Permanent link for Area High School Groups: You are Invited!!! | By Zahabia Ahmed-Usmani, Youth Program Manager on October 15, 2024

Why do we travel? Even traveling two hours away to escape to a neighboring city can get us out of the mundane, awaken our senses, heightens our emotions, invigorate our mind and open us up to the possibility of something new. For students, field trips serve this purpose, to unfurl our horizons.

A field trip to the Kaufman Interfaith Institute will take your students out of the humdrum of the daily school environment. Kaufman’s home, located on GVSU’s downtown Health Science Campus, is just far away enough, just academic enough, just curated enough to transport students into a headspace where they feel safe and ready to lean into deep learning about themselves and others. Our welcoming staff work hard to create an environment that caters to the needs of teens to create safety and comfort.

Jenison High School students recently visited the Kaufman Interfaith Institute. Twenty freshman and sophomore students signed up to voluntarily spend the day building interfaith understanding and belonging with us. Kaufman is grateful to have a space that is malleable and effective for groups up to forty people. With a group size of twenty students we were able to provide soft seating in an intimate circle for our presentation portion and still have plenty of space for hands-on activities in the room.

Our short two hours together covered a lot of ground! Beyond sharing the important history of Kaufman’s founding and the critical nature of our work during these polarized times, we talked about our youth programming and the importance of youth leadership. The crux of our time together was spent exploring individual identity because knowing oneself is crucial to knowing the other. Then we explored the idea of cultural humility, how it’s defined and why it’s an important posture as we engage in the world.

While learning via presentations is interesting, embodied hands-on learning engages different pathways in the brain. In our first activity we engaged with our values. It allowed for students to discuss their understanding of different values, what those values mean to them, why they are important and how they impact their decision making. In our second activity we used Play-Doh to model our “Ideal Communities.” The discussion afterwards centered on topics of leadership, collaboration, resources, barriers, and profound direct connections to issues in their school community. Just as students were digging into the way in which they, as leaders, could impact their school it was time to leave. The Jenison group was able to continue their conversation back at school and debrief their time with us. The overwhelming feedback was that they wanted more time together and felt empowered by the importance of their role as leaders on campus to build belonging. They want to stay connected with Kaufman via the Scholars and with staff because of the connections we built in our short time together. They were honored to be treated with dignity and respect as young adults and not children in our space.

As Kaufman grows its youth programming we are learning from these experiences. We often do trainings for community organizations and internal departments at GVSU. We are learning that we can be a resource to schools who are looking for a field trip experience on a variety of topics related to interfaith understanding, identity, youth leadership and belonging (to name a few). We encourage you to reach out to Zahabia Ahmed-Usmani if you would like to plan a visit!

Posted on Permanent link for Area High School Groups: You are Invited!!! | By Zahabia Ahmed-Usmani, Youth Program Manager on October 15, 2024.

Permanent link for Drawing from Ancestral Wisdom: On Valarie Kaur's Visit to GVSU | By Liz English, Campus Program Manager on October 14, 2024

We slipped our shoes off to feel the ground beneath our feet, with the waters of the Grand River flowing nearby. Breathing deeply, we closed our eyes, and were invited to imagine an ancestor, one that represents courage, standing behind us, watching over us, encouraging us forward. Next, she asked us to envision a child, one from our lives who brings us joy, standing in front of us, smiling up at us.

At the beginning of both of her visits to GVSU, Valarie Kaur started off with an exercise grounding us all in both time and space, one which is also used to ground her newest book, Sage Warrior.

“You are the link between past and future,” she said. “With the earth under you, and waters around you, with ancestors behind you, and the children of the future before you - May you find the wisdom you need to be brave with your life.”

Because bravery is what is needed right now. Especially from people like me.

In her first book, See No Stranger, Valarie provided tangible tools and strategies to encourage those brave steps as we turn towards others, even our opponents, while accruing an essential self-awareness - the sweet labor of revolutionary love, of breathing and pushing. At our event last week, and in Sage Warrior, she invited us to remember how our ancestors came together in community through music, storytelling, poetry, and song, leaving no one behind, even in times of the most dire crises. Drawing from her Sikh tradition, Valarie painted a picture of pivotal moments in the lives and stories of several of the founding Gurus as they faced seemingly unprecedented challenges of their own.

I found that, in practice, drawing upon the wisdom and strength of my ancestors was not a straight-forward task. I remember sitting in that room, eyes closed, struggling to think of an ancestor standing at my back. While I have great pride for my immediate family, my grandparents, even the great-grandparents about whom I’ve heard stories or even vaguely remember from my youngest years, I could not focus on a particularly courageous figure. While the grinning, goofy faces of my nephews were as clear as day in front of me, my past was blurry. I heard Valarie emphasize the kindredness of humanity, and that “all ancestors are available when summoned with integrity.” And yet I felt myself reaching back through a haze of colonial guilt.

