Religion

One of the most repeated questions we as human beings ask is, Why? Especially children, who constantly respond to every situation with the same question. This response may be triggered by different factors: our curiosity, our lack of knowledge, our desire to test someone's patience,...

P.T. Barnum famously said, “There’s no such thing as bad publicity.” What he meant by that was that it doesn’t matter as much what people are saying about you as long as they’re talking about you. The worst feeling is not when someone speaks...

P.T. Barnum famously said, “There’s no such thing as bad publicity.” What he meant by that was that it doesn’t matter as much what people are saying about you as long as they’re talking about you. The worst feeling is not when someone speaks...

This year the Multifaith Action Society is celebrating the Interfaith Year of Resilience. The “Resilience” theme was chosen to remind communities to continue to be strong and maneuver through the perils and all the uncertainties we find ourselves going through.    We are living in times...

I imagine that whoever you are, whatever faith tradition you practice (or don’t), whatever your race or ethnicity, whatever your socioeconomic background, whatever gender(s) (or none)—you probably agree that there are plenty of things that divide us as a country. I would also like...

My dear wife recently gave birth to our daughter Mushka on July 23, bringing another blessing into our family and into the world. In honor of this joyous occasion, allow me to share some thoughts on the significance of having a child. Judaism places a...

The Dhammapada, a collection of sayings of the Buddha, is one of the most widely read and best known Buddhist scriptures. In the Dhammapada, Verse 277, we find this lesson: “All conditioned phenomena are impermanent;” when one sees this with insight-wisdom, one becomes weary of...

On Friday, July 29, Muslims began the New Year of 1444 with the month of Muharram. Prophet Muhammad’s migration to Medinah from Mecca (the hijrah) was such a pivotal event for Muslims that the second Caliph Omar decided that it should mark the beginning of...

July 28 used to be one of my favorite days of the year. On the Roman Catholic calendar, it is the feast day of a minor saint, Pope Saint Victor I, who was martyred by the Romans around the year 199 AD. Pope Victor...

On the 24th of July, my family and others celebrated the 175th anniversary of “Pioneer Day,” the day that pioneers seeking religious freedom arrived in Salt Lake City after walking across the Plains from Illinois.  My great-great-grandfather, Samuel Openshaw, came from England in 1856 at...