The Interfaith Book Club of the Islamic Center of Boston, Wayland, is holding its second community meeting to continue the interfaith conversation about the issues that can divide or unite us. In March of 2017, at our first community book discussion, we had over 120 attendees and many people were eager for another similar event. The book for the discussion is Getting to the Heart of Interfaith, by Pastor Don Mackenzie, Rabbi Ted Falcon, and Imam Jamal Rahman. This book is "a deeply personal journey to interfaith collaboration that offers hope for an inclusive and healing way of being together in the world."  It is not a requirement to read the book to join the discussion.  The goal of this program is to foster a deeper understanding among people of all faiths. To RSVP or for questions, please email at​ bookclub@icbwayland.org. Come and enjoy refreshments and fellowship. As the Interfaith Book Club at the Islamic Center in Wayland, we celebrate the goals of this initiative every time we gather to share our stories and reach out to each other in understanding and appreciation. Please join us! All are welcome!

Pluralism Project Summary:

On a warm evening in October over a hundred people attended the Islamic Center of Boston Wayland’s second interfaith book club discussion. People came from all over the area including Wayland, Framingham, Waltham, and Lexington. About twenty percent of the attendees were Muslim, and the rest were Jewish or Christian. Participants worked in small groups to answer discussion questions such as: “What is your favorite thing about your tradition?” and “What resources does your tradition have for interfaith work?” At the end of the night the small groups shared their plans for increasing interfaith understanding within their own communities. The action items were impressively detailed and ranged from individuals pledging to hold their family members and neighbors accountable for their speech, to congregations deciding to hold Islam 101 sessions, to a plan for a teen interfaith gardening club.

This summary was written by a Pluralism Project staff member who attended the event.