Everyday Faith

Everyday Faith In this interactive community experience, participants learn more deeply about the lived experience of different faith traditions. Each session features a living library of people who practice their faith in everyday encounters, and time for discussion and integration.

Everyday Faith: What You Didn’t Know You Needed to Know

In a world that often pushes us toward quick judgments and polarization, Everyday Faith invites you to slow down, get curious, and engage with the complex ways religion, spirituality, and worldview shape our daily lives.

This interactive workshop series offers a space to learn, ask questions, and connect across the many ways we orient around religion.

Why Join Us?

You’ll explore how faith, spirituality, and worldviews influence such things as:

Life cycle events — from births and weddings to funerals
Holiday celebrations — and how people observe them differently
Food and clothing practices — understanding religious and cultural significance
Workplace conversations — navigating faith and identity in professional settings

Through these insights, you’ll gain practical tools to better understand and respectfully engage with people of diverse religious, spiritual, and secular identities.

Why Religious Literacy Matters

Understanding religion and worldview diversity is more important than ever — especially in workplaces, schools, and civic life. Religious literacy helps us challenge assumptions, break down stereotypes, and build meaningful relationships across lines of difference. Everyday Faith gives you the skills, confidence, and personal insight to navigate a diverse world with empathy and respect.

As a Family Court volunteer, I work with people from diverse religious backgrounds. This series deepened my understanding and gave me tools to address prejudice and misconceptions. I now feel more confident navigating these situations.
Past Participant
I was deeply moved by the 'living library' participants who exhibited ways that their faith is integrated into the wholeness of their lives and not just checked at the door.
Past Participant

The Living Library: Real People, Real Understanding

A signature feature of the Everyday Faith experience is the Living Library — a unique opportunity to engage directly with individuals from a variety of faiths, spiritual paths, and worldviews.

Just like checking out a book, you’ll “check out” a person and have a one-on-one or small group conversation where you can ask questions, hear personal stories, and explore perspectives that might be unfamiliar to you. This is your chance to move beyond abstract concepts and engage with the real, lived experiences of others. The Living Library fosters:

Authentic dialogue that humanizes faith and worldview diversity
Safe spaces for curiosity, where respectful questions are welcomed
Opportunities to challenge assumptions through direct interaction

Participants consistently tell us the Living Library is the most memorable, transformative part of the series — because real understanding begins with real people.

What to Expect

Interactive learning sessions with large and small group discussions
The Living Library experience — highlighted as the heart of our program
Tools for personal and professional growth — improving your religious literacy and cultural competence
Accompanying Resource: How to Be a Perfect Stranger: The Essential Religious Etiquette Handbook (6th Edition), edited by Stuart M Matlins and Arthur J Magida, Skylight Paths Publishing (2015)

You’ll leave with practical knowledge, plus deeper awareness, respect, and connection – the kind of understanding that builds stronger, more inclusive communities.