Winter 08 - A Memorable Thanksgiving Dinner at Pacifica

First Annual Thanksgiving Dinner San Jose

Whether you are a farmer who harvests acres of soil, or an introvert software developer who tries to wrap up the projects before the big holiday shut down, November is always a busy time of the year. It is also the month of Thanksgiving, one American holiday that is so much in harmony with Pacifica Institute's vision of dialogue, since it bypasses all religious differences and brings us altogether as Americans. It is not a holiday of a particular religion, but rather a holiday that has many deeply religious and spiritual connotations.


This Thanksgiving, the Women's League of Silicon Valley brought together the Campbell United Methodist Church of Christ and the members of the Pacifica Institute for a Thanksgiving dinner. On September 11, 2008, they had been gracious enough to host the PI community for a Ramadan iftar (fast-breaking) dinner.


When the clock was ticking towards 7pm, one could see all the Turkish ladies busy in the kitchen, humbly making the final preparations for this all-American dinner with a Turkish twist. Their enthusiasm and faith in dialogue made me so proud. When Dr. Alan Jones and Reverend Linda Jones appeared at the door with a group of church members, there was a warmer feeling in the atmosphere, not because of the red table clothes, but because of the love and friendship radiating from their big hearts.


We were honored to have the San Jose City council member, Judy Chirco, among the guests. Also present were the Santa Clara Judge Franklin Bondonno and the Cuportino City planning commission chairman Mr. Marty Miller.


The dinner was wrapped between two prayers: A Christian style prayer, in the beginning, offered by Dr. Jones for the food that we were about to have, and a Muslim style prayer, at the end, offered by Servet Akguc, a member of Pacifica Institute, for the food we just had. I was fortunate to share the same table with Eddie, Roxanne and Michael from the Campbell church.


The humorous part of the evening was to hear Linda's talk about the turkey and how it got its name (See the article "Interesting Facts" for the details of this story). She also mentioned the history of thanksgiving briefly.


I was the designated speaker of Women's League for the night to speak about the place of thanksgiving in the life of a Muslim. The very first verse in the very first chapter in Quran says "All praise be to God", encouraging believers to offer thanks as the first step in servanthood. The Quran repeatedly directs the gaze of the believers to the surrounding creation in the universe. The universe manifests itself as a vast and rich treasury displaying the Creator's infinite bounties. On the other hand, God gave faculties to mankind to measure these bounties and to appreciate them. For example, the sense of taste placed on the tongue allows man to recognize the varieties of food. In addition, God gave us appetite and desire for the bounties. Appetite can be considered as the instinctive form of gratitude and opens the door for thanksgiving. By being grateful, we make a very important statement that we are pleased with our Lord. And, in return, we hope He will be pleased with us as well.


After the talk, a gentleman approached me and said he was going to think more about the faculty of taste placed on the tongue to measure the endless bounties.


Pounds of leftover turkey to eat for the whole week, the friendships that were established, and some nice memories to remember for a long time were the gifts of the night for each one of us.


We left with a lot to be thankful for...

by Nihal Sahan

Winter 08 - Annual Dialog and Friendship Dinner 2008

Second Annual Dialog and Friendship Dinner San Jose

Pacifica Institute's Silicon Valley Branch held its 2nd Annual Dialog and Friendship Dinner on October 28th, 2008 at the Santa Clara Marriott Hotel. The event brought representatives from a diverse scope and demographics together. Politicians, academicians, community and spiritual leaders shared a genuinely warm and unprecedented evening during which the heartfelt synergy between and across faiths was the focus.

After the reception that began at 6:30 PM, guests moved to the dining hall at 7PM. The dinner was preceded with a short introduction and welcome speech by the Silicon Valley branch president. One of the highlights of the night was former president W. Clinton’s taped message emphasizing the need for intercultural dialogue and acknowledging the impact made by the Turkish American community by their contributions to the American people. Former president Clinton also thanked F. Gülen for his inspiring role in these efforts.

The keynote speakers Rabbi Paula Marcus from Temple Beth-El (Aptos, CA), Reverend Jose Rubio from the Roman Catholic Diocese (San Jose, CA) and Reverend Dr. Allen Jones from the United Methodist Church (Campbell, CA) shared the commonalities between Abrahamic faiths and emphasized the impact these events may have for the future of a peaceful world on which we all might inspire to live.

The common message of Abrahamic faiths couldn’t be conveyed in a more inspiring and vivid way than the “Song of Unity”, co-produced by the Authors & Journalists Foundation and prominent Turkish artist Mahzun Kirmizigul. In the video clip, Armenian, Assyrian and members of the Turkish-Jewish congregation worked together with Muslim Turks in bringing out the message of “Unity and Love” that we all are in so much need today.

Moderated round table discussions during the intermission enabled the guests to share their experience and feelings on being stereotyped because of their heritage or religious background. Many new friendships were seeded during these moments while guests shared very personal stories.

