Gray Henry-Blakemore is the founder and director of the interfaith publishing houses, Fons Vitae and Quinta Essentia, in Louisville, Kentucky, devoted to world spirituality. She is a writer and film producer under contract with the Book Foundation, and co-founder and trustee of the Islamic Texts Society of Cambridge, England. She has served as a contributing editor for Parabola magazine for over a decade. Besides having taught filmmaking at Dalton and Fordham University and world religions and art history at the Cairo American College, Cambridge University, Centre College and the Abbey of Gethsemane, she regularly lectures at such noteworthy venues as the 1995 Conference of World Spiritual Art in Tehran and most recently the September 2006 Congress on Islamic Spirituality in Singapore. In 1994 she arranged for His Holiness the Dalai Lama to speak in Louisville, and has in April 2006 organized the Dalai Lama interfaith congress in San Francisco in which the his main focus was to meet with Muslim dignitaries from the world over. Fons Vitae is now helping to arrange His Holiness’s visit December 2006 to Senegal and Ghana, which will continue the Buddhist-Muslim dialogue begun in San Francisco.
Gray is a founding member of the Thomas Merton Center Foundation and has organized a number of conferences focused on the work of Thomas Merton at Bellarmine University. She worked in Bosnian refugee camps in 1993, and subsequently published texts for their school system. Fons Vitae plays a key role in the annual interfaith festivals and programs sponsored by the Center for Interfaith Relations and Interfaith Paths to Peace Institute.
As a filmmaker, she produced Beads of Faith: The Universal Use of the Rosary, which is available both as a book and a video, Islam: A Pictorial Essay; Cairo: 1,001 Years of Art and Architecture; Ornaments of Lhasa: Islam in Tibet; and The Sacred Unconscious (Huston Smith). As an author she has written the classic, Understanding Islam and the Muslims, The Life of the Prophet Muhammad, articles for the “Fons Vitae Thomas Merton Series” (Merton & Sufism, Merton & Hesychasm, and Merton & Buddhism), as well as for Parabola and other journals.
Mrs. Henry received her B.A. at Sarah Lawrence College (Joseph Campbell was her don 1965, studied at the American and al-Azhar University in Cairo (1969-79), earned her M.A. in Education at the University of Michigan, was a research fellow at Cambridge University from 1983-1990, and is scheduled to receive her Ph.D. from the Faculty of Divinity at Canterbury, Kent in 2008.
“Budd’s commitment to, and work on behalf of interfaith understanding is remarkable. There may be no greater challenge in our world than that of building bridges between religions and religious cultures, and I know no Christian who works harder at this or is more effective. From the interfaith pilgrimages to the courses he’s developed to his own writing and service, he’s a leader in this important and challenging work. And what Budd teaches us is that the more we learn about the faith and religion of others, the more articulate we become about our own, to others and to ourselves. He helps us let go of the threat and embrace the challenge.” – Rev. Dr. Sally Purvis Colleague and Author
Rev. Dr. Gilbert (Budd) Friend-Jones has led Jews, Muslims, and Christians on interfaith pilgrimages in Spain, Morocco, Gibraltar, and Turkey, and has preached and taught seminars in Russia, South India, Turkey, and the UK. – A native of West Virginia, Budd earned his doctorate at Howard University Divinity School in Washington, D.C., his M. Div. at Princeton Theological Seminary, and his Bachelor’s degree in Political Science at Frostburg State University. He has published two books and numerous articles. Dr. Friend-Jones is the Board Vice-Chair and Chair Elect of the North American Interfaith Network. He lives in Sarasota where he also serves as a Minister in the local Unitarian Universalist Church. Before moving to Florida in 2017, he served Congregational and UCC churches in Maine, Minnesota, Virginia, Georgia, and Illinois.
Rev. Dr. Gilbert (Budd) Friend-Jones North American Interfaith Network Unitarian Universalist Church of Sarasota First Congregational United Church of Christ
We never know where the gold will be when we tape our conversations. Sometimes it surfaces during the informal conversation after the taping. Here’s a clip that I decided not to toss. The complete conversation filed with more nuggets of gold will be out in a few days.
About Don Frick: On the day when he first read Greenleaf’s essay The Servant as Leader in 1986, Don Frick decided to dedicate the rest of his career to understanding and teaching Greenleaf’s ideas about servant leadership. Since then, he has written books and essays about servant leadership—including Greenleaf’s biography—made presentations, conducted workshops, taught graduate seminars, and consulted with corporations on the principles of servant leadership. He is currently working on another book that offers details about how various organizations have implemented servant leadership. Before encountering Greenleaf’s work, Don engaged in multiple careers, including: managing departments at a university and museum of art; university teaching; television, radio, and film writing, production, and performance; trainer; specialist in advertising and marketing for Fortune 500 companies, plus an entrepreneur. His formal education includes a B.S. in Education, Master of Divinity, and PhD in Leadership and Organizational Studies.
Don is based in Indianapolis and can be contacted at: [email protected].
Dana C. White, PhD – A graduate of Occidental College and the University of Southern California, Dana White received his PhD in Mythological Studies from Pacifica Graduate Institute in 2003. His dissertation is titled “Re-Imagining Work: Awakening the Call of Right Livelihood.” He currently serves as a contributing faculty member at Pacifica and as a reader on numerous doctoral dissertation committees.
He is the father of two sons, Michael and Andrew. He and his wife Michele live in Santa Monica with Odys – their 4-month old Whoodle (Wheaton Terrier and Poodle). He is a published poet, runs marathons, cooks and gardens.
Over the course of his career, Dana has worked in radio and industrial television, as a vice president of marketing for Merrill Lynch, and as an academic department chair at an art college. He edits and designs books, produces films and motion media for universities, corporations and non-profits, and is a professional photographer with more than 40 books to his credit.
