An Invite

Anyone who has time, this three day event looks very worthwhile and illuminating-
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I’m writing to invite you and others in the Tikkun Philadelphia community to a three-day conference coming up on Jan. 21-23 here at the Church of the Good Shepherd. Beginning on the afternoon and evening of Martin Luther King Day, we will be a regional host via a live webcast of “Religion and Violence: Untangling the Roots of Conflict—An Interfaith Dialogue,” a conference originating at Trinity Church Wall Street. While conferees gather in New York City a few blocks from the fallen World Trade Center towers, we will gather in our Parish Hall, as one of about thirty other sites around the country, to listen to eminent Christian, Jewish, and Muslim scholars and thinkers discuss the links between violence and religion and what faith can contribute to lessening violence in the world.

Details about the conference are available at www.trinitywallstreet.org/institute. Speakers include James Carroll, author of Constantine’s Sword; Jewish biblical scholar Susannah Heschel; James H. Cone, author of Malcolm and Martin and America: A Dream or a Nightmare; and Tariq Ramadan, a preeminent Muslim scholar in the West. The conference itself includes several opportunities for guided reflection groups, and includes lunch on Tuesday and Wednesday. We keeping the conference cost purposely low, at $25, in order to encourage participation.

Probably many will have other commitments on Martin Luther King, Jr., Day (the conference begins at 4:30), but I’m sure that the following two days offer opportunities for hearing presentations followed by small-group discussions. Even if those interested couldn’t participate in most or all of the two days, the schedule would allow “dropping in,” say, for one speaker and the discussion that followed. (A schedule of speakers and discussions is attached.)

The people of Good Shepherd are excited about this chance to participate in a dialogue with others in faith communities around the country. I hope you’ll consider joining us.
Warm regards,
Bob Smith


The Rev. Robert C. Smith
Rector, Memorial Church of the Good Shepherd