An enthusiastic teacher of the Faith and delegate to numerous Baha'i National Conventions, he was locally well regarded for his relationship building and 20-year leadership of the citywide Martin Luther King Jr. interfaith service. “I’ve always loved the concept about people coming from different cultures, races and religions, and getting to know each other,” he said on a short video.
And, he continued, he was fascinated by how King, who “shed his blood for the most sacred principles,” was still helping people learn to become “the real family God wants us to be.”
Abdo, 75, died Monday of kidney failure just weeks after participating, in failing health, in his last MLK interfaith service.
Born and raised in San Antonio, Abdo had a bachelor of science degree in chemistry from St. Mary’s University and later earned advanced degrees in nutrition and homeopathic medicine. His clinic, Dayspring International, offered holistic treatments including herbal medicine, homeopathy and nutritional therapies.
He was also a local leader of the Baha’i faith, which teaches peace and a reconciliation of the major religions. Followers are urged to study all sacred texts and embrace all their prophets.
Abdo was thus uniquely qualified to lead the interfaith service committee, and he was fond of reminding the Jews, Sikhs, Muslims, Protestants, Catholics and others involved that they were all just distant kinfolk.
“He’d tell us that none of us were further apart than sixth cousins, that we’re all kind of related,” recalled Judy Lackritz of the city’s Jewish Federation. “In his own mild way, he was forceful that we had to get along and accept each other’s individual expressions of faith.”
Nettie Hinton, 80, another longtime committee member, said, “Everything he said reminded you, no matter what your religious convictions were, that he was on the same path with you, and that we were all going to glory.”
“He was there to shepherd us, and he was a very good shepherd,” she added.
Dick Cheatham, 88, a retired Methodist minister, still marvels at how Abdo brought productive harmony to the mixed group.
“He was responsible for the most ecumenical service I have ever attended in my life. He was the glue. We all felt that we belonged and could contribute,” Cheatham said.
“You’d leave the service with one arm around an imam and the other around a rabbi, all singing ‘We Shall Overcome.’ It had a meaning that transcended the civil rights movement,” he recalled.
Other local religious leaders shared their memories of Abdo.
“His passing is a loss for the San Antonio interfaith community,” said Archbishop Gustavo García-Siller, who knew Abdo as “a gentle soul,” who “worked constantly for unity.”
Imam Beytullah Colak of the Raindrop Turkish House, said, “He was kind and very calm. He was spreading, by his existence, peace.”
Abdo’s daughter Dawn Sport said her father taught constantly by word and example.
“We always believed that character is the most important thing, and that’s what my father gave us, character and morals,” she said.
“When he wasn’t doing children’s classes and things in the neighborhood and the community, we’d have adults coming over to study all the different faiths. They would come to the house every Sunday and have prayers,” Sport said.
To his younger brother Richard, “He was a man of faith, a man of science and a man of family.”
Their deeply spiritual mother instilled in John Abdo an unshakeable faith, his brother said.
“She’d say, ‘No matter what, all is in divine order,’” Richard Abdo recalled. “I shared this with him in his final days, and he smiled. It was like going back home, listening to mom. All was going to be OK.”
Nate Davis, chairman of the city’s Dr. Martin Luther King Commission, said finding a new leader for the interfaith service committee will not be difficult.
“He put together a really fantastic team and he definitely trained them. One of them will step up and take the reins,” Davis said.
Preceded by: Parents John Joseph and Alice Celia Abdo.
Survived by: Brother Richard Abdo; a daughter, Dawn Sport; sons Gabriel and Christopher Abdo; grandchildren Shane and Jordan Abdo, and Lauren Sport.
https://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local/article/Abdo-75-was-a-San-Antonio-interfaith-organizer-13634102.php
And, he continued, he was fascinated by how King, who “shed his blood for the most sacred principles,” was still helping people learn to become “the real family God wants us to be.”
Abdo, 75, died Monday of kidney failure just weeks after participating, in failing health, in his last MLK interfaith service.
Born and raised in San Antonio, Abdo had a bachelor of science degree in chemistry from St. Mary’s University and later earned advanced degrees in nutrition and homeopathic medicine. His clinic, Dayspring International, offered holistic treatments including herbal medicine, homeopathy and nutritional therapies.
He was also a local leader of the Baha’i faith, which teaches peace and a reconciliation of the major religions. Followers are urged to study all sacred texts and embrace all their prophets.
Abdo was thus uniquely qualified to lead the interfaith service committee, and he was fond of reminding the Jews, Sikhs, Muslims, Protestants, Catholics and others involved that they were all just distant kinfolk.
“He’d tell us that none of us were further apart than sixth cousins, that we’re all kind of related,” recalled Judy Lackritz of the city’s Jewish Federation. “In his own mild way, he was forceful that we had to get along and accept each other’s individual expressions of faith.”
