Source: The Boston Globe

http://www.globe.com/dailyglobe2/334/metro/Some_Jews_objecting_to_menorah_ceremony+.shtml

On November 30, 2002 The Boston Globe reported that "when a 6-foot electric menorah is lit on Westford Common tomorrow afternoon, it will be with the blessing of the town's Board of Selectmen and the community's Christian clergy. It's some of the town's Jewish residents and at least one area rabbi who would like to see...

Source: The Associated Press

http://www.austin360.com/aas/news/ap/ap_story.html/Washington/AP.V0092.AP-Scotus-Display.html

On November 29, 2002 The Associated Press reported that "the Supreme Court late Friday upheld a federal judge's ruling that the city of Cincinnati cannot bar a Jewish organization from displaying a menorah on a downtown plaza during the holidays. The court lifted a stay by the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of...

Source: The Chicago Tribune

On November 29, 2002 The Chicago Tribune reported that "some rabbis downplay the importance of Hanukkah, calling it a minor Jewish holiday that has gained stature mainly because of its nearness to Christmas. But for many American Jews--religious or not--Hanukkah is the time they assert their identity in a land overrun with tinsel and holly. In a more public arena, the Lubavitch Chassidim have fought court cases to win the right to put up giant menorahs to assert the importance of Judaism during the holiday season. 'Part of the...

Source: Rocky Mountain News

On November 29, 2002 Rocky Mountain News reported that "held in a different worship center every year, Denver's oldest Thanksgiving interfaith service was begun in the 1880s by two churches and a synagogue. The event has expanded to include three more Christian and Jewish groups and the Buddhist Temple, which has participated for almost 30 years. The one-hour service was capped by a bread-sharing ritual and closed with America the Beautiful. The service will be held next year at Central Christian Church in Denver."

Source: Austin American Statesman

On November 28, 2002 Austin American Statesman reported that "at Barsana Dham [in Texas], a Hindu temple, there were gathered a Roman Catholic bishop, an Episcopalian priest, Protestant ministers of various stripes (Presbyterian, Methodist, Lutheran, Unitarian and Baptist), a Jewish rabbi, Buddhist monks, a Muslim imam -- and more. That's not all. There were about 1,000 black people, brown people, yellow people and white people, men, women and children, and everybody took off their shoes in respect for Hindu ways."

Source: Chicago Daily Herald

On November 27, 2002 the Chicago Daily Herald reported that "a smorgasbord of religions will emphasize the spiritual side of Thanksgiving next week. Participants in the DuPage Interfaith Thanksgiving Service will include Muslims, Catholics, Jews, Zoroastrians, Hindus, Sikhs, Bahais and theosophists. The annual service began in the early 1990s after members of the DuPage Interfaith Resource Network decided they could find common ground in recognizing that Thanksgiving goes deeper than turkey and football. The ceremony will...

Source: Office of the Press Secretary

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/11/20021126-9.html

On November 26, 2002 Office of the Press Secretary issued President Bush's Hanukkah message that "during the eight days of Hanukkah, Jews throughout the world gather with family and friends to rejoice and celebrate. Each night, they light a branch of the menorah to commemorate the miracle of the lamp that, with only enough oil for one day, burned in the...

Source: The Anti-Defamation League

http://www.adl.org/PresRele/HatCR_51/4197_51.asp

On November 25, 2002 The Anti-Defamation League issued a press release stating that "the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) today called for increased education and training for police agencies and bipartisan efforts to expand federal authority to investigate and prosecute hate crimes. The 2001 FBI hate crime data, released today and collected under the mandate of the 1990 Hate Crime Statistics...

Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

On November 25, 2002 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that "a crowd of white, black, Hispanic, Asian, American Indian, Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Buddhist Milwaukeeans joined forces for a symbolic cleansing of the federal courthouse steps where white supremacists had rallied the day before. The Sunday ceremony followed a Saturday rally by about 50 members of the Ku Klux Klan, the National Socialist Movement and the World Church of the Creator, whose message of white separatism was jeered by hundreds of protesters...

Source: Connecticut Post

On November 25, 2002 the Connecticut Post reported that "Habitat for Humanity of Greater Bridgeport [CT], using for the first time, an interfaith coalition of support, will have a two-story, four-bedroom house for Sundus, her parents and five siblings sitting on the property. Salem Lutheran will be teamed with members of Al-Aziz Islamic Center, Congregations B'nai Israel and Rodelph Sholom and Shiloh Baptist Church, all of Bridgeport, and Congregation Beth El of Fairfield. Habitat executive director Bob Knebel said the organization...

Source: The Plain Dealer

On November 25, 2002 The Plain Dealer reported that "Zoroastrians celebrated bountiful harvests in Persia long before the storied fall gala the Pilgrims put on near Plymouth Rock in 1621. Ditto for the Jewish faithful, who call their harvest festival Sukkot, and for followers of many of the world's other religions. So last night, four days before the Thanksgiving holiday, John Lecky brought together Buddhists and Christians, Hindus and Jews, Muslims and Zoroastrians to reflect on the thanks they all give in one way or another....

Source: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

http://www.uja.org/content_display.html?ArticleID=65545

On November 25, 2002 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that "because of the temporal vagaries of the lunar calendar, the eight-day Festival of Lights will begin on the day after Thanksgiving --- a time when most Jews are contemplating the 22-pound carcasses in their refrigerators rather than the miracle of the lamp. And so, do you begin the holiday meal with the...

Source: The American Jewish Committee

http://www.ajc.org/InTheMedia/Publications.asp?did=677

On November 25, 2002 The American Jewish Committee issued a statement which read, "America's Table: a Thanksgiving Reader™ reminds us of the holiday's significance. Intended to be read aloud before the Thanksgiving meal, it retells America's story and helps us express our gratitude for being part of...

Source: The Argus

http://www.theargusonline.com/Stories/0,1413,83%257E1971%257E1010917,00.html

On November 24, 2002 The Argus reported that "more than 40 years ago, three Protestant churches of different denominations came together in the name of unity for a Thanksgiving service. It was a progressive step at the time, said Don Anderson, former pastor of First Christian Church, one of the churches that met in 1961. During the 1960s, more churches...

Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch

On November 23, 2002 the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that "this year a little-known anniversary of religious freedom converges with the Thanksgiving interfaith exchanges. Sunday morning in the city's West End, congregations from three neighboring churches on Union Boulevard will follow their long tradition of praying together at one of their churches. Members of the churches say the joint Thanksgiving service began when the three churches were leaders in the civil rights efforts in the city. People from Freeman's...