Interfaith 2012 is scheduled to take place on Feb. 13th from 3:30 to 5:00 in the Student Commons in order to educate and inform the students and faculty about the five major world religions: Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
Interfaith is an annual program which takes place during the first or second week of International Week. This year, the event is organized by Qur’an Studies. The program usually consists of five different speakers from each religion group talking about different aspects of their religion. Each year, there is a different topic for the speakers to be able to lecture about, such as “Defining the Divine,” which was the topic last year. The different speakers this year will be speaking about “How Religion Affects Your Daily Life.”
“Everyone should come to this event–regardless of whether or nor they follow a specific religion/faith because it will help us overcome much of the ignorance and stereotypes that exist, and it will help make Niles West have a more welcoming, understanding, and respectful environment,” said Math teacher and Qur’an Studies sponsor, Tayyaba Ahmad.
According to Qur’an Studies, the topic was chosen in order to allow the listeners to be able to see what kinds of practices people from each religion have to perform in their daily lives, and how it affects the American teenager. The topic is also going to allow people to connect with others of their same religion through common practices, as well as appreciate the different ones.
“I think Interfaith is a great way to be informed about what your peers believe in… Religion is something that some people feel very strongly about and it’s really important to be aware of the different religions being practiced all around us. Interfaith is a great place to ask questions you may have about a certain religion. The worst thing someone can do is make assumptions and live the rest of their lives not getting them clarified,” said junior and president of Qur’an Studies, Samama Mahmud.
To prepare for this event, Qur’an Studies inquired at different religious mosques, temples, churches, synagogues and the like in order to find an efficient speaker. Mahmud says that she feels very fortunate to be able to go to an event where five very intelligent and well-spoken speakers will be talking and providing information on something everyone should know about.
The speakers for the different religions are: Dushyant Sharma (Hinduism), John Hasemeyer (Buddhism), Rabbi Phil Karesh (Judaism), Christian Hering (Christianity), and Habib Qadri (Islam).
There will also be a question and answer session during the program to allow students and teachers to interact and also get any doubts or basic questions answered and cleared. The goal for Interfaith is to inform everyone what traditions each of these faiths entail, and why it is so important to understand the diversity between fellow classmates and staff members.
Sophomore Terry Kim feels that even though it will be difficult and may not work right away, it is still important to try and unite people from different religions by bringing out the similarities.
“As an individual who isn’t religious, all the conflicts seem stupid, and unnecessary,” said Kim.
Qur’an Studies members are also selling Interfaith pins along with cookies and brownies from Feb. 8-10th in front of the cafetaria to promote the event. The pins have the word COEXIST written on it along with the date of the program.
Fatima Farha • Feb 15, 2012 at 10:21 AM
As the author of this article, I just want to say that the NWN did not run this article with the intention of hurting anyone. We are not the ones who came up with this sign. As the school newspaper, it is our job to inform the school about events that are occuring, and that is exactly what this article is doing. The sign was designed by the club who was responsible for this event, so please don’t make any assumptions on the NWN.
Faithful Christian • Feb 14, 2012 at 8:12 PM
1)Being nailed to the cross isn’t a sign, its a punishment. A punishment for the worst kind of criminals, and according to the Holy Bible, Jesus was nailed to the cross because he proclaimed himself as the king of Jews ; therefore on that note he was charged as a criminal, being punished by being nailed to the cross. Since God sacrificed his own son for all the sins of the sinners( aka humans/ or Christians), I think it is pretty fair to say that the cross isn’t a bad sign, since the history behind it is to remind Christians of who to follow, why we should follow them, and what to do to be the best Christian to their ability. 2) I am sorry to say but I am still offended, even though I know that these signs weren’t put up intentionally. 3) As for the future, I strongly suggest that before you put any symbols down for any type of religious events you first check if they are/aren’t opposing the faiths participating in the events.
Hafsa • Feb 15, 2012 at 10:09 AM
Again I will repeat what I said before. If you have problems with what the sign says I strongly suggest that you work with the committee or group of who organize this event.
Thank you.
Fatima and Hafsa • Feb 14, 2012 at 10:42 AM
We understand your concerns for these signs but we must agree with Talha that these signs were made with pure intentions to peacefully COEXIST. If you really are offended maybe you should take part in the committee that creates ideas for these types of events and express your opinion with them.
Thank you! 🙂
Faithful Christian • Feb 13, 2012 at 8:50 PM
Well apparently I can say that you are wrong Talha, because if you ask any well educated clergy-men from my faith, they will all tell you that these two signs are both made to attack our religion. Even though these two signs do have different meaning,they are still harmful to our faith, so logically your quote “This logo, in no way, shape, or form, is intended to harm or offend anyone of any religion” is incorrect., since the Christian faith is still being offended by the signs meanings. You can’t change the history of these signs, even more so you cant change the meaning of these signs.
Galina Velgach • Feb 14, 2012 at 10:42 AM
I think he means that the symbols were not intended to offend or harm anyone on this specific occasion. symbols only have the meaning that we give them. Yes, the sign was originally meant for Nero, but it eventually evolved into a sign of peace. And may I add, some other negative symbols have become signs of positive faiths. The Christian cross, for example, was originally a sign of the worst kind of criminal in Pilate’s Rome, but has since become the symbol of the Christian faith. I’m positive that even though those signs were offensive before, they were not meant to offend anyone in this situation.
Faithful Christian • Feb 11, 2012 at 11:07 PM
Its funny how the pins are made to show all the religions, but it still has Masonic and Illuminati signs on it which go against the Christian faith. As few know, the peace sign was the symbol for Nero, a Roman emperor who tortured and killed Christians in the worst ways possible, when today that sign is used to promote peace. Also on the “e” we see an upside down cross, which is a sign made for Illuminati to mimic the cross and its value to those who are Christian.
Talha Ahmed • Feb 12, 2012 at 10:12 PM
Dear Faithful Christian,
I understand the concerns that you are expressing above and in fact honestly can say that I was not aware of the history of these two symbols. However, let us not forget the main objective of both of these symbols. The peace sign, although it may have been the symbol for Nero, is now most commonly used to promote peace among people. The “e”, although made for illuminati, is in fact used to promote peace among opposite genders, to the best of my knowledge. Let us not forget that even though these symbols have offensive underlying meanings, the fact is that the intention that comes with the use of these symbols is solely to benefit all people. This logo, in no way, shape, or form, is intended to harm or offend anyone of any religion. At last, I invite you, and all other readers, to take upon this opportunity to come and see for yourself what the Interfaith event is all about.