It was great to see everyone and really beautiful the way we were able to share about our different thoughts about The Declaration of Independence with both it's wonderful vision and flawed sections that contradict that vision. Hoping that we all continue to pursue creating in our country the vision of "all [people] are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." Many thanks to the Unitarian Universalist community for hosting us and to Rev. Kim Kinsey for facilitating. Participating were leaders from faith traditions of Unitarian Universalist, Buddhist, Scientology, Humanist and Christian (Catholic, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Methodist, Presbyterian & Evangelical).

Religion News Service, one of the most respected outlets covering faith in America, ran a feature story about faith250 on April 20, 2026. Reporter Yonat Shimron was on the ground for the April 12th kickoff dinner of the Chapel Hill-Pittsboro cluster, where 90 people from nine multifaith congregations gathered to begin studying the Declaration of Independence together. The piece tells the story of why people showed up. Check out the article here.

Participating Congregations

Curb Center-Belmont University
Congregation Micah
The Temple-Congregation Ohabai Sholom
West End United Methodist Church
Brook Hollow Baptist Church

If you’ve been with us for a while, you know that Substack has been doing a lot of heavy lifting — telling our story, sharing updates, building community. It’s done that job well. But we needed a dedicated home for the practical stuff: the guides, the agendas, the facilitation tools that clergy and cluster leaders reach for when planning a meeting or pulling together a multifaith gathering. All of that now lives at faith250.org, organized under Your faith250 Events and Resources in the top menu — more user-friendly, easier to navigate, and built for the people doing the work on the ground.

This Substack is now at joinfaith250.org and will continue to tell the story of faith250: the voices of clergy, reflections from gatherings, the conversations that remind us why this work matters. Think of the website as the toolbox and Substack as the community. Both have a job to do, and we’re glad to finally have both in place. Take a few minutes to explore faith250.org and let us know what you think.

Participating Congregations

Tikvat Israel
Living Faith Lutheran Church
Rockville United Church

Participating Congregations

Temple Hesed
Temple Israel
St. Luke’s Episcopal Church

Participating Congregations

Peace Islands Institute Boston

Participating Congregations

Temple Beth Shalom
Greenburgh Hebrew Center
Woodlands Community Temple
Temple Beth Abraham
Shames JCC on the Hudson
Irvington Presbyterian Church
Ardsley United Methodist Church
Aldersgate United Methodist Church
St. Barnabas’ Church
Christ Church San Marcos

On March 20, Washington Post columnist Dana Milbank published a story about faith250 and the Burke, VA cluster of congregations. His article features quotes from Rabbi Michael Holzman, Rev. Becca Messman and Ibrahim Anli. Milbank's article shows the power of gathering local multifaith congregations together to share a meal, study America's founding texts, and build the kind of cross-faith relationships that make civic renewal possible at the neighborhood level — exactly the model faith250 is replicating in communities across the country. Read and share the article [gift link].

Here’s a few of our favorite quotes:

“My belief is that you just find some opposite interventions, and you reach people and you teach them that they’re not alone, and that they can find trust in their neighbors. Now maybe it takes a little longer, maybe you need more persistence. … But I think we can de-radicalize the country, and I think we can bring people out of cynicism.” - Rabbi Michael Holzman

“So as much as there are contradictions or paradoxes within the document, there’s incredible hope found within it. And that is something that’s worth celebrating and not forgetting.” - Regan Brough

“We came as representatives of different faiths and races, as immigrants and native-born, as liberals and conservatives. We left as compatriots. I wish every American could experience that.” - Dana Milbank

Great kickoff to the faith250 program! Many thanks to Rev. Kim Kinsey for hosting us and to Don Curnutt for facilitating the program. We read The New Colossus and talked about what the Statue of Liberty symbolizes to us, sharing stories of how our families came to the United States. We also discussed how communities like ours can help new arrivals feel welcome and reflected on what it truly means from the perspective of our faith traditions to be a country that opens its arms to people seeking better lives. Present were folks from faith traditions of Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim, Quaker, Humanist, Scientology, Christian (Evangelical, Episcopal, Methodist, Catholic, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Baptist, Presbyterian, Disciples of Christ, Lutheran (ELCA) ).

We’ve been busy working on new resources for our faith250 Community. One of those new resources is our YouTube channel (@joinfaith250). There you will find three recordings worth your time:

Rabbi Michael Holzman in conversation with Rich Harwood — a candid exchange about faith, civic life, and what it looks like to build community across difference right now.

Our President’s Day Webinar — a live text study of Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address with a remarkable multi-faith panel. If you missed it, this is your chance to catch up. If you were there, it’s worth a second look.

Perspectives: A Conversation with Lakota Sioux Spiritual Leaders — one of the most meaningful conversations we’ve had. Indigenous voices and sacred wisdom speaking directly on our history and this current moment in American life.

These recordings are free. They’re yours. Watch them, share them, show them to your clergy colleagues, cluster members and friends who are interested in contributing to a healthier civic discourse.

We’re adding more resources in the coming weeks! Subscribe to the channel so you don’t miss what’s coming next.

👉 youtube.com/@joinfaith250

Participating Congregations

Temple Beth Shalom
Carter Memorial United Methodist Church
First Parish Unitarian Universalist
The Congregational Church

Participating Congregations

Congregation Kneses Tifereth Israel
St. Paul’s Lutheran Church

Participating Congregations

Temple Israel
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints -Stroudsburg
Stroudsburg United Methodist Church
Stroudsburg First Presbyterian Church
East Stroudsburg Presbyterian Church
Church of St. Luke’s
Zion United Church of Christ
Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of the Poconos
Chestnut Retreat Center

Participating Congregations

Westminster Presbyterian Church
Agudas Achim Congregation
Commonwealth Baptist Church
Good Shepherd Lutheran Church
Shiloh Baptist Church

Participating Congregations

Temple B’nai Israel

In January, Rabbi Michael Holzman and Rich Harwood, Founder and President of The Harwood Institute discuss what it will really takes to heal our civic culture, how the power to create real change lies in our local communities, and the unique role that faith leaders and congregations can play. Watch the entire conversation here.