Nearly 100 people gathered Saturday for the 4th annual Interfaith Progressive D
inner, an opportunity to sample food and faith from four different faith traditions. It was a beautiful time of learning, fellowship, intermingling of people from different faith and cultural backgrounds and, of course, sampling of delicious foods.
The Progressive Dinner started at Hebron Mennonite Church, where attendees were treated to homemade breads, spreads of local apple butter and jam, and a unique pumpkin dish of Ethiopian origin, where many Mennonites live today. Pastor Anna Ressler shared a little history about the Mennonite faith and practices, and the church’s choir sang songs a cappella with beautiful harmony.
Outside at Hebron Mennonite Church, Ven. Temm Bikle, Buddhist Monk from the Nipponzan Myohoji tradition, treated the crowd to a Japanese noodle slide. In this fun activity, attendees caught their own soup noodles with chopsticks as they slid down a chute (or tried to, those using a fork had more success!).
The entrée was served at Congregation B’Nai Abraham, a Jewish Reform synagogue. During his opening comments, Rabbi Mark Perman tried his hand at blowing a small shofar to celebrate the Jewish new year of Rosh Hashanah, which started September 22. On the menu was baked chicken thighs with apricot preserve sauce; Kasha Varnishkas, an Eastern European Jewish peasant dish of buckwheat and noodles; hummus and pita, a popular Israeli dish; salad; and sliced apples and honey, representing the hope for a sweet, prosperous, and blessed new year. Guests also had an opportunity to visit the sanctuary and see the Torah scroll.
For dessert, everyone headed to the mosque of the Islamic Society of Western Maryland. Here, Imam Nazir Faruki’s son recited a part of the Koran, the Islamic holy book, and Imam Nazir shared some of the Prophet Mohammad’s teachings on inter-religious relations, which include living peacefully with everyone and integrating into society in any way that doesn’t go against Islamic law. Afterward, the imam answered questions from guests, with most attendees learning something new. As always, the dessert buffet was a special treat, with an abundance of sweets, including traditional Pakistani kheer. But perhaps the sweetest thing at the mosque was watching Jewish and Muslim children playing together joyfully, demonstrating the foundations of peace.
See more photos from the Interfaith Progressive Dinner on our Facebook page or here. 