But my role as the link between past and future is not to become paralyzed with shame. That does not help my nephews. Nor is it to ignore my colonial history. That does not honor the voices of other ancestors long silenced. It is to wield the gifts, the lessons, the mistakes, the privilege of my past to create a better future for my nephews and for all of the children envisioned in that room. The grounding exercise came to resonate with me all the more as I wrestled with this tension. I will be their ancestor someday. How can I use my time well and make them proud?

From her early days as a civil rights activist, Valarie’s vision of impacting the world has been rooted in nonviolence. At the same time, the Sikh tradition is one of warrior-sages, taking to arms to defend the rights of all people in pursuit of Oneness. She in turn uses the military language as a metaphor to describe our roles, our strengths, and our ‘weapons’ in the fight for social justice - what is my sword? What can I use to fight on behalf of others - my pen, my voice, my work, my resources? Maybe my position of privilege allows me to more easily and more safely enter into conversations and listen to the pain and the rage of those who I would consider my opponents. And what is my shield? How can I protect myself, who can I surround myself with to support me when times get hard? Because this is work that we must do in community, and we must take care of ourselves.

The verbiage we so often hear on the news or social media pushes beyond the vocabulary of uncertainty to call these ‘unprecedented’ or even ‘apocalyptic’ times. Divisiveness seems to be at an all time high, with the upcoming election serving as a lightning rod for the polarization that is rampant in the air. How do we step into this season intent to know our neighbors and to come together in community while bludgeons are sailing overhead and bunkers are being reinforced? It requires bravery to even step out of your door in times like this, let alone to intentionally extend an invitation of curiosity and care across deep, entrenched lines of difference. It is a tall order to venture further into this unfamiliar, uncomfortable, even potentially unsafe territory. But how do we find the courage to do so? What I have learned from Valarie is that we all have a part to play - our own swords and shields - and that we must move forward together, with the strength of our ancestors behind us and the future of our children before us.

Posted by Liz English on Permanent link for Drawing from Ancestral Wisdom: On Valarie Kaur's Visit to GVSU | By Liz English, Campus Program Manager on October 14, 2024.

Permanent link for Building Trust and Introducing 'Interfaith' on Campus | By Liz English, Campus Program Manager on September 17, 2024

Last week, Kaufman held its kick-off Multifaith Mixer on a beautiful if unseasonably warm September afternoon. Though we intentionally distanced ourselves from the chaos of Welcome Week by waiting until the third week of classes for our event, the campus was (and is) still very much a-buzz with beginning-of-the-year energy. We set up our activity stations, got the food truck situated, laid out the floor labyrinth and the yard games, and we were ready to go!

In preparing for this event, I had a very simple goal: to provide a space for students to just be together. While I wanted resources to be available to those who were curious about Kaufman, first and foremost, I wanted students to experience what we mean by interfaith. 

The stigma surrounding ‘interfaith’ is palpable on campus and results in many students being hesitant, uninterested, or downright put off by the presence of an interfaith organization. Perhaps that is because the students who don’t identify with a particular ‘faith’ may not see their interests represented in an interfaith organization, or because students who are grounded in a particular tradition are weary that interfaith may be intended to lead them away or convert them from what they know, or maybe there is just a general unease around the topic of ‘religion’ being so predominantly discussed in public. I cannot say for sure. 

What I have observed is the physical release of tension, the relaxing of the shoulders that follows my elevator-pitch description of how we at Kaufman understand and live into interfaith. Once it becomes clear that we are inviting folks to bring their whole selves into our spaces, to explore where their values come from whether that is from a religious source or otherwise, to share their stories with others, and to learn how diversity in experience and belief can be a boon to collective action and not a detriment… Once this vision takes shape, the barriers begin to come down. 

The Multifaith Mixer intentionally allowed students to opt in as they felt comfortable, to grab a meal and get to know each other or to take it with them on their way, to settle in to create a friendship bracelet, play a game, or pick up a conversation card or take some colored pencils home for later. While we view interfaith as necessarily interactive, having opt-in spaces to simply introduce ourselves and to begin to build trust are just as important.

I am confident that at least a handful of the 75+ students who came by last week will feel just a little bit more comfortable joining in some of our future campus experiences, whether that means joining us for our sacred site visits, or attending lectures like our upcoming Faith Over Division conversation, or stopping by the first meeting of the Interfaith Student Council. Hopefully their curiosity has been sufficiently piqued so that when they see our Kaufman tablecloth or our t-shirts or any of our staff around campus, they’ll at least come say hello.

