I have been following three faith communities from Omaha, Nebraska working toward sharing an interfaith campus. Is there any other example in this country of Christians and Muslims and Jews coming together to share resources? As one member of the Countryside Community church of Omaha said, “I see so much closed-mindedness between people of different faiths,” he said. “Here (at the interfaith site) you have people that are trying to come together.” While there will be some controversy in making this move, there are a lot of women and men who want to see this kind of inter-faith harmony. The Episcopal Diocese of Nebraska has also had plans to make a move to this inter-faith campus but can’t afford to build a church. I wonder if any Presbyterians considered a move to this inter-faith campus?
The Temple Israel has already moved into its new synagogue. The mosque will be built west of Temple Israel. The Countryside Community Church (United Church of Christ) will soon take a final vote to make the move to join this interfaith community. All three communities hope this move will help them grow. What a great way for three religions to find common ground (literally) for conversation and understanding.
For me as a Christian and Presbyterian it is exciting to see these three faith communities of “God Seekers” coming together to collaborate in sharing resources and mutual understanding of what each faith tradition represents. We experienced too much separation and lack of trust when it comes to working with those who are not Christian—what a great way to break down barriers that keep us from understanding that there is a place in this world for people of a variety of faith traditions/religions.
It is my prayer that this world begin to see more and more “God Seekers” finding ways to collaborate in sharing their traditions and faith.
To get started in reading about the efforts of the Countryside Community Church, I share these two links:
Bound and Nurtured in God's Love 