Tri-Faith Initiative supports one another through war impact

On the Tri-Faith campus in Omaha, sits a mosque, synagogue, church and a center that connects them all. Since Oct. 7 when violence erupted in Israel and Gaza, the Tri-Faith Initiative community has been trying to heal.

Abdul Mackie, the secretary for the American Muslim Institute (AMI), said many members of the group are hurting. The mosque is made up of several communities. There are Arabs with connections to places like Palestine, Lebanon and Egypt.

“It's heart wrenching to see people who look like you and talk like you being collectively punished, and the death toll continues to rise,” Mackie said.

Mackie said to members of the Muslim group, it feels like the world’s governments are just watching as the violence continues.

According to the only source available in Gaza, the Ministry of Health, over 10,000 people have died there so far. The conflict started last month when Hamas attacked communities in Israel, killing 1,400 people and kidnapping about 240.

Rabbi Benjamin Sharff leads Temple Israel on the Tri-Faith campus. He said the Jewish community hasn’t seen violence like this since the final days of the Holocaust.

“We are hurting, we are scared, we are angry, we are frustrated,” Sharff said. “It's not directed towards any of our Muslim brethren here in Omaha or here in the United States.”

Rabbi Sharff said through the pain, the Omaha community has been supportive.

Rev. Sarah Rentzel Jones, who works with the senior minister at Countryside Community Church on the Tri-Faith campus, said the Christian community is trying to understand the pain their Jewish and Muslim friends are feeling.

“We did have a prayer service because we just felt like we could offer space and presence,” Rev. Rentzel Jones said. “We felt as though silence would be better than making an attempt at words that might fall short.”

The Tri-Faith Initiative started as an experiment to bring different faith communities together to learn and understand one another. Wendy Goldberg, the executive director and a founder of Tri-Faith, said the community is concerned about how the war will impact Tri-Faith’s future.

“We are worried about our ability to withstand the tension from outside of this beautiful beacon of light to tear us apart, to make us take sides, and to break down the beautiful dream that we have built here and replace it with fear,” Goldberg said.

The leaders from the three religious institutions said they see their communities overcoming that fear by listening and supporting one another.

Mackie from AMI said Tri-Faith can’t control the violence that’s happening, but they can find solace in one another through the connections they cultivate.

“This is what God wanted his children to do,” Mackie said. “Jewish, Muslim and Christian living together in harmony, learning about each other, trusting each other and befriending each other. We are doing that here.”

Members from the three groups attend each other’s religious services. Rabbi Sharff said the simple act of being present shows the Tri-Faith community’s connection.

“What's been really beautiful is members of all three congregations have demonstrated solidarity, by showing up for each other,” Rabbi Sharff said. “In terms of larger dialogue and conversation, that's going to take time, because we're all hurting a little bit right now.”

Goldberg says breaking down religious barriers starts in simple discussions.

“That we need to sit together in small conversations and believe that peaceful proximity is possible,” Goldberg said, “and that the world is watching to see if we can maintain it here in Omaha, Nebraska.”