ArticleParveena Ahanger: A Grieving Mother’s Fight for the Disappeared of KashmirParveena Ahanger, a well-known Kashmiri activist, exuded her characteristic warmth as she sat cross-legged in the kitchen on a freezing January afternoon in Srinagar, the region’s largest city. The warmest corner of …Topics: Engaged Spirituality, Islam, Spiritual Exemplars, Violence, weforum
CommentaryThe Complex Relationship Between Religion and HumanitarianismThe hero image of religious saints involved in humanitarian work warrants examination. I have come to this conclusion in the process of leading a global project on “spiritual exemplars” at USC’s Center …Topics: Disaster Response, Donald E. Miller, Engaged Spirituality, Religious Leadership, Spiritual Exemplars, Violence, weforum
CRCC in the NewsL.A. Times: Najuma Smith on the LAPD Civilian Review ProcessThe Los Angeles Times interviewed CRCC’s Najuma Smith about her decision to volunteer for Los Angeles Police Department civilian review process. The Times investigation found that some reviewers have been chosen repeatedly …Topics: Faith-State Relations, Najuma Smith, Racial Justice, Southern California, Violence
ArticleHuda Abu Arqoub: Building the Land Her Grandfather KnewPeacebuilder Huda Abu Arqoub has a spiritual vision for Israel/Palestine rooted in the past. A truly holy land, she says, is one in which all can live together. When Huda Abu Arqoub …Topics: Engaged Spirituality, Islam, Spiritual Exemplars, Violence
CommentaryRemembering Edmund Kaszibuloh Koroma: A Savior and Peace BuilderHe was many things rolled into one: A committed community peace builder, a passionate promoter of religious tolerance and a tireless advocate of free education for children. Above all, Edmund Kaszibuloh Koroma …Topics: Christianity, Engaged Spirituality, Islam, Spiritual Exemplars, Violence
ArticleZannah Mustapha: Teaching Boko Haram’s kidsThis article was originally published in The Christian Science Monitor, with the support of CRCC’s global project on engaged spirituality. MAIDUGURI, NIGERIA — One morning in May, Zina Mustapha stood before her 20 …Topics: Engaged Spirituality, Islam, Spiritual Exemplars, Violence
ArticleZannah Mustapha: How One Man Has ‘Fathered’ More Than 2,000 Kids Orphaned By Boko HaramThis article was originally published in Religion Unplugged, with the support of CRCC’s global project on engaged spirituality. MAIDUGURI, Nigeria— When Zannah Mustapha worked as a Shariah court lawyer in the mid-2000s, he …Topics: Engaged Spirituality, Islam, Spiritual Exemplars, Violence
ArticleSister Agatha Chikelue: Committed to Building Peace in NigeriaThis article was originally published by Global Sisters Report, with the support of CRCC’s global project on engaged spirituality. When she was an infant, Agatha Chikelue became gravely ill. Her parents took her to …Topics: Catholicism, Interfaith/Multifaith Movements, Nick Street, Religious Leadership, Violence
ArticleTom Catena: Choosing Joy Over HappinessThis article was originally published by Religion Unplugged, with the support of CRCC’s global project on engaged spirituality. GIDEL, Sudan — The media is filled with articles on how to achieve happiness, including in …Topics: Catholicism, Christianity, Donald E. Miller, Engaged Spirituality, Health care, Public Health, Spiritual Exemplars, Violence
CRCC in the NewsLA Times: L.A. Residents Process Massacre in Buffalo, NYBlack leaders and residents of Los Angeles are dealing with stress and trauma after the racially motivated terrorist attack at a grocery story in Buffalo, New York. A self-described white supremacist killed …Topics: Black Church, Violence
ReportThirty Years Later: Remembering LA’s 1992 Civil Unrest and Reimagining Social ActionLike the tectonic fault lines that can suddenly release pent-up geological pressures, shaking the literal bedrock of Southern California, the cultural fault lines between groups with unequal political and economic power periodically …Topics: Black Church, Christianity, Interfaith/Multifaith Movements, Protest Movements, Racial Justice, Religious Leadership, Southern California, Violence
CRCC in the NewsLA Times: Nalika Gajaweera on How Buddhists Are Responding to Anti-Asian ViolenceThe March 16, 2021 killing of six women of Asian descent and two others brought Asian Buddhists together across lineages and communities to confront anti-Asian hate. A year later, the LA Times …Topics: Buddhism, Racial Justice, Violence
CRCC Experts
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Najuma SmithAssistant Director of Community and Public EngagementRev. Najuma Smith combines her experience as a pastor and expertise as a community leader to train Murray Center Fellows.
Rev. Frank Jackson, Jr.Rev. Frank Jackson, Jr. couples his experience in business and investment with his passion for community development.