Liz with the board of the Interfaith Student Council - Molly, Franklin, Caitlyn, and Rachel.

Cornhole on the lawn.

Making friendship bracelets.

Elamin with members of the Muslim Students Association.

The Mixer from above

Posted on Permanent link for Building Trust and Introducing 'Interfaith' on Campus | By Liz English, Campus Program Manager on September 17, 2024.

Permanent link for Kaufman's Youth Programming Embodies Flexibility While Invigoratingly Inspiring Our Community | By Zahabia Ahmed-Usmani, Youth Program Manager on September 17, 2024

Working at a nonprofit consists of constant ups and downs, so we have learned to embrace change. Timing things perfectly, or planning events with just the right mix of educational content and interactive experience while being mindful of your audience are just a few of the considerations Kaufman keeps top of mind when event planning. With youth programming the list is even more complex. I think we all know how hard it is to motivate teenagers to do anything! So, if I were to use one word to describe youth programming it would be “flexibility.”  And then when we get them in the room- my second word would be “invigorating!” Kaufman’s youth programming has embodied flexibility while invigoratingly inspiring our community!

Kaufman’s youth programming consists of two main programs. The Summer Interfaith Service Day Camp and a co-curricular Interfaith Leadership Scholars Program. In June we planned our Summer Interfaith Day Camp for middle and High School students. However, due to a number of school districts not taking their snow days and ending school early, and our funder obligations which forced us to push back the week we held our camp, our registrations were extremely low. While we canceled our Day Camp we incorporated our youth voices into our June Interfaith Convening - Critical Hope: Envisioning the Future of Interfaith. State-wide Interfaith leaders heard from Kaufman Scholars, GVSU student interns, and Michigan Youth Faith Advisory Council Members on an Youth Interfaith Panel. Youth were specifically asked about fostering inclusive spaces, creating awareness of blind spots in interfaith relationships, and where they saw potential in the interfaith movement. The audience left with multiple takeaways including better understanding of neurodivergent populations, accessibility considerations in spaces, inclusion of traditions beyond the Abrahamic, inclusion of younger age populations on committees and boards, and much more.

Most recently, the Kaufman Institute launched the 6th year of our Interfaith Leadership Scholars Program. This year we have 15 students from west Michigan representing the Agnostic, Atheist, Christian, Jewish, and Sikh traditions. At our first meeting on Sunday, September 15, Scholars were able to meet one another and build trust via team building activities facilitated by Adventure Point. Each of the students in this program comes into the program with a different motivation. Some have been harmed in religious spaces or found them unwelcoming but enjoyed the idea of community they felt in them and wanted a space to do something productive with other youth. Some want a platform to gain leadership skills and network with others. Some are looking to build cross-cultural understanding and geek out on learning about different religions and worldviews. But the core purpose of the group is leadership development and interfaith cooperation with the ultimate goal that the students will execute a community impact project of their choosing. As we begin the year, establishing trust, building our community environment, and learning about our strengths and skills will be our focus. While we have about ten returning Scholars and five new Scholars, based on our meeting over the weekend I can tell that we have started to establish roots that will grow deeper over the next few meetings. One of my favorite moments was when one of the new students asked his small group, “So what languages does everyone speak?” Totally normal west Michigan question right? In the upcoming months I look forward to updating you on some of the leadership curriculum and experiences we have as a group and how the youth continue to invigorate Kaufman onward into the future. 

Kaufman Scholars engage in activities

Kaufman Scholars participating in Paper Airplane Company activity.

Kaufman Scholars participating in Bull Ring activity.

Posted on Permanent link for Kaufman's Youth Programming Embodies Flexibility While Invigoratingly Inspiring Our Community | By Zahabia Ahmed-Usmani, Youth Program Manager on September 17, 2024.

Permanent link for Engaging 'Thin Spaces' of Connection, Understanding, and Transformation | By Kyle Kooyers, Director of Operations on September 17, 2024

“No one lives outside the walls of this sacred place, existence.”                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   -Rabia Al Basri, Arab Muslim Saint and Sufi Mystic

Growing up in the Christian Tradition, especially around the summer camp scene, we would often use the term “thin place” to describe spaces and contexts where there was a nearness to the sacred, a closeness to God. Originating with Celtic Pagan culture, the implication of this term is that the line, the veil, the distance between the physical and the ethereal or heaven and earth, was so very fine that one could almost exist in both places simultaneously, becoming attune to the presence and movement of the divine energy.

These “thin places” look different for each of us - especially as we orient differently around religious, secular or spiritual identities. Perhaps it’s engaging in a thoughtful and honest conversation, free from distraction, where we see or feel seen by those who we can no longer call a stranger. Perhaps it’s retuning to the rhythms and frequency of nature as we sit awestruck of our earth, floating as dust through the vastness of the Milky Way. Perhaps it’s feeling awash and alive with the emotional language of dance and song, moved by rhythms of our artists and ancestors. Or perhaps it’s the moment of breaking bread, where we share sustenance at a table with those whose daily dependence on food illumines the sacred reality of our shared mortality.

