Bettina Gray, Founder of North American Interfaith Network

February 28, 2004

Source: The Toledo Blade

http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040228/NEWS10/102280186/-1/NEWS

On February 28, 2004 The Toledo Blade reported, "When Bettina Gray helped organize a multifaith council in Berkeley, Calif., in the early 1970s, she didn’t know if there were any similar groups in existence...In 1980, Ms. Gray’s organization, the North American Interfaith Network, conducted a survey that found 30 active interfaith groups in the United States. Twenty-four years later, Ms. Gray said the growth in this field was made clear when she conducted a recent Internet search for interfaith groups. 'There were hundreds and hundreds - I don’t know how many,' she said. 'But there are many different kinds of interfaith groups. Some are prison ministries, some are hospice groups, some are Protestant-Catholic dialogues. ... There are academic programs, college campus projects, some are just comparative religion courses.' NAIN now comprises 80 councils throughout the United States, Canada, and Mexico whose stated mission is 'to build communication and mutual understanding among interfaith organizations and diverse religious groups.' The rising number of interfaith organizations is a reflection of America’s growing religious and ethnic diversity, Ms. Gray said."