Response to Imam Latif, By Jen Bailey

Posted on July 15th, 2010 | Filed under InterViews

On January 17, 2010, I stood covered in dirt and sweat, prepping garden beds at a local urban farm in Nashville, Tennessee. A small group of us had gathered for a day of interfaith service to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King and shed light on the issue of food insecurity in the area. To my left was my work supervisor, a gregarious Jewish woman who had become a mentor to me, and to my right was a rambunctious group of middle school students from a local Methodist church.  It was a special moment as young people actively engaged, many for the first time, with individuals from religious backgrounds different from their own.

“The need for an interfaith agenda is very crucial because just as religion can be very empowering, so too can it be very divisive.”  With this statement, Imam Khalid Latif identifies the central reason why the interfaith movement demands our attention right now. In a world where the reality of interfaith cooperation is often overshadowed by headlines of deadly religious conflict, division has become the religious narrative of the day. As a result, experiences like the one I described in Nashville and the work of organizations like World Faith often go unnoticed.  It is our responsibility, as advocates for religious pluralism, to make sure our stories are known and pushed to the forefront. If not, we stand to lose the battle with those who would rather fan the flames of conflict for their own personal gain. We must win.