2022-2023 Interfaith Books, Movies, Documentaries and Plays Recommended by the Interfaith Elected Council of Contra Costa 2022

 

BOOKS:

 

Holy Envy: Finding God in the Faith of Others by Barbara Brown Taylor (Christine) 

 

Jesus and the Disinherited by Howard Thurman (Carolyn Peters)

 

Community and Growth by Jean Vanier (Dave)

 

Judaism Without Tribalism by Rabbi Rami Shapiro

 

The Elephant is Running by Bruce G. Epperly

 

The Light We Give: How Sikh Wisdom Can Transform Your Life by Simran Jeet Singh

 

Zen and the Art of Saving the Planet by Thich Nhat Hanh

 

Sacred Earth Sacred Soul: Celtic Wisdom for Reawakening to What Our Souls Know and Healing the World  by John Phillip Newell

 

 Hidden Words by Bahá’u’lláh and other Baha’i books. (Ginny)

 

God Passes By by Shoghi Effendi  (Ginny)

 

Sufism: A Bridge Between ReligionsÆ by Nader Angha, Pir, Oveyssi (Reza)

 

Sufism and Faith by Nader Angha (Reza)

 

The Mystic Heart Discovering a Universal Spirituality in the World’s Religions, Wayne Teasdall (Sharon)

 

The Muslim Next Door, Sumbul Ali-Karamali (Sharon)

 

Physicians of the Heart A Sufi view of the Ninety-nine Names of Allah, Wali Ali Meyer, Bilal Hyde, Faisal Muqaddam, Shabda Kahn (Sharon)

 

Why Religion Matters, Huston Smith (Sharon)

 

Without Buddha I could Not be a Christian, Paul F. Knitter (Sharon)

 

Radical Acceptance Embracing Your Life with the Heart of a Buddha, Tara Brach, PhD (Sharon)

 

Secrets of Divine Love A Spiritual Journey into the Heart of Islam, A Helwa (Sharon)

 

Transformation by Integration How Inter-faith Encounter Changes Christianity, Perry Schmidt-Leukel (Sharon)

 

InterSpiritual Meditation: A Seven-step Process from the World’s Spiritual Traditions by Edward W. Bastian, PhD (Sharon)

 

Why Did Jesus, Moses, the Buddha, and Mohammed Cross the Road?, Brian D. McLaren (Sharon)

 

Love Wins: At the heart of Life’s Big Questions, Rob Bell (Sharon)

 

Without Buddha I Could Not Be a Christian by Paul Knitter (Dennis)  Themes of Impermanence, change, etc.  

 

Living Buddha, Living Christ by Thich Nhat Hanh (Will) 

 

One Common Faith Bahá’i World Center (Amelia)

 

The Vision of Race Unity: America’s Most Challenging Issue A statement of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’is of the US

 

White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo

 

The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together by Heather McGhee 

 

Return to the Root: Reflections on the Inner Life  by Joyce Rupp

 

Blood Brothers: The Dramatic Story fo a Palestinian Christian Working for Peace in Israel by Elias Chacour and David Hazard (Dale)

 

Carson McCullers called, The Ballad of the Sad Café which has an addendum called Twelve Mortal Men, about six black and six white men working on a chain gang, who find unity through song. (Fr. Tom)

 

The Chosen, a recent documentary series, with a rich cultural context (Susie)

 

Reposition Yourself: Living Life without Limits by TD Jakes

 

Out of Many Faiths: Religious Diversity and the American Promise by Eboo Patel (He is also on Youtube) (Dave)

 

No God but God: The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam by Reza Aslan, an Iranian-Amerian Muslim scholar

 

Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth by Reza Aslan

 

Angels Around You by Miss Nonne

 

A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Meany

 

Finding Me: A Memoir by Viola Davis

 

The Torah, the Gospel, and the Qur’an: Three Books, Two Cities, One Tale

Anton Wessels

 

The Ox-Herder and the Good Shepherd: Finding Christ on the Buddha’s Path

Addison Hodges Hart

 

Star-Crossed: A Hollywood Love Story in Three Acts

Ron Austin

 

Do We Worship the Same God? Jews, Christians, and Muslims in Dialogue

Edited by Miroslav Volf

 

Summoned from the Margin: Homecoming of an African

Lamin Sanneh

 

Welcome to the Wisdom of the World and Its Meaning for You

Joan Chittister

 

Being Both: Embracing Two Religions in One Interfaith Family  by Susan Katz Miller

 

Autobiography of Malcolm X for its witness of how we as humans are capable of modifying our views. Redemption is available for all. 

 

The Audacity of Hope by Barak Obama (Christine) 

 

 Audacity by  Melanie Crowder  (Christine) 

 

Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life by Dr. Karen Armstrong  (Christine) 

 

Moments of Lift; The Christian Science Monitor (Cynthia Peters)

 

The Sacrament of the Present Moment by Jean-Pierre de Caussade

 

The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness by Michelle Alexander (Carolyn Peters)

 

Ben Jones (Bahia) – As a therapist “Lessons from the Light” by Kenneth Ring is about near-death experiences and how one reviews their life seeing the most important thing in life is to be kind to one another.  

