Author: Steve H.

Teen Council Celebrates Diwali 2016!

Diwali is the Hindu Festival of Lights. The Teen Council was hosted by Shyama’s family, who is a Hindu member of the Teen Council.

Teen Interfaith Council’s First Meeting!

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The 2016-2017 Teen Interfaith Leadership Council

On September 18, 2016 the Teen Interfaith Leadership Council met at Mazin’s house. Mazin is a Muslim member of our Teen Council and he attended the New Mexico Interfaith Immersion trip during the summer of 2016. 

These are a few photos of our gathering!

Mazin leads the group discussion about our 2016-2017 priorities
Mazin leads the group discussion about our 2016-2017 priorities

At this meeting the Teen Interfaith Council brainstormed it’s priorities for the 2016-2017 school year. Various options were discussed such as participating in advocacy issues in San Jose; visiting the elderly, attending each other’s religious celebrations, and working with the homeless in San Jose. 

Teen Interfaith Immersion Trip 2016

These are the 2016 participants in the 2016 Teen Interfaith Council Immersion trip to New Mexico.

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Interfaith participants at the Monastery of Christ in the Desert, New Mexico.

(Excerpted from SEF.org)

Diane Fisher of the Jewish Federation of Silicon Valley and Deacon Steve Herrera from the Diocese of San Jose, both Co-directors of the Teen Interfaith Leadership Council of Santa Clara County, took eight interfaith teenagers on an immersion experience to Santa Fe, New Mexico from July 25-29, 2016. This group of teenagers enriched each other’s interfaith experience by sharing their knowledge and practices of their own religious traditions of the following, Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and Sikhism.

This is the video link about the trip and the impact it had on the interfaith teen participants, Teen Interfaith Immersion Trip 2016.  Rev. Jay Gibson, Vice President of Shinnyo-en Foundation and Temple Manager of the Shinnyo-en LA Temple introduces the video and explains the goals of this unique experience.

Special thanks to the Shinnyo-en Foundation for underwriting part of this program and the Community Learning Network of Santa Fe for it’s coordination of our programming in New Mexico