The Religious Education Initiative

The Religious Education Initiative (rEdi) was founded to address the growing need for improved understanding of the world's religions among American citizens. A recent study found that while America is one of the most religious countries in the developed world, most of us are unable to correctly answer questions about the world's religions. This knowledge gap directly impacts civic and political engagement, often preventing the advancement of peace, interfaith understanding and the promotion of cooperative living in our neighborhoods and our nation. The Religious Education Initiative addresses the growing and important challenge of limited interfaith dialogue and faltering religious literacy through the following efforts: Each year, we host a wide array of in World Religions, Understanding Extremism & Religious Conflict, Peacemaking, Interfaith Dialogue and Comparative Religious Studies. Our courses are taught by professors and religious leaders who are experts in their topic. Many of our programs are free, while others are priced accessibly and affordably at $10 to $40. Our programs and courses are designed to appeal to a wide audience of learners, including curious young adults, experienced professionals in search of diversity training, and retirees seeking personal enrichment. Courses are taught in person and provide ample time for questions and answers. We support the curiosity of our learners by operating a year-round virtual book fair. Books are acquired from donors all over the world, and are made available at our larger events in our pop-up book boutique. We demonstrate our commitment to interfaith dialogue by hosting a lecture series which explores a topic of broad interest to our diverse community. We make regular lectures available by hosting two yearlong series. The first, coined "The Quarterly Question,"is a speaker series which invites leading peace thinkers to share their wisdom with interested hearers. Second is the Spotlight on Religion and the Social Sciences, which invites thinkers who study religion from social science angles to enlighten us about their perspectives on religious themes. We invite you to support our mission by attending our events, enrolling in one or more courses, donating books to our year-round book fair, purchasing a book from our online store or giving a monetary donation. We also welcome you to join our team of volunteers if you're in the Washington area. Thank you in advance for your support.