The Institute of Southern Jewish Life was developed in 1986 to provide educational and rabbinic services to Jewish communities in the Sout as well as promoting the Jewish presence in a thirteen state region. Here is their January newsletter: ISJL January 2012 Newsletter. Make sure to check out the article on the third page about Tu B’shvat, a holiday occuring on February 8th, a Jewish Arbor Day. For more inforemation about the Institute of Southern Jewish Life, visit here.
Junior Hannah Jordan considers her experience at a Hindu Temple while on the Interfaith Fall Break Trip.
This fall break, the Chaplain Office’s Interfaith Trip ferried me to Washington D.C. to sample the vast ocean of world cultures through experiencing a few different faith traditions. I’ve grown up with a Christian background, and continue to walk in that faith tradition today, so I know the Protestant Church pretty well. But I had never been to a Hindu temple, a Muslim Mosque, or even an Orthodox Christian Church before this trip. While each house of worship struck me in different ways, the place that surprised me the most was the Hindu temple. At first, it was the most uncomfortable for me. Our group found ourselves seated on the floor in a large room, encircled by Hindu deities: small statues that Hindus believe to be manifested by the gods themselves. I watched people filter in—some sitting immediately, others making the rounds, saying prayers to certain deities. All the while, a priest played music, chanting in Hindi words that I could not understand. In all honesty, I felt out of place.
But, as the service progressed, we had a chance to talk with one of the elders of the temple and hear stories from him about his faith tradition. It was fascinating. After hearing from him, we were invited to share a meal with the people at the temple. But they didn’t just invite us to eat with them. They invited us into their lives, into their tradition of living. I felt honored to be a part of it. This is just one example of how, after entering into and experiencing these houses of worship, I understood in a more tangible way that these buildings carry with them much more than mere “religion.” These houses of worship carry traditions, faces, and ways of life that were previously foreign to me. It’s beautiful. I gained so much through experiencing these new faith traditions. It made me think a lot more about what I believe and why I believe it. It can be a healthy thing to broaden your perspective so as to deepen your own beliefs. On a larger scale, I think it’s essential for our society to experience new things, especially in regards to faith traditions. How else can we engage in meaningful dialogue with others whose beliefs are different from our own if we have no common ground? Interfaith allows barriers to be broken and stereotypes to be stripped away so that people and their stories replace “religion”.
Sophomore Sarah Watson, a member of Orthodox Christian Fellowship, discusses her experiences at a Coptic (Egyptian) Church in Charlotte.
Being a member of the Orthodox tradition is an interesting thing. Not only do people not know much about my religion, but I do not know much about it. Orthodoxy is a very old tradition that is followed in a number of different places. Unlike Catholicism, The Orthodox Church does not have one leader that presides over every sect of the church, and with so many sects, there is no common doctrine of belief. Churches in the United States have very different positions than Churches in Russia do – and there is no one to say whether it is right or wrong.
This year, the Orthodox Christian Fellowship, a small group of Orthodox students on campus, has noticed this wide array of traditions within the Orthodox Church and has attempted to explore it more.
On Sunday, November 13th , we went to a Coptic (Egyptian) Orthodox Church in Charlotte. Culturally, it is very different than the Greek Orthodox Church I am used to visiting. Not only is the service in Arabic and Coptic (Ancient Egyptian), but men and women sit on different sides of the nave. This separation kind of threw me off initially because I sat on the male side with the rest of my group. I felt somewhat out of place. But listening to the service itself and hearing how involved the congregation was in the service made me forget the discomfort and feel the true inspiration of the religion. The entire service was engaging and interesting – both culturally and religiously. Technically, it is the same service that I experience in my own church, just in a different language. And because of that, I was able to recognize bits and pieces and feel as though I was “home” in my religion. Despite the dramatic differences, I felt surrounded by people that identified with me. After the service, much of the congregation welcomed our group and was pleased to know that we cared about learning about other types of Orthodoxy. Everyone provided an ample amount of interesting information about the service and special traditions that define the Coptic Church.
This experience that the OCF is trying to achieve this year by visiting different Orthodox churches, is an eye opening one for me. I grew up not knowing that all of these other types existed, when in fact they are just as prominent as my own type. Experiencing them has made me realize this and made me value not only my own tradition, but those surrounding me.
Junior Jaime Dybuncio explores the relationship between religion and community.
I was raised Catholic. This is no coincidence due to my parents’ home country being over 80% Catholic. But while my parents brought their Filipino culture with them when they immigrated to the United States, they left behind a lot of their friends, family, and traditions that shaped their Catholicism.
