Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints hosts communicators, debunks myths

The Detroit Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day SaintsEvery couple of months, an informal group of professional communicators with interest in religion and diversity--journalists, authors, educators, filmmakers, web developers, and media experts, to name a few--convenes to connect and share news about local interfaith developments. 

The January gathering, hosted by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, offered timely resources in the midst of the presidential campaign's heightened rhetoric.  Communicators spoke directly with top state church officials about the background, traditions, missions, and beliefs of the Latter-day Saints. 

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IFLC presents interfaith symposium in collaboration with Detroit Insitute of Arts

Self-portrait by Rembrandt at age 34On December 4, the Interfaith Leadership Council of Metropolitan Detroit (IFLC) will present a unique opportunity to examine interfaith culture with the symposium “Religion, Community and the Arts: Breaking Barriers, Building Bridges” at the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA). Held in conjunction with the DIA’s special exhibit Rembrandt and the Face of Jesus, the symposium will include an interfaith expert panel and guided tour of the Dutch master’s paintings, prints and drawings portraying Jesus and other events in the Bible.

One noteworthy feature of the Rembrandt collection, shown only at the Louvre in Paris, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and the DIA, is Rembrandt’s use of a Jewish model to represent Jesus--a radical move in seventeenth century Europe. Reviewing the Philadelphia exhibit, the Wall Street Journal noted: “In the middle of his long career, we learn, Rembrandt began to portray Jesus with features subtly resembling those of contemporary Amsterdam Jews, a move starkly at odds with artistic tradition, yet in no way contrary to the text of the Bible.” Time magazine notes Rembrandt “changed our image of Christ from remote divinity to man on the street.”

Nancy Thayer, IFLC board member and local artist on faculty at the University of Michigan School of Art & Design, links the Rembrandt exhibit to current interfaith tensions worldwide. “Rembrandt broke barriers among the faith communities in his environment--barriers that we are challenged by even today,” she said. “This event is a process of education and understanding vital to breaking down misconceptions and misunderstandings in our day and time.”

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Worldviews Seminar illuminates the human face, voice and passion of Metro Detroit’s many faith traditions

The 2011 University of Michigan-Dearborn’s Worldviews Seminar far exceeded the expectations of the Rev. Bruce Campbell, a retired Episcopal priest and Interfaith Leadership Council (IFLC) scholarship recipient.

“It was beyond interesting and informative,” Campbell said in his report to the IFLC Education Committee. The seminar provided a deeply moving, “real life opportunity to enter the sacred spaces of a wide range of religious faiths.” While Campbell initially had an idea or impression of what others believe, the seminar illuminated “the immediacy of the face, voice and passion of another human being.”

The IFLC provides annual scholarships to the six-day Worldviews Seminar hosted by the University of Michigan-Dearborn’s Center for the Study of Religion and Society. Created in the aftermath of September 11, 2001, the seminar is designed to acquaint participants with the perspectives and cultural identities of many world religious through presentations, community visits, personal dialogue and discovery.

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