From The Columbus Dispatch (Ohio)
Three congregations in central Ohio are coming together to increase interfaith dialogue and understanding by getting people to talk about their differences and similarities when it comes to food.
“Everybody Eats: Exploring Food, Flavors and Faith” kicks off with a lecture on Sunday at Temple Israel on the East Side. The four-part series runs through June 8 and will explore the feasting and fasting traditions of the three Abrahamic faiths: Judaism, Christianity and Islam.
“Since we all eat, and food is a part of both our cultural traditions and our ritual traditions, it seemed like a natural way to gather people around for conversation,” said Senior Rabbi Misha Zinkow of Temple Israel. “It’s a great way to gain some understanding and respect.”
The series is sponsored by Temple Israel, Trinity Episcopal Church Downtown and Noor Islamic Cultural Center in Hilliard. It is supported by a grant from the Columbus Jewish Federation.
“We’re looking at the foods that define each one of those groups as special and different, but also how the food practices make us very much the same,” said Ohio State University anthropology professor Jeffrey Cohen, a Temple Israel member who will present Sunday’s lecture.
“One of the goals is that people will feel a little more comfortable about different faiths and, I think, will be able to define common ground.”
Imran Malik, the chairman of the board that oversees Noor, said he hopes the series also leads to more interfaith cooperation. For example, he said, students from the Muslim Students Association at Ohio State make sandwiches for a street church service at Trinity.
