Listening Across Difference: Sacred Spaces, Storytelling &Interfaith Community with Celene & Vanessa

Описание: In this episode of Provoking Peace, we are joined by Dr. Celene Ibrahim, scholar of Islamic intellectual history and gender studies, and Vanessa Avery, interfaith leader and Executive Director of Sharing Sacred Spaces, for a rich and wide-ranging conversation on interfaith dialogue, deep listening, sacred space, and rebuilding community in polarized times.

Celene and Vanessa share their personal journeys into interreligious work. Shaped by multifaith upbringings, academic study, and lived experience navigating religious identity across Christian, Jewish, Muslim, and other traditions. Both reflect on how interfaith engagement is not just an intellectual pursuit, but a deeply embodied, relational practice rooted in listening, vulnerability, and dignity.

The conversation explores practical tools for interfaith dialogue, including structured story-sharing, deep listening exercises, and awareness of the emotional and bodily responses that arise in difficult conversations.

Key Takeaways
Interfaith dialogue is most effective when grounded in deep listening, empathy, and structured storytelling.
Sacred spaces and architecture provide powerful entry points for understanding religious meaning and shared humanity.
Media representations play a significant role in shaping stereotypes about religious communities—and can be challenged through awareness and advocacy.
“Brave spaces” require trust, dignity, and shared norms for navigating productive disagreement.
Young people are often eager to engage across difference but may feel skeptical about systemic change without lived examples of hope.
Religious and secular worldviews alike are shaped by moral frameworks, values, and assumptions that benefit from honest dialogue.
Faith-based communities play a crucial role in rebuilding social fabric through care, service, and belonging.
Interfaith work is as much about self-reflection as it is about understanding others.

About the Guests
Dr. Celene Ibrahim is a multidisciplinary scholar specializing in Islamic intellectual history, gender studies, comparative religion, and ethics. She is the author of Women and Gender in the Qur’an and a trusted media voice on Islam and interreligious relations, with appearances on NPR, PBS, and Netflix. She is a faculty member at Groton School, where she teaches Religious Studies and Philosophy and serves as Muslim Chaplain.

Vanessa Avery is a longtime interfaith leader, religious studies scholar, and advocate for religious diversity and inclusion. She is the Executive Director of Sharing Sacred Spaces, an organization dedicated to building interfaith community through visits to sacred spaces, dialogue training, and relationship-building. Vanessa lectures on interfaith engagement and has authored numerous articles on world religions, nonviolence, and peacebuilding.

Notable Quotes
“Listening deeply is a spiritual practice. When we recreate someone’s story, we recreate their world.”
“We don’t just need safe spaces—we need brave spaces where discomfort can be held with dignity.”
“Interfaith dialogue is as much about learning who we are as it is about learning who others are.”

Resources Mentioned

Books
Women and Gender in the Qur’an — Dr. Celene Ibrahimhttps://www.routledge.com/Women-and-G...

Organizations / Initiatives
Sharing Sacred Spaceshttps://www.sharingsacredspaces.org
Groton School – Religious Studies & Philosophyhttps://www.groton.org/academics/reli...
Spiritual Playdate (children’s interfaith education resources)https://www.spiritualplaydate.com