DC Metropolitan Area Interreligious Communities Project

NoVA Interreligious Communities Project

The Interreligious Communities Project (ICP) brings neighbors across traditions together to visit sacred spaces, share stories, and develop core leadership and peacemaking skills.

About the Northern Virginia ICP

The Northern Virginia Interreligious Communities Project (ICP) brought together seven congregations representing Hindu, Catholic, Pagan, Presbyterian, Muslim, Buddhist, and Jewish traditions from across the Washington Metropolitan Area. Launching in June 2023, the cohort journeyed together through May 2024, visiting sacred spaces, sharing stories, and practicing the skills of interfaith leadership and dialogue.

Each gathering was more than a visit — it was an experience of hospitality, learning, and connection. Participants explored ritual, architecture, and the narratives that shape community life while practicing deep listening and constructive dialogue. By the program’s end, the NoVA ICP had built strong interreligious friendships and a shared Solidarity Pledge, symbolizing unity and hope for peace across difference.

The original group has continued its efforts to deepen relationships and learning through quarterly activities organized by a three-person planning team and by starting a new cohort of ICP leaders for the 2025-26 program year, two new lay leaders from two congregations that participated in the 2023-24 program year plus a completely new set of participants from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Coordinators: Maxine Olson, Snow Lietta, Mark Hoffman (current); Vanessa Avery (2023-24)

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