He currently produces and hosts the Myth Salon, a venture he co-founded in 2016 with Dr. Will Linn, who serves as the moderator of the Myth Salon, which used to meet monthly in Dana’s home but now, because of the pandemic, convenes every other week in an online Zoom Webinar session that features a well-known presenter, a group of scholar-educator panelists, and an online audience.
Jeremy Solomons joins us again from Rwanda. What could you be doing that would provide more satisfaction? This time he shares about self-compassion and aligning with your purpose, not someone else’s idea of what your purpose should be. Jeremy has a fascinating world view and worth pausing for.
Jeremy is an independent global leadership consultant and writer, who was born in the UK, who was naturalized in the USA and who is now based in Kigali, Rwanda.
In the areas of Gender, Gender Identity and Sexual Orientation, he is a passionate ally, advocate and activist for universal human rights, dignity, respect, inclusion and equity for all people of all genders.
On a personal level, Jeremy wants fair and just treatment for his beloved daughter, who has recently entered the world of work. On a professional level, he truly believes that an equitable workplace is the most creative and productive one for everyone. And as a highly educated, highly privileged and highly empowered man, he has the platform and access to work with other male leaders help bring about meaningful and sustainable systemic change.
Jeremy’s model for this is the high level of women’s education and empowerment that has actually happened here in his new home of Rwanda in the 26 years since the Genocide against the Tutsis. Women now represent two thirds of Rwanda’s parliament – the highest in the world. He coaches and mentors at the Akilah Institute for Women in Kigali and actively supports HERO, Rwanda’s independent new Health and Equal Rights Organisation.
In the past, Jeremy co-designed and –led many training workshops and dialogues on these topics, especially at Royal Dutch Shell in the Netherlands, UK and USA. He also co-facilitated special sessions on “Women and Power” for Leadership Texas; “Gender Dynamics” for Communities in Schools; “Cultural Competence” for young women leaders at GEN Austin; “Gays, God and the Workplace” for the American Cancer Society; and “LGBT and Allies” for the Society for Intercultural Education, Training and Research (SIETAR) USA.
Jeremy was a co-founder and member of the Austin Men’s Group for seven years.
About Search of the New Compassionate Male with Clay Boykin. I am convinced that amidst all the turmoil in the world a New Compassionate Male is emerging, and this New Compassionate Male is emerging as the New Archetype. ~ I am on a journey to every corner of the planet. I am on a journey within; a journey of self discovery to learn what it means to be a compassionate male. ~ I do not have the answer, but I know there is a spark of compassion emerging within every man and within every woman. Regardless of sexual orientation, nationality or religious tradition I invite you to join me. Let’s travel together and find answers to questions like: Who is this man? What makes him compassionate? Is he born this way, or how is compassion learned? Is there a place or time where compassion is not relevant? How many ways does the compassionate male show up in the world Together, we can find him. Together, we can hold a mirror up for one another and find the compassion within ourselves. ~ The more adversity there is in the world, the hotter the ember of compassion burns within. It may be smoldering and unrecognizable at the moment, or burning brightly lighting and warming others. ~ Who is the New Compassionate Male? Join me in our search.
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Free On Amazon: Circles of Men: A Counter-Intuitive Approach to Creating Men’s Groups – Compassionate men gather differently. – “With this book, Clay Boykin has created a spiritual blueprint for men around the world. Not only does this book provide a detailed guide for starting and maintaining a men’s group, but it also contains rich insight into the struggles and challenges of being a spiritual male in today’s western culture.” – Review on Amazon
Martin Dowman has taught me a great deal about men and compassion; by the way he shows up in the world and models the way for others. Martin knows the value of cultivating deep and meaningful relationships with men, how to stand in one’s truth with an open heart, and how to hold space for another man going through their dark night of the soul.
Martin is Co-Director of the Unity Light Center outside of Baldwin City, Ka., and has been instrumental in programs in South Africa supporting disadvantaged youth.
The Light Center is a beacon lighting the way into a vibrant future. Harmonizing with the earth, inspiring personal, local and global connection, providing safe space for spiritual growth and healing, and empowering youth. The Light Center is a retreat center, and an organic sustainable farm, providing natural sacred spaces for hiking and camping, celebrations and ceremonies. Here, it is a safe space for creating new paths into the future with open hearts.
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Free On Amazon: Circles of Men: A Counter-Intuitive Approach to Creating Men’s Groups – Compassionate men gather differently. – “With this book, Clay Boykin has created a spiritual blueprint for men around the world. Not only does this book provide a detailed guide for starting and maintaining a men’s group, but it also contains rich insight into the struggles and challenges of being a spiritual male in today’s western culture.” – Review on Amazon
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Gray Henry-Blakemore is the founder and director of the interfaith publishing houses, Fons Vitae and Quinta Essentia, in Louisville, Kentucky, devoted to world spirituality. She is a writer and film producer under contract with the Book Foundation, and co-founder and trustee of the Islamic Texts Society of Cambridge, England. She has served as a contributing editor for Parabola magazine for over a decade. Besides having taught filmmaking at Dalton and Fordham University and world religions and art history at the Cairo American College, Cambridge University, Centre College and the Abbey of Gethsemane, she regularly lectures at such noteworthy venues as the 1995 Conference of World Spiritual Art in Tehran and most recently the September 2006 Congress on Islamic Spirituality in Singapore. In 1994 she arranged for His Holiness the Dalai Lama to speak in Louisville, and has in April 2006 organized the Dalai Lama interfaith congress in San Francisco in which the his main focus was to meet with Muslim dignitaries from the world over. Fons Vitae is now helping to arrange His Holiness’s visit December 2006 to Senegal and Ghana, which will continue the Buddhist-Muslim dialogue begun in San Francisco.
