 What a journey we have had over the past 12 weeks, 6 sessions, and lots of learning. Appreciate your interest and commitment to your personal Spiritual Journey and from the many comments made last night, thoughtful learnings and sharing and a desire to stay connected. What started out as an experiment turned into a lovely learning journey. I think what says it all is the consistent attendance over the 6 weeks and the deep level of sharing that occurred over Zoom!! Can you imagine if we were together in person? Also want to include the corrected reference for the book that Flo shared, ‘The Engaged Spiritual Life’ by Donald Rothberg If you wouldn’t mind responding to the attached survey with your feedback so that I can collect your thoughts and ideas, share them with Flo, Jo-Ann, and Shireen, and Michelleslie, and look for an opportunity for an in-person gathering. I know we talked a lot about possibilities last night, include those too! Flo, Jo-Ann, Shireen and Michelleslie...include your thoughts on the survey too!)
Please respond to [email protected] (Don’t hit REPLY ALL!) by FRIDAY, April 26! Thanks in advance for your thoughts... ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ Looking for your feedback regarding the sessions. Please answer honestly and feel free to include your name, or not. Since I am receiving all the surveys, I will summarize and not share individual feedback. We will use the feedback to determine future plans. Copy the questions into an email, answer, and send it to Janet! ([email protected]) 1.) What did you find most valuable? 2.) How did you find the book, ‘The Faith Club’ as a backdrop to our discussions? Would you like to use that book again, or perhaps another one that sparks discussion? (This was not intended to be a book club, going chapter by chapter, and so if another book is chosen, it would follow the same process.) 3.) What could we have done differently? 4.) Would you be interested in continuing with another series in the Fall? 5.) Would you be interested in getting together in person in the summer with the group for dinner? Please list your first and second preference if there is second preference. We may want to have two gatherings to include everyone. Probably looking at July dates. a. Tuesday evening? b. Sunday afternoon? 6.) What kind of meeting would you like to see in the future? 7.) How often would you like to meet? (Bi-weekly, Monthly, Bi-monthly, or just focus on one meeting at a time.) 8.) Other comments/thoughts/suggestions? Thanks again for taking the time to complete this survey. We’ll see where we might take this in the future. Warm Regards, Janet Janet B. Matts Office: (908) 203-9284 Cell: (908) 334-5504 [email protected] www.janetmatts.com Thank you again for our session this week on ‘Prayer’ with the Interfaith Women’s Leadership Group! Some terrific stories and ideas for what is prayer, how do we pray, and how do we pray alone and together. It was a fun session again filled with many personal stories! We are headed into our final session in the series and hope that you can all participate.
The book that Flo recommended during the session was ‘Cultivating Wise Speech,’ by Donald Rothenberger Our next session will be on Tuesday, April 16 from 7:00 – 8:30 pm and we will discuss the book as well as our spiritual journey during these six weeks. Here is the link for the Zoom call. https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88528937693?pwd=R0OtLpXIiS37GaXZ6VDZnA4JYSbF4T.1 The Reading Assignment for the next session is Chapters 16 -19 pages 248 - 293 in ‘The Faith Club.’ Please bring any questions/comments or impressions of the book as this will be our last session. Here are a few questions that might consider perhaps if you are journaling, or just to think about after Tuesday night’s session:
Your responses are part of your own journey and will allow you to personally explore your own faith and take notes to your own learning. At our last session, our discussion will focus on: Share the impact of this six week series on your Faith Journey. How will continue on your path? What have you learned about yourself during this process? We will also talk about what you liked about this process, what suggestions do you have that would make it even more impactful. And would you be interested in getting together in person or continuing perhaps in the Fall? The link to all the assignments for the Interfaith Women’s Leadership Group has been updated and contains all the information sent out on a regular basis. If you need to review assignments or other information shared, you will find it on this link. The newest one will always be on top and the older ones will be below. https://www.churchholyspirit.org/interfaith-womenrsquos-leadership-group-iwl Comments/questions/suggestions always welcome. See you on April 16! Thank you again for your participation. Janet Janet B. Matts Office: (908) 203-9284 Cell: (908) 334-5504 [email protected] www.janetmatts.com There were several good resources to share this week including:
Thanks everyone for sharing resources that we can all learn from. ***************************** Hello ladies, here is the article regarding genocide that I mentioned near the end of our meeting. These are scholars and some of them are calling what is happening in Gaza a genocide. Emotions aside, sometimes it is what it is. I personally believe that acknowledging this current situation as a genocide does NOT discount any of the horrors that the Jewish people faced during the holocaust. I personally walked alongside people of the Jewish faith who were holding up signs with the words genocide. https://time.com/6334409/is-whats-happening-gaza-genocide-experts/ Thanks, Shireen To the Interfaith Women Leaders:
Since we will still be in Ramadan on April 2, and in order to again allow our Muslim women to participate fully, we will start our session at 7:30 pm instead of 7 pm on Tuesday April 2. This way they can pray and eat and then join us with energy and full participation. Thank you again for our session this week on Zoom with the Interfaith Women’s Leadership Group! We are not always in agreement like Priscilla, Ranya and Suzanne in the ‘The Faith Club’ book. It takes courage to speak of one’s faith and question things we don’t understand. Thanks for sharing a belief that was challenged or changed during your spiritual journey. That was a powerful sharing. Most importantly, we all create a ‘safe space’ to allow for those deep sharings and questions. We have gotten to a point with this special group that seeks to acknowledge differences, seeking to understand them. If we see differences as problematic, we reduce things to common denominators rather than seeking to acknowledge differences, to understand them. This is what this opportunity is all about. I would like to suggest that everyone pay attention to when they are speaking on Zoom so that we can hear you. Test out your microphone and speak into it. As we continue to get to know each other with each call, we grow deeper in our personal spiritual journey. We can’t avoid the politics that has been part of the ongoing religious struggles and wars, but we listen for understanding, not judgement, and recognize that our stories are individual and reflect one’s personal experience. It is all in the spirit of learning. Appreciating your very respectful focus. Our next session will be on Tuesday, March 19 from 7:30 – 9:00 pm and we will continue to explore the questions raised in the book as well as our own questions and learnings from each other. Here is the link for the Zoom call. https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88528937693?pwd=R0OtLpXIiS37GaXZ6VDZnA4JYSbF4T.1 The Reading Assignment for the next session is Chapters 13-15 pages 200 - 247 in ‘The Faith Club,’ and we will build on this week’s conversation and those raised in the Zoom chat. Here are a few questions that might consider perhaps if you are journaling, or just to think about after Tuesday night’s session:
Your responses are part of your own journey and will allow you to personally explore your own faith and take notes to your learning. At the next session, we will introduce ourselves again and answer the question: How do you pray? Why do you pray? What’s the importance of prayer ritual and communal prayer at houses of worship? We will share those thoughts with each other as we open the next session. We will then ask for any input regarding the last session, thoughts/learnings and get some basic understanding of the Shiite/Sunni distinctions in the Muslim faith (Thank You Tayyaba!) The link to all the assignments for the Interfaith Women’s Leadership Group has been updated and contains all the information sent out on a regular basis. If you need to review assignments or other information shared, you will find it on this link. The newest one will always be on top and the older ones will be below. https://www.churchholyspirit.org/interfaith-womenrsquos-leadership-group-iwl Comments/questions/suggestions always welcome. See you on April 2! Thank you again for your participation. Janet Janet B. Matts Office: (908) 203-9284 Cell: (908) 334-5504 [email protected] www.janetmatts.com  To the Interfaith Women Leaders on this International Women’s Day...
