Community Corner

Interfaith Panel Will Discuss Property Taxes Thursday

Representatives of five religious traditions will participate in the debate.

On Thursday evening, representatives of five different religious traditions will meet on a panel at the Linden Hills Recreation Center to consider a spiritual approach to higher property taxes and the city's financial problems.

The forum was organized by Third Church of Christ, Scientist, but will involve representatives of Mormons, Muslims, unaffiliated spirituality and a number of Christian traditions. The discussion will be moderated by Minneapolis City Council Member Betsy Hodges.

Uniting for Minneapolis: How each of us can heal financial lack through prayer,” is modeled after a similar successful interfaith forum organized by the Third Church of Christ, Scientist, four years ago to look at youth violence, said organizer Lauren Crandall.

"The problem we really saw lurking was this whole problem that the economy was not getting itself off the ground," Crandall said. "Several of us live in Minneapolis and we're watching the taxes go up and our housing prices go down."

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The hope, said Crandall, is that the different religious traditions can reach into their values to offer perspective that secular discussions often wouldn't consider.

The following people will sit on the panel:

  • Bill Nolan, Pastoral Associate, Church of St. Thomas the Apostle
  • Betty Jean O’Neal, CS, member of the Christian Science Board of Lectureship
  • Theresa Rose, Ministerial Guide, Lake Harriet Spiritual Community
  • Kashif Saroya, co-founding board member and Outreach Director, Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, and policy fellow at the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey School of Public Affairs.
  • Peter Ekola, Member of the Vestry, St. John's Episcopal Church
  • Richard Ward, Minneapolis Stake High Councilor, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints

Free and open to the public, the panel discussion begins at Thursday, June 23, 7 p.m at the Linden Hills Recreation Center, 3100 West 43rd Street, Minneapolis.  

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