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Dear John,
Today I am going to tell you a story of compassion, hope, and inspiration. The Mustard Seed Project began with a phone call we received from a woman named Diane who lived in a city in Georgia without much diversity. Diane’s career as an art curator took her around the world, including some Muslim-majority countries. Her prolonged stay in Turkey allowed her to submerge herself into the local culture, learn more about Islam, and establish deep friendships with Muslims. These interactions led her to realize that the depictions of Muslims she saw on television and in movies were not only inaccurate but harmful. That bothered Diane, and when she was diagnosed with a terminal illness, she decided she wanted to invest part of her estate in an organization whose work counters anti-Muslim bigotry. Her research led her to call our office that fateful afternoon.
Diane’s legacy survives to this day. To honor her memory and her determination to act, we started the Mustard Seed project which aims to bring Muslims and Evangelical Christians in predominantly Red States to the same table, to talk, get to know each other, share a meal, and ask uncomfortable questions. Stereotypes and misrepresentations exist on both sides of the spectrum. These events help disrupt the status quo by challenging the inaccurate tropes that tend to reinforce a monolithic, intolerant, and harmful representation of Muslims and Evangelical Christians. As of today, we have organized three main events: one in Phoenix, Arizona, one in Costa Mesa, California, and one in Chicago, Illinois. And I can tell you that we have changed hearts and minds, one act of compassion at a time, just like Diane had dreamed of.
Much more is being planned to bring about the change that Diane had envisioned. The Mustard Seed project involves communities at the grassroots level and is unique in its attempt to foster long-lasting relationships between communities. Diane was a firm believer in the power of each small act of compassion to bring about change. If you share the vision that Diane had, please donate today. Your donation will help ensure our efforts will not end with these initial community meetings. As we look forward to the future of this continued work, we will hold similar events across the nation. We will follow up on the connections we have made by inviting the Evangelical community to visit a local Masjid, engage in panel discussions on topics that impact perceptions, and coordinate community-focused cooperative initiatives that foster collaboration.
If you are interested in knowing more about the Mustard Seed project through the voices of those who have already participated, you can read about their experiences in our blog entry, Bridging across Polarization: Muslims and Evangelical Christians Planting the Mustard Seed for America. We interviewed eleven attendees, some Muslim and some Christian. They shared with us their stories about what brought them to the Mustard Seed, what they learned from participating, and how they felt sitting at a table with strangers of another misrepresented faith. The stories we collected are a testimony of the immense possibilities that God’s work opens for us when we engage to change the world, one act of compassion at a time.
It’s through your ongoing support we can work on projects like the Mustard Seed. These experiences and stories provide vital insight into the lives of American Muslims, highlighting our shared values. Our mission since 1988 has been to strengthen and increase understanding by improving policies that impact us. Take a moment to commit to that cause and help us continue this crucial work across the nation by becoming a monthly donor or making a one-time donation.
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