Here is a piece I produced in Pakistan in March 2017 for Intersections International. Intersections led a group of more than 30 delegates from 12 countries to Pakistan (Lahore and Islamabad) as part of the ongoing US-Pakistan Interreligious Consortium (UPIC) program. UPIC brings religious and academic scholars from the US and Pakistan together to foster mutual respect and shared goals for the future.s

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Rabbi Firestone is traveling with Intersections International and the The US-Pakistan Interreligious Consortium (UPIC), a nonpartisan interreligious alliance consisting of religious, academic and community leaders from over fifty Pakistani and American civil society organizations. Our goal this year is to deepen relationships built during previous visits.

I’m really proud to be part of this team, swimming up stream!

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Today the world learned that Taliban gunman stormed a military-run school in Peshawar, Pakistan and massacred 141 people, nearly all children. My heart goes out to the vast majority of peace loving Pakistani’s and especially the families of children and staff who lost their lives.

This spring I visited a Sufi Shrine, the Mausoleum of Meher Ali Shah in Golra Sharif, Pakistan with Intersections International. This community opened their doors, welcomed us, fed us lunch and invited us to witness their worship. It is a lovely memory and how I choose to think of Pakistan.

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With the natural beauty of the peoples and culture of Pakistan as the backdrop, UPIC delegates share their thoughts about the need to dispel the fears and misconceptions Americans have of Pakistan and to continue efforts to build relations between our two countries. Reflecting on the importance of this vital goal are; Rev. Dr. Dick Hamm, Former General Minister and President, Christian Church (Disciples of Christ); Rabbi Dr. Reuven Firestone, Professor of Medieval Judaism and Islam at Hebrew Union College in Los Angeles, CA; Kelly McGrath, a George Mason University, PhD Student, Rabbi Amy Joy Small, Director of Deborah’s Palm Center for Jewish Learning and Experiences in Morristown, NJ; Riaz Siddiqi, Founder and Managing Partner of Denham Capital and Board Chairman of the American Pakistan Foundation and Fred Johnson, Director of Strategic Initiatives, Intersections International.

Facilitated by Intersections International — in collaboration with the International Islamic University in Islamabad (IIU), the US-Pakistan Interreligious Consortium (UPIC) spent March 11-14, 2014 in Pakistan. UPIC is an initiative undertaken by Intersections that seeks to bring together religious leaders from the US and Pakistan to build relationships, shatter stereotypes, and create an action agenda that will help build bridges of mutual respect and understanding between our two countries.

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The weather was unbelievably hot, but the people were wonderful. “My Bangladesh” was designed for use in childrens educational settings. This is a personal favorite from my ELCA days.

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In the Southern Indian State of Tamil Nadu, drumming is popular. First, the animal hide instruments are warmed over an open fire. Then, let the music play…

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Have you ever wondered how silk is made? Outside Saidpur, Bangladesh I toured a silk production facility. The small factory is a non-profit operation (RDRS) that provides jobs and economic opportunity for women in this poor nation.

The silkworm is the caterpillar of Bombyx mori, the domesticated silk moth. The silk moth is entirely dependent on humans for its reproduction and no longer occurs naturally in the wild.

At the factory, the women, dressed in colorful saris, collect and sort huge piles of golden silkworm cocoons. Once sorted, the cocoons are immersed large into vats of boiling hot water.

This is bad news for the silkworms inside the cocoons! The hot water sparks a chemical reaction that allows the spun cocoon to unravel. Silkworm cocoons are natural bobbins made of one continuous strand of silk thread. After boiling, the cocoons are cooled and taken to a loom and unraveled.

The raw silk thread is then wound onto a spindle, dried and shipped to a textile factory.

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The Buriganga River runs through Dhaka, Bangladesh. Friends and I visited the Sadarghat Boat Terminal. Bangladesh is a nation of rivers. Much of the country is under water. During the monsoon, nearly all of it is under water. Bangladesh has a lot of boats. Thousands of crafts congregate at the Sadarghat Boat Terminal. Big ships, little ships and tiny dugout canoes ferrying goods and people across a river as wide as the Mississippi. The entrance to the terminal is a simple opening in the fence. Commuters stream through a gate and down a muddy slope to the water?s edge. Men sitting at an old wooden table collect a fee of 10 Taka (5 cents US). A marching band dressed in full uniforms with green caps and gold epaulets appeared. They carried their instruments as if ready to strike up a tune. I asked them to play, and for a few Taka play they did! Not good, but they sure could make noise. The scene at the waters edge is a bit like a cabstand. Hundreds of hand-paddled gondola similar to those you might see in Venice crams onto the beach. We climbed aboard and sat on straw mats thrown on the deck as the oarsmen shoved off. His one oar provides the power. It was like bumper cars. The big ships don’t pay much attention to the little ones. Our canoe constantly crashed into other canoes, or dodged the larger ships, which were trying to squeeze in. It is amazing to see how much stuff they can cram onto their boats. Some vessels were so full of cargo, water nearly came up over the gunwales. Why they don’t sink is a mystery. Larger boats with diesel motors can carry passenger or cargo. After several near collisions we returned to shore.

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