The Board of Directors
Reverend Dr. J. Philip
Wogaman, President, is Senior Minister of Foundry United Methodist Church in
Washington D.C. He is the former Dean of Wesley Theological Seminary and has served as
president of the Society of Christian Ethics of the United States and Canada. In addition
to his contribution to the field of Christian Ethics in the form of numerous articles and
thirteen books, Dr. Wogaman was a delegate to the United Methodist General Conference and
was a member of the World Methodist Council from 1986-91.
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Reverend Dr. Amos C.
Brown ,is pastor of Third Baptist Church, San Francisco, the oldest African
American Baptist Church in the western states. In addition, he serves on the Board of
Supervisors of San Francisco. Previously, he served as National Chairman of the National
Baptist Commission on Civil Rights and Human Services, Chairman of the Black Caucus of the
American Baptist Churches, USA, Vice President of the Governing Board of San Francisco
Community College, and chaplain of the Minnesota State Senate.
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Reverend Dr.
Joan Brown Campbell ,is the current General Secretary of the
National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. As General Secretary, Dr. Campbell
is chief executive officer and official spokesperson for the NCC, whose member churches
represent more than 42 million U.S. Christians. During a distinguished career marked by a
commitment to ecumenical dialogue, she has served as President of the National Association
of Ecumenical Staff and as a member of the Steering Committee for U.S. Church Leaders.
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Ms. Alicia P. Claypool,
is the Executive Director of the Interfaith Alliance of Iowa. Ms. Claypool has dedicated
her career to encouraging informed civic participation among people of faith and goodwill,
improving public education, and strengthening social services in Iowa. Among her many
leadership roles, she has served as President of the Iowa Women's Political Caucus, Social
Policy Chair of the League of Women Voters, Executive Committee member of Community Focus,
Advisory Board member of the Institute for Social and Economic Development, and various
leadership roles within the United Way. She also serves on the Management Advisory Council
of the United Way. Ms. Claypool is an active member and lay leader of Plymouth
Congregational United Church of Christ.
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Reverend Dr. David
R. Currie, Treasurer, is the coordinator of Texas Baptists Committed, an
organized, educational effort to resist takeover of the Baptist General Convention of
Texas by fundamentalist, politically conservative groups. He has served as field
coordinator of Baptists Committed to the Southern Baptist Convention and as pastor of the
First Baptist Church in Mason, Texas. Dr. Currie is also an author or co-author of three
books and over 40 published articles in Baptist publications.
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Ms. Denise T. Davidoff,
Vice President at Large, is the Moderator of the Unitarian Universalist Association. In
the highest volunteer position in the Association, Ms. Davidoff presides at the General
Assembly and represents more than 1,000 congregations in the United States, Canada, and
overseas. She chairs the Unitarian Universalist Association Board of Trustees and
Executive Committee. Ms. Davidoff has also served as President of the Unitarian
Universalist Women's Federation.
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The Rt. Rev.
Jane Holmes Dixon, was the second woman to be elevated to the office of bishop
in the Episcopal Church. As Suffragan Bishop in the Diocese of Washington, she makes
weekly visitations to the 96 congregations of the Diocese, bears direct responsibility for
11 mission congregations, and represents the diocese in its ecumenical and interfaith
work. Bishop Dixon preaches and lectures across the country and serves on the Board of
Trustees at Virginia Theological Seminary.
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Mr. Arun Gandhi, is
a prolific author and co-founder of the M. K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence in Memphis,
Tennessee. The mission of the Institute is to teach and to apply the principles of
nonviolence and resolve personal and public conflict. Mr.. Gandhi is the fifth grandson of
Mohandas K. "Mahatma" Gandhi and grew up in South Africa during the system of
apartheid. He learned from his parents and grandparents the importance of creating social
change through nonviolent acts. Drawing on these lessons, he and his wife dedicated their
lives to improving their communities. In India, they designed and implemented programs
that address social and economic depression reaching over half a million people, and the
programs continue to grow. Most recently, Mr. Ghandi and his wife Sunanda co-authored, The
Forgotten Woman: The Untold Story of Kastur, the wife of Mahatma Gandhi. They lecture
worldwide, but are based at the Institute in Memphis.
