Our Faith
Joshua's Walk
My road to faith has been long & winding, but I like where it's going. With a non-observant Jewish mother who joined a Quaker meeting, an agnostic father who believed in the "mystery", a Baptist-turned-Unitarian minister step-father, I was left with many questions. After a long personal journey, exploration of great literature, powerful role models, and a lot of study. I finally just "came home" to my Jewish faith, which I have come to strongly identify with. The Torah, the Jewish people, and the land of Israel ground and guide me daily. I am currently on the long road to become a rabbi.
The effort to discern the best questions, and seek true answers, is an effort that takes a fellowship of believers - and I greatly enjoy searching for, discovering, and following the many ways G-d works in our lives.
Alana's Walk
My belief in my faith is ever-changing and growing through my daily lessons and experiences. When I was a child, I was primarily raised to attend Christian churches, which often turned away my family for having members identify as the LGTB+ community. This message was internalized within me, creating a distaste for religion and faith as a whole. As I got older, I found myself having moments of prayer. Who I was praying to, I could not answer. It felt as times that I could only ask for a miracle, some of which felt as if they came true. I felt heard and that there was comfort in the moment. I started to identify myself as a spiritual person, with no specific label of religion. I believe that faith ebbs and flows as we need it, but constantly remains for us in life. It guides us through life's experiences and lessons, even if it is not always completely clear at the moment. I am a firm believer that we are all exactly where we are meant to be, even if we do not know why.