Welcome to the Secular Franciscan Order - USA Ecumenical / Interfaith Committee Network
Fall Newsletter
OFS-USA-EIC 
"Our vision is to educate and to raise the awareness of our Franciscan sisters and brothers in the United States to the ecumenical and interfaith movements in the Church."
Welcome Rabbi Dorit Edut to the National Secular Franciscan Order Ecumenical/Interfaith Committee
OFS-USA-EIC
  Rabbi Dorit Edut:
A Visionary Jewish Rabbi and Interfaith Leader

  There are three questions I have been asked:

What does it mean to be Jewish?

How did you become a female rabbi?

Where does your Judaism inform your interfaith work?

        Being Jewish is not only belonging to a faith group but also a culture and a people. It takes on many shapes and forms today – from those who are ultra-Orthodox men in black coats, wide-brimmed hats who spend their days in study and prayer to those who are non-religious social activists for many social and political causes while enjoying a gastronomic connection to their Jewish heritage. Even the old adage about “looking Jewish” doesn’t hold when you go to Israel and see Jews from Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, and South America. So what really are the elements that all these different individuals have in common?

  
To Continue reading Rabbi Dorits article tap on the link button below
"For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind."
2 Timothy 1:7
In these days when acts of violence and hate speech are all too common, many find themselves fearful, with a sense of helplessness.
We don't have to be.
As followers of Christ, Jesus calls us to be peacemakers and reconcilers just as he was. This retreat aims to reinforce our trust in and dedication to the peacemaking work of Christ. Through reflection on scripture, prayer, and times of silence, participants will have opportunities to personally tap into that "peace that surpasses all understanding." Furthermore, they will consider ways to create safe and constructive dialog between those who have not had much positive conversation with each other regarding race, politics, class, or religion. And to help put faith into practice, they will be empowered with methods to use in their relationships and communities for positive responses to violence.
Agents of Peace was featured in The Wall Street Journal.  Click here to read the article.



WEEK OF PRAYER FOR CHRISTIAN UNITY
JANUARY 18-25, 2018
Materials and Resources

  • PRAYER CARDS
  • POSTERS
  • SERVICES OF THE WORD
  • MEDITATIONS FOR EACH OF THE 8 DAYS


Click on the link below:

The Sultan and the Saint
A True Story of 
Muslim-Christian Peacemaking

Viewing of the Docudrama with the joined community entering into dialogue

Ann Arbor, Michigan
January 31, 2018, 7:30 PM

Genesis of Ann Arbor; The home of St. Clare's Episcopal Church
Sponsored by
  • St. Clare's Episcopal Church Ann Arbor
  • The Islamic Center of Ann Arbor
  • Secular Franciscan Order, USA Ecumenical & Interfaith Committee

To Register for this event contact
Mike Carsten OFS @ Mikecars10@gmail.com
The Joint Committee on Franciscan Unity is pleased to present this Formation Video for you and your fraternities.
"The Joint Committee on Franciscan Unity is a committee made up of two representatives each from the Third Order Society of St. Francis, Province of the Americas (TSSF, Anglican Communion), the Order of Ecumenical Franciscans (OEF), the Lutheran Franciscans (OLF) and the Secular Franciscan Order (OFS, Latin and Eastern Rite Communion). This committee was formed with the hope and goal of bringing together Christians of various lineages who seek to follow the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ in the footsteps of St. Francis." 
by  Pim Valkenberg   (Editor),‎  Anthony Cirelli  (Editor)


Nostra Aetate  is the shortest of the sixteen documents promulgated by the Second Vatican Council. It is just five sections long. But the impact of those five paragraphs over the last five decades has been extraordinary. Fifty years after the promulgation of  Nostra Aetate  we must continue to examine closely the Church's relationship to other faiths.

The contents of this book originated in a conference at the Catholic University of America in May 2015. The essays and lectures contained within focus on the relationships of the Catholic Church with the other "Abrahamic" faiths, primarily Islam and Judaism. There is some discussion of the Asian religions as well. This volume, in structure, loosely follows the document  Nostra Aetate  itself. The first part of the book gives a broad view of the document and its importance. The following parts concentrates on the relationships between the Catholic Church and the Asian, Muslim and Jewish religions. The concluding section of the book surveys the reception  Nostra Aetate  received in various ecclesial and academic contexts.

The essays in this volume provide an opportunity to reflect with profound gratitude on the remarkable strides the Church has made in her dialogue with Muslims and Jews in the past fifty years. As we contemplate the fruits this dialogue has borne and consider the future of these conversations, we can say with the Psalmist "How good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!"

Does your regional fraternity already have an OFS - Ecumenical/Interfaith representative working with your regional council?
Does your local fraternity have an OFS - Ecumenical / Interfaith representative working with your local fraternity council? 

If yes, please help us connect.
If no, why not? 

If you're interested in becoming a member of the OFS-USA-EIC Network, just send me a note. 
Please send us your Ecumenical/Interfaith related articles/stories, photos and event information as well as any suggestions or comments. 

If we can help in any way, regionally or locally please let us know.


Peace be with you

Mike

Desk - 313-309-1277 
E-mail - mikecars10@gmail.com

Web Site - ofsusaecumenicalinterfaith.org
From the Editor

We at the OFS-USA Ecumenical/Interfaith Committee invite our reading audience to give us comments and/or suggestions. It is through our continued journey together as brothers and sisters that we grow in our understanding of each other.
OFS-USA Ecumenical / Interfaith Committee
Imam Mohamad Bashar Arafat (CC)
Mike Carsten OFS - Chair
Rabbi Dorit Edit (CC)
Donna Hollis OFS