Folk of Faith

I was raised Jewish, had a Bar Mitzvah and went to synagogue on all the holidays. My grandmother was the most religious person in the family. When I was a sophomore in high school my grandmother took her own life. After that my grandfather and dad no longer felt able to practice religion. Now I am 23 years old and it’s been a long time since I have done anything really religious at all. I felt like I might be missing out on something in all the years spent being non religious. So I decided to do a photo project highlighting religious leaders of all different faiths, and trying to figure out what it is that’s so great about being religious. Everyone who participated in my project was asked 2 simple questions. First, “what is it about your religion that you hold dearest in your heart?” And second, “what is your favorite passage in your religious text?” Joan replied “I love the miraculous way he works.” Her favorite passage is Psalms 27 13-14 “Wait up on the lord!” I tried to photograph these people in a manner and location that stressed what their particular church or faction of religion was all about. I photographed Joan in the halfway house adjacent to the church where they keep all the donated items that will be taken to Africa on mission trips. Her church is known for going on mission trips all over the world, and donating much needed goods is a big part of what they do there. They also house people from other countries in their halfway house until they are able to get on their feet. This project was inspired by and dedicated to my grandmother Rita Fleishman. www.fleishmanphotography.com