• • In November, 83 students from the Living World Religions Bible class left campus for a weekend in Chicago, where they ate world-famous pizza and explored the city, but more importantly, they visited prominent world religion centers and gained a fresh perspective on their own faith. The trip included visits to a Buddhist ' international center, a Muslim mosque, a Hindu temple, a Jewish synagogue, a Baha'i House of Prayer and the Sikh Religious Society. Students spent the semester leading up to the trip learning about the specific world religions they would encounter during the trip. They were taught to Iisten and learn in humility as they prepared to experience religions different from their own. global outreach believers was very rewarding and humbling. There is hope for those of us with different beliefs to be able to have conversation, sharing our viewpoints in search of a less apathetic humanity." Other sites included the Soka Gakkai Buddhist International Center, the Balaji Hindu Temple and a Shabbat service with a conservative Jewish congregation. "Being able to meet people practicing other religions made them real to me as opposed to hearing about them in a classroom," senior Macye Dean said. "I now have faces I can think of when I'm praying for people of other religions to find Christ." Students gathered at their hostel each night to share in devotion and reflect on what they had experienced. According to dean of the College of Bible and Religion and course professor Dr. Monte Cox, students were fascinated to see the religions they had read about coming alive in front of their eyes. "It's one thing to read about someone else's faith in a textbook; it's another thing altogether to meet that person face-to-face on their turf and listen to On july 14, Junior Michael Maynard helps build a house with members of the Western Hills Church of Christ in Fort Worth, Tex.as. The community outreach was inspired by Director of Global Outreach Kenneth Graves. "I realized that we can learn so much from people practicing other religions," Dean said. "They were kind ana~welcoming to us even though we didn't believe what they believe. It just made rl\: wonder, how would we respond if a Sikh .vvalked into our church on a Sundai.morning? Would we even know what to say to them?" Courtesy of Michael Maynard After all their experiences in different centers of faith, students enjoyed their Sunday morning worshipping alongside other Christians, according to seniorTaelor Aebi. them tell what their faith means to them," Cox said. At the Baha'i House of Prayer, the group learned about the belief in the oneness of all religions. Students also had the opportunity to eat a traditionally prepared meal with a group from the Sikh Religious Society. "The Sikh temple experience was by far my favorite," senior KayIa Maynard said. "Watching the open hospitality of those 17 0 academics "Going to church on Sunday morning was an amazing experience," Aebi said. "After spending so much time watching the various worship services, I was just craving to worship my Lord and Savior." Heidi Tabor
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