Growing up in Los Angeles, I had the fortune to live in a generally open and accepting environment that celebrated difference. While I did accompany my parents to church, my parents never attempted to accelerate the strength or direction of my faith. I was allowed to explore this space on my own. Despite never feeling compelled or called to a specific creed, I always knew I needed to explore my personal faith further.
When I came to Davidson, I was in an environment for the first time where it was obvious that people’s religious beliefs were so clearly interwoven into their everyday lives. I never had friends back home who met to discuss God’s teachings for example, nor were Sundays ever an occasion for my friends and me to get dressed up and go to church. While this contributed to some initial culture shock, I found myself with more questions about my faith and about religion in general. I never was able to connect the dots and understand the appeal of ascribing to a certain religion. From my limited experiences, I never understood what else my Church offered outside of moral guidance. I’ve always held the notion that being a moral citizen is an intrinsic responsibility we bear as human beings, not something connected to following someone’s teachings. Therefore, for me, if religion just represented an outlet for how to
become a wholesome person, I never understood why I would limit myself to the teachings of only one religion. While having these questions, I always knew deeply that I was greatly simplifying religion, and seeing my peers so committed to their own faiths only emphasized this fact.
Luckily for me, I was afforded the opportunity to go on Davidson’s Interfaith Fall Break trip to Washington D.C. During our 4 day trip, we got to take part in a Yom Kippur, Greek Orthodox, and Hindu service. What mmediately was apparent to me were the communities within each house of worship we visited. In my experiences at the church I would attend as a kid, I never remember befriending people my age or even talking to anyone else but my family. I never associated community with religion. Yet the Interfaith trip made it so clear and obvious that they go hand in hand. After each service we went to, we were invited to some type of reception where the congregation met in a more relaxed setting. Not only were the people we met incredibly welcoming and warm, but it was also obvious that if we were not there, nothing would change. There was something about these communities we met that was different than a regular friend group. You could sense in the room a certain warmth and love for each other that was very unique.
My favorite thing about visiting the Philippines is seeing my parents interact with their friends and family. It never occurred to me, but so often these interactions happen in similar settings than the ones I encountered on the Interfaith trip. Mass is always a time where the whole family goes together and sees old friends. This sense of community in the church was lost when my parents moved to Los Angeles, and is something I did not experience first-hand. But during my short stay in D.C., I was able to see how special this aspect is to religion, and I dive back into my personal faith journey with a renewed vigor and
excitement.
Freshman Kaki Bennett discovers the importance of community while on the Interfaith Fall Break Trip.
So often we get caught up in the craze of daily life that we forget to take moments for interpersonal learning and reflection. Spending Fall Break exploring different faith traditions, the intersection of faith and politics, and doing community service in Washington, D.C. enabled me to learn through experience and through reflection.
We were an eclectic group, representing all four classes, a variety of majors, and differing extracurricular interests. What we all had in common, though, was a desire to ask faith-based questions and learn from each other our strengths, our uncertainties, and a respect for different worldviews and opinions. We shared a dorm, made our meals together, and played a few heated games of Bananagrams. We chopped vegetables, walked through monuments, and experienced several different worship services. When I look back on the weekend in DC, I realize that the community in which I was living had the greatest impact on my learning. Our conversations about moments that we loved, moments that made us uncomfortable, moments that made us smile, and moments that made us pause for reflection challenged me and made me analyze my faith journey more critically. Learning in the classroom is certainly important, but equally important, in my opinion, is taking time to learn life lessons. Only then can we take what we learn in the classroom and use it to make an impact.
Imagine how it feels to not have a home to go to at night, to not have a bed to call your own, and to not have a place to store your belongings. Imagine long nights on the street, in the rain and in the cold. Imagine not having enough money in your pocket to buy something to eat and not being able to secure a job.
We have a tendency to think that homelessness only happens to other people, to alcoholics, to drug addicts, to the disabled. Homelessness can happen to anyone, even people with a college degree or with a family. We have a tendency to look away when the homeless ask us for money, but they are people just like us, and they deserve to be acknowledged, even if you have nothing to give.
In Mecklenburg County we have over 5,000 homeless neighbors on any given night. Throughout the spring semester, Davidson College’s Better Together campaign volunteered at Room in the Inn—a temporary shelter organized at Davidson College Presbyterian Church every Friday during the winter months. One Friday a month, Better Together volunteers had the chance to meet some of our neighbors face-to-face, and get to know them over shared meals. One Better Together volunteer reflected:
Their journeys left an imprint upon my heart…I don’t view the weekends with the neighbors as merely a service activity any longer, but as an act of worship in which I am constantly learning new ways to find beauty and contentment in the world, especially when people live in such difficult times.