Nettie Hinton, 80, another longtime committee member, said, “Everything he said reminded you, no matter what your religious convictions were, that he was on the same path with you, and that we were all going to glory.”
“He was there to shepherd us, and he was a very good shepherd,” she added.
Dick Cheatham, 88, a retired Methodist minister, still marvels at how Abdo brought productive harmony to the mixed group.
“He was responsible for the most ecumenical service I have ever attended in my life. He was the glue. We all felt that we belonged and could contribute,” Cheatham said.
“You’d leave the service with one arm around an imam and the other around a rabbi, all singing ‘We Shall Overcome.’ It had a meaning that transcended the civil rights movement,” he recalled.
Other local religious leaders shared their memories of Abdo.
“His passing is a loss for the San Antonio interfaith community,” said Archbishop Gustavo García-Siller, who knew Abdo as “a gentle soul,” who “worked constantly for unity.”
Imam Beytullah Colak of the Raindrop Turkish House, said, “He was kind and very calm. He was spreading, by his existence, peace.”
Abdo’s daughter Dawn Sport said her father taught constantly by word and example.
“We always believed that character is the most important thing, and that’s what my father gave us, character and morals,” she said.
“When he wasn’t doing children’s classes and things in the neighborhood and the community, we’d have adults coming over to study all the different faiths. They would come to the house every Sunday and have prayers,” Sport said.
To his younger brother Richard, “He was a man of faith, a man of science and a man of family.”
Their deeply spiritual mother instilled in John Abdo an unshakeable faith, his brother said.
“She’d say, ‘No matter what, all is in divine order,’” Richard Abdo recalled. “I shared this with him in his final days, and he smiled. It was like going back home, listening to mom. All was going to be OK.”
Nate Davis, chairman of the city’s Dr. Martin Luther King Commission, said finding a new leader for the interfaith service committee will not be difficult.
“He put together a really fantastic team and he definitely trained them. One of them will step up and take the reins,” Davis said.
Preceded by: Parents John Joseph and Alice Celia Abdo.
Survived by: Brother Richard Abdo; a daughter, Dawn Sport; sons Gabriel and Christopher Abdo; grandchildren Shane and Jordan Abdo, and Lauren Sport.
https://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local/article/Abdo-75-was-a-San-Antonio-interfaith-organizer-13634102.php
An enthusiastic teacher of the Faith and delegate to numerous Baha'i National Conventions, he was locally well regarded for his relationship building and 20-year leadership of the citywide Martin Luther King Jr. interfaith service. “I’ve always loved the concept about people coming from different cultures, races and religions, and getting to know each other,” he said on a short video.
And, he continued, he was fascinated by how King, who “shed his blood for the most sacred principles,” was still helping people learn to become “the real family God wants us to be.”
Abdo, 75, died Monday of kidney failure just weeks after participating, in failing health, in his last MLK interfaith service.
Born and raised in San Antonio, Abdo had a bachelor of science degree in chemistry from St. Mary’s University and later earned advanced degrees in nutrition and homeopathic medicine. His clinic, Dayspring International, offered holistic treatments including herbal medicine, homeopathy and nutritional therapies.
He was also a local leader of the Baha’i faith, which teaches peace and a reconciliation of the major religions. Followers are urged to study all sacred texts and embrace all their prophets.
Abdo was thus uniquely qualified to lead the interfaith service committee, and he was fond of reminding the Jews, Sikhs, Muslims, Protestants, Catholics and others involved that they were all just distant kinfolk.
“He’d tell us that none of us were further apart than sixth cousins, that we’re all kind of related,” recalled Judy Lackritz of the city’s Jewish Federation. “In his own mild way, he was forceful that we had to get along and accept each other’s individual expressions of faith.”
Nettie Hinton, 80, another longtime committee member, said, “Everything he said reminded you, no matter what your religious convictions were, that he was on the same path with you, and that we were all going to glory.”
“He was there to shepherd us, and he was a very good shepherd,” she added.
Dick Cheatham, 88, a retired Methodist minister, still marvels at how Abdo brought productive harmony to the mixed group.
“He was responsible for the most ecumenical service I have ever attended in my life. He was the glue. We all felt that we belonged and could contribute,” Cheatham said.
“You’d leave the service with one arm around an imam and the other around a rabbi, all singing ‘We Shall Overcome.’ It had a meaning that transcended the civil rights movement,” he recalled.
Other local religious leaders shared their memories of Abdo.
“His passing is a loss for the San Antonio interfaith community,” said Archbishop Gustavo García-Siller, who knew Abdo as “a gentle soul,” who “worked constantly for unity.”
Imam Beytullah Colak of the Raindrop Turkish House, said, “He was kind and very calm. He was spreading, by his existence, peace.”
