would keep them from continuing their
friendships after the camp ended? They
were quick to answer.
"Absolutely not," said Rukaya.
"No, definitely not," offered Maren.
"I haven't, no," Luu added. "It's
good other kids get to see what people
do with their faith."
'It's pretty cool'
Hearing those kinds of comments is
exactly what Pastor Clint Schnukloth
hoped for when he and several of his
colleagues in the clergy decided to
organize their first interfaith summer
camp, rather than a traditional vacation
Bible school.
"We've been developing closer
relationships the last many years with
the synagogue and Islamic Center,"
the pastor said. "We know mutual
understanding between the religious
traditions is really important, so we
decided to have an interfaith camp."
Deciding on appropriate programming
and ensuring that all religious traditions
and dietary concerns were taken into
account was a top priority.
"A lot of that revolved around
representation," he explained. "We
made sure when we had speakers
or the volunteers at the (education)
stations, there was really good
leadership represented from all of the
faith communities."
Pastor Clint
said the adult
leaders and the
older students
who served as
camp leaders all
were impressed
with the kids
who attended the camp. Everyone,
he said, will leave with a greater
understanding of their own faith after
learning about others.
"The main thing I want them to take
away is how to respectfully listen to
someone from another religion," he
said. "How to share a little bit about
their own with someone that is from
a different tradition. We want to give
them the tools to be able to do that
even better. It's pretty cool."
HALAL is an Arabic word
meaning lawful or permitted.
In reference to food, it is the
dietary standard.
KOSHER
FOODS are
those that conform
to Jewish dietary
regulations.
Rukaya Alrubaye
Maren Park
Luu Adler
Off icialKidsMag.com • AUG & SEPT 2018 • 45
