Reflections on hearing His Holiness the Dalai Lama speak

I was privileged yesterday to get an opportunity to hear His Holiness the Dalai Lama speak at the University of Northern Iowa. I got a lot out of the experience and want to do some reflecting on it here.

One thing that has always struck me about His Holiness is that he exudes such joy and hope. In person this absolutely holds true. This is a man who has seen an awful lot in his life and has every reason to be less than optimistic about human nature, yet he is full of joy and optimism. His point of view is striking and lovely. He understands that we give violence power by having the perception that we live in a violent world when a vast majority of the 6 billion people on earth are not violent people. His view on violence does not come out of naivety, he knows first hand both the price of violence and non-violence. If this man who has seen the atrocity of China taking his country of Tibet can be committed to non-violence than we all can be.

His Holiness' respect for all people is a challenge to all of us. He points out that before anything else we are human, everything else is secondary. He is absolutely right that we go wrong when we lose that fact and let those secondary things keep us from being the human family.

I was impressed by his discussion on ethics and how ethics are essential to our world. Though religious ethics are great and where he himself gets his ethical ground, he makes the great point that one can be ethical without a religious background.

I'm spurred on by his commitment to interfaith dialogue. Not only does he speak of
interfaith dialogue but it is clear he lives it. I was greatly taken by the diversity of the group of people who came to see him speak. That says a lot about not only the man but about what he has to say.

When he speaks the things he says are not complicated but they are striking. It was a great experience to see him and that is something I have wanted to do for a long time. If you have never read any of his many books I highly recommend them. The Art of Happiness is very accessible and a good place to start.

My Interfaith Story

I attended training put on by the interfaith youth core (IFYC) this last week. Part of this training focused on telling our interfaith story and so I felt compelled to share my interfaith story here. So here is my story:

I grew up in Wyoming so I did not grow up around a ton of diversity but I was lucky enough to grow up in Laramie where the University of Wyoming is located where there is at least some diversity. I’m very thankful that I grew up in a family where knowing about diversity was seen as a value. Instilled with that value I have been always interested in other cultures and other religions, though I did not have much contact with people of other faiths.

When I went to college I went to a United Methodist School in South Dakota so while there was some ethnic diversity there was not a lot of religious diversity. I tried to seek whatever religious diversity I could in college feeling that it was important as a Christian to at least know about what people of other faiths believe, but there was just not a lot of opportunity to be in contact with those with different faith traditions.

As I entered into my adult life I continued to read books by those of other faiths, but I don’t think I could say that I really knew anyone of another faith. So when my wife and I got an opportunity to teach in Bahrain (a small Islamic island nation off the Coast of Saudi Arabia) we jumped at the chance. Though I never would have admitted it at the time and hate admitting it now looking back I defiantly felt some anxiety going to the Middle East. I worried about being treated in a hostile way simply because of my Christian faith. I was further made nervous as our excitement was often met not will equal excitement for us but with questioning. I will never forget the look people would get in their faces and the sound of concern in their voices as they grilled us about this being a good idea and if we were going to be safe.

So when we landed in Bahrain in the late summer of 2007 I brought all those concerns and anxiety with me. What I found there in the relationships with those people I met was very different than those fears that others and if I’m honest that I myself had had.

Soon after we got there it was the month of Ramadan and many of my students were fasting, I decided that I needed to understand as a teacher what my students were going through so I decided to fast in solidarity with them. The faith my students had in their fasting inspired reminded me of how Jesus had fasted in the desert to find direction and the focus that my students put on the poor during that month lead me to look again at how my scriptures dealt with who were less fortunate. My students through their Islam taught me to be a better Christian.

It is because of this experience and many others during that year, that I feel more connected to my sisters and brothers of other faiths. Through working and being in relationship with those of other faiths I have learned and continue to learn more about my faith. I become a better Christian through my friendships with those of other faiths and I hope that it deepen those others’ faiths as well.

Ramadan Kareem

As I was reading the ISU Daily today I had the opportunity to read a nice little article about Muslim students who were observing Ramadan. So I read the article with great interest, and when I noticed the comments I went to read them with interest. When I opened the comment page my heart sank. It was full of hateful and frankly false speech, so I left my Ramadan wishes for my Muslim brothers and sisters, not acknowledging the commenters spreading hate, because they did not deserve acknowledging. But as I have been thinking the rest of the day I think I owe it to my Muslim sisters and bothers to write about my positive experiences of Ramadan and of Muslims.

For those of you who did not know my wife and I spent time teaching in Bahrain (the island Kingdom of the Coast of Saudi Arabia). Less than a month of us arriving in Bahrain we got our first experience of Ramadan. It completely changed the entire country for that month. Things were closed during the day so that people could observe the fast. They opened back up in the evening as people broke the fast. I truly admired how much commitment it takes to fast from Sunrise to sunset for a whole month.

I taught 5th graders and a good number of them were trying to observe the fast for one of their first times, so out of respect for my students I fasted while I was at school. Being that I was fasting I used that fasting as a time for me to be intentionally spiritual in my Christian faith as well. It surprised me just how much of a time of spiritual renewal this was for me. I got to spend time thinking about those who could not afford to eat everyday. I got to learn how to rely on God in those times when physically you are not at the top of your game but you need to keep going. I spent time thinking about all of the famous fasts that were in the scripture. And in the end I found, as I did many times when I was in Bahrain, that my Muslim sisters and brothers had spurred me on to be a better Christian.

The fact is that the people I met in the middle east were easily some of the most welcoming, accepting and warm people I have ever met in my life.

I am tempted to tell you how "they" are this and "they" are that, but I don't want to label them as "they." The truth is that "they" are us, we are sisters and brothers. I tired of the fear mongering people are people and deserve to be treated as such.

So in this holy month I wish all people a Ramadan Kareem and as Ramadan ends next week eid mubarak. And hope that maybe this Ramadan we can all because better adherents to our own faiths. That maybe we can find understanding, because we have much to learn from one another.