Abdo’s daughter Dawn Sport said her father taught constantly by word and example.
“We always believed that character is the most important thing, and that’s what my father gave us, character and morals,” she said.
“When he wasn’t doing children’s classes and things in the neighborhood and the community, we’d have adults coming over to study all the different faiths. They would come to the house every Sunday and have prayers,” Sport said.
To his younger brother Richard, “He was a man of faith, a man of science and a man of family.”
Their deeply spiritual mother instilled in John Abdo an unshakeable faith, his brother said.
“She’d say, ‘No matter what, all is in divine order,’” Richard Abdo recalled. “I shared this with him in his final days, and he smiled. It was like going back home, listening to mom. All was going to be OK.”
Nate Davis, chairman of the city’s Dr. Martin Luther King Commission, said finding a new leader for the interfaith service committee will not be difficult.
“He put together a really fantastic team and he definitely trained them. One of them will step up and take the reins,” Davis said.
Preceded by: Parents John Joseph and Alice Celia Abdo.
Survived by: Brother Richard Abdo; a daughter, Dawn Sport; sons Gabriel and Christopher Abdo; grandchildren Shane and Jordan Abdo, and Lauren Sport.
https://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local/article/Abdo-75-was-a-San-Antonio-interfaith-organizer-13634102.php
And, he continued, he was fascinated by how King, who “shed his blood for the most sacred principles,” was still helping people learn to become “the real family God wants us to be.”
Abdo, 75, died Monday of kidney failure just weeks after participating, in failing health, in his last MLK interfaith service.
Born and raised in San Antonio, Abdo had a bachelor of science degree in chemistry from St. Mary’s University and later earned advanced degrees in nutrition and homeopathic medicine. His clinic, Dayspring International, offered holistic treatments including herbal medicine, homeopathy and nutritional therapies.
He was also a local leader of the Baha’i faith, which teaches peace and a reconciliation of the major religions. Followers are urged to study all sacred texts and embrace all their prophets.
Abdo was thus uniquely qualified to lead the interfaith service committee, and he was fond of reminding the Jews, Sikhs, Muslims, Protestants, Catholics and others involved that they were all just distant kinfolk.
“He’d tell us that none of us were further apart than sixth cousins, that we’re all kind of related,” recalled Judy Lackritz of the city’s Jewish Federation. “In his own mild way, he was forceful that we had to get along and accept each other’s individual expressions of faith.”
Nettie Hinton, 80, another longtime committee member, said, “Everything he said reminded you, no matter what your religious convictions were, that he was on the same path with you, and that we were all going to glory.”
“He was there to shepherd us, and he was a very good shepherd,” she added.
Dick Cheatham, 88, a retired Methodist minister, still marvels at how Abdo brought productive harmony to the mixed group.
“He was responsible for the most ecumenical service I have ever attended in my life. He was the glue. We all felt that we belonged and could contribute,” Cheatham said.
“You’d leave the service with one arm around an imam and the other around a rabbi, all singing ‘We Shall Overcome.’ It had a meaning that transcended the civil rights movement,” he recalled.
Other local religious leaders shared their memories of Abdo.
“His passing is a loss for the San Antonio interfaith community,” said Archbishop Gustavo García-Siller, who knew Abdo as “a gentle soul,” who “worked constantly for unity.”
Imam Beytullah Colak of the Raindrop Turkish House, said, “He was kind and very calm. He was spreading, by his existence, peace.”
Abdo’s daughter Dawn Sport said her father taught constantly by word and example.
“We always believed that character is the most important thing, and that’s what my father gave us, character and morals,” she said.
“When he wasn’t doing children’s classes and things in the neighborhood and the community, we’d have adults coming over to study all the different faiths. They would come to the house every Sunday and have prayers,” Sport said.
To his younger brother Richard, “He was a man of faith, a man of science and a man of family.”
Their deeply spiritual mother instilled in John Abdo an unshakeable faith, his brother said.
“She’d say, ‘No matter what, all is in divine order,’” Richard Abdo recalled. “I shared this with him in his final days, and he smiled. It was like going back home, listening to mom. All was going to be OK.”
Nate Davis, chairman of the city’s Dr. Martin Luther King Commission, said finding a new leader for the interfaith service committee will not be difficult.
“He put together a really fantastic team and he definitely trained them. One of them will step up and take the reins,” Davis said.
Preceded by: Parents John Joseph and Alice Celia Abdo.
Survived by: Brother Richard Abdo; a daughter, Dawn Sport; sons Gabriel and Christopher Abdo; grandchildren Shane and Jordan Abdo, and Lauren Sport.
https://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local/article/Abdo-75-was-a-San-Antonio-interfaith-organizer-13634102.php
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