Festival of Faiths Blog

December 14, 2011

Dear Friends,

It is with great sadness that we write to you to announce the sudden but peaceful death this morning of Archbishop Thomas C. Kelly, O.P.   Archbishop Kelly became the 10^th Bishop and the 3^rd Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Louisville in 1982, when he was appointed to this position by Pope John Paul II.  Four years later, he joined with the newly formed Cathedral Heritage Foundation (CHF) in the work of restoring, renovating, and sustaining the Cathedral of the Assumption, which he later acknowledged to have been one of the proudest accomplishments of his tenure as Archbishop of Louisville. He served as a member of our Board until his mandatory retirement from his office in 2007 at the age of 75.  The following year, he was awarded our Lifetime Achievement Award and was also given the honorary title of Archbishop Emeritus of the Archdiocese of Louisville.  Because of his association with the CHF from the outset, Archbishop Kelly has always held a special place in the minds and hearts of the Board of the Center for Interfaith Relations, the name adopted by the former Cathedral Heritage Foundation in 2006.

As a man of kindness and humor, Archbishop Kelly inspired not only his Catholic flock but many in the wider community as well.  He once said that his goal in life was to be a good pastor; in our community, Catholic and non-Catholic alike affirm today that he exceeded his goal significantly.  May he rest in peace!

Turney Berry, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Center for Interfaith Relations

John Reed, President of the Board of Directors

Patrick Potter, Treasurer of the Board of Directors

Whew! Now that we’ve caught our breath after another wonderful, enlightening, and busy Festival of Faiths, we wanted to pop in and say THANK YOU!

Thanks to all of you who attended our 2011 Festival of Faiths: Sacred Air. Thanks to all of our speakers, workshop/ class teachers, Q&A facilitators, exhibitors, filmmakers … the list goes on and on. The Festival of Faiths is a true community effort, and we couldn’t do it without all of you.

We hope you found this year’s programming enjoyable and informative. As we move forward in planning 2012 – Fire and Compassion, please feel free to reach out with any suggestions or thoughts. We’ll see you next year!

6:00 – 8:00 pm
CHILDREN OF ABRAHAM DINNER
Nur Islamic School of Louisville • 6500 Six Mile Lane

The annual Children of Abraham Dinner will be hosted this year by the Islamic community, and will be held at the Nur Islamic School of Louisville.

This continues a tradition, begun perhaps 20 years ago, of bringing Jews, Muslims, and Christians together to share a meal and to worship together.  This interfaith celebration will bring to a close the 2011 Festival of of Faiths. Tickets are $20.00. Reservations are required.

Sunday, November 6th
9:00 – 9:45 am
The Henry Clay

BOOK SIGNING : TWO CENTURIES OF BLACK LOUISVILLE

Mervin Aubespin, Ken Clay, and Blaine Hudson, the three distinguished authors of Two
Centuries of Black Louisville, will be on hand to autograph their landmark book. Books
can be purchased on site, courtesy of Carmichael’s Bookstore, co-sponsor of
this event.

Saturday, November 5th, 2011

11:00 am – 12:30 pm
DENDROPHILIA
Bill Logan

The Henry Clay

These days, we love to have trees in our cities. In places like New York and LA, they vow to plant a million each in just a short time. All around the country, similar (if not quite so ambitious) programs are arising.

What are the benefits of trees?  There are certainly many ecosystem services that trees perform for us, but above all we love them because they are living beings with whom we enter into a relationship.  The motto of the great tree scientist of the 20th Century, Alex Shigo, was “Touch Trees!”

It is most important not only to plant trees but to care for them. Otherwise, we are just sowing numbers, and we will reap numbers, that is, large numbers of dead trees.  e love of trees is costly. You have to pay attention to them and find out what they need to live in an environment that is often so different than where they grow in nature (even if the place is only 20 miles away from the city).

And like any love, it gives more than it takes. When we learn enough about the ways of trees to support them in their city lives, we fi nd the rewards to be incalculable.
Bill Logan is the Founder of Urban Arborists in New York, and is the author of Oak: the Frame of Civilization, and Dirt: the Ecstatic Skin of the Earth. His forthcoming book is on the subject of air.

Saturday, November 5, 2011

Sacred Air and the Community of Trees
9:00 am - Noon

CHILDREN, PARENTS AND GRANDPARENTS CELEBRATE FAITH, FAMILY AND TREES

The Henry Clay

At this event, the best resources in Louisville on trees will be made available to Festival-goers.

