A week ago, I was driving on a freeway in the East Bay late at night and glanced over the San Francisco Bay at a beautiful crescent moon. The moon has been amazing this year, with the recent Blue Moon rising spectacularly over our home in Menlo Park. This crescent moon, with stars sparkling around it, reminded me of the Three Wise Men, who in Christian lore, are following a star toward Bethlehem, toward a holy birth.
That story of how three wise men go on a journey and find God lying in a manger is one that has always touched me deeply. As I looked at this crescent moon I thought about my Muslim friends, who mark each new month with the appearance of the sliver of a crescent moon. We are now approaching the darkest day of the year here in North America, the Winter Solstice, on December 21. I was glad my Muslim friends have the growing light of the moon as a sign of hope as the month grows darker.
I thought then of my Jewish friends and the beautiful menorahs which will be lit beginning on the first day of Hanukkah, December 25. One candle to begin, and each day another added, until eight colorful candles burn bright. Hanukkah is a celebration of freedom of worship and the power and partnership of God in keeping the oil lamp burning. Oh, and latkes and jelly donuts!
Sharing these stories and traditions, these chances to appreciate the light in the world in the face of darkness, is a wonderful gift. Our Interfaith Bridges™ program invites Muslims, Jews, and Christians to share stories from their lives about how they have experienced faith and God.
When we share stories from our life, how we experience the Holy, the Presence, the sense of peace and joy we experience when we celebrate with family and friends, we are brought into relationship. We understand at some deep level how we are all human, all longing for connection.
Our mission at Building Bridges Together™ is to develop relationships and trust among Christians, Jews and Muslims through shared meals and facilitated, structured dialogue programs. This work is more important than ever in this fractured world.
Our participants say it best:
“Creating an atmosphere of free and open communication among religious groups is positive and even more helpful in this current political scene.”
· “I would recommend any experience that involves, at its core, sustained dialogue with smart and good and decent people who are seeking to make the world better through understanding themselves and other people.”
“What gave me hope is the fact that so many students showed up and were honest and willing to share their stories.”
Below you will find our report on our activities in 2024 and our plans. If you value this work of bringing people of different faiths together to develop trust and relationships and you believe that this effort is an important step toward healing our fractured world, please support our ongoing work with a generous donation.
2024 Year End Report for Building Bridges Together™
As 2024 comes to a close, we are pleased to share with you key highlights from our work this year at Building Bridges Together:
· We had a successful beta program for our new Interfaith Bridges™ – University Edition program with our partner, San Francisco State University, and are now offering this exciting program to colleges and universities across the United States.
· We had our second Interfaith Bridges Seder at All Saints Episcopal Church Palo Alto, attended by more than 40 Christians, Jews and Muslims, up from 25 last year.
· We finalized two Tapestry programs for Interfaith Bridges alumni, covering Sacred Scriptures and Life Cycle Events, with more on the way.
· We engaged with multiple faith communities about our flagship Interfaith Bridges™ program, and currently have four different programs in various stages of planning for 2025.
· We enriched our Interfaith Bridges curriculum by adding instructional videos and new tools to our program resources.
· We co-sponsored the Second Annual Interfaith Thanksgiving Dinner at Christ Church Los Altos, with more than 200 in attendance, up from 60 last year.
· We became a sponsor of a new community organizer in Santa Clara County, Silicon Valley Allied for the Common Good (SVACG) and began introducing faith communities and interfaith organizations to this important work.
Plans for 2025
· We will be marketing our two programs, Interfaith Bridges for faith communities, and Interfaith Bridges – University Edition, for colleges and universities, across the United States
· We will be increasing our social media presence and our thought leadership on the value of bridging across difference, and
· We will be developing more interfaith alumni programming to allow continued engagement and relationship building.
As we grow both our marketing efforts and our curriculum development, we will incur more expenses. We need your financial support to continue to expand our impact and reach more communities across the United States.
Please make a generous donation to Building Bridges Together today by donating here.
We wish you peace and joy and a 2025 filled with blessings!
Shalom, Diane Frankle, cofounder of Building Bridges Together™
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