Better Together volunteers not only formed meaningful relationships with our homeless neighbors, but they also got to know one another better as we worked together to set up the beds for the shelter.
Better Together volunteers set up beds at Room in the Inn
Our commitment to take a break from daily activities at Davidson and serve the local homeless population yielded deeper dialogue. Each time we began the weekend with a written reflection on what from our faith calls us to serve. We concluded the weekend by sharing our how our initial motivations transformed throughout our experience together.
Better Together volunteers reflect on how their faith inspires their service
As the temperature warmed and Room in the Inn came to a close for the season, Better Together wanted to find another way to help our homeless neighbors. Urban Ministry Center is an interfaith homeless services center in Charlotte, and Artworks 945 is an art studio and gallery at Urban Ministry Center for artists in Charlotte struggling with poverty and homelessness. Artworks 945 provides art materials and helps neighbors sell their art in the community.
Paintings made by our homeless neighbors through Artworks 945
Following an Artworks 945 exhibition at Davidson and a joint-talent show between Davidson students and homeless neighbors, Better Together organized Artstock, a benefit concert for Artworks 945 with student musicians and spoken word about poverty and homelessness. Through a bake sale at the event, involving multiple religious organizations on campus, Better Together raised $200 for the Artworks 945 program.
You and Your Effects plays at Artstock
In addition to Artworks 945, Urban Ministry Center houses St. Peter’s Soup Kitchen, which requires 800 sandwiches a day to feed our homeless neighbors. In honor of National Volunteer Week, and in coordination with Davidson’s annual Celebration of Service, Better Together mobilized over 50 students from various faiths and traditions to participate in Operation Sandwich, the making of 800 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in the student union during our common hour. All of the materials were donated by Davidson’s Auxiliary Services Department. The energy at the event was contagious. We had more volunteers than we had space at the tables. Next year, Better Together hopes to solicit even more donations and work with multiple soup kitchens in the area.
Better Together hosts Operation Sandwich in the student union
Volunteers make 800 sandwiches for St. Peter's Soup Kitchen
The Better Together Steering Committee was thrilled to support our homeless neighbors in so many ways this semester. While Room in the Inn allowed for deep, meaningful relationship-building across lines of difference, Artstock and Operation Sandwich allowed Better Together to expand its reach on campus and provide a direct contribution to our homeless neighbors benefitting from services at Urban Ministry Center. Throughout these events, Better Together helped students from different faiths and traditions reflect on our common values, which encourage us to serve side-by-side in an effort to address some of the needs of our local homeless population.
The Better Together Steering Committee, Spring 2011
This year at Davidson there has been a lot of debate about the way the college approaches issues of religious diversity. I challenge the Davidson community to respond to this debate by participating in interfaith service opportunities, which allow us to connect across our differences, and build more trusting and respectful relationships while serving our local community.
Davidson senior, Nick Noreña, reflects on his experience volunteering at Room in the Inn with the Better Together campaign at Davidson College.
I had never been involved with an interfaith organization before this year. I possessed very little knowledge regarding the practice of interfaith groups on college campuses; I had very little sense of what it meant to act as an interfaith organization. That all changed when Better Together started running Room in the Inn. With Room in the Inn, we were putting interfaith dialogue into practice. I learned a great deal about how dialogue interacts with action by experiencing the two in the same immediate context. For me, it wasn’t necessarily a matter of our reflection influencing my actions directly. Rather, the “ah-ha” moment for me was noticing that there is an interfaith dialogue present in everything we do, whether we choose to acknowledge it or not.
At Room in the Inn, we start with a written reflection, and then seal it up and put it away to return to it the next morning after the program is over. I take this move to mean that the dialogue is secondary to action.
What the homeless neighbors needed was tangible results: a bed, a warm meal, and some rest and relaxation. They didn’t need a bunch of college kids sitting around and musing about what “interfaith” means to them. Yet when we revisit our reflections on Saturday morning, after an evening of helping meet some of the needs of our homeless neighbors, we realize that we were all working across different faiths and beliefs to attain that common goal. The interfaith aspect of our service was right there with us, whether we chose to believe it or not.
Davidson junior, Lindsay Beck, reflects on how her faith inspires her service.
