Rumi Forum Newsletter

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Inspiring Words

"When you do things from your soul, you feel a river moving in you, a joy."

Rumi

The 2011 Rumi Peace and Dialogue Awards Ceremony

The Rumi Forum honored their 2011 RUMI Peace and Dialogue Award honorees on October 25, 2011 at the National Press Club Ballroom in Washington DC. The 2011 RUMI Awards gala honored extraordinary individuals and organizations who have greatly contributed their time, energy, leadership and dedication to the cause of dialogue, peace, community service and understanding.

Watch Video: Emre Celik
Watch Video: Joshua DuBois
Watch Video: Desmond Mpilo Tutu
Watch Video: Diane Rehm, Host
Watch Video: Dr. Alan G Merten
Watch Video: The Rt. Rev. John Bryson Chane

WHITE HOUSE: Celebrating Interfaith Collaboration with the Rumi Forum

The White House, on its official blog, commended the Washington-based Rumi Forum, for its work in fostering “inter-religious and intercultural understanding” in a “consistent” manner since its establishment in 1999.

Help for Earthquake Victims in Turkey

The Turkish-American community feels sad about the strong earthquake which struck eastern Turkey with a 7.2 magnitude on Sunday, October 23^rd. We extend our deepest condolences to the families of the victims who lost their loved ones, relatives, and friends. Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone who has been affected by this terrible earthquake. Your donations to the victims of Van earthquake are highly appreciated.

When Mystic Masters Meet: Towards a New Matrix for Christian-Muslim Dialogue

Rumi Forum hosted Dr. Syafaatun Almirzanah in luncheon talk where she introduced her new book. The book is a study of the role mystical discourse and experience can play in Christian-Muslim dialogue as a subset of interfaith dialogue in general. It concentrates on the work of two great medieval mystic masters, one Muslim, the other Christian.

Listen Podcast

Watch Video

Repairing the ‘Broken Mirror’: Cultural Diplomacy in the Middle East and Southeast Asia”

Ambassador Schneider gave a speech in Rumi Forum luncheon talk on the Cultural Diplomacy in the Middle East and South Asia. According to Ambassador Schneider culture and politics are inextricably linked in Muslim majority regions around the world. Cultural diplomacy offers an untapped resource for increasing understanding between East and West, as well as for helping to strengthen and stabilize countries emerging from revolutions and conflicts.

Listen Podcast

Watch Video

Taking Action to Stop Hate

Rumi Forum hosted Farah Pandith and Hannah Rosenthal in a luncheon talk where they talked about the tools that the State Department using to stop hate in U.S. and across the world. Pandith says she aims to recruit youth around the world to stop hate. Rossenthal mentioned the “2011 Hours Against Hate” Facebook page that was launched in February 2011 to spread out the message to to stop bigotry and promote pluralism and respect across lines of culture, religion, tradition, class, and gender.

Listen Podcast

Empowering Communities through Dialogue and Partnership

Rumi Forum hosted Paul Monteiro, Associate Director of White House Office of Public Engagement and Rev. Brenda Girton-Mitchell, Director of the Department's Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, in luncheon talk titled Empowering Communities Through Dialog and Partnership.

Listen Podcast

Rumi Forum bestows peace and dialogue awards

The Rumi Forum, an international organization promoting interfaith dialogue and peace, presented awards celebrating peace and dialogue initiatives at their annual Peace and Dialogue Awards ceremony in Washington on October 25.

Also see: White House praises Rumi Forum for advocating interfaith dialogue

Establishing a Culture of Coexistence and Mutual Understanding

Ihsan Yilmaz wrote about the conference titled “Establishing a Culture of Coexistence and Mutual Understanding.” Yilmaz mentioned the Turkish experience of contemporary attempts to revive the peaceful coexistence of the past, which the Hizmet movement took the lead in, is highly relevant for a diverse Nigerian society, which is unfortunately suffering from attacks targeting its culture of coexistence.

CNS News: State Department Uses Facebook to Fight ‘Against Hate’ and ‘Stop Bigotry’

Two State Department officials promoted a Facebook page, “2011 Hours Against Hate,” as a tool to help young people around the world “push back against hatred.”

Turkish Classes

New classes start in January 2012
Learn Turkish in Washington, DC! Experienced teachers are offering Turkish Language Classes at the Rumi Forum in Washington, DC. If you are looking for Turkish lessons in the DC Metropolitan Area, Rumi Forum is the right place to begin. There are three terms in a year

• Turkish language classes are open to everyone who is interested.
• The classes are arranged based on the number of students interested in at any level.
• Our teachers are using a Turkish Language Book Set written in Turkish.

For the intensive program: A four-hour class per week and eight classes in a month.

For further queries and application form please email: turkish@rumiforum.org

Visit the 'Learn Turkish' blog

WATCH PROMOTIONAL VIDEO

For more info

Rumi Forum Internship Program

Eligibility: All undergraduate and master’s-level students and J.D. and Ph.D. candidates as well as recent graduates are eligible to apply.

Application Process: In order to apply for a Rumi Forum Internship, please submit the following:

· Cover Letter and Resume

· College or University Transcript

· 2-3 References (please provide both the phone and email contact information and please include a Professor or other individual familiar with your work)

*starting dates are flexible

Please send materials via email to

internships@rumiforum.org

DONATE TO RUMI FORUM

Rumi Forum now accepts donation through a new service via Paypal. The Rumi Forum, a NGO that is a non-profit exempt organization under section 501 (C)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code exists by way of contributions, donations and the volunteers that enable it to provide numerous services to better society at large. Your contributions are appreciated and play an important part in the Rumi Forum increasing social harmony and understanding.