Interfaith Blog Posts

Earlier this month, millions of Americans participated in the nationwide elections, a privilege long fought for and greatly valued. Activities like voting, activism, organizing, petitioning, and speaking ensure that the people of America can work together to make the Union and its communities better, according to the desires of the people. Voting is one of many ways citizens can express their beliefs and values in a way that can impact their communities. 

In addition to the right to vote, one of the fundamental rights Americans have is the freedom of religion. For many people of faith, civic engagement is intertwined. Across religious backgrounds, faith communities often create places where people with shared values can teach their ideals to one another and pass them on to future generations. These values can inspire them to make a difference in their wider communities. 

Within the Mosaic: Interfaith Youth Action community, many of the community leaders, families, and collaborators we work alongside reminds us of the importance of not only civic engagement but also facilitating conversations about how faith can be a foundation for activism and engagement. 

Mosaic’s Circles of Action volunteer and Director of the children’s program at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Medford, Mimi Olivier, says her Unitarian Universalist faith and passion for civic engagement are completely intertwined. Both her faith and engagement are centered on her values of social justice, inclusivity, open-mindedness, and supporting her community. “I think for Unitarians [civic engagement is] very natural, and Unitarians tend to be active in social justice and political issues,” Olivier said. “I think that’s very much part of who we are as a faith.” 

Olivier explained that Unitarians do not have any doctrine, and their congregations contain people with a wide range of beliefs. What unites them are their values. “Our theology is really about values and how to treat one another. We believe in healing the world, accepting differences, and promoting justice. For us that is the theology by which we live, so it’s really part and parcel of who we are.” 

The Unitarians’ commitment to values and community engagement is something that draws people to Unitarianism. Olivier recalled that it was her civic values that led her to the Unitarians, who she felt would be a good home for her daughter who wanted to explore spirituality. 

“I’m a very long time political activist, so those values have always been a really, really big part of my life,” Olivier said. “I did not grow up with any religious instruction or community, and I really never missed that. And then, and I think this is actually really common for Unitarians, when I had a daughter, my daughter was looking for something. For many people when they have kids. They might have been political and then they have kids and suddenly they want a different kind of community, a spirituality for their kids, but other people like me, my daughter asked for it.”

Faith as a foundation of how to treat one another is a value shared by many others. “All of my politics and belief in how we should treat each other is very much rooted in Judaism and the ideas of the Torah and the Prophets and all that kind of stuff,” Josh Conescu, facilitator for the Jewish Studio Project and collaborator for Mosaics’ Bridges program explained. “Everything for me always goes back to something Torah related or Talmud related. When I hear myself saying that it almost sounds cliched, but it’s true. That’s one of the things I find beautiful about Jewish thought.” 

For some, the values rooted in sacred texts offer a way to approach political and personal questions in their lives. Knowledge and study of scriptures can be a source of reflection on the values that inform their perspective. Conescu says he has strong political opinions rooted in his faith and the values expressed in Jewish scriptures, is at the heart of his worldview, extending into his political views and activities. 

There is a part in The Book of Isaiah, Conescu explains, where “people come to Isaiah and say what does God want from us? I say my prayers. I fast on the holidays, and I do all these things I’m supposed to do, and yet I don’t feel like God is listening to me.” Conescu paraphrases “and Isaiah has this thing where he says, basically… the fasting that you’re doing. I don’t care about that. Are you being kind to people? Are you paying people the wages you owe them? If you see a poor person, or a hungry person, or somebody in trouble, are you helping them?” 

“It’s not about saying your prayers and trying to be faithful to the Ten Commandments or whatever. It’s not about following the words so much, as it is doing the things the words tell you to do. Are you loving your neighbor as yourself? Are you treating people kindly? Are you giving to those in need? And that to me, it’s not specifically Jewish, it’s the right way to act.” 

Waffa Wahabi speaks just as succinctly about this notion of how faith is tied to community. “We have a verse in the Quran… which translates to ‘and we sent you as mercy to all mankind’ and that, for me, means that whatever you can help with the community, [and] the environment, anything that you are able to change for the better is your responsibility.” 

Waffa Wahabi, the Youth Director at the Al Huda Society, an Islamic center in Chelsea, has worked closely with Mosaic to share these values with our community while uplifting the similarities in values across many faith traditions to take responsibility for our community. One thing Wahabi perceives in her faith community is that people are becoming more open to being politically active as they learn more about what they can do. 

“In my congregation, you have a good number of members that come usually to the center that are immigrants,” Wahabi observed. “Their perception of politics is different because they bring with them that understanding that they had with politics overseas, and that’s a different perception to what we have here.”

“Some people believe either [that if] they vote or don’t vote, it wouldn’t make a change. But that perception is changing with time. I can tell people, Muslims from congregations like the one I work with, are more involved, are willing to be part of the community at large, and be involved at least with the votes in elections. I would say decades ago, there would be no interest, or at least it would be very minimal. I guess they are changing their perception because they understand the importance of being involved in the decision making, and being able to voice their concerns.” 

