Aptekar Productions' Blog

Congregation to Congregation with Interfaith Ministries

I’ve just returned from an Interfaith Ministries dinner dialogue called congregation to congregation. I’ve been meaning to learn more about Interfaith Ministries ever since Hurricane Katrina landed thousands of stranded victims in our fair city and the Mayor called on IFM to come to the rescue. So when I received an invitation to attend the C2C program I said yes and made my way down to Cathedral Central There were 200 people in a room spread out at tables seating ten people each. At our table there were individuals representing the Bahai Center of Houston, The Islamic Spirituality Center, Christ the King Lutherine Church, The Shrine of the Black Madonna, The Co Cathedral of the Sacred Heart & an Episcopal Priest from Palmer Church.

The people were friendly from the start though a bit nervous. The instructions on the table indicated we were to begin by going round & introducing ourselves. An amusing theme prevailed. The Moslem man used to be Bahai. The Minister from the Shrine of the Black Madonna was raised Catholic, the Catholic woman was raised Episcopal & the Episcopal Bishop used to be a Baptist attorney prior to becoming a priest a decade ago. Upon that realization the table began to relax & everyone had a chance to share their story.

Some of the changes of affiliation had to do with marriage & the desire to pray together as a family under one roof, but the majority of participants were in their new faith because of a genuine search that led them to their new found spiritual home. There was some talk about dissenting opinion and how they felt fine belonging to a religious institution and agreeing to disagree with some of the doctrine. I was happily surprised by that. Everyone then shared some basic information about their religious observances while enjoying a meal together.

Before it was time to go I wanted to pose a question to the gathering of faithful. I asked if their faith was constant in their lives or did their certainty ebb & flo through the years . All but one indicated a lapse of faith at a point in their life journey. Then round the table they agreed that they were able to reconnect by getting involved with the community , providing food & shelter to the poor , giving comfort to the sick & through prayer.

Next there was a speech or two, some more information about upcoming events, & we were asked to share our contact information with those at our table. I found the people I met to be earnest, funny, respectful; and not a bit dogmatic. I didn’t even mind the priest beside me as he squeezed my shoulder gently. Hang in there he whispered.