For two decades, a group of Christians and Muslims have gathered every Wednesday at noon at Shapiro’s Delicatessen in Indianapolis for dialogue and deli sandwiches.
They are part of the Focolare Movement, founded when the leaders of two religious movements — Imam W. D. Mohammed of the American Society of Muslims based in Chicago, and Chiara Lubich of the Focolare Movement based in Italy — asked their followers to begin a discussion. Encouraged by St. John Paul II, who was pope at the time, Lubich and Mohammed brought together their followers to know each other. This created an interfaith family with mutual love of brothers and sisters.
“Our interfaith group began in 1996 when Imam Mohammad traveled to meet Pope John Paul II. While he was there, he was introduced to Lubich,” said Michael Saahir, one of the founders of the Indianapolis interfaith movement. Lubich founded a movement that dates back to 1943. She began to put her life in peril to help other people, not knowing they were starting a movement. She based her work on the Bible verse reading, in part, “that all of them may be one, Father.”
The beginning
Following their teachings, Saahir and three other men met with Focolare leaders from Chicago when they were in town. They met for dinner at Shapiro’s. After the Chicago guests left town, the Indy men met again. And again. And again. Every week for 20 years, the growing interfaith group has met for lunch to share their experiences.
“Interfaith is the new ‘religion’ for humanity,” said Saahir. “I say that because we’re living in a smaller world because of communication, travel … which makes family closer together. Having a group that recognizes that is very important.”
Saahir is a lifelong resident of Indianapolis and has been Imam of the Nur-Allah Islamic Center for almost 25 years. He retired from the Indianapolis Fire Department in January. He is the author of two books and has also taken the sacred pilgrimage to Mecca.
“Our group is predominantly Muslim, Baptist and Catholic. Along the way we’ve had people from the Jewish community. People have come from the military. We’ve even had cult members,” said Saahir.
Saahir said the group does not talk about religion a lot, but instead searches for commonality.
“What we have learned is, after we take a step to have commonality, that builds a foundation to now have more freedom or latitude in this conversation and trust. As a result of that, we found out what our differences are, but we were just saying the same thing in a different way,” he said. “Now we have communication, trust, better understanding of terms and phrases. Then we can go further — how we can help and affirm each other in our faiths?”
The group was also fueled by a background of profound conflict and religious differences — the terrorist attacks of 9/11, the war in Iraq, the never-ending conflicts beween Israel and Palestine — but the group evolved to focus on personal events such as high school and college graduations, weddings and funerals.
Interfaith is life
Michael Wilson, a retired Army colonel and chaplain, was drawn to the interfaith group after his son-in-law, who is Muslim, told him about it.
“I came to Indy in 1985 initially, but I went off of active duty around ’94 and I met my wife, Annie, who has passed. Annie’s son is Muslim, and I wanted to meet with an interfaith group that included Islam as a part of it. They were meeting at Shapiro’s, and I suspect it was in the late ’90s that I started meeting with them every week. We’ve been together 20 years. I started meeting with them when I was a chaplain with St. Vincent,” said Wilson.
As an army chaplain, Wilson has had lots of experience with people of different faiths.
“My life is interfaith,” he said.
In the Army, Wilson supervised chaplains of other faiths. He wore a cross, while Jewish chaplains wore a tablet and Muslim chaplains wore a crest.
“For a long time, chaplaincy looked more Christian and not (inclusive) to other faiths,” Wilson explained. “Our insignias and everything else I have seen has changed for the better. It has changed to be interfaith.”
A milestone
Amidst 20 years of political and religious turmoil, against all odds, the group has survived.
“We never would have thought we’d be doing this 20 years later,” said Saahir. “We did something we didn’t think would work or last.”
The group has evolved over time. In the beginning, they had to overcome racial divides, while now they deal with political and religious strife.
“We are living during the Trump era, where he has taken direct aim at Muslims. When I first started coming to Shapiro’s we went to war because Muslims had hijacked planes and flew them into the World Trade Center. We have endured during all of that and dialogued with each other rather than war with one another,” said Wilson, adding that getting along within the group is simple.
“We just do it. We don’t make it complicated,” he said. “This is where we’re at. This is what we’re about. This is what we do. We come together on what’s common. It helps serve as a model for others who may not be secure in their faith.”
