Becoming a formidable interfaith entity

Sisterhood of Salaam Shalom opens Malverne chapter

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Female members of Jewish and Muslim groups from across Nassau County as well as Queens gathered at the Malverne Jewish Center last Saturday to launch the first local chapter of the Sisterhood of Salaam Shalom, an organization that seeks to build relationships among women in the two religions and to end anti-Muslim and anti-Jewish sentiment.

“I’m looking forward to us getting to know each other better,” said Malverne Rabbi Susan Elkodsi, who initiated the effort to create the local chapter. “I said a long time ago that if the Jewish community and the Muslim community in the United States could get together, we would be a formidable entity.”

Nearly three dozen women, including Hempstead Town Clerk Nasrin Ahmad, attended the meeting. “I’m sure you will agree with me that this is an absolutely wonderful thing,” said Ahmad, adding that another women’s meeting will be hosted by the Ahmadiya Muslim Community of Long Island on March 5, from 3 to 5 p.m., at 64 Union Ave. in Amityville. That meeting will be titled “Co-existence: a Religious Perspective for World Peace.” Five religions will be represented, Ahmad said — Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism and Sikhism — but women from any religious group are welcome to attend.

Three years ago, when the Sisterhood of Salaam Shalom was formed, it had six chapters, according to Elkodsi. By last November, however, more than 100 chapters had registered with the organization. Now there are 150 chapters, with more than 1,000 requests from women looking for groups in or near their communities.

“Religious minorities, especially, are concerned about a rise in hate crimes and speech,” Elkodsi said. “By learning about others and getting to know people as individuals, we can break down stereotypes and fight hate.” She added that she had noticed that many women members of religious minorities who have previously felt safe in the U.S. are now feeling insecure, and that joining groups like this one helps foster a feeling of solidarity.

The meeting opened with blessings in Hebrew and Arabic, which were followed by several videos about the Sisterhood of Salaam Shalom and then a “getting to know you” session during which the women discussed a wide range of shared beliefs and practices and exchanged contact information.

Because of the distances some of the participants had traveled to attend the meeting, it was determined that several chapters would be created from the Malverne group to make future meetings more convenient.