We invite you to share this photo on Facebook as your profile picture.
When asked about the significance of 9/11 in a recent USA Today article, social studies teacher Kenneth Roeten observed that no other event in American history has had more of an impact on how everyday Americans live their life. He concluded that it is our duty as Americans to never stop teaching the shock, horror, sadness, and utter disbelief of that day.
As Jews, Christians, Muslims, and other friends of Omaha's Tri-Faith Initiative, we gathered on the afternoon of 9/11 in solidarity with all who suffered injury or loss of life on that horrific day. Only, for us, September 11th was not just a day of mourning but day of celebration. For, it was on 9/11 fifteen years ago that a living prophet in our midst, Rabbi Aryeh Azriel, and forty members of his congregation stood outside a nearby Islamic mosque to protect it from those who were making inappropriate connections between terrorism and Islamic faith.
This simple act of courage and neighborliness - indeed righteousness - gave birth to Omaha's Tri-Faith Initiative.
The common denominator that we share here is our love for God, our neighbor, and God's Earth, and our refusal to bow down to the tyranny of fear that threatens to envelop the world in warfare and other violence.
If the world is to survive into the next century, we must put away our weapons of mass destruction and take up the tools of mass construction.
The creation of this 37-acre Tri-Faith campus is the result of hundreds of thousands of hours of prayer and hard work by a multitude of Jews, Christians, and Muslims, representing a wide variety of denominations, communions, and theological orientations.
In this respect, those who gathered for prayer, song, and reflection, representing three ancient faiths, provided a view of the world's FUTURE, not merely its past. For it is on this Tri-Faith campus that friendship has blossomed into a humble act of mass construction: a place where Jews, Christians, and Muslims are intentionally co-locating to learn what it means to live in love and peace with those who have traditionally been at odds with one another.
Photo of children prayers for peace into a tri-color weaving, symbolizing both the prayers and the country in which a Tri-Faith Initiative is made possible.
While Omaha's Tri-Faith Initiative may be America's only multi-faith campus of its kind, we are certainly not the only interfaith initiative that traces its origins to 9/11.
I therefore make a modest proposal to all who have ears to hear it: Share the photo attached with this article - and the article itself - with your friends and all who could use a bit of GOOD news this week. Consider changing your profile picture on Facebook, for instance, and sharing the article there. And consider giving $1 to the Tri-Faith Initiative to help us build the final building on the Tri-Faith Campus: our Welcome Center where the world may come and experience the same inspiration we experience every day.
Photo shows the future home of Countryside Community Church on the far left, the American Muslim Institute's mosque on far right and thefuture Welcome Center in the middle. This photo was taken on the grounds of Temple Israel's already completed synagogue.
In the future, let us turn September 11th into a day in which we prayerfully remember those whose lives have been lost due to religious violence, and a day where we celebrate the many ways the world is coming back together through courageous acts of hospitality and good will, friendship and love.
May the God of Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and Mohammad - the One God we worship together - grant God's blessing on all efforts that promote reconciliation with God, our Neighbor, and God's Earth. Shalom. Peace. Salaam. And amen.
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
It's Another Trump-Biden Showdown — And We Need Your Help
The Future Of Democracy Is At Stake
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
Your Loyalty Means The World To Us
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
The 2024 election is heating up, and women's rights, health care, voting rights, and the very future of democracy are all at stake. Donald Trump will face Joe Biden in the most consequential vote of our time. And HuffPost will be there, covering every twist and turn. America's future hangs in the balance. Would you consider contributing to support our journalism and keep it free for all during this critical season?
HuffPost believes news should be accessible to everyone, regardless of their ability to pay for it. We rely on readers like you to help fund our work. Any contribution you can make — even as little as $2 — goes directly toward supporting the impactful journalism that we will continue to produce this year. Thank you for being part of our story.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
It's official: Donald Trump will face Joe Biden this fall in the presidential election. As we face the most consequential presidential election of our time, HuffPost is committed to bringing you up-to-date, accurate news about the 2024 race. While other outlets have retreated behind paywalls, you can trust our news will stay free.
But we can't do it without your help. Reader funding is one of the key ways we support our newsroom. Would you consider making a donation to help fund our news during this critical time? Your contributions are vital to supporting a free press.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our journalism free and accessible to all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
As Americans head to the polls in 2024, the very future of our country is at stake. At HuffPost, we believe that a free press is critical to creating well-informed voters. That's why our journalism is free for everyone, even though other newsrooms retreat behind expensive paywalls.
Our journalists will continue to cover the twists and turns during this historic presidential election. With your help, we'll bring you hard-hitting investigations, well-researched analysis and timely takes you can't find elsewhere. Reporting in this current political climate is a responsibility we do not take lightly, and we thank you for your support.
Contribute as little as $2 to keep our news free for all.
Can't afford to donate? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. Would you consider becoming a regular HuffPost contributor?
Dear HuffPost Reader
Thank you for your past contribution to HuffPost. We are sincerely grateful for readers like you who help us ensure that we can keep our journalism free for everyone.
The stakes are high this year, and our 2024 coverage could use continued support. If circumstances have changed since you last contributed, we hope you'll consider contributing to HuffPost once more.
Support HuffPostAlready contributed? Log in to hide these messages.