It was very likely the first time the guests were a part of a marvelous and live Water Marbling (Ebru) presentation.

Among many of those who wanted to share their remarks after the dinner was Jose Esteves, the Milpitas Mayor who honored and thanked the Silicon Valley branch for these efforts. Dennis Graham (Milpitas City Police Chief), John Hirokawa (Santa Clara County Police Undersheriff), Diane Ritchie (Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge), Martin Hellman (Prof Emeritus Stanford U.), Dr. Phillip Boo Riley (Santa Clara University, Religious Studies Dept.) were among the recognized guests.

The evening ended with good wishes and a desire to repeat such outreach efforts in the near future.

Winter 08 - Out Of Many We Are One

A visit to Foothills United Church of Christ on Thanksgiving Day

“E Pluribus Unum - Out of many, we are one.”

“The words are right there—On our money and our public buildings, etched in silver, printed on paper, and carved in stone. But even if this is the only bit of Latin you remember from Civics class, it doesn’t mean a heck of a lot unless it’s etched in your heart because too many people don’t believe this anymore: that out of many of us, different kinds of us, we can become one.”

Above is quoted from Reverend Evelyn Vigil’s speech made on the day of the Thanksgiving in their Parish Hall in Los Altos. Pacifica Institute members were invited by the Foothills Congregational Church to join their annual thanksgiving gathering in the morning. We were greeted at the door by Reverend Matthew Broadbent and given a booklet which described the program and included the songs that we were to sing. The stage was ready for the chorus, lined with chairs and a black piano. Members of the chorus were wearing red robes. There were few people wearing pilgrim costumes and it felt like we were in another era. The only thing missing was the Mayflower in the picture. The program started with Michelle, a member of the church, reading some passages from the Bible, mentioning fig and olive trees. It reminded me of the chapter of the Fig in Quran.
There was a lot of singing. “America, the Beautiful” brought tears to everybody’s eyes. Reverend Evelyn went up to the stage and opened her talk with a joke “Everybody is the pilgrim and I am the only Indian here.” We all laughed. The talk was about diversity and unity without uniformity. Later, Ridvan, a member of Pacifica Institute who became a US citizen recently, gave a short speech on how he decided to become a citizen, and shared his feelings.

It was Reverend Matthew’s talk when two pilgrims started distributing dry corn in a bowl. Reverend Matthew explained that when the pilgrims had landed they were starving and had nothing to eat except five grains of corn per person. In memory of the pilgrims, we were asked to pick only five corn pieces, place them on the thanksgiving dinner table, and think about it that night. Ironically, history is loyal to the people who are suffering and enduring hardship. They are the ones always remembered rather than those who live prosperous lives.

We walked to the garden next to the main church. This was where we carried lovely conversation with the members of the church. There were few long tables with cakes, crackers, coffee and fruits. Dates filled with walnuts and buried in sugar were especially very tasty. A gentlemen dressed like a pilgrim later said “I knew you would pick the dates!” implying the relationship between the dates and the Muslims.

There was a very young lady, about 13 years old who went to Turkey and loved it so much. She even mentioned some famous streets in Turkey. It was an enjoyable experience to hear someone speak about Turkey so enthusiastically.

A priest gave us a tour of the church which had no iconography. He also gave us some information about Christianity, such as how priests are elected through a set of interviews and the differences between different denominations.

During another conversation, a member of Pacifica Institute told that there were annual turkey festivals in his hometown in Turkey. Most people like me never knew that! That is the power of dialogue: You keep learning not only about other cultures, but also about your own.

The gathering was over. On the way home, there was sweetness in our mouths, probably because of the dates, and we found ourselves repeating unintentionally a line from Rumi’s Mathnawi:

“Thanksgiving for the bounty is sweeter than the bounty itself.”

by Nihal Sahan

Winter 08 - Editor's Message

A New Beginning

Dear Reader,


This is the first issue of our online bi-monthly newsletter for the friends of Pacifica Institute in the Bay Area. The Pacifica Institute community is committed to making connections. If you have received this newsletter by e-mail, we have probably made a connection with you in the past. If not, we are about to make one. This newsletter aims to keep this connection throughout the year.
Our very first issue is woven around the theme of Thanksgiving. Two articles, "Reflections: Out Of Many We Are One" and "Pacifica Diary: A memorable Thanksgiving Dinner at Pacifica", provide in-depth accounts of Pacifica Institute's Thanksgiving activities. In our "Interesting Facts" section, you'll be surprised to learn how the bird "turkey" is linked to the country "Turkey". Our biggest event of the past year in the South Bay Area is covered in "Scope: Annual Dialog and Friendship Dinner 2008". Finally, the "Recipe Corner" will help you try out two delicious recipes.

Please energize the connection from your end by letting us know what you think about our newsletter (e-mail: pacificasv@pacificainstitute.org). In the mean time, we'll keep working on making new connections. Enjoy.

