We are seeking personal essays from people who have participated in, witnessed, organized, or been affected by interfaith cooperation in their own communities. We welcome first-person essays about experiences that illustrate what interfaith cooperation looks like in everyday life. Previously published essays from personal blogs are welcome as reprints, provided that you have the right to authorize their republication.
Your story might be about:
- A project that brought different faith communities together
- Friendships or relationships that developed across religious traditions
- An interfaith response to a community need or crisis
- A dialogue, gathering, meal, service project, or celebration that brought people together
- An unexpected lesson you learned from someone of another faith
- An interfaith initiative that succeeded—or one that encountered challenges
- The experience of navigating religious differences within a family, workplace, school, or neighborhood
- A small act of cooperation that had a meaningful impact
- What you have learned about building relationships across religious or nonreligious differences
You do not need to be a professional writer, scholar, clergy member, or interfaith leader. We are especially interested in authentic stories from people who can help readers see how interfaith cooperation is actually being practiced in communities.
Submission Guidelines
Essays should be 1,000 words or fewer and should be based primarily on your own experiences, observations, or reflections.
We welcome contributors from all religious traditions as well as people who are atheist, agnostic, humanist, spiritual but not religious, or otherwise unaffiliated.
Because our purpose is to encourage understanding and constructive engagement across differences, submissions may not disparage, demean, discriminate against, or promote hostility toward any religious, racial, ethnic, cultural, or other group. Writers are welcome to discuss disagreements, difficulties, and even unsuccessful interfaith experiences, but we ask that these subjects be approached thoughtfully and respectfully.
Contributor Payment
Writers whose essays are selected for publication will receive $50 per published essay.
To make room for a wide range of perspectives and voices, an individual contributor may have no more than two essays published by The Interfaith Sun in a calendar year.
How to Pitch Your Story
If you’re interested in sharing a story idea, please send a brief summary of your article along with your bio to [email protected].