Picnic for Area Refugees Helps Newcomers Assimilate

A volunteer helps a Tanzanian family

When Ahmad al-Abboud brought his wife and five children to the United States from war-torn Syria, he carried with him a vision of this country — of scantily clad people kissing in the streets — he feared would clash with his conservative Muslim culture. But what he found upon settling in Kansas City in April…

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My, How the Garden Grows

monarch on a sunflower

Located among strip malls, office buildings and rows of uniform houses, The Temple, Congregation B’nai Jehudah in Overland Park is in the heart of suburbia. But park your car behind the temple, which sits on Nall Avenue a little south of 119th Street, wander up a winding dirt path, and you will find that you’ve…

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Church Without the Dogma

Fewer people believe in God these days, and now there is a local church for it. Just don’t call it church. Members of Kansas City Oasis, which serves atheists, agnostics, and “everything in betweens,” gather every Sunday at the Tony Aguirre Community Center on Kansas City’s West Side. The group has about 200 participants, and…

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Beyond Belief Web Extra | Kansas City Residents Talk Religion

Young African American man with headphones

Kansas City is home to a myriad of people, cultures and beliefs. Beyond Belief, KCPT’s exploration of faith and religion in the metro, has been asking residents about their personal stories and deeply held beliefs for the past eight months. Four community producers working on the project — Ayah Abdul-Rauf, Josh Atkinson, Hope Austin and Cleveland Neal  — took…

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Jehovah’s Witness Gatherings Highlight Faith’s Beliefs

A crowd of people inside an arena

Antonio Rosas is nearly blind from glaucoma, and his daughter, Gina, uses a wheelchair due to a rare neuroimmune disorder. So it’s hard for them to get out and worship with their fellow Jehovah’s Witnesses in their hometown of Wichita, Kansas. Yet their deep faith is pulling them through a weekslong summer trek to regional…

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