COMINNITT
VIEWS

INTERFAITH FROM PAGE 36

of its programming to include people
of all faiths. The yearly Thanksgiving
service held at a church, temple or
Islamic house of prayer includes peo-
ple of many of the world religions. Its
annual directory lists assemblies from
various religious bodies.
Once again, each of these bodies
reaches a small segment of our total
population. Yet, those touched by
organizations such as these learn to
respect the religious expressions of
others. In turn, participants will help
influence friends and relatives in a
positive way because of their experi-
ences.
Newspapers and news organizations
are quick to report on hate crimes,
bigotry and intolerance between peo-
ple of different religious expressions.
Yet, when we consider the scope of
this century, there has been outstand-
ing progress in interfaith relations in
our metropolitan area as well as in
many parts of our country over the
last 20 years.
Occasions like the gathering of Jews
and Christians at the Shrine of the
Little Flower and Temple Shir Shalom,
the annual Thanksgiving service and
the dialogue opportunities presented
by the Detroit Parliament, the Ecu-
menical Institute and the NCCJ are
indicators of this progress. They give
us hope that people do desire to live
and work together in an atmosphere
of mutual understanding and respect.
They help us realize that we need to
be together in solving the problems of
our society and in promoting the
common good. 1-1

LETTERS

LETTERS FROM PAGE 37

Oak Park
Worth Emulating

Bloomfield Plaza
Telegraph at Maple Rd.
(248) 855-8877
Open Mon.-Sat. 10-6 pm
Thurs til 8 pm

My cousin (a native-born Oak Parker,
like myself) sent me a copy of Robert
Sklar's column on north Oak Park ("A
Feeling of Community," July 9). I am
very pleased to know that this neigh-
borhood remains intact and vibrant
and, as you suggest, it is indeed a
model for religious-secular integration
and understanding.
Wouldn't it be wonderful to create
community this way all over this
country?
Steven Rosenbaum
Berkeley, Calif