Thanksgiving should kickoff a fun period for the religious community. You have Christmas, Hajj and Hanukkah being observed in December.  Yes, the three Abrahamic Religions have three major holidays in the same month. This should be a time where the global religious community is celebrating and honoring religious diversity. Instead many will probably focus on fear-based religious strife and differences.

Please note that I am not excluding the holidays and festivals that other religions have during this period. However, for this column, I want to offer a message to the three religions that I feel make this globe an extremely perilous place at this point and time in our history, because of their inability to see beyond differences and find what is common.

In a speech about inter-religious dialogue, Pope John Paul II said: "What unites us is much greater than what separates us. ... It is necessary ... to rid ourselves of stereotypes, of old habits. And above all, it is necessary to recognize the unity that already exists." This statement is full of wisdom and guidance for Christians, Jews and Muslims, especially as to how they should approach this holy season.

Christmas, Hanukkah, and Hajj are full of rituals that should make those who celebrate them focus intensely on the meaning of these sacred days. The intensity of these three celebrations can and should foster a sense of pride and wonderment. This is fine. It's even great.

However, I would urge the adherents of the three Abrahamic religions, not to be so consumed and intensely focused on their particular celebration sand forget that this is a sacred time for other traditions as well. For example, as we celebrate Christmas and Hanukkah in the West, how many of us remember or even know that Hajj begins this December. The only reason I remembered this is because I read the Interfaith Calendar each month.

So what John Paul was really asking us to do in his statement was to step outside our traditions and look at our neighbors and honor our differences and celebrate the common values and morals that unite us. This requires more than talking or thinking about it. It requires action.

Now what can we do? First, we can start by talking to our neighbors. If you are Christian, ask your Jewish or Muslim neighbors how their families or communities will celebrate or honor these sacred days over the next month. Your Jewish or Muslim neighbors can do the same.

Another thing you can do is to invite your Christian, Jewish, Muslim or a neighbor from any faith tradiotion to join you at your church, mosque or temple. You can even invite them to a holiday dinner or feast. If you are not comfortable with or ready for this type of interaction, try reading about the various other sacred celebrations that are being observed this month. This is a good place to start. These seem like small things. They are not small at all, because if each of us did just one of these things, we would lay a large and sturdy foundation for peace and community building.

There are many groups and faith communities that promote these types of activities, and they should be honored for their good work. As an interfaith minister, I belong to one. The problem is that not enough of us are willing to take a step away from what we know to experience something new or different.

This fear of having our beliefs and assumptions challenged makes this world a very perilous place. During the next month there will be stark reminders of this peril when we see the body count from Iraq and the Middle East on the news every day. So please, in this holiday season go out and talk to your neighbor and find what already unites us and not what divides us.

Happy Thanksgiving.

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You can learn more about me at http:/.blog.jayspeights.com/ .  And be sure to buy my book, "Harmonious Day."

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