Religious Leaders Meet for Interfaith Dialogue at Sinai Temple

Watch a video of the discussion here.

A “Peace and Unity Concert” at Sinai Temple on April 20 celebrated the 62nd anniversary of Israel’s independence by bringing together leaders and performers from various religions for an interfaith dialogue and concert. Following the event, Sinai’s Rabbi David Wolpe and the temple’s leadership were flooded with letters and e-mails.

Reactions have been extreme. Those who responded positively commented on the courage it took for such leaders to unite, while those who found fault with the event expressed outrage, in large part because of the utterance of the phrase “Allahu Akbar,” which was said during a moment of prayer near the beginning of the concert that also included Jewish, Muslim and Christian prayers.

The Arabic phrase, which translates as “God is great,” is a traditional Muslim saying, used in a variety of circumstances, including prayer and celebration, but also as a battle cry. Those who wrote to complain said they were offended that the phrase was given voice inside a synagogue. 

In response, Wolpe disagreed with the sentiment of the naysayers. “The offending phrase was said in the context of prayer,” he explained. “If we can’t be welcoming to people in our institution that share our celebration with us, we are in trouble.”

The bigger picture, he added, is that “it took tremendous courage for Muslim leaders to come to a synagogue on Israel’s Independence Day. To reward them for doing that by saying, ‘This is a disgrace,’ is really disheartening and foolish.”

In addition to Wolpe, the speakers at the interfaith dialogue were Pastor Rick Warren of Saddleback Church; Najeeba Syeed-Miller, CEO of the Center for Civic Engagement and Dialogue; and the Rev. Cecil “Chip” Murray, retired pastor of First AME Church. Moderated by Tavis Smiley, PBS talk-show host, the event was also hosted by the American Jewish Committee (AJC). Warren and Murray are close associates of Wolpe’s; Warren wrote the foreword to Wolpe’s most recent book, “Why Faith Matters.”

During the hour-long dialogue, Smiley directed pointed questions to each of the guests. Without shying away from the difficult issues, Smiley pressed them on questions of church and state, the value of inter-religious dialogue and the reality of what could be accomplished through events such as this one.

Mentioning the introduction of Martin Luther King Jr. by King’s close friend Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel prior to the “I Have a Dream” speech nearly 40 years ago, Smiley asked the group to address the fact that “it seems like this kind of inter-religious dialogue has been going on for years. I could suggest that the evidence suggests that it ain’t yielding a whole lot,” Smiley said.

In response, Warren was frank: “I don’t think that dialogue has a very good track record, but working together does have a good track record,” he said. “I don’t think you have to agree to get things done.”

Throughout the evening, a common theme was how to find issues upon which people of different faiths can agree and, therefore, on which they can work together. The most important aspect of any interfaith effort, all panelists agreed, was that those involved treat one another with not just tolerance, but respect, and even love.

“Tolerance is, you have your opinion, it’s wrong, but I’m not going to hurt you for it,” said Wolpe. “Love is, you have something to teach me, I have something to teach you, we have a connection that goes deeper even than our teaching. I see in you another image of God.”

In an interview following the discussion, Smiley acknowledged that his effort to prod guests and ask the challenging questions was deliberate.

“I tried to push the panel to focus more realistically and aggressively on what the areas are that we can make progress on,” he said.

The concert that followed the panel discussion featured performers from around the world, including Israeli singer/songwriter David Broza, Def Jam poet Vanessa Hidary (“The Hebrew Mamita”) and Ericson Alexander Molano, a contemporary Latino Christian musician. It was during this time that the phrase “Allahu Akbar” was spoken.

In a brief speech following the singing of “The Star-Spangled Banner,” Wolpe referenced the story of Jacob and Esau. When Jacob “looks at his brother, his twin,” Wolpe said, “he realizes that his brother is himself. You must see every human being as you see yourself.”