Ten Minutes With… Reverend Mary Frances Curns, Rabbi David Weiner, & Father Chris Alar
Reverend Curns (left), presides over All Saints Episcopal Church in North Adams. Rabbi Weiner (middle) presides over Knessett Israel in Pittsfield. Father Alar (right) is Director of the Association of Marian Helpers at The National Shrine of the Divine Mercy in Stockbridge.
As the winter holiday season draws closer, prominent spiritual leaders from various points in the Berkshires—Reverend Mary Frances Curns, Rabbi David Weiner, and Father Chris Alar—have come together to share an inspiring message of hope and light. Channeling their faith into good works, they help to affect positive change in their communities through compassionate action.
Questions for Reverend Curns:
What is your message of hope to the Berkshire community this holiday season? The holiday season is a perfect time to come together—even over great distance—to celebrate the little things in our lives that give us joy. With all of the uncertainty in the world, it’s more important than ever to connect to those around us through shared spiritual experiences. In the Christian faith, the holiday season is seen as a time of the incarnation and rebirth. My hope is that people will open up their hearts and allow the divine spirit of compassion to be reborn from within. That spirit of compassionate love can manifest in so many beautiful ways. It can be as simple as reaching out through a socially-distanced visit, sending a note, or a telephone call with a neighbor in need. That kind of connection reminds us that God is with us, even if present circumstances might keep us from seeing our family or friends like we normally might.
What events or community initiatives are you most excited about this holiday season? We are incredibly excited to be restarting the “Take and Eat” ministry program in November. It’s a wonderful initiative where we deliver hot meals on Sunday mornings once a month to community members who struggle with food insecurity. We’ve also got a small church-sponsored group that’s making sleeping mats for our homeless community members out of grocery bags that they cut up and weave into plastic yarn. They then crochet the yarn into mats. We’ll be giving those out to Berkshire Helping Hands to help with the homelessness crisis. These uncertain times present many new challenges, but there are so many wonderful people going out of their way to help others. As long as we remain open to the creative forces within ourselves that come from God’s divine inspiration, we can all join together in spirit to make a noticeable difference.
Questions for Rabbi Weiner:
What is your message of hope? In the Jewish tradition, we light candles on the menorah for each of the eight days of Hanukkah, one additional candle each night. We do this to celebrate the eight nights that the faithful flame continued to burn in the temple, when it seemed like all hope was lost. With every candle we light, the illumination increases, spreading light into the darkest corners. I like to think that the Hanukkah menorah is a beautiful metaphor for the healing power of spirituality and community connections. A little light dispels much darkness.
What events or community initiatives are you most excited about? Observing Hanukkah teaches us that when we encounter darkness, we should light candles for ourselves and for others. Through a community partnership with the South Congregational Church, we continue to support their food pantry. We contribute o the Pittsfield Area Council of Congregations winter fuel drive, which helps heat the homes of neighbors unable to afford oil. We collect gifts for households in need in cooperation with Berkshire Children & Families. We also hope to livestream services for the holiday through our online streaming platform and gather outdoors to light the congregation’s menorah.
Questions for Father Alar:
What is your message of hope? The holidays are traditionally times that we gather as a community to celebrate our faith. In past years, one of my favorite festive rituals was a yearly Christmas Carol singalong down at the Red Lion Inn in Stockbridge. It was amazing to be able to connect with minsters from other denominations at those ecumenical gatherings. This year, it is equally crucial that we find ways to continue to spiritually connect—even over great physical distances—to overcome our differences and find common ground. By applying Christ’s teachings of compassion, understanding, and mercy in our everyday dealings with our fellow community members, we can work together to conquer our collective challenges.
What events or community initiatives are you most excited about? We continue to spread the word of God in ways we never thought possible. Through our livestreamed masses and our “Explaining the Faith” online video series, we have not only maintained our connection with our community of worship—we have expanded our congregation. It has been amazing to see the response to our live-streamed worship services. Seeing dozens of thousands of people tune in to each broadcast is incredibly spiritually fulfilling. It’s wonderful to help people connect to God in these times of extreme doubt and uncertainty. The power of faith is without parallel. By coming together in the pursuit of a timeless spiritual connection, we open ourselves up to the healing powers of mercy and love that God has granted each and every one of us.
—Benjamin Lerner