It’s not that these spaces or moments are in any way magical in and of themselves, though they may certainly feel as such. Rather, they interrupt us. They draw our attention to something that has been there all along.  We are opened-up to the numinous, to the profound sense of presence and connection to something beyond us…even if that “sacredness” is simply our shared planet and inhabitance as a human species.

In her book, Sage Warrior, author and activist Valarie Kaur writes, “If we are all apart of the one, then there is no space that is not sacred. But it’s so hard to remember that when we are holding a toddler over a toilet. Or stuck in traffic. Or falling into our phones. It’s especially hard to remember in the wake of a mass shooting or climate disaster or atrocities happening in real time. We need to demarcate space in order to connect with the sacred…These are not spaces of escape; they are spaces of refuge where we can respond to what is happening from our deepest wisdom, our best selves.”

Kaur goes on to talk about the importance of finding that sacred sovereign space within us for energy and resilience. But here at the Kaufman Institute, we recognize that we also have that in each other. We must also do this work of demarcation, even in interfaith dialogue, so that we can connect to one another. That isn’t always easy. In an era of hybrid attendance and recordings made available after the fact, our presence is no longer required to participate and take in the content of a gathering. But what about the visceral feeling of the space, the human connection, the collective transformation? To paraphrase Gil Scott-Heron, the revolution will not be live-streamed.

Over the course of this past month, the Kaufman Institute has been working to nurture those demarcated spaces. At the end of August, we hosted our first in-person luncheon for Multi-faith Leaders since the start of the pandemic. These gatherings have been a rich time of connection and relationship building where we can share with each other the concerns, hopes, and emerging projects of our respective communities. Looking ahead, the Institute plans to revamp these spaces to better network and support area clergy and leaders as they are helping their communities navigating a very polarized and uncertain time.

Staying with the theme of ambiguity and anxiety, last week we held our Fall Interfaith Tuesday Table Talk, planned hosted in partnership with Dominican Center Marywood at Aquinas College. The theme, drawing from the wisdom of Howard Thurman, was “Centering Down in an Uncertain World.” It was profoundly appropriate that, on the night of the US Presidential debate, we gathered to talk about the ways we can look to our centers of belief, behavior, and belonging to sustain ourselves in seasons and times that are profoundly disorienting and unpredictable. We shared with one another the anxieties we are holding as well as the ways in which we can choose to respond with thoughtfulness, centered in compassion, rather than giving in to the seeming normalcy of vitriol. 

At both of these gatherings, the rooms were warm and transcendent as we had space to pause and simply listen to one another. They were disruptive in the most beautiful and edifying sense. Franciscan friar and teacher, Richard Rohr, offers this observation:

“[We] often remain trapped in what we call normalcy— 'the way things are.' Life then revolves around problem-solving, fixing, explaining, and taking sides with winners and losers. It can be a pretty circular and even nonsensical existence. To get out of this repetitive cycle, we have to allow ourselves to be drawn into sacred space, into liminality. All transformation takes place here...This is the sacred space where the old world is able to fall apart, and a bigger world is revealed.”

There is a very palpable opening-up that we have found within these in-person spaces, where we invest in the intimate. Free from the tyranny of the camera or recording, free from the trappings of an impressive headcount that renders us invisible to the crowd, we can share a profoundly authentic human experience with one another. Yes, we will still offer our larger events, and we will strive to make those events accessible to folks who, for one reason or another, are unable to join us in-person. But there is something to be said for being together, for engaging in thick dialogue in thin spaces – for drawing each other’s attention to the abiding presence of something that is much larger than any of us and yet, at the same time, requires all of us. This is where connection, understanding, and transformation take place.

Posted on Permanent link for Engaging 'Thin Spaces' of Connection, Understanding, and Transformation | By Kyle Kooyers, Director of Operations on September 17, 2024.

Permanent link for Lessons of Humility and Hope from Interfaith America | By Liz English on August 20, 2024

Earlier in August, I had the opportunity to attend the Interfaith America Leadership Summit with two of my GVSU students volunteers. The theme of this year's Summit was The Ties That Bind, and we asked the question, in a time when our social fabric is being stretched thin, how can we come together to create positive engagement and reconnect? The three-day conference in Chicago was geared toward both educators and students actively engaged in interfaith work on their respective campuses across the country.

