Two decades after 9/11, Tarrant County interfaith group brings women together

Two decades after 9/11, Tarrant County interfaith group brings women together 
Fort Worth Report, Fort Worth, TX; by Marissa Greene; 9/10/24 
Janice Harris Lord remembers Sept. 11, 2001, crystal clear. ... In late 2001, it struck Harris Lord that there was something she could do: pull women of different faiths together. By January 2002, Harris Lord formed Daughters of Abraham, a discussion group made up of local Muslim, Jewish and Christian women. The group serves as a venue for women to learn about and build friendships with women of different religions. In its 22-year history, the group has grown from 18 women to various regional groups in Fort Worth, Arlington, northeast Tarrant County and Dallas. ... In the group’s two-decade history, the most poignant thing Harris Lord learned was the tradition that Jewish and Muslim families undergo when preparing a deceased loved one for burial. Muslim and Jewish families participate in a tradition called ghusl in Arabic or tahara in Hebrew, which involves washing and purifying a body before burial. It is considered one of the greatest good deeds someone can do for another in the faiths. When Harris Lord’s husband tragically died ..., she knew she wanted to honor him in that way. “(The hospice nurse) gave me some soap and water, and we shaved him, and I washed his hair and got it combed right, like he wanted it,” Harris Lord said. “It was beautiful. I think it helped me more with my grieving than anything, because I knew I had done the very last thing I could do for him.”