Religious differences have caused conflict throughout history, but for the ladies of Women of Religious Diversity (WORD), their differences bring them closer together and strengthen their faith.
WORD began around 2005 when a pair of Muslim women stumbled upon a banner outside Dublin Community Church, which is affiliated with the United Church of Christ, that read, “God is still speaking.” They were intrigued and decided to go inside.
After speaking with the late Chuck Kuck, who was the church’s senior minister at the time, they asked if they could join a women’s group where they could engage and learn more. The minister then called Barb Anderson, who was the leader of the church’s Women and Fellowship Bible Study, and asked if they could join. Anderson agreed and the women began attending meetings regularly.
Photo by Maisie Fitzmaurice
WORD
To be more inclusive, the group evolved from being a Bible study to being a more general spiritual book club. Anderson chooses books for the club to read together that cover different spiritual topics and are written by authors who belong to various religions. They then discuss and learn from each other’s perspectives through respectful dialogue.
Group members include women of different Christian and Islamic denominations, and several nonreligious members as well. They hope to continue to diversify and grow the group.
Diverging opinions
When the group was first forming, most of the women accepted these new members with open arms and benevolent curiosity. However, not everyone approved of their presence and a handful of ladies voiced their discontent to Anderson.
“Their concern was that we were watering down Jesus, that we were lessening our own Christian faith by being with them and by listening to their beliefs and their traditions,” Anderson says. “Because we were accepting what they believed as truth for them, we were lessening our Christian faith.”
Anderson disagreed. She feels that discussing her faith with women of different cultural and religious backgrounds makes her faith stronger as she has to think critically about her own beliefs to explain them to someone else. She refused to exclude the new members.
“We said, ‘That is your opinion, they are going to continue to come, we’re going to continue to engage in conversation,’” Anderson says. “These women’s words to us were, ‘We will pray for you.’”
Other members agreed with Anderson, and say they benefit from the interfaith connections and unconditional love they have given and received from each other over the years.
Interfaith support
Mary Yerina, who has been a member for 11 years, says WORD was her safe place during a difficult time in her life.
“It was so comforting to have women from all walks of life praying for me. The power of it often moved me to tears,” she says.
Sue O’Donnell, another long-time WORD member, says she has appreciated the opportunity to learn about other cultures and religions and even discover new belief systems.
“It is so great to have a chance to meet these women I probably would not have met and read books that I would not have read,” she says.
Nimet Alpay, who is a muslim, joined WORD after moving to Columbus from Michigan in 2010 as a way to make friends and get connected to the community. She was accepted with open arms and the group has become very special to her.
“The beauty of it is nobody is coming here to judge you, to convert you or to indoctrinate you, anything like that, no negative intention,” Alpay says. “Everybody’s coming here to understand, to learn, to expand their horizons, to strengthen their own faith, to understand what’s going on with other faiths, so it’s been really a wonderful experience.”
Alpay says she struggled with her faith following the 9/11 attacks, but connecting with other women who believed in different religious ideologies made her realize she had more in common with the women than not. Many of them were moms who wanted the same things she did: healthy, safe communities for their children.
“This community of women helped me to be more open-minded, helped me to feel less different, although I’m always different wherever I go because of the way I dress, but you know, if you look past my hijab, I’m just one of the women,” Alpay says. “We share similar values, and it’s all the same. It’s really helped me grow as a person.”
The group has not only been beneficial to the ladies who attend meetings, but also to those outside of the group through WORD’s various service projects and donations. Since the club started, it has offered financial support and resources to refugees in the area as well as donated diapers to the Dublin Food Pantry, financed a new water well in Africa, sent aid to Ukraine and Turkey, donated to an orphanage in India, and more.
“What is faith without action?” Alpay says. “When you put aside your differences, and when you come together with your common values, you can do a lot of good things.”
WORD meets on Friday mornings at Dublin Community Church and on Thursday evenings on Zoom. For more information contact Barb Anderson at andersonfamily2214@gmail.com.
Maisie Fitzmaurice is an editor at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at mfitzmaurice@cityscenemediagroup.com.
