Rev. Dr. Clark Lobenstine, Executive Director

Rev. Clark Lobenstine serves as the Executive Director of the InterFaith Conference of Metropolitan Washington. A Presbyterian minister, Clark began his service in April, 1979, shortly after the IFC was organized by the top religious leaders of the Islamic, Jewish, Protestant and Roman Catholic faith communities in this region. It was the first staffed organization in the United States, and probably the world, through which these four traditions worked to work both for interfaith dialogue and social justice.

Clark has had the privilege of working with religious leaders and members of diverse faiths throughout the metropolitan Washington area for close to 30 years. Within this experience and expertise, his early focus and doctorate on Christian-Muslim relations has expanded to include active knowledge of the world's historic faiths, east to west, reflected in IFC's membership. Based on it, his Sunday school classes in some twenty different churches involving two or three Muslims leading a different session expanded to championing dialogues among many faiths throughout the metropolitan area in many different forums.

The demand for help in understanding Islam skyrocketed after 9/11. From January to June 2002, Clark coordinated 107 speakers in three dozen congregations, schools and community groups. About two-thirds of the speakers were Muslims. While the demand has decreased, we continue to provide speakers of diverse faiths on a regular basis. We also frequently share our pioneering work with numerous international visitors, many brought here by the US State Department.

Clark is a founding member of the Washington Metropolitan Dialogue and is Secretary of Mayor Anthony Williams' Interfaith Council. Among his community involvements, he serves on the board of A Greater Washington and is a member of The Wednesday Clergy Fellowship, The Nonprofit Roundtable and the Interfaith Advisory Committee of the Washington Hospital Center's Pastoral Care Department as well as a trustee of the Washington Theological Consortium. He is the Secretary of the National Association of Ecumenical and Interfaith Staff, his professional association.

Clark is also a Parish Associate (volunteer assistant minister) at the Silver Spring Presbyterian Church, a wonderfully diverse congregation with a large percentage of Camerounian members. A graduate of St. John's College in Annapolis, Maryland, Clark holds a master of divinity degree from the Louisville Presbyterian Seminary and a master of social work degree from the University of Louisville. His Doctor of Ministry degree is from McCormick Presbyterian Seminary in Chicago. The grandson of a Presbyterian missionary in China, Clark lived in five countries by the age of ten as the son of a Foreign Service Officer. He lives in Washington with his wife, the Rev. Canon Carole Crumley, Co-Executive Director of the Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation. Clark has twin sons, a twin brother, twin nieces and three grandchildren.