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Rabbi David Gelfand,
Vice President at Large, is the Rabbi at the Jewish Center of the Hamptons in East
Hampton, New York and is the former Senior Rabbi of the Anshe Chesed Fairmount Temple in
Cleveland, Ohio. He serves as a chairperson for the Clergy Division of the United Way and
is an executive board member of the Synagogue Council of America. Gelfand also was an
adjunct faculty member of the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in New
York City and has published numerous articles on social justice issues.
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Rev. Dr. Gwynne M.
Guibord serves as a National Ecumenical Officer/USA for the Universal
Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches. She also serves on the National Advisory
Board of the Claremont School of Theology and is the President-elect of the Mobilization
for the Human Family. In addition, Dr. Guibord serves on the Executive Boards of both the
California Council of Churches and the Southern California Ecumenical Council. Dr. Guibord
has represented the UFMCC at both national and international dialogues and meetings. She
received her doctorate in clinical psychology from the International College in Los
Angeles and will soon receive a master of divinity from Claremont School of Theology.
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Dr. Maher H. Hathout
is the Senior Advisor to the Muslim Public Affairs Council. An internist and cardiologist
by profession, he is also the spokesperson and former chairman of the Islamic Center of
Southern California. He is the former president of the InterReligious Council of Los
Angeles. Dr. Hathout has written extensively on Islam, human rights, democracy, and Middle
East politics, and is considered a spokesperson for the American Muslim community.
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Rabbi Arthur Hertzberg
has made ground-breaking contributions in his dedicated service as a rabbi and a scholar.
While holding professorships at Columbia, Dartmouth and New York Universities, Rabbi
Hertzberg produced publications which reflect the reason he is considered to be one of
this country's most influential theological minds. He serves as president of the American
Jewish Policy Foundation and is the former president of the American Jewish Congress.
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Reverend Leonard B.
Jackson, Secretary is Associate Pastor of the First African Methodist Episcopal
Church in Los Angeles. He played a major role in planning and implementing the relief
efforts immediately following the civil unrest in Los Angeles in 1992. At his church, he
serves as the Director of Community Outreach, concentrating on promoting unity within the
community of faith, justice within the society of laws, and brotherhood/sisterhood within
the society of humankind. A retired 20-year military combat veteran, he continues to serve
on the front lines of society where the rubber meets the road as Chairman of the Board of
the Koreatown West Adams Public Safety Association, on the Board of Directors of Bread for
the World, and as the Chaplain for the Los Angeles Police Department.
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Bishop Frederick C.
James, Vice President at Large, a former college professor, seminary dean, and
denominational social action leader, is the retired Bishop of the Second Episcopal
District of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, which includes the District of
Columbia, Virginia, Maryland and North Carolina. His career is marked by a lifetime
involvement in the struggle for civil rights. His commitment to the eradication of
Apartheid in South Africa was the reason behind his selection as one of 44 delegates from
the United States attending Nelson Mandela's inauguration in 1994, and one of 21 private
U.S. citizens to accompany President Clinton on his trip to South Africa in March 1998.
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Rabbi Jack Moline,
is the rabbi of Agudas Achim Congregation of Northern Virginia, in Alexandria. He is the
former President of the Washington Board of Rabbis, and has represented the Rabbinical
Assembly in a variety of public policy matters. Rabbi Moline is an adjunct faculty member
of the Virginia Theological Seminary and has contributed to speeches by President Clinton,
including his eulogy for Prime Minister Rabin.
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Bishop P. Francis
Murphy, Vice President at Large, is Auxiliary Bishop of the Roman Catholic
Archdiocese of Baltimore. He has a long-standing involvement with issues related to care
for the poor, including his current service as Chair of the Board of Trustees of the
Interfaith Housing Development of Western Maryland. He also an advocate for the full
inclusion of women in the Church.
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Dr. Albert
M. Pennybacker, Immediate Past President, is President of the Ecumenical
Development Initiative, serving both the World Council of Churches and the National
Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. He is also a professor of ecumenical studies
at Lexington Theological Seminary in Lexington, Kentucky and has been a visiting professor
at Yale Divinity School. He served in pastoral ministry for 36 years, the last 16 as
senior minister of the 4,000-member University Christian Church in Fort Worth, Texas.
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Dr. Diane M. Porter,
is President of the NTL Institute for Applied Behavioral Science. She is the former Senior
Executive for Programs of the Episcopal Church of the United States. In this role, she
sought to advance the role of the Church as an advocate for justice and peace in national
and international affairs. Ms. Porter's distinguished career includes: serving as the
Regional Administrator for Region II of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban
Development, presiding as Vice President of the National Council of Churches of Christ in
the U.S.A., and membership on the Board of Trustees of the General Theological Seminary in
New York City. She is an Honorary Canon of the Cathedral of the Incarnation.