As a part of the opening plenary, we heard from Shira Hoffer, a senior at Harvard and a changemaker in the pursuit of interfaith understanding on her campus. In response to the October 7^th attacks, Shira created the Hotline for Israel/Palestine, an educational initiative meant to provide a multi-partisan approach to the conflict with an emphasis on creating your own nuanced and informed perspective. From there, she went on to found the Institute for Multipartisan Education to continue to encourage curiosity as a tool for engaging across difference.

In her opening remarks, among her many pearls of wisdom, she left us with this very poignant and frank advice: “If you ever feel as ‘unexpert’ as me, it doesn’t mean you can’t still do something.”

Over the last two years in this job, there have been any number of times where the word ‘unexpert’ would have come in handy. Navigating the crisis in the Middle East is just one recent example. Securing musical instruments for visiting international bands was another. Developing engaging campus programming is an ongoing experience filled with questions like - Do I really know what I’m doing? Who am I to say? I’m no expert!

Thankfully, an integral part of the Summit is connecting with others who are also sailing uncharted waters and yes, sometimes making it up as they go. All levels of experience were present. Workshops included folks from Big 10 universities who brought 30 staff and students to the conference and also the single representative from the private school with less than 1500 people. Together, we were able to share our experiences, our wisdom, occasionally our resources, our successes, and, importantly, our missteps. We could name the challenge of this work honestly - the landscape for this work changes every day, and we must adapt to succeed. That means finding yourself in new and unfamiliar territory quite often as a program manager. We aren’t going to get it right every time. We cannot possibly be experts in everything that this diverse work requires of us. What we can do, though, is keep learning and keep trying, and it is so much easier to do so in community.

Shira’s comment provided a moment of vulnerability, honesty, and humility. And critically for those of us who may be worn down or burned out, her insight instilled within us a drive to keep going no matter what, because this work is truly that important.

As we enter into a new school year, we are trying new things once again, inventing and reinventing in community. On campus this year, Kaufman is creating spaces devoted to simply being human together, playing games, and sharing a meal (like our Multifaith Mixer), as well as those where we’ll dig deep to explore difficult conversations (such as our Faith Over Division conversation). I am perhaps most excited about the development of the Interfaith Student Council (IFSC) at GVSU, with a board of four fantastic students from across worldview traditions devoted to creating campus culture that values diversity, promotes understanding, and inspires collective action for positive change. 

Rachel and Franklin, both of whom are on the board of the newly-minted IFSC, joined me at the Summit, and left with perhaps even more enthusiasm than they came with (which is saying something!). The energy with which they engaged in the three-day conference did wonders for my own excitement for the upcoming year. I cannot wait to see what they come up with for ways of engaging their fellow students. While we all will likely feel ‘unexpert’ from time to time, especially as we adapt and try new things, we will be sure to pause and celebrate what we have accomplished. Sure, that could mean a sell-out crowd at one of our large events, or more likely, in such relational work,  it could mean a handful of heartfelt and open conversations, or a collaboration with a new university partner, or coffee and connection with a new friend. Or perhaps it looks like bringing two students to the Summit where my first year I attended alone. :)

A banner with The Ties That Bind, the theme for the Interfaith America Leadership Summit for 2024, hangs over the Makerspace, a spot for crafting during the conference.

Franklin and Rachel, members of the Interfaith Student Council board.

A closeup of a quilt created as part of the Interfaith America Summit 2024. (Franklin's addition is in the middle!)

The Surabhi Ensemble performing on the first night of the conference.

The crew! Liz, Rachel, and Franklin at the Summit.

Posted on Permanent link for Lessons of Humility and Hope from Interfaith America | By Liz English on August 20, 2024.

Permanent link for Interfaith and Democracy: Finding Healing Through Conversation | By Kyle Kooyers on August 19, 2024

As I reflect on the intersection of interfaith work and democracy, I am reminded of Stephen Colbert’s observations on the night of the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election. While doing The Late Show and simultaneously watching the results come in, he noted the Pew research which showed how more than half of the Democrats (55%) say the Republican Party makes them afraid, while 49% of Republicans say the same about the Democratic Party.

“So, how did our politics get so poisonous?” he asked. “Maybe we overdosed,” he suggested. “We drank too much of the poison…You take a little bit of it so you can hate the other side. And it tastes kind of good. And you like how it feels. And there is a gentle high to the condemnation. And you know you are right.”

As we navigate this current election season, we are acutely aware that our country and communities, have become increasingly polarized. As we find ourselves entrenched in survival-based tribalism and echo chambers, our propensity to develop and vehemently protect in-group identities galvanizes our resistance to moving towards those with whom we disagree. These “us/them” categories, fueled by anxiety and defensiveness, color the lenses through which we view and even demonize our neighbor.