Wahabi is particularly passionate about getting young people involved in their community. She is a highly respected mentor and teacher in her congregation, and participates with her youth in Mosaics’ Circles of Action and Bridges program. She sees it as important and impactful to help youth understand that their voices matter and that coming together only adds to the richness of our community. 

“When [youth] understand, why is this important: to be politically involved, they are more keen to be part of it. But when they don’t understand the purpose of it, they wouldn’t be interested.” The Mosaic mission is to be a bridge to connect the youth of Boston and the surrounding communities together, providing opportunities to develop the skills of a community changemaker. With faith as a foundation, youth gain a deeper understanding of community ownership and involvement. This approach helps shape future leaders who are rooted in their beliefs, able to uplift other faith traditions, and recognize the importance of equity and inclusion to respect the diversity of our community. 

Many traditions’ scriptures are influential to peoples’ values and engagement with their community. Shweta Sharma, Mosaic parent and Service Learning Day participant, says the core principles of her Jain faith, especially nonviolence, guide much of her life. Jainism teaches to avoid hurting other life, and Sharma says she lives that out in her community by supporting organizations that promote vegetarianism and oppose harming animals, as well as seeking ways to reduce her harm to the environment. 

For Sharma, equity and inclusion are also important expressions of her Jain values, and essential to making sure people are not hurt. She believes that equity for women and minority populations ensures that everyone feels treated fairly and benefits. “If you leave out one ethnicity or one socioeconomic category of population, there’s a bias then of who gets the benefit of [a] particular policy, and that will leave someone feeling left out and left out means feeling hurt.” Sharma says her faith rarely directly talks about politics, but its values and teachings indirectly inspire her and others to be active. 

“The temple doesn’t talk about politics,” Sharma observed. “We don’t urge you to [vote] or necessarily take a tally of who did or didn’t do it but, most of the people I know in my circle who were citizens and go to the temple did vote.” Sharma attributes the importance of voting to her faith teaching her that life is an opportunity she has been given. It is important to do the best she can with it. Voting is an opportunity she is given to have a voice in her community, and she feels she ought to use what she is given.

“Our religion also teaches you you’ve been given this life. [If] you’re able, you don’t have a handicap, you’re financially stable, you have a roof and food, [then] you are much better off than so many other people who have hardship,” Sharma explained. “Indirectly, there’s that lesson for you to take. If you don’t vote, you don’t have a voice. You’re not making a choice. You’re not living a full life. Just the fact that… you’ve been given this opportunity to make an impact should drive most people. It’s an indirect message you see. If you believe that [you] need to do the best today because [you’re] in a place of benefit, then by not voting you’re doing less. You’re not doing the most you can.” 

For Trinity Church in Northborough, Reverend Will Seals explains “We have a saying at Trinity Church: ‘No matter who you are or where you are on life’s journey, you are welcome here.’ That includes people who have diverse political beliefs. Being a pastor, I want to maintain a non-partisan stance where I can.” 

Rev. Seals believes in justice, and while he does maintain a neutral political stance, it’s to balance his religious duties in a congregation open to people of diverse perspectives. “Our church opens its doors to many community groups, and I’m sure there are individuals who come here with a variety of beliefs, political and otherwise,” Seals explained. 

Seals acknowledges that his non-partisan stance is not universal to Christian pastors. He grew up with and has known many very politically active Christian religious leaders. “I grew up in Black Baptist churches in Brooklyn, NY and Austin, TX. At my church in Brooklyn, my pastor, Rev. Dr. William Augustus Jones, Jr., was a civil rights and community activist. While he wasn’t involved in politics as an elected official, he did speak out about political and social justice matters,” Seals recalled. “In Austin TX, during election season we would get a few politicians who would come through during the worship service to introduce themselves to the congregation and ask for their support. In 1992, during the presidential primary season in Texas, I met and shook hands with then-Gov. Bill Clinton, who was there asking for votes and support. The pastor’s wife, Mrs. Hazel Obey was active in Democratic Party politics in Texas, so I think that’s why politicians came to visit.” 

One thing Seals believes strongly in is human rights, having advocated in Washington, DC and in New York for issues related to religious liberty and marriage equality. He acknowledges his faith, along with Thomas Jefferson at the founding of our country, teaches that God created people equal with natural rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Human rights are an extension of that. 

Many of the youth in Mosaic’s programs are learning how to live out their values and work together with others to make a difference in their community. Therefore, it is the job of community leaders to model the values they hold in order to instill them in the future community changemakers they support. Mosaic is driven by the notion that each youth has a voice worthy of being heard and it is in our programs that many youth of Boston find their own voice and passions for community. Mosaic community leaders, families, and collaborators remind us that

we are all the foundations that future generations stand upon to learn and grow, and it is through our collective efforts and shared values that we empower the next generation to lead with purpose, compassion, and a commitment to positive change. 

Author, Carter Brannon 

Editor, Kimberly Mack