Mission: Engaging community. Celebrating diversity. Creating harmony. Embracing the sacred.
The Greater Kansas City Interfaith Council (GKCIC) is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization, which has a Board of Directors that strives for inclusiveness. The Council is comprised of Faith Councilors, who belong to 22 distinct faith philosophies represented in the greater community, all of whom are passionate about multi-faith understanding. Working through Councilors, Alternates, Advisors and Friends, the Council strives to provide engaging and educational programs about the many diverse faiths and traditions represented in Greater Kansas City by joining religion, spirit and community.
Vision: Building the most welcoming community for all people.
Goals:
- To develop deeper understanding within the community of each other’s faiths and traditions, and to foster appropriate bilateral and multilateral interfaith dialogue and interaction
- To model spiritual and religious values, especially mutual respect and cooperation, in a society often intolerant of cultural and religious diversity
- To develop and provide resources, networking, and programs for the community through the arts and education to increase appreciation for cultural and religious diversity
- To work with educational, spiritual, and religious leaders and the media in promoting accurate and fair portrayal of the faiths within our community
- To help the community become more aware of the spiritual values that can help resolve issues that occur in the environmental, social and personal realms of our lives
Who are the people that form the GKCIC? CLICK HERE to find out more about the important individuals that help GKCIC thrive and succeed.
The GKCIC was originally formed as the Kansas City Interfaith Council in 1989 to bring awareness of the rich diversity of faiths that constitute our greater Kansas City community.
For fifteen years, the Council was hosted by the Center for Religious Experience and Study (CRES). The Council offered speakers to make faith presentations, organized interfaith events such as the Gifts of Pluralism Conference and a September 11 Observance featuring a brass ensemble from the Kansas City Symphony.
2005 marked a turning point for the Council when it reorganized through a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation from Religions for Peace USA, and was designated a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. The Council created a new structure, elected its first officers, and developed committees to address planning, finances, and interfaith programs to bring to the community. The Council also changed its name to The Greater Kansas City Interfaith Council (GKCIC) to emphasize its inclusive nature, created its vision statement, and revised its mission and goals.