The internationally-acclaimed Mosaic Youth of Detroit under the direction of founder and creative director Rick Sperling, executive producer and inter-faith activist Brenda Naomi Rosenberg, social justice advocate Julie Cummings, playwright Rachel Urist and NCCJ Interfaith Partners have come together to create an original play music, and interactive dialogue entitled “The Children of Abraham Project.”

For more than two months Muslim, Jewish and Christians teens from metro Detroit came together to discuss their lives, their fears, and the possibility of peace between their three religions. Results of those powerful conversations are more than a new play… ”The Children of Abraham Project” is a ray of hope. This fictional retelling, inspired by the story of Abraham and his two sons Isaac and Ishmael, provides a frame work for exploring the bonds that bring these religions together and the conflicts which keep them apart. From the unique viewpoint of young people, new light is shed on these centuries-old issues.

“The Children of Abraham Project” uses music, storytelling, personal testimonies and Mosaic’s trademark high energy dynamic performance style to make a powerful dramatic statement about the possibility of peace. Each performance is followed by a interactive discussion with the young creators and performers or a 90 minute interactive workshop.

“The Children of Abraham Project” is a creative response to breaking down the long standing barriers of fear, hate, and intolerance … a creative initiative that demonstrates how reconciliation and peace is possible between all of Abraham’s children.

 “The Children of Abraham Project” is an original four part production of drama, music, inter active dialogue, and recruitment and training of teens that brings to life the process of how enemies can become allies…how all of us are brothers and sisters… how all of us have the same father, Abraham and we need to stop killing each other.

“The Children of Abraham Project” has four components: the play, music and song, post show inter-active dialogue, work book and the recruitment and training of teens to create additional performances.

A.   The fictional play: Mosaic Youth Theatre of Detroit has created an original 45 minute play written by a diverse group of Christian, Muslim and Jewish teens from metropolitan Detroit.  The thirty minute  drama and fifteen minutes of song and music is  inspired by the story of Abraham’s two sons Isaac, [the father of the Jews and later the Christians] and Ishmael,[ the father of the Muslims] coming together to bury their father. Historically nothing was written about their conversations, so we have the opportunity to tell the story in a new light. We can take the 2000 year old sibling rivalries, the posturing for a fathers love…the demands for the fair share of inheritance, both land and ideology, and heal these  trans generational wounds that have imprisoned us in a cycle of fear, hate, and intolerance. The play can open minds and hearts by showing how peace is possible when we are willing to come together and engage in a 4 step healing process of understanding the other. Step one is to sit down and break bread together [Pizza]. We need to break the taboo against speaking to those we see as strangers or our enemies. Step two is to share our personal story [uninterrupted] of what it was like to be Abraham’s child from each of our perspectives, as a Christian, Muslim, and Jew, black, brown or white. By engaging in compassionate listening we can begin to break through the layers of historic unresolved feelings that we have been taught about each other. The third step is the humanizing of the other by stepping into the others shoes. When we are willing to “be” the other we gain insight and compassion to the others feelings and perspective. The play flashes back and forth from the biblical story to 2003, with tie-in stories of reconciliations between Christian, Muslim, and Jewish teens. Several of the teens have attended Seeds of Peace workshops and the Camp in Maine. This project reflects the important fourth step. That it is possible to come together, know we have different truths, embrace our diversity and create something new together.

B. The music: the Mosaic youth will incorporate four songs, three songs that reflect each faiths [Muslim, Christian and Jewish] journey to oneness with God and each other, and a peace song.

C. Facilitation of post show inter active dialogue are in collaboration with the NCCJ. The target audiences are both adults and high schools students. The performances will take place at Churches, Mosques, Temples, Synagogues theatres, cultural centers and museums.

D.  In collaboration with the University of Michigan, Art of Citizenship Project, a work book will be created. Communities will be able to duplicate the process of recruiting, writing and training of Christian, Muslim and Jewish teens to present the production and post show discussions.

“The Children of Abraham Project” is a collaborative effort initiated by Brenda Naomi Rosenberg [inter faith activist and psychological/spiritual coach], inspired by Imam Abdullah El Amin [leader in the Afro American Muslim community], in collaboration with Reverend Dan Buttry [global specialist for conflict resolution], Julie Cummings [social justice advocate], Rick Sperling [director of Mosaic] Mosaic Youth Theatre, Rochel Urist [playwright] and the N.C.C.J Interfaith Partners.

Brenda Naomi Rosenberg

The Children of Abraham Project was inspired by several sources, both human and divine. After 9/11 I had dedicated myself to building bridges of understanding between Detroit’s diverse communities. On a fall afternoon of 2002, I shared lunch with Imam Abdullah El Amin. We spoke of our concerns about terrorism and the crisis in the Middle East.  Sipping my coffee, I asked the Imam “what did he think would create better understanding between his Black Muslim community and my Jewish community? He paused for a moment …and then said “If everyone would remember we had the same father, Father Abraham, and that both his sons, Isaac and Ishmael came together to bury their father, it would go a long way to bringing our estranged families back together, it might even help end the bloodshed.” As we walked to our cars both hope and sadness filled my heart.

That night, I dreamt about a theater stage. On it Isaac and Ismael left the caves of Machpelah together. As they started to turn away from each other, the Arch Angel Raphaella flew in from stage left and wrapped her wings around the grieving brothers, asking them to sit down; she guided them through a four step healing process of reconciliation: