2015 Year in Review - Religion Communicators Council Promotes Good News

The Religion Communicators Council is an interfaith communications organization working to promote peace and fellowship while spreading the good news.

The longest running interfaith communications organization in the United States, the Religion Communicators Council (RCC), has chapters across the country that meet regularly and promote “excellence in the communication of religious faith and values in the public arena and encourage understanding among religious and faith groups,” according to the RCC website.

In Nashville, the RCC Chapter meets every other month to promote its ideals through conversations about what is in the news and how to spread more religious messages – the good news—a tradition that began this year. “People of faith have influence,” says president of the Nashville Chapter, Rev. Brian Fesler, who pastors the Church of Scientology, “We all need to step out and speak up because the good news, of which there is an abundance, tends to be overshadowed.”

The chapter began the year hearing from Mohamed Shukri-Hassan, the Program Director for the American Muslim Advisory Council and member of the Mayor’s New Americans Advisory Council, who described programs both organizations are doing to help promote understanding and tolerance, a timely message.  Next RCC members visited Ibis Communications where they met and heard from MaryAnne Howland, its president and founder. Howland described how the name Ibis comes from the bird of wisdom, as she described her commitment to serving organizations of goodwill.

The next visit for the chapter was to the American Center for Outreach where members had a chance to talk with and learn from Paul Galloway, the organizations new director. The American Center for Outreach is a non-profit organization formed to address bigoted legislation at the State Capitol, mainly against the Muslim population.

RCC members were glad to learn about ways to care for the environment on World Environment Day at the Church of Scientology, where guest speakers discussed neighborhood community gardens and best practices for planting trees.  Following this meeting, the RCC co-hosted an event for International Friendship Day, also at the Church of Scientology, where a diverse crowd discussed stereotypes and ways to overcome them. 

Following Friendship Day, the RCC executive board met and decided to change the focus of meetings to be more interactive for members. Thus the group introduced a new bi-monthly breakfast meeting where the RCC could take up hot topics in the news, fellowship, and discuss promoting tolerance and peace among all peoples. They were able to hold two such meetings this year, first at United Methodist Communications, then at the Islamic Center of Nashville.

Nashville’s RCC chapter is preparing for an even greater 2016 with its new style of meetings taking center stage to help members learn new ways to promote the good word. RCC is open to members from all denominations, and the Nashville group includes Baha’is, Christians, Jews, Muslims, Scientologists, Hindus and more.  For further information about the RCC or their next meeting, visit www.religioncommunicators.org.