We enter Sacred Friends to develop interfaith friendships with individuals of other
faiths, backgrounds, races, and viewpoints. In order to nurture these relationships,
we each voluntarily pledge to follow all the following guidelines in our interactions
and relationships to create a safe environment free of judgement, criticism, or
betrayal:

1) Encourage: I will welcome and encourage each member’s open and genuine
communication. My pledge is to hear, respect, and cherish the messages, views, and
stories that my friends disclose without judgment, in a spirit of trust and friendship.

2) Listen Empathetically: My focus throughout our Sacred Friends interactions will
be to listen without judgment, concentrating on the aim of understanding with my
heart as well as my mind my friend’s point and perspective. I will not interrupt nor
criticize. I will wait until my friend has finished to ask questions.

3) Responsive Restatement: When my friend has completed his statement, a group
member will repeat the speaker’s message until our friend confirms it has been
accurately restated. Then, all members of our group will have a chance to ask the
speaker questions so long as those inquiries are centered upon the speaker’s
statement and solely asked for purposes of better understanding.

4) Deliberate Communication: When it is my turn to speak, I pledge to be open,
direct, honest, and kind in my words. I will not disparage others’ viewpoints nor
discount their perspectives. I will think before I speak and consider my chosen words
in light of my sacred friends.

5) Collective Voice: Once all friends have spoken and had their messages confirmed
by all other members, our group will begin the process of collaboratively framing a
group response to our assigned module content. I will respect the disclosures and
opinions shared by all my friends in this process. I pledge to empathetically listen
and constructively participate in the process of attempting to reach mutual
consensus. If consensus is not possible, I will continue to accept and acknowledge
the individual perspectives revealed. Our group may or may not wish to revisit this
collaborative process at another time.

6) Confidentiality: I pledge to each of my friends that I will treat all individual and
group interactions as strictly confidential. Understanding that trust is foundational
to our friendships, I will not be disclosed these interactions to anyone without the
permission of all group members.

7) Punctuality: I pledge to be considerate to my friends in all ways, including my
timely attendance at each of our schedule virtual meetings. I will not go over our
agreed meeting time without the mutual agreement of all my friends.
8) No Proselytization: I pledge that I will not proselytize nor attempt to convert my
friends to my own faith, religion, or viewpoint. I understand that this is an interfaith
group that accepts and encourages all participants to be their own authentic selves,
transparent in their relationships, intentions, and motives. I agree not to use my
relationships or this program as an occasion to influence, sway, or convince anyone
of the truth, credence, or appeal of my own faith, religion, or viewpoint.

I make these pledges understanding that this agreement is the basis of the friendships that I will
be forming in this program. My friends will trust and rely upon my adherence to this
agreement in extending their friendship to me. I accept the condition that if I break
any of these pledges that I may be expelled from the Sacred Friends Program.

Please send your signed and dated Sacred Friends Agreement as well as any
inquiries to us at: interfaithcommunityinitiatives@gmail.com