It was another good discussion on Tuesday on Zoom at the Interfaith Women’s Leadership Group! As we get to know each other with each call, we share our thoughts, experiences and questions providing a safe space for those conversations. Thank you all for sharing your ‘aha moments’ in your faith, as we continue to learn and explore our personal stories and faith journey. As we get to know each other more and more, we tell stories of our experiences, and not necessarily the truth of where a faith practice is currently. We can’t avoid the politics that has been part of the ongoing religious struggles and wars, but we listen for understanding, not judgement and recognize that our stories are individual and one’s personal experience. It is all in the spirit of learning. You all have been very respectful of that focus. Thank you Susan for sharing your thoughts even though you couldn’t be with us. Attached is the wonderful Crayon poem that Stephanie shared with us. Our next session will be on Tuesday, March 19 from 7 – 8:30 pm and we will continue to explore the questions raised in the book as well as our own questions and learnings. Here is the link for the Zoom call. https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88528937693?pwd=R0OtLpXIiS37GaXZ6VDZnA4JYSbF4T.1 The Reading Assignment for the next session is Chapters 10-12 pages 145-200 in ‘The Faith Club,’ and we will build on the conversations we have been having as well as the questions raised in the Zoom Chat. Here are a few questions that might consider perhaps if you are journaling, or just to think about after last night’s session:
At the next session, we will introduce ourselves again, name, faith affiliation and a belief that was challenged or changed during your spiritual journey. Said another way, something you may have learned recently that allowed you to change your mind about a faith practice or another’s faith practice. It could be part at a significant time of your life, or perhaps during these sessions. We will share those thoughts with each other as we open the next session and continue to get to know each other. We will then ask for any input regarding the last session, thoughts/learnings and get additional thoughts on the afterlife from a Jewish perspective, (Thank you Flo!); as well as some basic understanding of the Shiite/Sunni distinctions in the Muslim faith (Thank You Tayyaba!) The link to all the assignments for the Interfaith Women’s Leadership Group has been updated and contains all the information sent out on a regular basis. If you need to review assignments or other information shared, you will find it on this link. The newest one will always be on top and the older ones will be below. https://www.churchholyspirit.org/interfaith-womenrsquos-leadership-group-iwl Comments/questions/suggestions always welcome. See you on March 19th! Celebrate YOU on this International Women’s Leadership Day! Janet Janet B. Matts Office: (908) 203-9284 Cell: (908) 334-5504 [email protected] www.janetmatts.com  Good to see you all on Tuesday on Zoom at the Interfaith Women’s Leadership Group! Welcome to Tayyaba, Roberta and Karen! We had perfect attendance yesterday and obviously, you are all committed to and enjoying this opportunity! Thank you all for sharing your special daily reminders of your faith, there was continued learning in that exercise. The next session will be on Tuesday, March 5 from 7 – 8:30 pm and look forward to a continuation of last night’s discussion. Here is the link for the Zoom call. There was a bit of confusion last night and so I will send out in the follow-up email after each session to make it easier to find. https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88528937693?pwd=R0OtLpXIiS37GaXZ6VDZnA4JYSbF4T.1 The Reading Assignment for the next session is Chapters 7-9, pages 96-145 in ‘The Faith Club,’ and we will build on the conversations from last evening. Here’s a few questions that might consider perhaps if you are journaling or just to think about after last night’s session:
At the next session, we will introduce ourselves again, name, faith affiliation and share a unique moment in your past that helped define your personal faith, i.e. an aha moment for you of your faith! It could be when you were growing up, a life event, a current realization. We will share those thoughts with each other as we open the next session and continue to get to know each other. We will then ask for any input regarding the last session, thoughts/learnings on stereotypes or the question of being mistaken as a Christian/Muslim or Jew, before we proceed into the next conversation. The link to all the assignments for the Interfaith Women’s Leadership Group has been updated and contains all the information sent out on a regular basis. If you need to review assignments or other information shared, you will find it on this link. The newest one will always be on top and the older ones will be below. https://www.churchholyspirit.org/interfaith-womenrsquos-leadership-group-iwl In accessing from the Church of the Holy Spirit Website: It is Formation->CHS School ->CHS School Offerings -> IWL
Comments/questions/suggestions always welcome. See you on March 5th!
Warm Regards, Janet Janet B. Matts Office: (908) 203-9284 Cell: (908) 334-5504 [email protected] www.janetmatts.com  Thank you everyone for a great first s7tart to the Interfaith Women’s Leadership Initiative! It was wonderful to meet you all and hear your voices and commitment to your faith and learning more about each other’s faith practices. It was great to see such good sharing and dialogue at our first session with a group of women committed to learning and growing.
