Interfaith Community of Lower Bucks Joins Global Initiative; Interfaith Film Festival Set for November in Yardley

BUCKS COUNTY >> The Interfaith Community of Lower Bucks (ICLB) has joined the non-profit United Religions Initiative (URI) as a part of its “cooperation circle” which is aimed at cultivating peace and justice in communities around the world.

URI is a global grassroots interfaith network whose goal is to help create and assist independent local organizations with the most pressing religious and cultural differences in their communities. Find more info at http://www.uri.org/cbs

The Interfaith Community of Lower Bucks is a group of representatives from faith-based communities who came together to build harmony, community and understanding by hosting and participating in community work, play, worship and education.

Natalie Kaye of Newtown, ICLB chairman, explained why the local interfaith group decided to join the global initiative.

Kaye said fellow-ICLB board members wanted to be part of a greater movement. “We thought we could benefit by connecting to other nearby groups and becoming part of a world-wide network of sister organizations,” she explained.

“We were very excited about all the possibilities and how joining with others would help our small group make an even more significant difference in our mission and purpose,” Kaye continued. “We believe in cooperation and working together with like-minded organizations to impact change.”

Kaye learned about URI from the CBS-TV program, “May Peace Prevail on Earth.”

This special broadcast introduced audiences to the world of interfaith peacebuilding. Viewers are taken on a journey celebrating the work of extraordinary people from across the globe, and offered a solution to the despair and devastating news that have taken over our day-to -day lives.

The ICLB will show May Peace Prevail on Earth, next year on Sunday, Jan. 21 at the Yardley United Methodist Church from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. The public is invited and it is a free event.

From a one-of-a-kind Christmas Eve celebration in San Francisco to the war-torn streets of the Middle East and conflict-ridden cities of Western Africa, viewers experienced extraordinary stories of cooperation across religious divides, received wishes from around the world, and unwrapped the present of peace.

(View the CBS trailer at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWZ2dgd1fbg)

ABOUT ICLB

ICLB, which was started by the late Rev. Al Krass, has existed for a while but was under a different name - The Lower Bucks Center for Church and Community. At that time, only Christian-based faiths were members. Now, more religions are represented in the gr

Kaye said ICLB’a mission is to create the “beloved community” that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. spoke about - to bring people of all faiths together - to have a deeper appreciation of each other's faiths and traditions. The ICLB shares those traditions through pot-luck dinners, programs and other opportunities. The mission is also to work with other groups like URI and other like-minded groups to bring about harmony and understanding among all peoples.

Before the vote was cast recently for ICLB to join the global initiative, two URI leaders spoke to the ICLB board. They are: Sari Heidenreich, URI’s North American regional coordinator, and Nivy Balachandran, regional URI coordinator of Australia-Pacific and URI communications officer of South-East Asia.

INTERFAITH FILM FESTIVAL PLANNED FOR NOV. 5 IN YARDLEY

The public is invited to the upcoming Interfaith Film Festival on Sunday, Nov. 5 from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Yardley United Methodist Church, located at the intersection of Yardley-Newtown Road and Yardley-Langhorne Road.

The festival is hosted by the ICLB.

Two 30-minute films dealing with hate crimes will be shown.

The first will be “Not in Our Town.” This film shows how ordinary citizens in Billings, Montana joined together to stand up to hate when their neighbors were under attack by white supremacists.

The second is “Waking in Oak Creek” As the Sikh community in Oak Creek, Wisconsin prepares for Sunday prayers, a deadly hate attack shatters their lives, but not their resilience.

After six worshipers are killed by a white supremacist, the local community finds inspiration in the Sikh tradition of forgiveness and faith. A police lieutenant, who was shot 15 times in the attack, joins the mayor and police chief as they forge new bonds with the Sikh community.

The film focuses on young temple members, still grieving, who emerge as leaders in the quest to end the violence. In the year following the tragedy, thousands gather for vigils and community events to honor the victims and seek connection.

Together, a community rocked by hate, is awakened and transformed by the Sikh spirit of relentless optimism.

For more information about ICLB and these sponsored events, call 215-579-1836 or email: natkaye@starlinx.com