2025 Schedule
San Antonio's Inaugural
Festival Of Faiths
- September 14, 2025
- 12:00-6:00pm
Student Engagement Center
University of the Incarnate Word
(corner of Broadway and Hildebrand)
4301 Broadway, San Antonio, TX 78209
Schedule at a Glance
Outdoors - West SEC Entrance
Friendship Garden
1st Floor Concourses
Mezzanine - Festival Arts
Ballroom Stage
2nd Floor - Fun for All Ages
Mabee Library Auditorium
Schedule by Time
10:00am – 4:0pm
Volunteer & Participant Check-In
1st Floor Concourse
- List Item #1
11:30am
Registration Opens
Outdoors - West SEC Entrance
12:00pm
Opening Celebration
- Multifaith Welcome
- Dr. Javier Clavere
- Dr. Thomas Evans
- Arathi School of Dance (Hindu)
- Shokare Nikori Nakpodia
- Agudas Achim Choir (Jewish)
Featured Guest Speaker:
- Mayor Ron Nirenberg
Concert Hall
1:45pm – 3:15pm
Display & Dialogue Tables
Group 1
- Iskcon
- Yoga
- Sophia’s Wisdom
- Baptist Chaplaincy
- Creation Care
- Reconciling United Methodists
Mission Lobby
2:00pm – 2:45pm
STORIES:
Portals of Healing & Humanity, Compassion & Community (Multifaith)
Concert Hall
2:00pm – 3:00pm
Three Mystics Walk into a Tavern
Christian, Muslim, Jewish Dialogue
Recital Hall
2:00pm – 4:30pm
Multifaith Activities
- Prayer Flags (Presbyterian)
- Prayer Beads (Catholic)
- Water Marbling Islamic Art
- Rock Painting (Baha’i)
- Labyrinth (Presbyterian)
- Family Search (LDS)
Family Activities Room
2:00pm – 2:15pm
Children’s Stories from Many Faiths
Family Activities Room
2:00pm – 2:50pm
Circle Band (Celebration Circle)
Grupo Folklorico Yanaguana (Catholic)
HIT Plaza Stage
2:30pm – 4:00pm
Snacks of the World
Multifaith
HIT Portico
2:30pm – 4:00pm
Display & Dialogue Tables
- Christian Orthodox
- Dawoodi Bohras
- Creation Care
- Buddhist
- Hindu
- University Presbyterian
HIT Portico
2:50pm – 3:50pm
Performing Arts
- HindzFeet on High Places Performing Arts Troupe (Christian)
- Congregation Shalom Volunteer Choir (Jewish)
- Anthony the Poet (Catholic)
- Rhythmics School of Kathak Dance (Hindu/Islam/Sufi)
- Radiance Praise Dance Ministry (Christian)
Concert Hall
3:00pm – 3:15pm
Children’s Stories from Many Faiths
Family Activities Room
3:00pm – 4:30pm
Bhangra Dance (Sikh)
Raindrop Music Ensemble (Multifaith)
Yoga (Hindu)
Storytelling, Sr. Martha Ann Kirk
- Multifaith Stories
Matachines
- Dancing their Prayer (Indigenous/Spanish Catholic)
HIT Plaza Stage
3:10pm – 3:30pm
Breaking Down Walls
Dr. Paul Ziese
Recital Hall
3:15pm – 5:00pm
Display & Dialogue Tables
Group 2
- Baha’i
- Ismaili Muslim
- LDS
- Roman Catholic
- Sikh
Mission Lobby
3:40pm – 4:00pm
Sustaining Faith in Climate Crisis
Hamida Babool
Recital Hall
4:00pm – 5:00pm
Performing Arts
- Agudas Achim Adult Choir (Jewish)
- Women of Praise Dancers (Christian)
- Poet, Joyous Windrider Jimenez (Unitarian)
- Arathi School of Dance (Hindu)
- San Antonio Youth Chorale (Multifaith)
Concert Hall
4:00pm – 4:15pm
Children’s Stories from Many Faiths
Family Activities Room
4:15pm – 5:00pm
The Future of Faith
Multifaith, Young Adult Panel
Recital Hall
5:15pm – 6:00pm
Closing Celebration
- Lori Peery – Board Chair, Interfaith San Antonio Alliance
- “Human Family”- Harambe Sacred Dance and Arts (Christian)
- San Antonio Youth Chorale (Multifaith)
Featured Speaker:
- Interfaith is Our Superpower
Dr. Simran Jeet Singh (Sikh)
Concert Hall
Full Schedule
1st Floor - SEC Lower Concourse
10:00am – 4:00pm
Volunteer & Participant Check-In
1:00pm – 5:00pm
Insights Displays
- Christus Health
- Baptist Health Spiritual Care
- Compassionate USA
- Peace Center
- Oblate School of Theology
- SCAN Health
Outdoors - West SEC Entrance
11:30am
Registration Opens
12:00pm – 4:00pm
Food Trucks
12:00pm – 1:00pm
Friendship Garden
- 12:00 – 12:30 pm – Music under the shade tree – Raindrop
- 12:30 pm – Welcome & Introductions – Emcee Rev. Wyndee Holbrook
- Community Blessing – Waheeda Kara + Faith Leaders
- Proclamations and Greetings
- Ribbon Cutting & Photos
- Anthony the Poet, “We are San Antonio!”