If multi-faith dialogue has taught us anything, it’s that all too often we allow ourselves to be afraid of people who are different, even hate them, because there is a “gentle high” we find in condemning, especially in our desire to “win,” or to be right. The consequences of this are very real, especially when it comes to negative or even violent interactions between individuals or groups of people who see the world differently. So, to help confront and heal toxic polarization and division on GVSU’s campus and in our West Michigan community, the Kaufman Institute is focusing on the intersections of interfaith work and democracy over the course of this coming academic year.

First and foremost, we are excited to be partnering once again with the Padnos/Sarosik Center for Civil Discourse, the Hauenstein Center for Presidential Studies, and WGVU Public Media for a second year of  Talking Together: Strengthening Our Communities Through Conversation. As with the previous Talking Together year, the primary objective is to interrupt toxic polarization and foster instead a culture of conversation on campus and in local communities. This program line-up, with a focus on, deep listening and story-telling from a multiplicity of perspectives, will be bookended by two powerful programs.

One Small Step, an initiative of StoryCorps, is an effort to remind the country of the humanity in all of us, even those with whom we disagree. The initiative brings strangers with different political views together to record a 50-minute conversation—not to debate politics, but to learn who we are as people. Audio recordings of each interview are archived at the Library of Congress. We are currently recruiting conversations participants, so if this sounds intriguing you can sign up here:  https://www.wgvu.org/onesmallstep/

Michigan Listens, part of the America Listens project of Boise State University, will bring to together a wide range of people for an evening of storytelling and listening over dinner. On April 2, 2025, this event will pull together everyday people from across our state –farmers, restaurant workers, business leaders, veterans, students, etc. to speak about what they value and why to an audience that remains silent. Occurring after the presidential election, this gathering will offer a path for healing the relationships that have been strained or fractured by the campaign season’s corrosive rhetoric.

As a supplemental component, of the Talking Together initiative, on September 24, we are bringing  One America Movement’s nationwide Faith Over Division Tour to Grand Rapids. This event, in the spirit of inspiration and healing, will bring together people of faith to find hope and a shared future in the midst of toxic divisiveness. This conversation will explore how we can lean in to our respective religious, secular, and spiritual values as we seek to heal toxic polarization through relationship and understanding. This event will highlight the wisdom and experience of Rev. Randy Kyle Callender in conversation with One America Movement and Kaufman Interfaith Institute.

Our Interfaith Book Group will begin on Wednesday, September 11, featuring  The False White Gospel: Rejecting Christian Nationalism, Reclaiming True Faith and Refounding Democracy by Jim Wallis .   This is not just about Christian extremes but about all faith traditions and the danger of extremes. Along with this theme, later this December our Triennial Jewish-Christian-Muslim Dialogue will include Mustafa Akyol, Elaine Pagels, and Donniel Hartman in conversation about religion, power, and morality. 

We are also pleased to announce that the Kaufman Interfaith Institute will be welcoming Sikh author and activist Valarie Kaur back to Grand Rapids as a part of the  2024-2025 Revolutionary Love Bus Tour. This healing odyssey across the U.S. offers an immersive experience of storytelling, music, song, ancestral wisdom, and community-building. Each stop uplifts local leaders, artists, and advocates who catalyze hope, equipping participants with the tools needed to lead with love and courage in our daily life.

Now more than ever, the Kaufman Institute, is committed to creating spaces for human connection - to learn about one another, to learn what we each other believes or hold to be true, and to learn how those views, principles, or ideas impact our everyday lives. True dialogue, like any relationship or journey is nuanced and complex, challenging and deeply rewarding. It doesn’t mean that I must agree with or accept your perspective as true for me, nor does it assume my perspective or experience ought to be true for you. Rather, it welcomes us into a place of respectful inquisitiveness and empathy. In this way we really begin to experience the beauty, complexity, and humanity of one another. That’s how we win. That’s how we strengthen our communities through conversation. Join us!

Image of Valarie Kaur from her See No Stranger event at GVSU.

Rev. Randy Kyle Callender

Posted on Permanent link for Interfaith and Democracy: Finding Healing Through Conversation | By Kyle Kooyers on August 19, 2024.

Permanent link for Michigan Interfaith Convening: Critical Hope - Envisioning the Future of Interfaith on June 25, 2024

As a capstone, last week's final convening in our collaboration with the Fetzer Institute drew upon the collective wisdom gathered and the self-reflection encouraged during this series to identify emerging characteristics and best practices for interfaith initiatives. Through a lens of belonging, aware of both our past and present, our goal was to explore interfaith spaces that move people towards a pluralistic future.Specifically, we examined the concept of Critical Hope as we looked to the future of the interfaith movement. 

