NAINConnect 2015- Wednesday

Reports from ICP Executive Director Linda Crawford, who is attending the North American Interfaith Network (NAIN) gathering in Canada, July 19-22.
Wed., July 22, 2015


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Restoring Spirit Through Sacred Listening
This was our final half-day. We had made many friends and were energized by the conference.


On the first day of the conference, we had been introduced to a mandala that had been set up in the Chapel. Guided by a follower of Tibetan Buddhism, we were all encouraged to participate in painting sand onto a pattern (see photos below). On this, the last day, we assembled in the Chapel for the final ceremony of blessing and the disassembling of the mandala. We were given the opportunity to put sand into small bags to take home, and then the rest of the sand was sprinkled over a nearby lake to take the blessings and prayers all over the world.


Some Reflections:

• Regina is an amazingly diverse community. I met Baha’is, Muslims, Sikhs. Imagine – out here in the prairie.
• The Young Adult Scholars reminded me of the initiative of the Marin Interfaith Council in developing young interfaith leaders. These “kids” are all connected to Eboo Patel’s Interfaith Youth Core and represent great hope for the future.
• Of the 150 attendees, nearly half were first-timers. Next year NAIN will be held in Guadalajara – first time in Mexico.
• Young Muslim women are active in opening Islam to the LGBT community and addressing gender inequality. They introduced us to www.inclusivemosqueinitiative .org, which, among other goals, aims to “value gender expression and gender justice as an integral manifestation of Islamic practice” and looks to engage with “houses of worship internationally which share our aims within the context of their own religious tradition.”
• I met Vicki Garlock from Asheville, NC, who is developing an interfaith curriculum for children from preschool through 8th grade. Vicki is looking for congregations to help her test this curriculum. Her website is www.faithseekerkids.com.
• I sat with an Atheist young woman on the plane who is an interfaith leader at Concordia College (Lutheran!) in Nebraska. She helped develop the curriculum for a new minor in interfaith studies. She will be one of the first to earn that minor.

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