NEIGHBORS OF CHICAGO
Mark 12:31 "The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”
Chicago, who are your neighbors?
Dipak // Little India
"There is something that controls the whole world, that is for sure. I believe in Hinduism, and I believe that all the Gods are one God. There are so many Gods, but the main God is one God. I believe in Jainism too, I go to a very good temple. Talk in such a way that you will not be disturbed and be nice all the time, otherwise you will get the karma in your next life. My God is in my heart all the time, so I do not have to pray."
Nabat // Lincolnwood
"I've believed in Islam all my life. I attend the mosque, and I pray five times a day. The Qaran teaches me not to do anything that would cause harm to anyone. There's a lot of people around here that believe what I do."
Maribel // Pilsen
"I was raised Catholic, but I'm not an extreme Catholic. Spirituality is something that is in you, and should be for good. You can see very traditional families in Pilsen, they follow the traditions of spirituality. Pilsen has been for many many years a hispanic neighborhood, and latino or hispanic families tend to be very attached to religion, especially Catholics. Very traditional family values that have to do with religion and spirituality here."
Juju // Englewood
"I wake up everyday, and come out here to make money so I can dress nice. Do the right thing, God go first in everything I do. I probably read the Bible one time, but not no more. I don't see anybody else paying attention to Him."
Adrienne // Wicker Park
"I don’t think that God exists, I see spirituality as a form of energy. Energy transfers and kind of transcends into other things that it touches. The only other time that I’m really aware of other people believing in something is when the roads are blocked off and I see families going to church on Sundays."
Christina // Chinatown
"We were technically raised Buddhist, but I didn't really know we were religious growing up. We would just visit the temple every Sunday. I don't believe like all the weird stuff that my mom does, but I do believe there's something up there. I like the idea of Buddhism, and the concepts and teachings behind it ."
Mallory // Boystown
"I typically consider myself like an Atheist, so um the only God that I have I guess is internal. She scares me, but also provides me with hope and things like that. I guess God is the unknown. I'm a part of the Transgender Community, and a lot of people here are really into just like astrology and things like that, but I don't know."
Cindy & Harry // River North
"We’re just visiting from New York, and both Roman Catholic. I guess once our kids got in their 20’s, we kind of stopped going to church. Although we own a children’s center and consider ourselves very morally good."
Shevy // Albany Park
"We're Jewish, and it takes part in every aspect of our life. It's not just like we go to synagogue once a week, but it affects what we bring into our home and the way we dress that doesn't expose our bodies. I've always been religious, and we have a very close knit family. We're apart of a much bigger community. My husband is a Rabbi, but I personally don't go to any of the services, because I find it hard to take the kids out."