Women’s Panel Discussion on Faith

Yesterday evening, three Elmhurst alumnae who work in ministry—Sr. Lisa Polega ’91, Syeda Kamran ’01 and Rev. Kelly Stone ’03— spoke as a part of a panel exploring dimensions of interfaith cooperation in their work. This panel was a part of Women’s History Month goings on and the “Still Speaking: Conversations on Faith” series of the College, the conversation was moderated by Associate Chaplain Michelle Hughes.

Two attendees were kind enough to briefly reflect on the event

“As a passionate “lobbyist” for social and environmental issues, there is a lot of confusion and uncertainty as I am catapulted into the world. While I came here as a follower of Christ in true faith, I now live ambiguously in terms of spirituality. Hearing these three passionate women of different [faiths] talk about uncertain, but fulfilling paths is very encouraging. Passion leads where passion fits for each crazy individual, even if a specific faith in God doesn’t exist to cling to.” -Sara Schroeder (a leader of the campus Amnesty International chapter who has blogged previously for EC interfaith)

“It’s great to see that three powerful women from three different faith backgrounds can come together an talk about how their faith, as well as others, are important in their lives. Also, hearing that Elmhurst College was an inspiration for their desire to promote interfaith [cooperation], as it has been for me is awesome” -Emily Mohney (a photographer for the college newspaper The Leader, and the College)

In America, We are Better Together

If you are a regular attendee of Spiritual Life Council (5pm Wednesdays in the Blume Board Room!), you may remember that last fall, in solidarity with the Cordoba Center/Park 51, we made posters that read “In America, We are Better Together” and other similar slogans to post around campus.

If you’re active in the Interfaith world, you probably heard about the nasty protests of ICNA in Orange County last month (if you didn’t, it’s on the blog). So obviously the world hasn’t gotten the message that we are better together yet.

This Wednesday at 4:30 before SLC (which is 5pm Wednesday in the Blume Board Room!) we are writing letters of support for some of those pained by the OC protests, letters of rebuke to those politicians who spoke at the protests, letters to our local politicians asking them to support the richness of a religiously diverse society when the opportunities come up with regard to faith based and neighborhood partnerships and anti-hate crime legislation.  There will also be opportunities to encourage our own community to support interfaith work and multi-faith education by signing onto letters to members of the Education Department among other departments that can encourage diversity education.

I encourage you to come and reiterate your dedication to building a more whole community, not just here at EC, but in our larger community.

(Following the 4:30 letter writing, at 5pm, we will be meeting with Rev. Dr. Bernice Powell Jackson, of the World Council of Churches)

Essay Contest Announcement!

A message from Chaplain H Scott Matheney

This is an open letter from our chaplain that is appearing in several forms to our campus community in the coming days. You can email Rev. Matheney at hscottm[at]elmhurst[dot]edu.

Today at Spiritual Life Council, we discussed similar issues as Scott references in this post (with regard to Islamophobia and religiously-based hate). Next week we will be writing letters to the politicians involved in the protest, as well as in support of several select Muslim communities. This is the first of several actions around these issues, as part of a national movement spurred by the urgency brought forward by the Orange County protests (as mentioned in my last post)

To our Elmhurst College community,

Today, March 10^th, our House of Representatives in Wash. D.C. will open hearing on home land security,  home-grown terrorist activity and Islam.

The implications for this review are far-reaching and have attracted international media coverage. As a college community rooted deeply in core values that inform our life as an academic institution, I raise this moment as one that needs your attention intellectually, emotionally and spiritually. We are not naive to the climate of fear and hate that permeates our society coupled with so much misinformation. This college has committed itself to a different course of actions then stigmatizing a particular people or religion, and so, as these hearing shall commence this day, we are each responsible to listen and speak with a degree of civility born of wisdom, not ignorance. I am especially concerned for my Muslim brothers and sisters who shall bear this scrutiny. There will be many big questions asked of all of us in these hearings and it is imperative that this college of learners and scholars find moments to reflect with the critical rigor that demands our best now. Indeed, the times that these hearings begin serve as a spring board for our critical reflections and sustained actions.

Dialogue and response to Islamophobia in America– At Home

Tonight at Spiritual Life Council at Elmhurst, we will be pursuing a discussion of the hateful protests in Orange County and combatantence of Islamophbia in America.

We will be watching the following video and reading different perspectives on the subject (including biographies of the speakers at the conference and the protest).

My friend Chris Stedman put it well as he said “If you still believe that interfaith work isn’t imperative to the health of our society, or that anti-Muslim bias is not an epidemic, please watch this video of a protest of a Muslim relief organization’s benefit dinner for a battered women’s shelter … Hearing them chant “U.S.A.” alongside “terrorist,” “go home,” and “Muhammad was a pervert” made me more ashamed to be an American than I have ever felt before.”

 

Please join us at 5pm in the Blume Board room for this discussion and planning of response.

Blog for International Women’s Day

Today’s blog post is in honor of International Women’s Day 2011. You can follow IWD blogging on Twitter #BlogforIWD.

I had the honor, during an internship last summer at Arise Chicago of working with many people of faith who chose to use their faith to engage society on many occasions- but the most gratifying experiences came from, my coordination of the Labor in the Pulpits/on the Bimah/in the Minbar program.