Winter 08 - Interesting Facts

How did turkey get its name?

A year and a half after the Great Seal was adopted by Congress – with the bald eagle as its centerpiece – Benjamin Franklin wrote a letter to his daughter and shared his disagreement with this new symbol of America. Benjamin Franklin had thought it would be proper to change it from the bald eagle, which he described as a "Bird of a bad moral character", to the wild turkey, which he characterized as "a Bird of Courage" and "a true original Native of America".

Why does this bird, which was American enough to be nominated as the Representative of the United States and is an indespensable part of Thanksgiving dinners, have the same name as the country Turkey ? How did this bird ended with the name turkey after being called "huexoloti" by the Aztecs and "guajolote" by the Mexicans for centuries?

The curiosity grew in me -as a Turkish native- especially as I started hearing more turkey jokes around Thanksgiving time:

"Hey, do you guys eat turkey in Turkey?"

"Hey, How does it feel to eat your country?"

"Thanksgiving must not be your favorite holiday as you eat Turkey!"

Finally, to quench my curiosity, I decided to google the question. It seemed like there was a whole nation curious about the same question; Google querried about 90 million results! As I was glancing through, I came across an article written by Giancarlo Casale who seemed to be the most daring of the curious. [1] Casale went beyond wondering and did a thorough research on this topic. From his landlord whose wife was from Brazil, he learned that in Portuguese, the word for turkey was "Peru". The same bird, but a different country! This puzzled him even more. He found a Turkish person and asked the same question. Turks called it "hindi", meaning "from India". As he kept asking more people from different nationalities, he ended up discovering more countries sharing the same name as turkey.

In Arabic, the word for turkey corresponded to "Ethiopian bird", while in Greek it meant "French girl". Persians called it "buchalamun" meaning "chameleon". In italian, it was "tacchino", "the bird". He decided to focus on "India" as, like in Turkish, in French, Russian and German, the word for turkey meant "from India". He asked his high school friend's wife, who was from an old Bengali family. The answer was surprising: they did not have any turkeys in India and, hence, did not have any name for it. They simply used the English word "turkey" when needed.

He was at a dead end. So, he scheduled an appointment with Prof. Sinasi Tekin from Harvard University, a world-renowned philologist and expert on Turkic languages. Sinasi Tekin said that when the British came to America, they mistook the bird for chulluks (woodcock), a smaller but a similar bird, which they had first seen in Turkey and began exporting it to England for its delicious meat long before the discovery of America.

This seemed to be a reasonable explanation but did not explain why Turks called it "hindi". [2] An article from from Larry Tise, a Distinguished Professor of History at East Carolina University, made it all clear. In 1492, when Christopher Colombus returned from his voyage to the New World (thinking that it was the Asian continent), he brought home maize (corn), tobacco and the good old huexoloti, in place of the Asian commodities -spices, textiles, ornaments- he had expected to find. Since Spain and England were at war, all goods imported from the New World were state secrets to be hidden from all enemies - especially the English. However, there was a vivacious sea trade in the Mediterennian, at the time, that could not be stopped. Therefore, some of these goods ended up at the Ottoman ports which included the American bird huexoloti.

Turks named the bird "hindi", meaning "from India" due to the common belief at the time that Columbus had acquired it from Asia. In just twenty years, using refined growing and seeding techniques, the skilled Turkish farmers were able to raise enough number of birds and plants to be exported across Europe. When these exotic exports first came to the hands of the English upper class, they called the bird "turkey", and the corn "Turkish maize". They referred the tobacco as "Turkish tobacco" when they wanted to emphasize its quality.

Thomas Harriot, the first English scientist to set foot in America, quickly recognized the hueloxoti and mentioned it as "turkey" in his notes. These wild turkeys, unlike their cousins in Europe, were very greedy and they attacked the cultivated crops. According to Prof. Tise, "they lacked the proper manners to live in an agricultural society. They were, in fact, killed everywhere by European colonists as nuisance birds." Spoiled by its taste, in the early 17th century, the English settlers began importing the domesticated Turkish turkeys which did not harm any of their plants.

So, our answer is here! Turkey is called "turkey" because it, actually, came from the country "Turkey" after a long journey from its American homeland. Prof. Tise captures this connection nicely in the ending of his article:

"Thus, this Thanksgiving when we gather to partake in this most hallowed and quintessential of America’s holidays, we should remember as we look toward the big bird in the middle of our table that it is after all a turkey that came to us from Turkey; that it was brought into our culture by European forbears deeply influenced by their connections to Islamic commerce and culture in the Middle East; and that we have been a part of a shared planet for a very long time.

And, then, let us say our thanksgiving prayers to Yahweh, Allah, or by whatever name might be known the God of these shared faiths."

[1] The Story of How the Unofficial Bird of the United States Got Named After a Middle Eastern Country by Giancarlo Casale
[2] Why Is Our Thanksgiving Bird Called a Turkey? by Larry E. Tise