The term ‘critical’ has numerous implications, all of which are relevant to our project. The first is the sense of importance - critical as vital or essential. Secondly, critical implies a sense of urgency or immediacy. Lastly, to be critical means to be discerning or analytical. In theoretical contexts, critical thinking implies an explicit exploration of power, oppression, privilege, and the status quo.

Hope looks to a collective vision of a better future. It is what guides and sustains us in the incremental journey on the arc of history that bends towards justice. Hope is more than passive optimism or the naive expectation that change will happen overnight. Hope is an active pursuit of a reality not yet realized. Hope is the essential starting point and ever-present companion to justice-seeking work as it grapples with politics, emotions, relationships, lived-realities, and identities.

Critical hope invites us to hold conflicting truths in a single space and time, to sit in tension with differences, and to sustain a complex and shared pluralistic vision of a better world. Such change must be rooted in and arise from collective reimagining. This form of hope is brave and challenging and necessary. To engage in interfaith work is to engage in critical hope.

Last week, we gathered with 35 individuals from 15 different organizations from across the state to engage with this important topic. Over the course of our time together, we examined and lived into “critical hope” as a lens for interfaith. We stretched ourselves to see what is so often unseen - the dominant narratives that can unconsciously color and shape the spaces we create; we questioned our tried-and-true interfaith methods; and we spent time ‘taste testing’ different Kaufman programs that center relationships and that highlight voices that are often underrepresented in traditional interfaith spaces. Throughout the process, we caught glimpses of the work we have yet to do, but all the while, we held on to the essential dimension of hope and pushed each other forward. 

As Ijeoma Oluo, author of So You Want to Talk About Race, notes, “No matter what our intentions, everything we say and do in the pursuit of justice will one day be outdated, ineffective, and yes, probably wrong. This is the way progress works. What we do now is important and helpful so long as what we do is what is needed now.” With that in mind, while our June gathering was the capstone for this collaboration, we recognize that the evolution of the interfaith movement will be ongoing. We are eager to stay connected and grow the relationships formed with our partner organizations as we support and encourage each other in this critical work of hope. 

We are so incredibly grateful for the enthusiasm, the vulnerability, and the support of the individuals and organizations who attended, and for Rev. Holly Makimaa, Roman Williams, Rishi Singh, and the entire Kaufman staff for stepping in to co-facilitate such an impactful gathering. Lastly, we are incredibly grateful for the gracious support and partnership of the Fetzer Institute in underwriting this collaborative project.

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Participating Orgs:

• Kaufman Interfaith Leadership Scholars
• GVSU Interfaith Student Council
• Michigan Organization on Adolescent Health (MOASH) MY Faith Council 
• West Michigan Hindu Temple
• Greater Lansing Interfaith Clergy Association
• Momentum Center Holland
• Interfaith Photovoice
• Religious Society of Friends - Ujima Meeting
• Reformed Church in America
• C3: West Michigan’s Inclusive Spiritual Connection
• Northern Michigan Interfaith Common Ground
• Grand Rapids Baha’i Community
• Interfaith Leadership Council of Metropolitan Detroit
• University of Michigan
• Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services (ACCESS)

Three of our 6 young adult panelists partake in an Interfaith Table Talk discussing questions of belonging in interfaith spaces

Liz moderating the young adult Interfaith Table Talk panel

Students from MOASH MY Faith Council sharing during the Interfaith Photovoice workshop

Interfaith Photovoice table conversation

Zahabia facilitating a taste of one of our favorite affinity spaces, Interfaith Foodies!

Participating in Mini-Foodies

(Almost) the whole group!

Posted on Permanent link for Michigan Interfaith Convening: Critical Hope - Envisioning the Future of Interfaith on June 25, 2024.

Permanent link for Exploring Language for Pluralism and Human Flourishing on April 22, 2024

Last week, the Kaufman Interfaith Institute brought together 21 leaders representing 14 different interfaith initiatives and organizations from across the state of Michigan for a convening at our office at Grand Valley State University. Building on the theme of human belonging, this convening was  a deep dive into our language and vernacular for engaging in the work of interfaith and pluralism.

Our purpose for this convening was to identify the barriers and opportunities of language as we work towards as shared and effective vernacular for the future of the interfaith movement. The terms we use carry with them distinct connotations, denotations, and biases that all play a part in enhancing or inhibiting spaces of belonging. We recognized that we all come to the table with different levels of experience and engagement, and as such, our April conversation was intentionally foundational, a step back to explore the words and phrases we use to create hospitable interfaith space and upon which relationships are formed.

To that end, we once again had the opportunity to build new connections and relationships with each other and between our respective organizations. We were able to share and learn about the work that each of us is engaged in to bridge divides, address disparities, and work towards individual or community transformation.

