Judaism

9/11 Memorials and Interfaith Services in Southern California

September 9, 2002

Source: Los Angeles Times

On September 9, 2002 the Los Angeles Times reported that "hundreds [of 9/11 memorials] will be held in places of worship and in public places across Southern California in the next few days to mark the Sept. 11 anniversary. The largest inter-religious gathering in Orange County will be A Prayer Service for Peace at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at St. Columban Church in Garden Grove. Jewish, Islamic and Buddhist leaders will join bishops and other local heads of major Christian denominations for an interfaith service.

Jewish Buddhists Reinterpret Psalms

September 8, 2002

Source: The San Francisco Chronicle

On September 8, 2002 The San Francisco Chronicle reported that "studying the violent passages in the Psalms, Norman Fischer saw something none of us can deny. Judaism and Christianity -- just like the Muslim faith -- can be used to justify the killing of innocents in the name of God. Fischer tries to reconcile all this in Opening to You: Zen-Inspired Translations of the Psalms. Meanwhile, another popular Buddhist teacher with Jewish roots and a Bay Area address is out with his own book of interfaith inspiration...

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Working Toward Peace

September 8, 2002

Source: The Boston Herald

On September 8, 2002 The Boston Herald reported on Masjid al-Quran, which "has been partnered [since 1997] with a Reform Jewish congregation in Newton, Temple Shalom, through Cooperative Metropolitan Ministries [CMM], an interfaith coalition working in 18 communities in Greater Boston [Massachusetts]. They enlisted the help of CMM and the Public Conversations Project [PCP], a Watertown-based nonprofit, to structure the dialog. 'I think 9-11 brought home to people how dangerous and frightening it is for groups of people who don...

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Archdiocese of Boston's Brighton Headquarters to House Menorah

September 7, 2002

Source: The Boston Herald

On September 7, 2002 The Boston Herald reported that "a newcomer... on the grounds of the Archdiocese of Boston's Brighton headquarters - a menorah honoring victims of the Holocaust - is scheduled to be placed in a grassy corner between the main chancery office building and a library next week. The project is the brainchild of Gunther Lawrence, a New Yorker active in Reform Judaism and interreligious affairs."

Synagogue Opens One Year After 9/11

September 6, 2002

Source: The Boston Globe

On September 6, 2002 The Boston Globe reported that "after... last Sept. 11, the leaders of a startup Jewish congregation here [in Boston, Massachusetts] debated scrapping the event five days later, when they were to begin construction of the synagogue they had dreamed of for a decade. Instead, they went forward with a subdued ceremony and tonight, nearly a year later, the members of Congregation Or Atid will mark the start of the Jewish New Year by worshiping for the first time in their contemporary steel-and-cedar sanctuary...

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Jews Hail New Document that Strengthen Christian-Jewish Relations

September 6, 2002

Source: The Boston Globe

On September 6, 2002, The Boston Globe reported that "a prominent group of Protestant and Roman Catholic scholars, in a major boost to Christian-Jewish relations, yesterday declared that Jews, like Christians, have a covenant with God and that a belief in the divinity of Jesus is not necessary for salvation. As a result, the group denounced 'missionary efforts directed at converting Jews.' One of the authors of the statement, which...

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Synagogue Leaders and Police Detail Security for Holidays

September 6, 2002

Source: The Houston Chronicle

On September 6, 2002 The Houston Chronicle reported that "as Houston-area synagogue leaders fix their sights on forgiveness and atonement, they will also cast extra eyes on security in a holiday season that straddles the anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The Houston Police Department will post on-duty officers and patrol cars at all city synagogues for holiday services, said department spokesman Robert Hurst. The department also will provide area surveillance for services."

Jews Hail New Document that Strengthen Christian-Jewish Relations

September 6, 2002

Source: The Boston Herald

On September 6, 2002 The Boston Herald reported that "two years after Jewish scholars issued a historic document that called on Jews to reexamine their understanding of Christianity, a group of leading Christian scholars issued a response yesterday, saying that teaching contempt for Judaism 'dishonors God.' Jewish leaders hailed the document as an important step in counteracting a resurgence in anti-Semitism coinciding with the conflict in the Middle East. Its overarching theme is that ancient rivalries should not define...

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Pakistani Reaches Out After Being Saved by Jewish Man on 9/11

September 2, 2002

Source: CNN

On September 2, 2002 CNN reported on Usman Farman's [a Muslim student] recollections of his rescue by a Hasidic Jewish man in the World Trade Center. "the Hasidic Jewish man helped Farman get up... Farman took it upon himself to reach out. He fired off an emotional e-mail [message] to friends and Dr. Joseph Morone, president of his alma mater, Bentley College. 'As I found out, regardless of who we are, and where we come from, we only have each other', wrote Farman. Farman, who has been unable to find his rescuer, says he hopes his experience...

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New Orleans Plans for Civic and Interfaith 9/11 Memorials

September 1, 2002

Source: The Times-Picayune

On September 1, 2002 The Times-Picayune reported that "around the [New Orleans, Louisiana] area, the schedule of Sept. 11 remembrances shows no less than four major interfaith services, two civic prayer breakfasts and more than a half-dozen outdoor programs in parks, cemeteries, courthouse plazas and parking lots, not to mention unnumbered services morning and evening in the region's churches and synagogues. The collective mission, designers said, is to remember the dead and pray for community."

Islamic Center Thankful for Interfaith Support

September 1, 2002

Source: The Boston Globe

On September 1, 2002 The Boston Globe reported that "for the [Islamic Center in Wayland], one of the most significant changes since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks has come not in anger directed at members, but in a growing interest in their religion. 'While prior to Sept. 11 we'd be lucky to get 12 people, since then we've had several hundred visitors come to our interfaith meetings,' said Malik Khan, a member of the mosque. The center also has engaged in an extensive outreach program, with many members giving talks at churches...

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Gay and Lesbian Jewish Congregations

September 1, 2002

Source: Reconstructionism Today

On September 1, 2002 Reconstructionism Today reported on "a congregation serving the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered, and questioning (GLBTQ) community... [and the] quarter-century-old umbrella organization, The World Congress of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgendered Jewish Organizations: Keshet Ga'avah. Jewish organizations serving the needs of the queer community have learned that these needs are as diverse as those of other Jews."

Update: Increasing Support for Lutheran Reverend Who Participated in Interfaith Event

September 1, 2002

Source: The Washington Times

On September 1, 2002 The Washington Times reported that "a national campaign is swelling in support of the Rev. David Benke, who was expelled from his post as head of the New York-area Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod for praying at a Yankee Stadium interfaith event after the terrorist attacks on the city. The 'It's OK to Pray' theme, being pushed by Mr. Benke's supporters in the 2.6 million-member conservative denomination, comes as a church review board considers his appeal that he did not commit 'syncretism' or 'unionism...

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Religions Struggle with Appropriate 9/11 Memorial

August 31, 2002

Source: The Seattle Times

On August 31, 2002 The Seattle Times reported that "religions [are struggling] for appropriate ways to mark the 1st anniversary of attacks... One year after pastors, rabbis and imams struggled for the appropriate words to comfort a shocked and wounded nation, they are grasping again for just the right words to mourn the loss, acknowledge the pain and look to the future. Finding that religious-cultural balance one year later can be precarious, many liturgists said. Many bristle at the notion of using the anniversary to rekindle...

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