Chatham United Methodist Church Hosted Abraham Interfaith Lunch

Pastor Jeff Markay and guest speakers, among the are the Peace Islands Institute members.
Pastor Jeff Markay and guest speakers, among the are the Peace Islands Institute members.


Date posted: May 4, 2019

By C. ZIEGLER

The Chatham United Methodist Church hosted its 6th Annual Abraham Interfaith Lunch on Tuesday, April 30th. The theme of the event was to embrace faiths of all kinds while joining together to help refugees in need. “You shall also love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.” (Deuteronomy 10:19) Jesus said, “I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me.” (Matthew 25:35) “Was not the earth of God spacious enough for you to flee for refuge?” (Quran 4:97)

Members of different faiths from Judaism to Islam to Christian literally and figuratively “broke bread together” in an effort to understand the backgrounds and experiences that helped mold who they are as citizens who volunteer time and money within their communities to provide food and shelter for the less fortunate.

Over 120 people of all faiths gathered to celebrate and share food generously prepared by the Peace Islands Institute. The menu included grilled vegetables and meat, garbanzo beans and rice, string beans and sauce, and baklava for dessert.

Offering a place for all to pray, meet together for conversation and fellowship, the Chatham United Methodist Church (CUMC) allowed for an inclusive and prayerful vision to become reality. “The guests may have entered the doors as strangers, but they left having made new friends and a new understanding of faith,” said Peggy Melvin.

The Chatham United Methodist Church Senior Pastor, Jeff Markay was host and gave the opening remarks. Markay is known for, among other things, his outreach and networking abilities to provide food and shelter to refugees, homeless, and others on the fringes of society. “His compassion and hope for all to grow in appreciation of each other is infectious, “ said one guest. 

CUMC Associate Pastor, Sharon Yarger gave the invocation. Speakers on the topic of Refugees, Asylum Seekers, and Those that Welcome Them included Osman Dulgeroglu of Peace Islands Institute; Mary and Gerry Gannon and Frank of Refugee Assistance Morris Partners (RAMP); Jenny Tananbaum of the Saturday Morning Fun Club at Temple Emanu-El in Westfield; the Rev. Julie Yarborough and Robby of One World One Love; Andrea Wren-Hardin of First Friends; and the Rev. Kristin Markay of Lambeth Refugees Welcome (London).

The message of the speakers was that despite a difference in faith and background, the driving force in helping those in need, whether they be refugees, asylum seekers, or homeless, is more powerful than language, country of birth or religion. Working together as all of God’s children can make a positive change in the world.

Source: TAPintoChatham , May 2, 2019


Related News

A new book by Esposito and Yavuz on ‘The Gülen Movement’

Ali H. Aslan Teachings of Fethullah Gülen which have inspired hundreds and thousands of Turkish people work for global education, peace, and the spread of tolerance, has become the subject of a new scholarly book in the U.S. The book entitled, ‘Turkish Islam and the Secular State: The Gülen Movement,’ was published by one of […]

Message of tolerance, peace expressed at GYV’s fast-breaking dinner

A message of tolerance, dialogue and coexistence for people of different faiths and ethnic backgrounds was dominant at a fast-breaking dinner organized by the Journalists and Writers Foundation (GYV) on Thursday. “We have capital no other than love, no intention other than serving humanity,” Mustafa Yeşil, head of the GYV, said at the fast-breaking dinner, […]

Online Interfaith Dialogue Workshop

Respect Graduate School, Bethlemem, PA has launched an online “Interfaith Dialogue Workshop.” The workshops aims to provide basic principles of inter-faith work and empower students with foundational skills to serve in a religiously diverse social context.

‘Mr. Gülen is to me simultaneously both incredibly modest and a visionary’

I’m inspired by the Hizmet Movement. I didn’t realize that until I came in contact with the Movement, but all of my life, education and service and dialog have been transformative to me. … This is the work that all of our hearts should be doing. So it remains a source of inspiration for me in my work.

Hrant Topakiyan’s feelings about the Journalists and Writers Foundation

Hrant Topakiyan, Kentim Gazette, April 5, 2010 Journalists and Writers Foundation = Love For many years I have attended the love-filled Ramadan iftar dinners arranged by the Journalists and Writers Foundation. My Lord allowed me to meet very valuable people at these dinners. Since it is impossible to write all their names in this column, […]

The Gülen Movement in the public sphere

The Abant Platform is a good example of a religiously inspired social capital formation in a society with ideological, ethnic and religious fault lines. This platform departs from a belief that religion, and particularly Islam, can be a positive factor in social, political and economic life. The Gülen movement has been quite successful in utilizing its cultural and human capital in order to empower the civil society and expand the democratic space available for the formally excluded periphery vis-à-vis the centre.

Latest News

Fethullah Gulen – man of education, peace and dialogue – passes away

Fethullah Gülen’s Condolence Message for South African Human Rights Defender Archbishop Desmond Tutu

Hizmet Movement Declares Core Values with Unified Voice

Ankara systematically tortures supporters of Gülen movement, Kurds, Turkey Tribunal rapporteurs say

Erdogan possessed by Pharaoh, Herod, Hitler spirits?

Devious Use of International Organizations to Persecute Dissidents Abroad: The Erdogan Case

A “Controlled Coup”: Erdogan’s Contribution to the Autocrats’ Playbook

Why is Turkey’s Erdogan persecuting the Gulen movement?

Purge-victim man sent back to prison over Gulen links despite stage 4 cancer diagnosis

In Case You Missed It

Lambsdorff: Turkish press intimidated, under pressure

Turkey’s ‘black box’ must be opened

Police detain Bursa woman on coup charges a day after giving birth

Deputies: Turkish Olympiads best response to voices against Hizmet

Turkey’s Crackdown Extends to Taipei

In new incursion, Turkey orchestrates rushed extraditions from Kosovo

Turkey Targets Gulen-Inspired Projects Around the World

Copyright 2025 Hizmet News