One of the things I appreciated most about the Reformed University Fellowship (RUF) service project in South Carolina was the ability to simply disengage my mind and work with my hands. I was reminded of the fact that in Genesis 2, God gives man two jobs: to name the animals and “to work [the land] and take care of it” (v. 15). As humans, we are not called just to do intellectual “heavy lifting,” but also to use our bodies and their power for God’s glory. Being a Davidson student–often so consumed in my work that I might not budge from my desk for several hours–my humanity can become completely wrapped up in and defined by my mind, my brain, and my intellect. No matter how hard physically I found yanking disobedient, rusty nails out of old wood or mixing cement, these tasks felt innately right for my body, and brought rest for my mind.
Reflecting now on our trip, I am also struck by the difference between what God originally instructed Adam to do in the Garden of Eden with what we were doing on Johns Island. After Adam and Eve sinned, God punished them; cursing the ground and proclaiming that humankind would thereafter have to work against it for their living (Genesis 3:17-19). Where Adam and Eve might have had a comparatively easier or more enjoyable time working the land, we now have to effectively wage war against it. Though it “feels right,” as I said previously, to use our physical strength to accomplish tasks, it is also difficult and never produces perfect results.
We currently inhabit a “waiting period” between Jesus’ first coming, which began God’s work of redemption on earth, and his second, which will bring it to completion. During this interim period, as the apostle Paul described, “The creation waits in eager expectation . . . [hoping] that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay” (Romans 8:19, 21a). It is no secret, especially in light of the recent natural disasters in Japan and manmade crises in Libya, that the world is decaying. As Paul goes on to say, “We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time” (v. 23).
While nothing will bring an end to this decay and pain except for the complete renewal and rebirth of the earth when Jesus returns, that does not mean we should throw our hands up and despair. As Christians, we are called to be the hands and feet of Christ, to work towards redemption for all of creation. During the RUF trip, I got to witness and participate in this work of redemption: bringing good out of a bad situation, beauty out of ugliness. Mrs. Gathers’ previous house had been demolished because it was no longer safe to inhabit (the project supervisor told me that it was so rotten from the inside that heavy winds could have eventually caused its collapse), and Rural Missions had built her a new one. We constructed for her a new screened-in porch, shed, and step, and each accomplished task brought with it the feeling that we were restoring some order to this individual’s life.
Finally, I am reminded of the privilege it is that God desires us to carry forward his mission of redemption until he comes again—or “Kingdom Work,” as I have heard some people refer to it. Though God, as sovereign creator, could easily and quickly set things right himself, he calls Christians to demonstrate the grace and love that has been extended to us through Christ, and to in turn extend that to others. To quote 1 John 4:19, “we love because he first loved us.” Service comes from the overflow of the love that we have been bestowed; it is “faith with deeds” to accompany (James 2:14-26).
Davidson freshman, Gracie Dover, reflects on her experience volunteering at Room in the Inn as part of Davidson’s Better Together campaign.
As a college freshman, I have experienced many transitions this year. Although I love Davidson College, I am still searching for a few missing elements in my life. This semester I have three resolutions which are each characterized by one word: People, God, Me. I want to get to know more people on campus in a deeper more meaningful way, find a spiritual center or community, and develop a greater sense of independence and self-confidence.
When I heard about the opportunity to work with Room in the Inn (RITI), I was immediately attracted to it. Maybe it was because I had wanted to get involved in a service project at Davidson College or because I had studied the culture of homelessness in an anthropology class, but for some reason I knew I should do it. Surprisingly, it helped fulfill each one of my resolutions. As an interfaith event, it brought together faith, service, and great people.
Even though the experience lasted less than 24 hours, it felt complete and momentous because it was so well organized. The Better Together campaign works to create a community by bringing the volunteers together and playing ice-breaking games before we meet our homeless neighbors. We also wrote down the reason why we were volunteering so we could be intentional about our actions. This deeply enriched my experience because it gave me a chance to not only get to know the people around me, but turn my time into a spiritual experience.
When we finally met our homeless neighbors, I was surprised my how easy it was to talk to them. I had dinner with two women, Christy and Alisha, and Alisha’s two-year-old son Victor. While talking to them, I caught myself laughing and telling them stories of life at Davidson, completely free of inhibition. They were open about their lives as well and told me about their struggles with shelters, employment, and addiction. Even though we touched on serious issues the conversation had an informal, light tone.
I was really impressed by the interactions we had and how easy it was to connect even though we live in very different environments. Maybe this shouldn’t have come as such a surprise to me. After all, we are all just human beings, whether we have a place to sleep at night or not. I plan on volunteering with RITI again not only because I value service, but also because I legitimately had a good time.
This is a safe space for people of all faith and philosophical traditions to share stories, information on upcoming events at Davidson, and important happenings around the world related to faith.
Contact adgrant@davidson.edu if you would like to be a guest blogger.
