Yezidi - Sacred Holidays and Pilgrimages Now that we’ve covered some of the basic beliefs, scriptures, and rituals of Yezidi, let's get into the really exciting stuff — Yezidi holidays and pilgrimages. Stick with me! This could get complicated. When we previously discussed the practices of Yezidi faith, you may have noticed that there [...]
From one of our short-term team members, Brian Haney, Maryland: One of the highlights of the trip was getting to play soccer with the boys for most of the day one day. As a former soccer player, I was floored to do this. Soccer itself is the universal sport and language. Just seeing the excitement [...]
Yezidi - Mystery Religions in the Middle East The Yezidi (or Yazidi) religious minority has been lifted from obscurity for the very worst reason. They have been brought to the attention of the international world because of the cruelty and slaughter that came upon them in the form of the [...]
Adnan's Story Adnan has lived in Athens for about a year now. Like many others floating in the ancient Greek city, he's from Syria. But that Syria doesn't exist anymore. He's been able to work some for the last few months helping medical personnel and teaching about mental health issues relating to trauma. He's a [...]
Back to the Islands The refugee crisis in Greece is often portrayed as connected to the war in Syria. And while Syrians do represent the majority of refugees in Europe, our team spent last week on a small Greek island in a camp that is incredibly diverse. We met refugees from as far east as Bangladesh, as far [...]
There are thousands of years of history poking out at you from every corner of the Middle East. The world's three largest religions all began in this part of the world, and have been in contention over it for most of modern memory. But the big three are not the only religious groups trying to [...]
