Our Beginnings

After 9/11 a Catholic woman slipped a note under the door of the local Belleville-Swansea mosque stating her concern for the misconceptions being spread about Islam. That note opened the door in order for dialogue to begin building bridges of trust in our metro-east local communities on the Illinois side of the river near St. Louis.

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The Metro-East Interfaith Partnership began in 2002 in response to the mistrust that increased between faith traditions after the tragedy of September 11, 2001. 

Several people felt called to begin building bridges of trust within our local community of Belleville, IL and the surrounding area. We continue to gather to learn about our various faith traditions, respect our differences, and celebrate our common faith perspectives. 

We work cooperatively with the Interfaith Partnership of St. Louis, the Interfaith group at McKendree University, and others, striving to network with other local interfaith communities.

We are a non-profit network, run by volunteers, both laity and religious leaders, who have a passion for interfaith relations.

Current participation in the Metro-east includes Bahá'í, Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and Religious Science members. We invite other faith traditions to join with us in conversation.