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

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:

• What religion do I practice and why?
• How do you practice your religion?  What is most important to you in that practice?
• What are some of the personal and educational experiences that have defined your faith, religion, and relationship to God?
• What are you hoping to learn from this experience?  How will you pay attention to that need?

​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.