Arborists, landscapers, gardeners, parks personnel, biologists and others will offer workshops, exhibits, and individual counseling on tree-related matters.  The value of urban trees will be explained, not only for their beauty and enhancement of property
values but for providing shelter from both heat and cold, reducing utility bills, and preventing water run-off , as well as sequestering harmful emissions in the air.

Advice from experts will be offered on selecting, planting, and caring for trees.
The entire event will be a family affair, fun and instructive for everyone from the child
to the grandparent. Activities for the young of all ages have been planned, which include the portable planetarium called the GeoDome. 

This event has been coordinated by John Hamilton of the Metro Parks Department and Mark White, Urban Forester, Metro Public Works Department.

Monday, November 7, 2011
Communities of Faith Day
7:30 – 9:00 am

INTERFAITH PRAYER BREAKFAST WITH BISHOP STEPHEN BLAIRE
The Henry Clay

Bishop Blaire, of the diocese of Stockton, California, has chosen for his topic, “Good
Sense, Good Air: While we live we are responsible to the Lord.” Bishop Blaire’s
remarks are reflective of the growing trend to bond religion with ecology, embraced by people who look to their respective religions for guidance in assuming responsibility for caring for the Earth. Bishop Blaire has served on the USCCB’s Committee for Ecumenical and Inter-religious Aff airs, and in 2009, was elected Chair of the USCCB’s Committee on Domestic Justice, Peace and Human Development.

Bishop Blaire will be introduced by Archbishop Joseph Kurtz, who will also give
the invocation.

Friday, November 4, 2011
9:00 – 11 am

LOCAL AIR QUALITY AND HEALTH: A PANEL DISCUSSION
The Henry Clay Building

Dr. Gordon Tobin, Plastic Surgeon and 2010-2011 President of the Kentucky Medical Association, will lead a panel of physicians in a discussion on disease and human suff ering resulting from air pollution. Topics presented will include the types of air pollution and the consequences related to each type; the eff ect of air pollution on asthma and allergy; the harm of direct and indirect tobacco smoke; the illness burden and high healthcare costs generated; and constructive steps that we can take to understand and correct the problems. Panelists are Dr. Robert Powell, Pulmonary Medicine, Chair of the Louisville Air Pollution Control Board; Dr. Jesse Roman, Pulmonary Medicine, Chair of the University of Louisville Department of Medicine; Dr. Matthew Zahn, Pediatric Infectious Disease, and Medical Director of Metro Louisville Public Health and Wellness Department; and Dr. Michael Bousamra,  Toracic Surgery, and founder of the “Drive Cancer Out” antismoking
campaign.

A question-answer period with audience participation will follow comments by the panelists.

Friday, November 4, 2011
Faith and Healing Day
9:00 am – 2:15 pm

YOUTH DAY
The Louisville Science Center • 727 West Main Street

Youth Day will be offered as a pilot program to a select group of middle-school students in collaboration with Teach Kentucky, dedicated to the proposition that “exceptional teachers create exceptional students.”

Thanks to the combined efforts of the Louisville Science Center, the Louisville Metro Health Department, the American Lung Association, Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest, Kentucky Interfaith Power and Light, Cultivating Connections, the Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft, and Glassworks, the program will include a comprehensive view of the air that inflfl uences our weather as well as our health, that is stewarded by trees, and that adds to the quality of our lives in many ways.

Alec Loorz of Kids Against Global Warming will address the students on what they can do to make friends with the planet on which they expect to live a long life.

Noon – 1:30 pm
WE ARE HAVING THE WRONG CONVERSATION
Keynote Address by EPA Assistant Administrator Gina McCarthy
The Henry Clay

Assistant Administrator McCarthy is in charge of EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation. Her role is to lead eff orts to protect the health of all the American people from unsafe levels of pollution or radiation in our country.  The threats to health from these sources are signifi cant and should be of vital importance to us. We should be hearing about them not only from environmentalists but from business and religious leaders, politicians and educators.

Yet all too often, conversation defers talk about health threats in the interest of promoting jobs that pollute or low-cost energy. Some use their podium even to deny that health threats exist. AA McCarthy acknowledges her responsibility and ours to deal with climate change and with the legacy pollutants that affect our well being. She will direct us to the conversation that we should be having.

Reservations required: $25.00
Call the Center for Interfaith Relations: (583)-3100