Christianity

New York Halal Shops Appeal to Non-Muslim Immigrants

December 10, 2001

Source: Newsday

On December 10, 2001, Newsday reported that "in the 1970s in New York, halal butcher shops were so small in number 'you could count them on one hand,' said Louis Abdellatif Cristillo, field director of a Columbia University research project on Muslim communities in New York. But now, he said, there are at least 30 halal meat preparation businesses in the city which are keeping pace with the growth of New York's Muslim community. Where a mosque would spring up in the city, a halal shop would soon follow, he said... But meat prepared in the...

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Muslim Women Speak at Interfaith Program

December 9, 2001

Source: The Boston Globe

On December 9, 2001, The Boston Globe reported that wearing hijab, a head scarf, is a "religious practice [that] singles a woman out in America, but the Muslim women who took part in the clergy-sponsored interfaith program [in Plymouth, MA] said they welcomed the increased attention Americans have paid to their religion after the September terrorist attacks... organizers [of the program] focused the final session of 'Exploring Islam: An Interfaith Conversation' on the role of women. Three women from the UMass-Dartmouth Islamic...

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Interfaith Marriage in a Diverse America

December 9, 2001

Source: The Gainesville Sun

http://www.gainesvillesun.com/DAYBREAK/articles/2001-12-09interfaith.shtml

On December 9, 2001, The Gainesville Sun featured the article "Marriage of faiths." The article profiles interfaith families: "In the Kellerman household, the union is not only one of faith, it is also one of cultures." The article notes that the Unitarian father, Ed, and Sikh mother, Sarjit, are raising their son in the Sikh faith. "But the...

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Hanukkah Embraces "Spirit of Religious Freedom"

December 9, 2001

Source: The Boston Globe

On December 9, 2001, The Boston Globe reported that "with the country at war and violence raging in the Holy Land, the lights of Hanukkah must burn brighter than ever, some Jews say, to help dispel the darkness. The menorah, a symbol of freedom and religious tolerance, must continue to inspire hope... For the congregation of Chabad of Westborough, [MA] tonight's public lighting of a 9-foot menorah at the town rotary captures, in a small but meaningful way, the holiday's message of faith and resolve... One year ago, the town denied...

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Changing Demographics at Los Angeles Church

December 8, 2001

Source: Los Angeles Times

On December 8, 2001, the Los Angeles Times reported that "the Rev. Ken Fong is doing what he and many other church leaders once thought was impossible: making a historically Japanese American church look more like multiethnic Los Angeles in the heart of the San Gabriel Valley. Since March 1997 when the third-generation Chinese American became the senior pastor of Evergreen Baptist Church of Los Angeles in Rosemead, Fong has been working toward a church model that reflects the wider community... The result is a thriving congregation...

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Columbus Religious Communities React to NY Rabbi's Proposal to Join in Hannukah Celebration

December 7, 2001

Source: The Columbus Dispatch

On December 7, 2001, The Columbus Dispatch reported that a "New York rabbi wants all Americans to celebrate Hanukkah this year as a show of unity against terrorism... [he thinks] this year's Hanukkah should reaffirm all Americans' commitment to the sanctity of life, the power of communities to support their members through difficulties and the desire to build and move on." Not everyone agrees however. Ohio Christians with "Vietnamese heritage said they have participated in candlelight vigils and other expressions of unity in...

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Atlanta Area Police Force Holds Interfaith Blessing for its Cars

December 6, 2001

Source: The Atlanta Journal and Constitution

On December 6, 2001, The Atlanta Journal and Constitution reported that "religious leaders, including Buddhists, Roman Catholics, Hindus and Muslims, lined up side by side one day last week while uniformed police officers stood inside the open doors of their cars, engines roaring, blue lights flashing. Taking turns, each cleric approached a podium and offered a special prayer during the first interfaith blessing of the fleet for the Morrow Police Department... A Buddhist monk concluded the ceremony by splashing...

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The Pew Research Center: Post-September 11 Attitudes About Religion

December 6, 2001

Source: The Pew Research Center

http://www.people-press.org/120601rpt.htm

On December 6, 2001, The Pew Research Center for People and the Press released its report on Post-September 11 attitudes. The report indicated: "The Sept. 11 attacks have increased the prominence of religion in the United States to an extraordinary degree, but not at the expense of acceptance of religious minorities. Fully 78% now say religion's influence in American life is growing -- up from 37% eight months ago...

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Boston Muslims Speak to Christian Community in Marion, MA

December 6, 2001

Source: The Boston Globe

On December 6, 2001, The Boston Globe reported that "Muslims from the Islamic Society of Boston traveled to St. Gabriel's Church [in Marion, MA] last week to talk about the differences and similarities between their faith and Christianity... The session was organized by St. Gabriel's and two other town congregations, the First Congregational Church and St. Rita's Roman Catholic Church, and supported by the other three churches in Marion: the Community Baptist, the South Coast Community, and Marion United Methodist... Since Sept. 11...

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Hanukkah Celebrated with Interfaith Service

December 5, 2001

Source: Los Angeles Times

On December 5, 2001, the Los Angeles Times reported that "Temple Beth El in Aliso Viejo [CA] will celebrate the first night of Hanukkah... with a three-faith service that will include an observance of Islam's Ramadan and Christianity's Advent. The interfaith gathering was designed as a sign of peace between religions in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks and made even more poignant by recent violence in Israel, organizers say."

Citizens Honored at the Capitol for Support of Arab-American and Muslim Neighbors

December 5, 2001

Source: The Atlanta Journal and Constitution

On December 5, 2001, The Atlanta Journal and Constitution reported that "members of St. Anne's Episcopal Church in Reston, Va., organized an escort service" for Muslim women in their community that felt afraid to go outside in the wake of September 11. This "program was one of three honored on Capitol Hill for acts of compassion since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks... The awards recognized 'just a few of the many Americans here in the Washington area and around the nation who responded to the terrorist attacks by...

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Columbus Community Gathers for Iftar

December 4, 2001

Source: The Columbus Dispatch

On December 4, 2001, The Columbus Dispatch reported on a Columbus, OH community Iftar or meal that breaks the daylight fast of the Muslim holy month, Ramadan. "For years, the Council on American-Islamic Relations has hosted the evening to explain Islamic culture and build friendships. Such an outreach paid off after Sept. 11. Many in the community already understood that Muslims, like Christians and Jews, follow God's laws." The Mayor of Columbus attended the event as did the Superintendent of schools and other government...

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Citizens Honored at the Capitol for Support of Arab-American and Muslim Neighbors

December 4, 2001

Source: Department of Energy

http://www.energy.gov/HQPress/releases01/decpr/pr01203_v.htm

On December 4, 2001, The Department of Energy issued a press release stating, "Secretary of Energy Abraham Joins Members of Congress to Present Distinguished Citizen Awards." It read, in part: "Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham was joined by Members of Congress and the Chairman of the Arab American Institute in a ceremony on Capitol Hill honoring distinguished citizens with a...

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Interfaith Service in Omaha

December 3, 2001

Source: Omaha World-Herald

On December 3, 2001, the Omaha World-Herald featured an article on an interfaith gathering at Oamha, Nebraska's Temple Israel. "In the space of a half-hour, a Muslim call to prayer; Jewish prayers and rituals that mark the end of the Sabbath; and two Christian prayers were uttered by their respective leaders in Temple's spacious social hall as 300 people from all three faiths looked on."

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