Shared Sacred Sites: A Conversation with Faith Leaders

In celebration of the Shared Sacred Sites project, The New York Public Library invites you to a conversation between three faith leaders from each of the Abrahamic religions. Cheik Khaled Bentounès, Rabbi Rolando Matalon, and Ministerand Theologian Cláudio Carvalhaes will discuss the issues of mutual tolerance, universal understandings of hospitality that come from the tradition of Abraham, as well as how each religious tradition has within itself the capacity to reach out to others and promote “living together in peace.”  They will discuss their participation and their view of the tradition of sharing sacred sites between the three Abrahamic faiths.They will question the relationship between humanitarianism and the three religions, and explore the limits of religion as a full advocate of humanitarianism. The event will be moderated by Anisa Mehdi, acclaimed journalist and filmmaker and director of the Abraham’s Path Initiative.

Shared Sacred Sites puts forward a powerful story of cross-faith and cross-cultural co-existence. For centuries Christians, Jews and Muslims have visited and prayed at sanctuaries belonging to their fellow Abrahamic religions, revealing the permeability of the frontiers between religious communities. Despite theological differences, the three religions share a number of features – from beliefs, to rites, to holy figures and to places – which have formed a fertile ground for the sharing of sacred sites. The Shared Sacred Sites project is a contemporary “pilgrimage” in Manhattan, which celebrates the history of tolerance and cross-cultural exchange, with exhibitions and programs in three venues: The New York Public Library, the Morgan Library and Museum, and the James Gallery at the CUNY Graduate Center.

Be sure to visit the the exhibition at the Library following the conversation, and to check out the other happenings and exhibitions related to the project at The Morgan Library and Museum and the CUNY Grad Center. For more information, please visit sharedsacredsites.net.

Support for The New York Public Library’s Exhibitions Program has been provided by Celeste Bartos, Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III, Mahnaz Ispahani Bartos and Adam Bartos Exhibitions Fund, and Jonathan Altman. 

Additional support for Shared Sacred Sites at NYPL is provided by The Achelis and Bodman Foundation and the Bertha and Isaac Liberman Foundation, Inc. in memory of Ruth and Seymour Klein. Support for the Shared Sacred Sites project is provided by Carnegie Corporation of New York, the Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art's Building Bridges Program, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, and Nicholas J. and Anna K. Bouras Foundation.

FIRST COME, FIRST SEATED
For free events, we generally overbook to ensure a full house. Priority will be given to those who have registered in advance, but registration does not guarantee admission. All registered seats are released shortly before start time, and seats may become available at that time. A standby line will form one hour before the program

PRESS 
Please send all press inquiries (photo, video, interviews, audio-recording, etc.) at least 24-hours before the day of the program to Ayofemi Kirby at ayofemikirby@nypl.org.