Over the course of our time together, we explored coded language versus language that liberates, we leaned into the complex work of creating brave spaces of belonging where disagreement is expected, we held space for listening and laughter as we shared about our respective work and resonance with terms and labels like “interfaith”, “multi-faith,” ”secular,” and “nones,” we spent time with our "Believing and Belonging" Photovoice Exhibit, and we mapped out list of words that harm, require context, and welcome to guide our work going forward.

We are so grateful to all of the organizations and individuals who responded to our invitation, to Rev. Holly Makimaa for facilitating our time together, to Desiraé Simmons, co-director of Interfaith Council for Peace and Justice,  for her wisdom and thoughtful workshop on Belonging and Language, and to the Fetzer Institute for underwriting this collaborative effort! For those who don’t know, the Fetzer Institute helps to build the spiritual foundation for a loving world. They aim to inspire and serve a global movement that transforms the world into a more loving home for all. 

Participating Orgs:

• Adhwaq Center for Spirituality, Culture, and the Arts
• Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services
• C3: West Michigan’s Inclusive Spiritual Connection
• Evenstar’s Chalice and Institute / Interfaith Center for Spiritual Growth
• Fetzer Institute
• Greater Lansing Interfaith Clergy Association
• Holy Spirit Episcopal Church
• Interfaith Leadership Council for Peace and Justice
• Interfaith Photovoice
• Kaufman Interfaith Institute
• My Oasis Center
• Northern Michigan Interfaith Common Grounds
• One America Movement
• West Michigan Hindu Temple
• University of Michigan

This was the second of three convenings in Grand Rapids MI. We are excited to see where these new relationships might lead, to share out the research and learning from this gathering, and to continue the conversation at our final convening Critical Hope: Envisioning the Future of Interfaith on June 20-21, 2024.  Stay tuned!

Posted by Kyle Kooyers on Permanent link for Exploring Language for Pluralism and Human Flourishing on April 22, 2024.

Permanent link for Building Communities of Belonging Across the State of Michigan on March 5, 2024

In late February, the Kaufman Interfaith Institute brought together 27 leaders representing 18 different interfaith initiatives and organizations from across the state of Michigan for a convening at our beautiful office in downtown Grand Rapids. This small gathering of Interfaith leaders was a fruitful time of listening, learning, and storytelling within the frame of pursuing anti-racism and communities of belonging.

We delighted in the opportunity to build new connections and relationships with each other and between our respective organizations. While each of our organizations are unique to the communities in which we operate and the missions we seek to advance, we were able to share and learn about the work that each of us is engaged in to bridge divides, address disparities, and work towards individual or community transformation.

Our purpose for this convening was to examine and determine where we are going in the context of where we have been as it relates to inclusion. Together, we explored how we orient around concepts like belonging and connection both in the context of community and as they relate to our ancestral roots. Historical and contemporary barriers have alienated and excluded predominantly BIPOC spiritualities from Interfaith space. Through a workshop led by Dr. Khadijah Matin, of One Spirit Learning Alliance, we began to examine the interfaith movement and our own individual biases through the lens of cultural humility, uncovering the internal work necessary to shift the interfaith movement towards anti-racism.

Over the course of our time together, we explored the connection we have to both generations of the past and generations of the future, we leaned into the messiness around labels, generalizations, and stereotypes, we held space for listening and laughter as we shared about our respective work and journeys, and we mapped out what resources exist or need to be developed to support this work going forward.  

We are so grateful to all of the organizations and individuals who responded to our invitation, to Rev. Holly Makimaa for facilitating our time together, to Dr. Khadijah Matin for her wisdom and engaging workshop on cultural humility, and to the Fetzer Institute for underwriting this collaborative effort! For those who don’t know, the Fetzer Institute helps to build the spiritual foundation for a loving world. They aim to inspire and serve a global movement that transforms the world into a more loving home for all. 

Participating Orgs:

• Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services
• Baha’i Community of Grand Rapids
• Fetzer Institute
• Holy Spirit Episcopal Church
• Interfaith Leadership Council of Metropolitan Detroit
• Interfaith Photovoice
• Interfaith Round Table of Washtenaw County
• International Campus Ministry at Western Michigan University
• Kaufman Interfaith Institute
• Mars Hill Bible Church
• Michigan Interfaith Power & Light
• My Oasis Center
• Momentum Center/Extended Grace
• Northern Michigan Interfaith Common Grounds
• One Spirit Learning Alliance
• Reformed Church in America – Interreligious Relations
• United Campus Christian Fellowship
• University of Michigan

We are excited to see where these new relationships might lead, to share out the research and learning from this gathering, and to continue the conversation at our April Convening: Exploring Language for Pluralism and Human Flourishing. Stay tuned!

Posted by Kyle Kooyers on Permanent link for Building Communities of Belonging Across the State of Michigan on March 5, 2024.