Council celebrates religions

By Mark Hansen

Aimee Moiso, a newly-appointed campus minister, has created an interfaith council in an attempt to promote dialogue between various cultures and traditions on campus.

Moiso said it was one of her priorities to create the council when hired.

The council is working on creating some new facilities for the upcoming year.

"Next fall we're going to have two new worship spaces on campus," Moiso said. "One of them is going to be a meditation space, which will be in Benson."

"The other one is a larger space, and it's going to be a place where different religious groups can come in and have services," she said.

Moiso and a committee of six students make up the council.

The council will also create opportunities for students to participate in religious traditions that might not be their own. One of the events the council is planning is an interfaith prayer the day before the upcoming presidential elections to bring students together religiously in a non-religious context.

"We really want to encourage open dialogue and to take that out into the community and interact with people of different faiths," said sophomore council member Alison Gansert.

Moiso said the council will plan different types of events, including panel discussions and large interfaith gatherings, in order to establish the kind of dialogue they feel is necessary on campus.

So far the strongest response has been from students whose religions are not well-represented on campus.

Moiso said, "They're really concerned about wanting to dispel stereotypes and wanting to give some truth to what they believe and what they experience."

Gansert said the council is still writing its constitution.

Nitasha Khetarpal, a sophomore council member, said they are looking to expand the council to have more representation from different faiths. This kind of diversity is what the council relies on for its effectiveness.

The council was not created as a club, but as another section of Campus Ministry. They receive their funding from the ministry, so they do not need to petition to the office of student life for funding.

Moiso said they are looking to do cross-departmental events, possibly with the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics. This way, they can afford to create bigger and better projects.

Director of Campus Ministry Jack Treacy, S.J., said the council was a necessary addition because "being rooted in the Catholic tradition limits the way we can connect with students of other denominations."

He described the council as an attempt to recognize the richness and diversity of the community.

Gansert and Khetarpal, who are heading the council, said they feel the council can help students to see similarities between religions and learn to respect members of other faiths.

"It's essential for students to learn to interact with people without the kind of conversion thought process," Gansert said. She emphasized open, respectful dialogue as the key to the council's success.

"Love thy neighbor, every single scripture says that," Khetarpal said. "Everything says that only God can judge you, keeping that in mind there's no problem with talking about what we believe."

Contact Mark Hansen at (408) 554-4546 or mnhansen@scu.edu.