Diversity was the key word used to promote the Interfaith Celebration on Tuesday, Feb. 5, but similarities were the main point stressed during the presentation.
At 12:15 p.m., classes were canceled and St. Francis Xavier College Church was packed for a celebration of different faiths and religions that populate the Saint Louis University campus.
The service consisted of songs, discussions and dancing representing different faith traditions. One member of the SLU community would introduce another member of a different faith, speaking about his or her faith.
School of Nursing Professor Joanne Schneider, a Christian, introduced nursing student Aporn Deenan, of the Buddhist faith. “What struck me was how similar her beliefs are to mine,” Schneider said.
Deenan spoke about the Buddhist faith. “Spreading loving kindness leads all human beings to happiness and peace,” she said.
When Lubna Alam, a Muslim, presented her Christian friend Danielle Miller, she said, “I’ve grown to appreciate the similarities between Christianity and Islam.”
Of Christianity, Miller said, “Peacemaking is God’s agenda for his people.”
Collin McClelland, another Christian, introduced his friend, Paula Shah, a Hindu, who he met at SLU. He said they became friends when “late-night discussions about religion become preferable to doing homework.”
“Our friendship blossomed as my cultural ignorance diminished,” McClelland continued.
One of the highlights of the service was “Story in Dance,” a Hindu performance by SLU students and sisters, Puja, Sheeja and Sreeja Natesan. The dance describes dancers at a temple singing a devotional prayer to God. For more than five minutes the church was silent, with attendees listening to the music and watching the religious dance.
Another student, Leslie Wang, a Christian, presented her friend, Saba Nisar of the Islam religion. Wang said her friendship with Nisar helped her to realize that “many of the practices, traditions and ways of showing respect are very similar among most religions.”
As one of the final presentations, William Hof, a Christian and SLU School of Law student, presented Amanda Altman, a Jew who also attends the SLU School of Law. Hof said of Altman, “Seeing her live her faith in this way leads me to live my own Christian faith more fully.”
Near the end of the service, a set of students preached about how every person in the world has a piece of one giant puzzle. Their lesson was that the world will never be united in peace until every person tries to recognize their piece of the puzzle and prays for peace.
The concluding song was “Prayer for Peace.” Six SLU students stood on the stairs in front of the altar performing the hand motions accompanying, “Peace before us, peace behind us, peace under our feet.”
SLU junior Alison Graham attended the event for the first time. “I’ve never been to the Interfaith service before, but I’m glad that I went,” she said. “I think that a lot of people ignorantly refer to SLU as a Catholic-only environment, but really there are a lot of religions represented and respected here on campus.”
