“The love of one's country is a splendid thing. But why should love stop at the border?" - Pablo Casals
ICYMI! Recap of our Annual Convening on November 14th
Last week, we gathered for our annual convening, A Call of Justice and Healing: The Role of Minnesota's Multifaith Community , where voices from Minnesota’s multifaith community came together to share insights on bridging divides and fostering trust. Together, we explored how our diverse backgrounds can unite us in the face of trauma.
Powerful discussions unfolded as community leaders and faith representatives shared personal stories of resilience. By engaging in dialogue, we affirmed our commitment to healing and justice, recognizing the shared responsibility we have to support one another.
Inspiring panels and workshops encouraged attendees to take actionable steps toward social justice. Together, we brainstormed initiatives aimed at addressing the root causes of division and distrust, empowering individuals to be catalysts for positive change.
As the conference came to a close, we left with renewed hope and determination. The multifaith community is poised to play a crucial role in fostering understanding and healing in Minnesota. Let’s carry this momentum forward and continue to work together for justice and peace.
🎊MnMN's Annual Convening featured in the news!🎊
"Minnesota's multifaith leaders offer wisdom in this fraught political moment"
Talking Sense Series by Catharine Richert
Faith leaders in Minnesota are trying to build bridges at a time of intense political polarization.
A group of them convened recently at the Minnesota Multifaith Network annual conference at the Hindu Temple in Maple Grove to share ideas.
The conference took place about a week after the presidential election, and leaders in attendance shared wisdom about how to heal a divided electorate and find connection in this fraught time.
Clouds in Water Zen Center: Youth and Family Program
Fall 2024 Session: Every other Sunday, Oct 6th - Dec 1st & Rohatsu December 8th, 9:30 am - 11 am
Zen Family Practice gathers every other Sunday morning. Caregivers learn alongside their children. We practice Zen through songs, movement, stories, simple meditations, a mindful snack, and free play. We learn how to slow down and live deliberately within a sometimes chaotic world. Families of all religious backgrounds are welcome!
Fall 2024 Session: Every other Sunday, Oct 6th - Dec 1 (Plus Rohatsu December 8th), 9:30 am - 11 am
In Youth Practice students will learn broader concepts of the dharma and mindfulness through instruction by dedicated Zen practitioners. Class time will center around learning about mindfulness through meditation and movement, as well as providing students with time for broader discussions of what mindfulness means to them. Our goal for students is to trust in their ability to practice mindfulness in practical and meaningful ways in their own lives.
Join MNIPL's Bret Pence and Rachel Wagner, Creative and Technical Director of Just Housing, as they share their experiences of assisting 5 homeowners in Northeastern Minnesota over the past year in determining whether their houses were good candidates for air source heat pumps. Using a grant from CERTs, MNIPL and Just Housing dove deep into examining the existing homes, and used the results to undergo a process of examination with the homeowners. Barriers to implementation were recognized and bridges around these obstacles were found, with recommendations for future deliberations on this issue. These learnings can help us understand which homes are good candidates and how to support their conversion, and it builds upon findings and resources explored in the Northland Heat Pump Helpers webinar series from 2023.
MNIPL: Reparations Learning LabsWednesday, December 11th, 12:00-1:00pm. We are offering monthly, hour-long, interactive sessions on Zoom that invite people into deeper reflection, work, and action towards repair and reparation. These sessions are intended for white-bodied people from across different identities, lineages, traditions, and geographies who are already committed to the work of repair and reparation, and who want to continue to learn, grow, and build community. We will focus on moving from ideas towards action, and on building personal, collective, and systemic reparations practices. Black, Indigenous, Brown, and Native folks and other people of color are also welcome to join. Click the links below to RSVP! (Note: you'll have to RSVP to all of the events you want to attend)
Joint Religious Legislative Coalition: 2025 Day on the HillThursday, February 27th, 2025. The morning session will be held at Central Presbyterian Church in Saint Paul, followed by a rally in the Capitol rotunda. Our focus for 2025’s Day on the Hill is Women, Children, and Families. We are so excited to gather with you to advocate for women, children, and families living in poverty and bring JRLC’s unique voice to the Minnesota State Capitol. Registration for this event will open later this month. In the meantime, please mark your calendars! We hope to see you there!
Resources and Opportunities
An Act of Worship: The Next Generation Film Grant
In 2017 on the day the Muslim Ban went into effect a our team felt compelled to capture this moment in our country’s and our communities’ history.
The resulting film was AN ACT OF WORSHIP: A portrait of the last 30 years of U.S. history, as told by Muslim Americans. It was a film that was not made by just our team, but was a product of a community of people who supported us.
People always asked us: how does the movie end? It’s not like Islamophobia or Anti-Muslim racism is over, “you should make a sequel.”
Sadly, this film and the history of violence against our communities has no end in sight, but we don’t think we are the right people to make the sequel, or to tell the story of how this new generation is being impacted by a genocide that daily reinforces the feeling that Muslim, Arab, Black and Brown lives are disposable.
So as the last act of our impact campaign we are launching AN ACT OF WORSHIP:The Next Generation. This final part of our impact campaign will offer three grants of $1500 along with mentorship from our team to filmmakers between the ages of 18-25, who self-identify as Muslim, and are living in the United States to make a 2-3 minute short documentary that captures this moment of their lives. What does it mean for you to be a Muslim in America right now?
The application deadline is 11/22/2024 at 11:59 PM.
Godless liberals? Not in Minnesota, where the religious left is a driving force for DemocratsMinnesota Reformer, Madison McVan, November 4th, 2024. Minnesota’s religious left — a coalition of Christians, Jews, Muslims and other people of faith — has gained power and influence at the ballot box and the Legislature in the past decade especially, becoming one of the most influential forces in state politics. The diverse groups making up Minnesota’s religious left have united behind a policy agenda based on shared values, whatever their theological differences: loving one another; caring for the poor and sick; being good stewards of the Earth; and building a fair and inclusive economy. Read more here.
Submissions to the Newsletter
All are welcome to submit events and news for inclusion in our newsletter. To make a submission, please email us. Submissions for the next newsletter are due Friday, November 22nd. MnMN Organizational Partners and Individual Members have first priority. If you are not yet an Organizational Partner or Individual Member, we encourage you to join us!
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