 

Parables of the Sower – environmental degradation.  Started a religion called Earthseed where its main tenet is that God ls change.  Humanist and promotes Interfaith religiosity (Ronnie)

 


 

MOVIES AND DOCUMENTARIES: 

 

Life of Pi by Ang Lee and David Magee  (Will)

 

One Voice: The Story of the Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir  by Jed Riffe

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sF7bzQoSIiY 

 

Departures, directed by Yohiro Takia 2008 Academy Award International Film — beautiful depiction of Japanese end-of-life rituals with humor and pathos (Sharon)

 

The Burning of Black Wall Street  by Dreamland (Dr. Dale) 

 

Making of Black America Henry Louis Gates PBS series online

https://www.googleadservices.com/pagead/aclk?sa=L&ai=DChcSEwjq2dOPk6T7AhVRFa0GHZHIB7cYABAAGgJwdg&ae=2&ohost=www.google.com&cid=CAESauD2qgYnXnrfqP4qBpwdHs88zuaxHqy2aXxlM1QKmrEfV6WmWU-zDkLdxbCO1PS1OoMEqtDRmDSkYbmR_lGUu3CukdsbA76k2ahgzvdJStgajQCKpNIzl3sOLsMG2vG6ZI2GWGCN4TxfoGQ&sig=AOD64_2ACLApmEWEvFrV1KjVrD8sM3Rpyg&q&adurl&ved=2ahUKEwj0m8uPk6T7AhV8AjQIHbjfBdAQ0Qx6BAgJEAE&nis=8&dct=1 

 

The U.S. and the Holocaust | Full Documentary by Ken Burns, Lynn Novick & Sara Botstein

https://www.pbs.org/kenburns/us-and-the-holocaust/ 

 

33 films that addressed interfaith relationships

https://www.cinemaexpress.com/photos/slideshows/2022/jun/08/33-films-that-addressedinterfaith-relationships-1305.html

 

Living Together: Using Interfaith short films in peacebuilding 54:52

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9Um487iqTU

 

Why I, as a black man, attend KKK rallies | Daryl Davis | TEDxNaperville

https://www.ted.com/talks/daryl_davis_why_i_as_a_black_man_attend_kkk_rallies?language=en   How One Man Convinced 200 Ku Klux Klan Members To Give Up Their Robes, https://www.npr.org/2017/08/20/544861933/how-one-man-convinced-200-ku-klux-klan-members-to-give-up-their-robes

 

Jesus Camp – documentary film about an evangelical conservative Christian camp.

Opened my mind to how our children can be manipulated into following a faith. (Ronnie)

 

Fallen (1998) – IMDb starring Denzel Washington

 

Of Gods and Men | Film Review | Spirituality & Practice

 

The Unforgivable starring Sandra Bullock

 

Inherit the Wind; The Judgement of Nuremberg; Twelve Angry Men (Christine) 

 

Paper and Glue a Documentary

 

The movie about Gandhi how powerful non-violence can be. Do we have to die to make a difference. (Ben)

 

Star Trek and Star Wars, while having different social perspectives of the future, ultimately, if we just learn to communicate maybe the world could be better. (Ben)

 

Movie Crash was powerful and kinda had faith; interconnections, the importance of not judging a book by its cover. (Marie Wilson (UMC) 

 


 

PLAYS: 

All My Sons 

Silence

 


 


ART GALLERIES:
 

The Bedford Gallery, Walnut Creek: The Kelley Collection of African American Art thru Dec. 18, 2022.

 


 

MUSEUMS:

 

Oakland Museum: The Oakland Museum, Angela Davis thru June 11, 2023. The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art: Diego Rivera’s America thru Jan. 3, 2023.

 


 

Interfaith Graduate Programs in Spirituality:

 

Among believers and spiritual seekers across religious traditions, there is a growing awareness of the importance of spirituality. Led by expert faculty and inspired by Merrimack’s Catholic Augustinian tradition, our graduate programs in spirituality will prepare you for a life of spiritual exploration, engagement and service. You will acquire the knowledge and experience you need to enrich your own faith and to support others in their spiritual journey.

Merrimack’s Department of Religious and Theological Studies offers five programs to meet your personal and professional goals: 

  • Master of Arts in Spirituality (32 credit hours) 
  • Master of Arts in Spiritual Direction (32 credit hours) 
  • Certificate in Interfaith Spirituality (16 credit hours) 
  • Certificate in Spiritual Direction (20 credit hours) 
  • Certificate in Spirituality and Work (16 credit hours; online only)

Designed to fit your schedule, our Spirituality programs offer evening classes, and most provide the option to attend classes either online or in-person. Through interactive and interdisciplinary coursework, you will learn how concepts of spirituality and faith can be put into practice to enhance your church, community and personal life.

There is no fee to apply, and no test scores required. All applicants are automatically considered for a Dean Scholarship, which is awarded based on merit and need. 

https://choose.merrimack.edu/spirituality-graduate-programs/?utm_medium=partner&utm_source=ncr 

 

Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley

 

Chaplaincy Institute, Berkeley trains and ordains chaplains for service around the world. Member of ICCCC