Silicon Valley Interreligious Council (SiVIC) builds interreligious harmony and understanding so as to promote a just and compassionate society in Silicon Valley.

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Members of the Silicon Valley Teen Interfaith Council helped plan and present the Duveneck Forum at Hidden Villa in April. See some photos.

Here's a video from that day:

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Read more about the Teen Interfaith Council 2013 Immersion Trip to New Mexico.

 

Upcoming Events

See our listing of upcoming interreligious opportunities in the South Bay.

Sustainable, Just and Healthy Food Campaign

Shir Hadash already does a lot to support eating that is healthy and socially responsible. Within each of the four areas of the SiViC pledge, there are multiple options, and a congregation chooses one from each area to constitute its pledge. We found that our existing activities already met at least one option in each area. We made a conscious decision to pick another pledge activity in each area, one that we did not already do, to ensure that our pledge was a motivation for continuing to improve what we do – to paraphrase Lo Alecha from Pirke Avot, we must continue to improve upon the work we are doing. Read more . . .

 

Join congregations across Silicon Valley in making a pledge in 2012 to better connect our food choices with our values. Faith institutions are becoming the front lines of health and sustainability movements, for many reasons. We are communities of people that care deeply about each other and about our responsibilities as stewards of the earth. We gather regularly for celebrations, meetings and rituals which involve food. We can become the force that turns around the obesity epidemic and creates the cultural shift needed to make our food system more sustainable. Find out how . . .

Our Religious Neighbor Next Door: Photo Project

Today's Silicon Valley is home to communities from virtually all of the world's religions. Indigenous peoples, Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox Christians, Hindus, Zoroastrians, Muslims, Buddhists, Pagans, Jains, Baha'i, Jews, Mormons, Sikhs, and many others have put down roots here, making our region a microcosm of the globe's diverse religious landscape.

This year, SiVIC invited local congregations and organizations to submit photos that capture their distinctive identities. The resulting collection – or better, collective snapshot of religion in the Valley in 2012 – made its debut at the closing event for this year's Silicon Valley Reads. Eventually it will be posted online. Although the original deadline is now past, we still invite communities to participate in expanding the exhibit.
Find out more . . .

Volunteers needed for Chaplaincy at Good Samaritan Hospital

Good Samaritan Hospital is looking for Spiritual Care volunteers to create a ministry of presence with patients and families. They are also looking for local faith leaders who would be willing to meet with patients of their own faith.
Find out more . . .

"Silicon Valley Reads" programs a success!

Silicon Valley Reads, the annual program that encourages everyone in Santa Clara County to read the same book at the same time chose two books for this year that have great significance for interreligious relationships: The Muslim Next Door by Sumbul Ali-Karamali and The Butterfly Mosque by G. Willow Wilson. SiVIC sponsored a book review session at our Interreligious Leaders Forum in March, and Board President Andrew Kille participated in a broadcast video book panel. You can see that program and more at www.siliconvalleyreads.org.

November

The SiVIC Annual Assembly met November 30 at the Center for Spiritual Enlightenment and featured a presentation from Shayda Sales, a participant in the Teen Interfaith Leadership Council of Silicon Valley about the program. Two new members were added to the Board: Mahmut Altun, Director of BAY CC/ Pacifica Institute, and Henry Millstein, coordinator of the Interfaith Speakers Bureau at ING.

October

SiVIC Board Members attended Chuck Reed's Annual Mayor's Faith Leaders Appreciation Breakfast at the San Jose City Hall.

September

35 local religious leaders took part in the Religious Leaders Summit co-sponsored by SiVIC and Carry the Vision. Held concurrently with the Carry the Vision Community Nonviolence conference on September 29, the Summit engaged participants in a serious discussion of what religious leaders can do together to overcome violence in our valley that cannot be done alone. The gathering was facilitated by Helen Spector and the Rev. Bill Lesher, preivious board member and board president, respectively, of the Council for a Parliament of the World's Religions.

SiVIC co-sponsored a 9/11 commemorative "Peace Picnic" community gathering in McEntee Plaza, in front of the Santa Clara County Administration Building on September 11th. Hosts for the event were American Muslim Voice, the office of County Supervisor Dave Cortese, and the South Bay Islamic Association.

August 2012

SiVIC Board Chair Andrew Kille spoke at a vigil for the victims of the Gurdwara shooting in Wisconsin held at the San Jose Sikh Gurdwara. The San Jose Gurdwara was a founding affiliate of SiVIC. Read more from the San Jose Mercury

See video of the event.

SiVIC Response to Shootings at Sikh Gurdwara in Oak Creek, Wisconsin
Sunday, August 5, 2012
Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of the Sikh Gurdwara in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, following the attack earlier today which resulted in the deaths of seven people, including the gunman, and several more wounded. No religious community should ever have to bear the pain of having their sacred space invaded by hatred and violence. We join with the local Sikh community and other religious communities in pledging to work together to build the understanding and appreciation for our diverse religious traditions that can serve to prevent such tragedies anywhere and everywhere.

July 2012

Representatives of SiVIC attended a meeting of religious leaders in Morgan Hill convened by the mayor, Steve Tate, to link congregations to the wider community.

May 2012

Members of SiVIC were hosted by the Sunnyvale Zen Center and the Tzu Chi Foundation for their respective celebrations of "Bathing the Buddha," an annual ritual symbolizing the need to cleanse the heart. The Interreligious Leaders Forum learned some practical strategies for suicide prevention from members of the Santa Clara County Suicide Prevention Program.

April 2012

SiVIC unveiled the photo display "Our Religious Neighbor Next Door" at the closing event of Silicon Valley Reads. We plan to expand the display and share this snapshot of interreligious diversity in our area with other groups.

See more of the activities of SiVIC on our News page.

 

At the Bathing the Buddha Ceremony, Zen Center of Sunnyvale (5/8/11)	Prayer vigil for victims of the Japanese earthquake (3/17/11)

 

SiVIC emerged from discussions among a varied coalition of religious communities, non-profit agencies, educational institutions, and governmental offices in Santa Clara County that has been meeting since the beginning of 2010. Download our brochure. 

We invite you to become a part of creating this new interreligious network!

• Send us your contact information at info@sivicouncil.org to be notified of upcoming events and news
• Let us know what you'd like to offer! Write us at info@sivicouncil.org.