Inter-Religious Studies Program, Vancouver School of Theology

Update: Spring 2018

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We helped VST’s student clergy, spiritual care providers and scholars learn about our multi-faith world. We introduced students to local and regional religious communities. We offered graduate courses, organized conferences, hosted special events, and helped VST engage with our regional community.CONNECTING WITH COMMUNITY Students from VST met with Jewish, Islamic, Hindu, and Indigenous groups. We toured the Ismaili Centre of Burnaby; observed services and ceremonies at Beth Israel Synagogue and the International Society for Krishna Consciousness Temple; joined members of Or Shalom Synagogue for an inter-religious

discussion; participated in Hummingbird Indigenous Ministries Peace Through Arts gathering. At each location, our generous hosts answered our questions and shared their stories of faith.In response to student questions about creating strong community alliances, we sponsored the panel presentation How to Start a Successful Interfaith Outreach Program in your Church, Mosque or Synagogue. Interested community members joined us to learn from our experienced panelists: Mr. Farouq Manji (Ismaili Centre of Burnaby), Rev. Victor Kim (Richmond Presbyterian Church), and Rabbi Hannah Dresner (Or Shalom Synagogue.)

SPIRITUAL PRACTICE: WORLD TRADITIONS Our Commons Hour program introduces students and faculty to spiritual practice across traditions. These optional, prayerful, experiential programs are popular at VST. In November, VST’s Director of Inter-Religious Studies Rabbi Dr. Laura Duhan-Kaplan and the musicians of Sulam led Piyyut: Traditions of Jewish Liturgical Poetry – a musical journey through Jewish history and liturgy. In February, Pandit Tejomaya shared a reflective hour of Vedic Chanting, explaining the Hindu philosophies behind it. ACADEMIC STUDIES Our four graduate courses in Inter-Religious Studies brought together students from multiple traditions. Sacred Texts and Oral Narratives introduced key texts and teachings of five spiritual traditions. Encountering the Other explored dynamics of inter-cultural welcome, prejudice, and communication. Liturgy, Ritual, and the Sacred combined theoretical cross-cultural study with practical skill development.

INTER-RELIGIOUS STUDIES: A GREAT YEAR

In the Integrating Seminar in Indigenous and Inter-Religious Studies, advanced students evaluated contemporary scholarship. The courses were taught by Rabbi Dr. Laura Duhan-Kaplan, with help from VST’s Director of Indigenous Studies Rev. Ray Aldred, and VST Research Associates Dr. Terry Neiman, Dr. Paula Pryce, and Dr. Syed Nasir Zaidi.Our graduate programs in Indigenous and Inter-religious Studies are thriving. Five new students joined the program this year, and two graduated. Colby Gaudet, MA IIS, who wrote a thesis on Women and Acadian Popular Religious Culture in Southwestern Nova Scotia, 1795-1820, will be continuing on to Ph.D. study at Concordia. Kate Fisher, Diploma in IIS, has been a dedicated advocate for Inter-Religious and Indigenous perspectives at VST and the larger community.

PUBLIC CONFERENCES Our May 2017 Inter-Religious conference, Visions of the End Times, was a great success. Our keynote speaker, Dr. Lionel Corbett, addressed the Psychology of Religious Violence. Scholars from Canada, USA, Italy and Germany presented research on end-times visions, both utopian and dystopian, in sacred text, literature, art, film, philosophy, and theology.

A multi-faith panel of local religious leaders shared Sikh, Hindu, Islamic, Jewish, Indigenous, and Latter Day Saints traditions about the end times. The final workshop, Writing into Hope, was led by poet Ray McGinnis. SCHOLARLY EMISSARY Rabbi Dr. Laura Duhan-Kaplan is a popular speaker at synagogues, churches, and interfaith events. Highlights of her busy year include speaking on Sacred Texts of Three Traditions, Prophetic Views of Reconciliation, and Earth Day Interdependence, and at multi-faith events including A Path to Understanding: A Multi-Faith Response to Islamophobia (Ismaili Centre); Welcoming the Other (Lynn Valley United Church); and Spirit Pride (St. Andrews Wesley United Church). She also represented VST on the Multi-Faith Steering Committee of BC, Faith 150 Essay Contest, and CIJA Genocide Prevention Think Tank.UPCOMING EVENTS Spiritual Perspectives on Death and Dying, our 2018 Inter-Religious Studies Conference, takes place May 22-24. Keynote Dr. David Kuhl will lead a conversation called We Die Alone and Yet We Don’t. A multi-faith panel of five professionals in spiritual care and medical ethics will discuss Medical Assistance in Dying. Christian, Jewish, and Buddhist teachers will collaborate on an experiential session of Music and Meditation for Healing, Passing, and Grieving. Eighteen scholars from the VST community will share their research on preparing for and responding to death. Death educators from Willow will offer a reflective final workshop on Departure Directions. Dr. Kuhl’s session (Wednesday, May 23, 7 pm, Epiphany Chapel) is free and open to the public. To register for the full conference, visit www.vst.edu.

Photos courtesy of Lorraine Ashdown, Brynn Craffey, Laura Duhan-Kaplan, Charles Kaplan