- Afternoon Food, Music & Meditation in the Garden
Indoors - SEC 1st Floor Upper Concourse
1:00pm – 5:00pm
Check-In & Registration Tables
Journeys of Faith Display and Dialogue
- Sikh Faith and Culture
- Baha’i Faith
- Shia Islam, Dawoodi Bohra Community
- University Presbyterian Church
- ISMAILI MUSLIM
- Hindu
- Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Antonio
- True Vine Church
- Pastoral Institute (UIW)
- Buddhism (Mahayana tradition)
- The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
- ISLAM – Raindrop Foundation
- Interfaith San Antonio Alliance
- The Congregational Collective
12:00pm
Mezzanine
Art Gallery Opens
Mezzanine - Festival Arts
12:00pm
Art Gallery Opens
Ballroom Stage
1:15pm
MC: Suhail Arastu
- Welcome and Introductions – Suhail Arastu
- Ladies of Praise – Holy Redeemer-Women Dance Ensemble
- Texas Children’s Choir
- Keynote Address –
- Introduction – Archbishop Gustavo Garcia-Siller
- Fr. Ron Rohlheiser, OMI Roman Catholic Priest and Theologian
2:25pm
MC: Ademola Elliotte
- Nguon Song Choir
- “Projopoti” – Rhythmic School of Kathak Dance
- Agudas Achim Choir
- Disciples of David Dancers- Holy Redeemer
2:55pm
MC: Suhail Arastu
- Inspiration from The Mayor – Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones
- Senyor Santo Niño de Cebu Catholic Church Choir
- “Nature” – Rhythmics School of Kathak Dance
- Temple Beth-El Choir
- 3 Prize Drawings
3:45pm
MC: Ademola Elliotte
- “Ganga Behti Ho Kyun” – Rhythmic School of Kathak Dance
- Women of Praise Dancers – Acts of Kindness & Ft Sam Houston Dancers
- Raindrop Music Ensemble
- Alamo Folk Art Bhangra – Sikh Dharamsal
4:25pm
MC: Suhail Arastu
- “Love” a poem by Czeslaw Milosz – presenter Rev. Joe Perez
- Arathi School of Indian Dance
- Sikh Singers
5:00pm
MC: Ademola Elliotte
- LDS North Stake Youth Choir
- Radiance Praise Dance Ministry
- Prize Drawings
- Dialogue across Differences – Rev. Natarsha Sanders, Director of Centering the Sacred
- Closing thanks and thoughts
2nd Floor - Fun for All Ages
1:00pm – 5:00pm
Storytelling Corner (1:15 pm – 4:00 pm)
“Artistic Bridges” and Children’s Stories from Many Traditions
Intergenerational Play Space (2:00 – 5:00 pm)
Come laugh and learn with these congregations:
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
Baha’i Center of San Antonio
University Presbyterian Church
Woodland Church
Raindrop Turkish House (Islamic)
St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, San Antonio
San Antonio Food Bank
Jewish Federation of San Antonio/PJ Library
Laurel Heights United Methodist Church
Yoga Lounge (2:00 – 5:00 pm)
BeCause Yoga, Kirtan Meditation – Hare Krishna
Mabee Library Auditorium - Panels & Presentations
2:15pm – 3:00pm
Sacred Stewardship: Interfaith Reflections on Care for the Earth
Spiritual leaders and environmental advocates explore how diverse faith traditions call us to protect and honor the planet. Drawing from scripture, ritual, and lived practice, panelists will reflect on the sacred responsibility of stewardship and the moral imperative to respond to environmental crisis.
This dialogue will highlight shared values—reverence, gratitude, justice—and offer pathways for collective action rooted in spiritual wisdom. Join us to discover how interfaith collaboration can foster hope, inspire ecological responsibility, and renew our relationship with the Earth as a sacred trust.
Panel Members:
- Facilitator – Rosalyn Collier, Co-Founder of San Antonio PEACE Center
- Panelist – Kruba Christopher Ornelas, San Antonio Zen Center
- Panelist – Dr. Ferhat Ozturk, Raindrop Foundation San Antonio
- Panelist – David Smith, Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of Bexar County
3:10pm – 3:55pm
Empathy in Action: Conscience-Led Community Engagement
Explore how faith traditions inspire meaningful service and community involvement. This interfaith panel brings together spiritual leaders and community organizers who act from a deep sense of moral responsibility and compassion. Through storytelling and dialogue, panelists will share how conscience shapes their work in healing division, building compassionate communities, and working toward the common good. Join us for a conversation that honors the sacred call to serve with courage, humility, and hope.
Panel Members:
- Facilitator – Migdalia Garcia, San Antonio PEACE Center
- Panelist – Rev. Dr. Melvin Wilson, Jr., Bethel AME Church
- Panelist – Gurpreet Kaur, Sikh Dharamsal of San Antonio
- Panelist – Waheeda Kara, Ismaili Muslim Community of San Antonio
4:05pm – 4:50pm
In Harmony with the Divine: Prayer & Music Across Traditions
Explore the profound connection between prayer and music in this interfaith panel, In Harmony with the Divine: Prayer and Music Across Traditions. Spiritual leaders, musicians, and scholars from diverse faith backgrounds will share how sacred sound shapes devotion, fosters community, and deepens connection to the Divine.
From chant and hymn to silence and song, this discussion will highlight both the unique expressions and shared rhythms that connect spiritual traditions. Live musical elements and audience reflection will enrich this dynamic session.
Panel Members:
- Facilitator – Dr. Javier Clavere, UIW Dean of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences
- Panelist – Karen DeCotis, Abiding Teacher of San Antonio Zen Center
- Panelist – Cantor Seth Ettinger, Temple Beth El
- Panelist – Imam Omar Shakir, Resident Imam at Masjid Bilal ibn Rabah
5:00pm – 5:30pm
Dialogue Across Difference: A Primer on Interfaith Literacy