Peace through Friendship

All this is from God,

who reconciled us to himself through Christ and

has given us the ministry of reconciliation;

that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself,

not counting their trespasses against them,

and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us.

2 Corinthians 5:18-19

Dear Friends,

Last Friday, I was sitting at a table eating some wonderful food. On my right, was a Jewish woman. On my left was a Muslim woman. Across the table was a Rabbi. The next table over was the Muslim chef who prepared the whole meal.

I was part of an Iftar (the evening meal that breaks the Ramadan fast) at Temple B’nai Tikvah. The evening began with a Shabbat service and then we went to the Social Hall and had an Iftar together.

This is not a normal occurrence. Muslims and Jews do not normally sit down and participate in each other’s religious observances. They also don’t invite their Christian friends to join them! But I’m glad they did!

The evening was initiated by our friends in the Intercultural Dialogue Institute (Muslim) along with the Calgary Interfaith Council and the Calgary Alliance for the Common Good. All three of these organizations are focused on breaking down religious and ethnic barriers and working together for peace and the common good.

Toward the end of the evening, people were asked to give their reflections and the most common refrain was, “This warms my heart.” There was a clear sense of respect, friendship and experience of peace amongst those present who--in previous generations--may have thought of each other as “enemies.”

There were some interesting “fumbles”… At the end of the Shabbat service, everyone was given a small cup of grape juice (not wine out of respect for the Muslims) and invited to drink a toast to the evening. Unfortunately, it wasn’t sunset, yet, and all those who were observing the Ramadan fast couldn’t drink it! What was clear, however, was the effort to show hospitality and inclusion.

There was also the experience of walking down the hall from the service to the dinner. On the walls were picture after picture of young adults who had signs witnessing to their connection to the victims of the October 7th attacks or recent experiences of antisemitism. This brought to mind the Israeli retaliation that has resulted in over 50,000 Palestinian fatalities.

The grievances are real.

Yet, those who gathered chose to not let the past control the future. It took something to choose to gather in peace. It always takes something to work against the forces that would separate us. During Holy Week, we’ll remember what it took for Jesus to bring reconciliation. May we also be courageous, open, and forgiving as we take on being agents of God’s reconciling action in the world.

Shabbat shalom.

Ramadan kareem.

Peace be with you.

Pastor Phil