The next session will be on Tuesday, February 20 from 7 – 8:30 pm and there will be a couple of new participants that were unable to make it to the first session. The Reading Assignment is Chapters 4-6, pages 37-108 in ‘The Faith Club,’ and although we may not get to all of the information, we will continue to use the book as a backdrop for dialogue and learning. We certainly didn’t run out of conversation during this last session and I suspect it will be the same as we get to know each other! Here are a few questions that might consider perhaps if you are journaling or just to think about as we move forward:
Your responses are part of your own journey and will allow you to personally explore your own faith and take notes to your learning. We will introduce ourselves again, name, faith affiliation and if attending, House of Worship, and to share something that daily reminds you of your faith connection. It could be a prayer, a symbol, a habit, an item... As requested in the chat, sharing the Night Prayer read at the end of the session, see attached. Comments/questions/suggestions always welcome. See you on February 20th! Warm Regards, Janet Janet B. Matts Office: (908) 203-9284 Cell: (908) 334-5504 [email protected] www.janetmatts.com Thank you for signing up to be a part of our upcoming Interfaith Adventure starting February 6 and occurring every other Tuesday for 6 weeks from 7 – 8:30 pm on Zoom. Here are the actual dates: February 6, 20, March 5, 19, April 2, 16. We appreciate the commitment you are making so that we can have some interesting exploration and dialogue. Although we are using the book, ‘The Faith Club’ as a guide for our conversations and discussions, we have identified four local Faith Based Facilitators to help us in our journey. They have read the book, have interesting perspectives and thoughts about their own experiences, and are affiliated with local houses of worship. Michelleslie Maltese is a cradle Episcopalian and is one of the Deacons at the Episcopal Church of the Holy Spirit in Lebanon, NJ. After graduating from Drew University Theological Seminary with a Masters of Arts in Theology and Ministry, she was ordained to the Sacred Order of Deacons in the Episcopal church. Michelleslie also holds a graduate certificate in Interfaith Dialogue and Peacebuilding which has sparked the work with the Interfaith Women’s Leadership project. She is currently working on her Doctorate of Ministry at Drew University Theological Seminary. Michelleslie lives in Ringoes, NJ and when she is not busy studying, enjoys chaplain ministry, and cooking and entertaining friends. Florence (Flo) Friedman Hurwitz, a long time native of New Jersey, retired in 2012, from serving as the Cantor of the Temple Sinai in Summit, New Jersey. In addition to her cantorial training, she is a graduate of the clergy cohort of the Institute for Jewish Spirituality as well as their Jewish Meditation Teachers’ Training Program. Flo volunteers as a hospital chaplain, member of her community’s CERT (community emergency response team), meditation teacher, Torah reader, and co-convener of the Pennington CPSP chapter. She is affiliated with the Flemington Jewish Community Center (FJCC). She takes piano lessons, loves to garden, read, and spend time with her extended family and friends. She and her husband, Loren Hurwitz, currently reside in the picturesque town of Lambertville on the Delaware River! Shireen Kahn, was born in Chicago, raised in various places and ended up settling in Hunterdon County, where she has been for the last 18 years, currently living in Flemington. She is married with three boys that keep her extremely busy… especially in the kitchen! She currently teaches English at Kean University, Islamic Studies at Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women, and at Qur’an to high school boys at the Islamic Center of Hunterdon County (ICHC) mosque. She loves to cook for others, hang out with her boys, take long walks and help people around her to achieve their dreams. Jo-Ann Hoffman, currently is involved at St. Raphael’s/Holy Angel Roman Catholic Parish in Hamilton Township, NJ. She is a retired Professor Emeritus at Rutgers University and worked at the Rutgers Uni. Cooperative Extension Service in Mercer County. Currently a Board Certified Clinical Chaplain volunteering at Robert Wood Johnson/Barnabas Hospital (Mercer County) in addition to being a Eucharistic Minister there. She is a member of a Chapter of Chaplains a support group and a member of CONTACT of Mercer County where she participates in a support phone line for community members and provides back-up for counselors on the 988 Suicide Prevention Crisis Line. In addition, providing Zoom training for new volunteers. During the warmer months, she enjoys gardening, growing herbs, vegetables and flowers...in the colder months nurtures her houseplants to keep her house ‘green.’ In preparation for our first session: Using a computer is best as you have best visibility of the group which is important. If you don’t have a computer, you can use an iPad as an option. Do not use your phone for these meetings as it is hard to see the group and often Zoom works differently. Test out the Zoom link and make sure that your name appears rather than a telephone no. (You can go to the edit profile to change your name) When we are on the Zoom call, please make sure that your camera is on. You may want to keep a journal for yourself as you explore your learning and thoughts. Reading Assignment for February 6: Pages 1-36, Chapters 1-3 and Pages 362-375 in English; or pages 376 – 385 in Hebrew or pages 386 – 396 in Arabic. The Zoom link for the call is:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88528937693?pwd=R0OtLpXIiS37GaXZ6VDZnA4JYSbF4T.1 Please test out the link and make sure that you name is on your zoom so that we can identify each other by first name, rather than phone no. I will be on the call 15 minutes early to help anyone who is having difficulty connecting. I will be moderating the discussions and setting up the bi-weekly assignments and questions. We will be using the chat feature on the Zoom call for questions/comments since we have a fairly large group. We’ll start at 7:00 pm and end promptly at 8:30 pm.  This idea is a result of the Church of the Holy Spirit (CHS) Interfaith visits coordinated by Deacon Michelleslie to various Centers of Worship in the Summer of 2023. Our hope is to expand the connections and discussion across faiths and perhaps in the future partner on projects or services in the community. The media often shapes and skews our perceptions about other faith traditions, especially if we don’t have interactions with other groups. We then hold biases and misconceptions about beliefs that we don’t understand. We decided to call the group the Interfaith Women’s Leadership Group (IWL) since women have great influence in their family and community circles. We thought that we would start with a book discussion with a small, consistent group of women from Church of the Holy Spirit (CHS), The Islamic Center of Hunterdon County (ICHC), St. Raphael’s/Holy Angel Roman Catholic Parish, and the Flemington Jewish Community Center (FJCC), that will initially commit to an 8 week, bi-weekly discussion on Zoom, using the book, ‘The Faith Club’ by Ranya Idliby, Suzanne Oliver, and Priscilla Warner. Three women explore their faith traditions in a rich dialogue and discussion. More information about the book’s origins can be found on thefaithclub.com. We have identified our own Faith-Based Facilitators (FBF) from the four Houses of Worship to provide insight and guidance. The discussions will be moderated to allow for maximum participation. The sessions will start in February 2024 and run through April and we include participants from all four houses of worship.  Registrants are responsible for obtaining a copy of the book, “The Faith Club” by Ranya Idliby, Suzanne Oliver, and Priscilla Warner prior to the first meeting in February. Available at Amazon $10.59 Registration will be limited to 20 registrants who will be able to attend all six sessions on Zoom from 7-8:30 pm on Tuesdays. If we have more than 20 registrants, we will compile a waiting list and reconsider the format. The deadline for registration is January 24. Taking into account, Passover, Ramadan and Easter, and checking calendars, here are the dates for the Tuesday Zoom sessions for the Interfaith Women’s Leadership Group (IWL). February 6, 20 March 5, 19 April 2, 16 We are asking those that register to make a commitment to the 8 week program since it will build on previous conversations each week. And we will limit the registration to a total of 20 participants from the four houses of worship. To register, send your name and email address to: [email protected] and [email protected]. We will confirm your attendance.
If we have more than 20 registrants, we will compile a waiting list and reconsider the format. We will begin the program on Tuesday, February 6 meeting every other week, with consideration to not meeting on faith holy days. The specific calendar dates and additional information will be forthcoming. If you or others you know, (family/friends) are interested, contact Deacon Michelleslie [email protected] or Janet Matts [email protected]. Additional information including the Zoom link, specific dates, discussion schedule, bios of the Faith-Based Facilitators, and initial reading assignment will be sent when we know who will be participating. |
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