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Reverend Meg A. Riley
is the director of the Washington Office for Faith in Action of the Unitarian Universalist
Association. There she represents Unitarian Universalist values on Capitol Hill and
educates congregations to help them voice UU perspectives on issues of the day. She has
served as the Director of the Office of Lesbian, Bisexual and Gay Concerns, as well as the
Director of Youth Programs for the Unitarian Universalist Association. She is a minister
associated with All Souls' Community Church in Washington, DC, serves on the Advisory
Council of the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice, and is the national co-chair
of the multi-faith network, Equal Partners in Faith.
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Rev. Dr. Daniel
Rosemergy is the pastor of Brookmeade Congregational Church of the United
Church of Christ in Nashville, Tennessee. In addition to his pastoral duties, Rev.
Rosemergy serves as the chair of the Interfaith Alliance of Middle Tennessee. He is also
co-chair of the Middle Tennessee Jobs With Justice; and serves on the Board of Directors
for numerous organizations including the Nashville Peace and Justice Center, and the
United Nations Association. Rev. Rosemergy has also held several leadership positions in
the United Church of Christ. Dr. Rosemergy attended the University of Michigan, where he
earned BA and MA degrees; and received both his Master of Divinity and Doctor of Ministry
degrees from Vanderbilt University.
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Dr. A. Knighton Stanley,
has provided leadership for his denomination and his community in the nation's capitol for
over 35 years. Dr. Stanley is the Senior Minister of Peoples Congregational United Church
of Christ in Washington D.C. He is a member of the United Church of Christ's General Synod
Nominating Committee and chairs the Board of Trustees of the University of the District of
Columbia. He also serves on the Steering Committee of America 2000 and is a member of the
Board of Directors of both the Columbia Heights Development Corporation and the Latino
Development Corporation.
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The Most Rev.
Walter F. Sullivan serves as the Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Richmond,
Virginia. Bishop Sullivan is a national religious leader and outspoken advocate for social
justice and peace. In addition to serving as the Bishop-President of Pax Christi USA, he
provides leadership on the boards of the Christian Children's Fund, the Virginia
Interfaith Center for Public Policy, the Catholic Committee of Appalachia, the board of
the Council for America's First Freedom, and a number of Diocesan boards. Bishop Sullivan
received his seminary education at St. Charles College and St. Mary's Seminary in
Baltimore, and was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Richmond in 1953.
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Dr. John M. Swomley
is Professor Emeritus of Christian Social Ethics, St. Paul School of Theology, Kansas
City, MO. He is a United Methodist minister and President of Americans for Religious
Liberty. Dr. Swomley has published over 400 articles and seven books on religious liberty
and Christian Ethics. He is a committed member of national peace organizations such as the
Fellowship of Reconciliation, where he served as executive director.
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Reverend Gardner C.
Taylor is Pastor Emeritus of the Concord Baptist Church of Christ in Brooklyn,
New York, and is past president of the Progressive National Baptist Convention. His
leadership as a preacher, teacher and pastor has earned the respect of his colleagues and
congregants. He delivered the invocation at President Clinton's 1993 inauguration. Time
magazine has referred to Reverend Taylor as "the Dean of the nation's black
preachers;" Ebony magazine praised him as "one of the greatest preachers in
American history."
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Reverend Dr.
Herbert Valentine, Founding President, is Executive Presbyter for the Baltimore
Presbytery in Maryland. He is the former Moderator of the Presbyterian Church (USA), the
highest elected position in the church body. He is one of the founders of The Interfaith
Alliance and served as the founding President of the Board of Directors.
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Dr. Foy Valentine
has distinguished himself as a theologian, scholar and Christian Ethicist, publishing
numerous books and articles in the Christian Social Ethics field. He has served as
chairman of the Christian Ethics Commission for Baptist World Alliance and served on
President Jimmy Carter's Commission for a National Agenda for the 1980's. He is the past
president of Americans United for Separation of Church and State and for 28 years was
Executive Director of the Christian Life Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention. He
now edits Christian Ethics Today and is the President of the Center for Christian Ethics
at Baylor University.
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