Faith Matters: Wake up the sun with gratitude With the holiday season just around the corner, beginning this week with Thanksgiving, we are once again encouraged to think about gratitude. Growing up in London, England, I initially found the whole idea of Thanksgiving rather perplexing after I came to the US. A national day of […]
A few words from a first time attendee nailed the spirit of Experience Interfaith: “It was wonderful! … Those who participated felt welcomed, accepted, and loved!!” May the pictures help tell our story about Experience Interfaith! CLICK HERE for pictures to ENJOY… and please feel welcome to keep some dialogue going on our facebook page…facebook.com/azifm […]
Recognizing and repenting… a “Faith Matters” article published October 23, 2019 Are you the same person today you were yesterday? Will you be the same person tomorrow? On Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, Jews across the globe gather together to repent for our sins — both to God and man— reflecting on our misdeeds […]
The three “F”s of any society are most important. I’m talking about family, friends, and fellowship. Never did it become more apparent in my own life than a few weeks ago. Excuse me for taking a chapter out of my own life but I just can’t help telling the world about the great day my […]
Sri Krishna Janmastami celebrations at temple Faith Matters, The Arizona Republic Pratibha Somaiya Guest Columnist Have you heard of Ski Krishna Janmastami? As a local Hare Krishna devotee, I’d like to share it with you. On Frida, Aug. 23, ISKCON of Phoenix celebrated Ski Krishna Janmastami, the paramount festival for devotees of Lord Krishna celebrating His appearance in the earthly world. This festival is celebrated annually. […]
It’s that time of the year again, when football arenas are packed with cheering fans waiting for their heroes to perform unimaginable feats of athletic skill. Before this year is over, there will be stories from the field of play that will go down in the record books as feats of extraordinary skill making a […]
The marshmallow saga One sunny afternoon in Arizona, my phone chimes and I unlock it to read a message: “Bijal, you’ve got to see this.” There is a video below the message, and with curious eyes, I wait for the video to download. There is a school playground in which many kindergartners are running around. […]
A Golden Rule moment is revealed amid tragedy Trying to understand the tragedies of El Paso and Dayton is beyond the realm of possibility for civil people of any society. A senseless act of reducing human life to being irrelevant in order to carry out retribution for a sick ideology or sudden recognition goes beyond […]
Picture a modest church. A woman reading aloud from the Bible suddenly stops. An overwhelming sense of God’s presence and love — there and then, with this congregation, with all humanity — has so uplifted her that tears stream down her face. For a few moments, she can’t continue reading. This isn’t the sort of […]
Many faiths’ sacred writings include guidance about serving others being related to serving the Most High. For example, “When you give a cup of water to the thirsty, you give it unto me.” This is a paraphrased message that Jesus taught his disciples. According to the Sikh sacred scripture, there is a similar passage that […]