Welcoming the Stranger Qais Al Sindy

A rabbi, an imam, and a priest attend an art exhibit... no. this isn't the beginning of yet another corny joke, it's the real opportunity made possible through an exhibit called Abraham, Out of One, Many. A year ago a thousand people of different faiths gathered on Boston Common to solemnly recognize the terrorist attack on the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh. Nearly a year later the Episcopal cathedral in Boston is hosting an interfaith art exhibit that explores the faith and life of Abraham, the shared spiritual forebear of the world’s three largest monotheistic religions — and launched an accompanying interfaith book study to spotlight Abraham’s wives, Sarah and Hagar.The Boston exhibition began with a concert featuring music from the three traditions.

Exhibition in Little Rock, Arkansas

This is a two-year tour curated by the Rev. Paul-Gordon Chandler of Caravan, an international art non-profit affiliated with the Episcopal Church. After premiering in Rome in May, the show began a 20-month U.S. tour at Nebraska’s Tri-Faith Initiative this Autumn.

I think this is a wonderful initiative, employing the arts to address what is an unspeakable tragedy motivated by hate. My one quibble is that it might have been called " Abraham, Sarah, and Hagar: Out of Three, Many" which would have recognized the importance of the biblical and quranic women, knowing that a number of the Pittsburgh victims were women. That aside, these initiatives remind us that despite our differences we have so much in common in joy and in sorrow.

Thoughts?