A focused conversation among local individuals of the Christian, Jewish and Muslim faiths to foster awareness, understanding and commonality where many would believe there to be none. Background In June 2003, Robert "Chip" Harrod of BRIDGES for a Just Community (formerly NCCJ) had the idea to bring together Muslim and Jewish leaders to form a dialogue group. Members of both religions had lamented to Harrod that a palpable social distance had developed between Jews and Muslims in the aftermath of "9/11," but had not communicated that concern to each other. Harrod asked Dr. Inayat Malik, a physician, and Jerome Teller, an attorney, both BRIDGES board members, to lead in recruiting ten couples to begin the group. BRIDGES asked the participants for two commitments - first, to commit themselves to learning about each other's religion and culture with the aim of developing a shared respect; secondly, that as they both deepened and transcended their individual religious identities through dialogue, to exercise interfaith leadership in the community and, when called upon, to speak out on issues with a "mutual voice." The couples came together bi-monthly to eat and discuss their faith in each other's homes. According to Teller, "I only know how to interface with people after breaking bread with them." Members started by sharing the respective aspirations of their faith communities and found common ground in each wanting to create a secure and accepting world for their children and grandchildren to practice their religion and have pride in their religious identity. Through their discussions, they discovered that they had much in common as Abrahamic traditions and as religious minorities in America. In time they overcame many of the stereotypes that divided them. As the group matured, it ventured into more difficult subjects with conversations around the Arab-Israeli conflict, religious extremism, US foreign policy towards the Middle East, and the inter-group prejudices that were hindering Jewish-Muslim relations. In 2006, Malik and Teller brought the dialogue to a BRIDGES board of directors meeting. Invited to comment on the ceasefire in the conflict in Lebanon involving Hezbollah and the Israeli army, each man presented his fears, hopes and passions for the region and opinions on how events in this troubled part of the world were impacting his faith community here in Cincinnati. It was a powerful presentation and just two weeks later Malik and Teller repeated their talk in a regionally televised broadcast on CET titled Jewish-Muslim Relations: A Cincinnati Perspective. In 2007, members of the Muslim-Jewish Dialogue invited Christian couples to join the group to broaden and enrich the dialogue, feeling it was now time to involve representatives of America's majority religion. As a group the couples read The Faith Club by Ranya Idliby, Suzanne Oliver and Priscilla Warner, the story of three women's search for understanding in starting their own interfaith group in New York. The book allowed members of BRIDGES Interfaith Trialogue to expand their conversations to issues relevant and important to all three faith communities. BRIDGES of Faith in the Community With perspectives from all of the Abrahamic religions represented, members of the BRIDGES Interfaith Trialogue are launching "BRIDGES of Faith" to share their experiences with area religious and civic groups. Panels consisting of Jewish, Christian and Muslim members of the Trialogue are available as speakers who can facilitate discussion on the interfaith issues we face in our community. With their presentation, panelists will discuss the group's formation and the common ground they have found between them, how they have come to be allies for one another. Dialogue Dialogue is … "Dialogue" is the face-to-face meeting of minds in open and friendly confrontation. It is the frank and free discussion of what we believe in an atmosphere of mutual respect and trust. The goal of dialogue is to deepen and widen our understanding of ourselves and the other people with whom we are in dialogue. (The Meaning and Conduct of Dialogue, NCCJ.) "Dialogue is … above all, listening to both the silent and spoken voices when one person speaks to another." (Martin Buber) Why We Dialogue in Cincinnati "We dialogue NOT to mix all religions into one. We dialogue simply to make friends. We are NOT about diluting our faith. We are about affirming and sharing our faith and religious identities. We, from different faith communities in Cincinnati, inspired by our own faith, express confidence in ourselves and in one another to spread the way of peace and dialogue for resolving any conflict situations that may arise from time to time, due to what may happen locally or globally. We commit ourselves to be the eyes, ears and conscience of our communities in Cincinnati. And therefore, offer ourselves as instruments of healing where there is pain, reconciliation where there is confrontation, calm where there is anger, sharing divine love where there is hatred." (Adapted with permission from a Statement issued by the Council of Faiths, Luton UK, January '09.) Our Commitment If you are a Muslim and don't say anything against anti-Semitic rhetoric; if you are a Jew and smile when you hear anti-Arab or Anti-Muslim rhetoric; if you are a Baptist and rejoice at anti-Mormon rhetoric; if you are a Catholic and remain silent when some one belittles the practices of Hindu, Wicca or Pagans; then do you have the right to complain if some one is anti-you? This is a serious question, the more you are silent about it, the more you are justifying anti-sentiments against your own creed. No, if it is not good for you, it is not good for others either. (Excerpted from an article written by Mike Ghouse of the Foundation for Pluralism, Dallax TX, dated Oct. 31, 2008. www.foundationforpluralism.com) Click here for more information.