AT THE CENTER
Matthew Scherer on 9/11, the Financial Crisis, and Climate Change as Conversion Events (Full Screen)
Judaism
Interviews (15)
Judaism is a religious tradition centered on the idea of a covenant between God and the Jewish people that can be traced back to the prophets Abraham and Moses. The Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) and an extensive interpretative literature (Mishnah and Talmud) outline the laws and practices that provide a basis for the different contemporary currents of Judaism, including Orthodox, Conservative, and Reform. Judaism is the oldest of the Abrahamic faiths and the smallest of the world’s major religions, with around 15 million adherents. The US and Israel have the largest Jewish populations, together accounting for about 75 percent of the worldwide total. Israel, the world’s only Jewish-majority state, has been in conflict with Palestinians and the Arab states that surround it for most of its history since its founding in 1948.
Background: This June 2010 discussion between Andrea Blanch and Katherine Marshall focuses on Dr. Blanch's work as a supporter and partner in the Women Reborn Project in Israel. The project centers on the Palestinian village of Fureidis and is a remarkably successful example of women’s empowerment that starts with leadership and has engaged a wide range of partners, including secular women’s organizations and both Muslims and Jews. Blanch highlights the importance of a path that women...
Background: As part of the Foreign Policy Practitioners Interview Series, Dr. Thomas Farr interviewed Elliott Abrams, former member and Chairman of United States Commission on International Religious Freedom and current Senior Fellow for Middle Eastern Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations Washington Office. In this interview, Abrams speaks about how his professional and religious experience led to his involvement with the US Commission on International Religious Freedom. Additionally,...
Background: As part of the Peacebuilding Practitioners Interview Series, Ilan Cooper interviewed Reverend Gordon Oliver, who currently serves as chairman of the Cape Town Interfaith Initiative. In this interview, Oliver speaks about the role of religious actors in the political development of South Africa, especially during the transition period towards a more inclusive democratic system.
Background: As part of the Peacebuilding Practitioners Interview Series, Ilan Cooper interviewed Sharon February, who is the Program Administrator for the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation (IJR) and a member of the Anglican Church of South Africa. In this interview, February speaks about the role of the church in mitigating conflict in South Africa.
Background: In 1992, Rev. Canon Gideon Byamugisha, an Anglican priest in Uganda, became the first African religious leader to openly admit to being HIV-positive. Following his disclosure to the public, he began to speak widely to other leaders about the need to reduce stigma associated with the disease. In 2000 he founded the Africa Network of Religious Leaders Living with or Personally Affected by HIV/AIDS. In the following discussion between Rev. Byamugisha and Thomas Bohnett, he describes...
Background: In this discussion, Ruth Messinger, President of the American Jewish World Service (AJWS), talks about her long career in New York City politics and her transition in the late 1990s to the top post of AJWS. Messinger describes AJWS' support for hundreds of development projects around the world, all of them initiated at the grassroots by people from the communities that the projects serve. Because this interview was conducted soon after the Sudanese President Omar Bashir ordered...
Background: Thomas Getman, until March 2009 the director of international relations for World Vision, traced his career working for President Gerald Ford, in the U.S. Senate, and then for 25 years with World Vision in South Africa, Palestine, and Geneva. Getman talked about the gradual movement of World Vision, which has traditionally been a Christian-inspired organization, towards a pluralistic organization fueled by the social justice and humanitarian impulses of people of a range of faith...
Click here for the Spanish translation.
Background: This discussion between Katherine Marshall, Brady Walkinshaw, and Elías Szczytnicki took place as part of preparatory work for a January 30th-31st, 2009 consultation in Antigua, Guatemala on the role played by faith-based organizations in development work. In the interview, Mr. Szczytnicki shares how he developed a keen interest and expertise in interfaith dynamics. He offers his opinion on how religious organizations and governments across...
Background: This discussion between Katherine Marshall, Brady Walkinshaw, and Elías Szczytnicki took place as part of preparatory work for a January 30th-31st, 2009 consultation in Antigua, Guatemala on the role played by faith-based organizations in development work. In the interview, Mr. Szczytnicki shares how he developed a keen interest and expertise in interfaith dynamics. He offers his opinion on how religious organizations and governments across...
Background: Ari Johnson, co-founder and co-Executive Director for Project Muso, started the organization in 2005 to address poverty and health issues in Yirimadjo, a small village in Mali. The Project Muso approach emphasizes solidarity with the poor, and addressing the root causes of poverty. Two of the initial programmatic focuses of the program are malaria prevention and women's education. The later program includes a micro-finance component which, at the time of the interview, had...
Background: Father Robert J. Vitillo is a full-time Special Advisor to Caritas on HIV and AIDS, directing the Caritas Internationalis response to wide-ranging aspects of the global pandemic in various parts of the world. He previously served as the Executive Director of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). Prior to joining the staff of USCCB, Father Vitillo was Caritas Internationalis delegate to the United Nations in New York and...
Background: In preparation for a December 17, 2007 symposium in Doha on global development and faith-inspired organizations in the Muslim World, Katherine Marshall and Hady Amr met again to discuss Mr. Amr's recent work. In this interview, Mr. Amr reflects on his work at the Brookings Doha Center and the role of faith in the public square in both the United States and in the Muslim World. He discusses Islamic social movements and reemphasizes the potential and necessity of a partnership...
Background: The following conversation between Patrice Brodeur and Katherine Marshall was conducted by phone as part of preparation for a December 17, 2007 conference in Doha on "Global Development and Faith-Inspired Organizations in the Muslim World." Mr. Brodeur shares how he became passionate about the study of religions and discusses his current involvement in the interfaith dialogue in the Islamic world. He describes his vision of "inter-worldview dialogue" as intended to merge the...
Background: This conversation between David Beckmann and Katherine Marshall took place in the context of preparatory work for an April 16, 2007 conference at Georgetown University on the role of faith-based organizations in development. In the following discussion, Mr. Beckmann shares how his personal faith has shaped his work in both secular and faith-based institutions. He also outlines the work of Bread for the World, a Christian organization aimed at mobilizing citizens and the US...
Background: This conversation between William Recant and Katherine Marshall took place as part of the preparatory work for an April 16, 2007 conference at Georgetown University on the role of faith-based organizations in development. The conference was part of a joint Berkley Center for Religion, Peace and World Affairs and Luce Foundation project on religion and international relations.
Background: This discussion between Hady Amr and Katherine Marshall took place as part of the preparatory work for an April 16, 2007 conference on faith-based organizations and global development policy. In this interview, Mr. Amr highlights the need for further exploration of the dynamics of faith-based organizations, and how they differ from their secular counterparts. He speaks about his own experiences working with Islam and development in the Middle East, and concludes that faith is "the...