Working with the speaker and congregation participants for the program opened my eyes as to why the two communities must work with each other. Meeting with the volunteer speakers, I heard stories of how the individuals feel representing the laborer is God’s work, and how it is not only good for the economy to have a middle class, but also good for the community. I experienced the passion when one speaker, Ramon, shared that as a child he learned in church “do unto others”, so even though he is an elected official now, he is vocal about his support of the laborer.

You have probably heard of Wisconsin’s recent issues targeting public sector workers through union busting and Governor Walker’s rejection of collective bargaining rights. Dana Goldstein recently pointed out a sexist side to these attacks that I had not considered— she makes the point that many of the professions being targeted by the busting are predominantly female professions. “About 80 percent of American teachers, for example, are female; at the elementary school level, nearly 90 percent are women. Nursing is 95 percent female. Nationwide, the majority of public sector union members, represented by AFSCME and other groups, are women”, Goldstein points out.

Interfaith Cooperation Strengthening Commitment to My Own Faith

This blog was written by Guru Amrit Khalsa, my co-IFYC Fellow, organizing at Ohio University. Read Guru Amrit’s blog here. Follow Guru Amrit at @Rue_Khalsa

The Kara is a steel bangle worn by male and female Sikhs. It is one of the five external articles of faith that identify Sikhs to the outside world. It is in the shape of a circle because, like the eternal Lord, it has no beginning or end. The Kara is a constant reminder to me to do God’s work as a Sikh disciple, and it keeps the mission of performing righteous actions as advocated by the Guru(spiritual teacher/saint) in the forefront of my mind each day.

On the way home from the Interfaith Youth Core winter training I attended for fellows alliance members, I lost my Kara in the airport. Though it may sound silly, this got me thinking about one of the main ‘fears’ I have encountered doing my interfaith work: is my commitment to interfaith action chipping away at my faith identity and watering it down?

I contemplated this on the plane ride home. And the more I thought about it, the more I realized that in fact the opposite is occurring: my commitment to interfaith work has greatly strengthened my relationship to my own faith of Sikhism. I thought back to the times this year when I served others, and how much more inspired I was to serve others after thinking of service as an interfaith experience. One of the central tenets of Sikhism is the importance of serving others, and Sikhs throughout the world are famous for hosting frequent and generous free meal programs (langar). Interacting with members of other faiths and acting as spokesperson for the interfaith movement on my campus, has forced me to become more familiar with aspects of my faith I had forgotten or lost touch with in the course of my college years, as others have inquired about my personal faith beliefs constantly since I began my fellowship.

Elmhurst on Being: Dr. Paul Parker

I was able to sit down with Dr. Paul Parker, chair of the Religion Department at Elmhurst, as part “Elmhurst on Being”, and talk about his faith identity and his views on religious pluralism and interfaith work. Dr. Parker’s area of specialization is Christian theological ethics, but he teaches broadly across the field of religious studies.

Elmhurst on Being is a new series of short video conversations with prominent members of the Elmhurst College community, in which they talk about their faith or philosophical identity and thoughts on religious pluralism and interfaith cooperation. If you have a suggestion about a member of our community you would like to see featured, please leave a comment below!

Reflections on the journey of a (F)a(i)theist: CRU and SSA

Mr. Stedman speaking with students following the lecture

Elmhurst College is in the middle of a year focused on building interfaith cooperation, hosting speakers and events around the theme of “Still Speaking: Conversations on Faith“. Last week the Spiritual Life Council, a student interfaith group, and the Better Together Campaign brought Mr. Chris Stedman, Interfaith and Community Service Fellow for the Humanist Chaplaincy at Harvard and blogger at NonProphet Status. Mr. Stedman met with small groups throughout the day, exploring the role of the non-religious in the collegiate institution; in the evening, Mr. Stedman presented the lecture “(F)a(i)theist: How One Atheist Learned to Stop Hating Religion and Became an Interfaith Activist” . He shared his journey of coming to identify as a Secular Humanist and his engagement in the interfaith movement. In this blog, leaders of Campus Crusade for Christ and Secular Students Association reflect on what they heard in Mr. Stedman’s address- these students are participating with the Better Together Campaign at Elmhurst College, working to affect hunger and poverty in DuPage County by working on projects with the People’s Resource Center.

On an Identity

This blog was written by Mark Wolfe, IFYC Fellow at the University of Indianapolis. You may read Mark’s blog at uindyinterfaithforum.wordpress.com and follow Mark on Twitter @InterfaithWolfe.

When the comedian Brian O’Sullivan visited the University of Indianapolis, one of the greatest musical hits that he played during the night was called “I’m a WASP,” a parody of the famous Black Eyed Peas song called “Imma Be.”  Throughout the entirety of the song, O’Sullivan listed many of the stereotypes involving WASPs (White Anglo-Saxon Protestants), the most populous group in the United States.  While the majority of Americans are still WASPs, there is an increasing diversity, both racial and religious, that one cannot ignore.  When 48% of Los Angeles County is Hispanic and millions of Muslims inhabit this country, WASPs are not alone anymore.

I am a male WASP. From prior understandings of power in America, I would be at the plateau.  While gender equality is slowly becoming a reality, the pay scale between men and women continues in inequality.  While racial equality is slowly becoming a reality, prejudice and stereotypes continue to cause discrimination.  While I rarely contemplate the nature of my privileges, I will not deny the fact that some of my success may be attributed to my status as a male WASP.  Frankly, I have never known the sting of discrimination based on my identity.