Tufts Interfaith Awareness Series, Spring 2020

Starting with United Nations World Interfaith Harmony Week from February 1 – 7, Tufts Interfaith Student Council invites all to engage in our fourth-annual Interfaith Awareness Series.

We welcome you to a multi-week initiative for learning about and engaging with the diverse religious and philosophical traditions that compose the Tufts community. The Interfaith Student Council, the religious and philosophical student organizations, and University Chaplains will be hosting events, such as field trips to off-campus religious sites, interfaith dialogue over dinner, visiting local art exhibits, and more. Regardless of your own religious or philosophical identity, please join us at any or all of the following open programs. All are welcome.

Tufts Interfaith Awareness Series

Events in this year’s series will be added here regularly, as well as featured in the University Chaplaincy weekly e-news.

Upcoming Events

There are no scheduled events at this time.

Past Events

Angels in Human Skin: Interfaith Art Exhibit Visit and Lunch Discussion
Friday, February 14, 12:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m., Interfaith Center

Come experience a powerful art exhibit that honors and remembers one family’s survival of Nazi atrocities during WWII. Artist and clergywoman, the Rev. Dr. Dirkje Legerste, created Angels in Human Skin to tell the story of her Dutch Christian father, who was forced into slave labor, and her Polish Jewish mother who survived the Shoah. “This program is needed in our time,” one visitor notes, “to keep us awakened to the fragility of life and the possibility of tyranny, yet also, to keep our hearts and spirits openly alive to love.” The exhibit is located at Sanctuary United Church of Christ in Medford Square. We will meet at the Interfaith Center at noon and travel together. A free kosher lunch will be provided and conversation will be facilitated by Sanctuary’s pastor, the Rev. Wendy Miller Olapade. If you would like to participate, please RSVP by 5 pm on Wednesday, February 12, to Protestant Chaplain Dan Bell at daniel.bell@tufts.edu. Co-sponsored by Tufts Hillel and the Protestant Chaplaincy. Facebook event here.

Fourth-Annual Interfaith Field Trip to Downtown Boston
Friday, February 21, 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m., meet outside Upper Campus Center at 11:50 a.m. or at St. Paul’s Cathedral at 1:00 p.m.

Come experience interfaith partnership in action. For over 15 years, St. Paul’s Episcopal Cathedral has hosted a Muslim congregation every Friday for Jumu’ah Prayers. Protestant Chaplain Dan Bell and Muslim Chaplain Abdul-Malik Merchant are hosting a field trip to the cathedral ( located at 138 Tremont Street, just across from the Park Street T stop). We will join the Muslim congregation for Jumu’ah Prayers, together with students and chaplains from other Boston-area universities. Muslim and Christian faith leaders will then meet with us for lunch and conversation. Students from all religious/philosophical backgrounds are welcome to participate. This event is being sponsored by the Protestant Chaplaincy, Muslim Chaplaincy, and the Episcopal Cathedral of St. Paul. Please let us know if you plan to attend. Sign up here. Please email Chaplain Dan at Daniel.Bell@tufts.edu or Abdul-malik Merchant at Am.Merchant@tufts.edu for more information. For updates, check out the Facebook event here.

Black Muslim Narratives in Boston: Perspectives of Leaders
Saturday, February 22, 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m., Curtis Hall Multipurpose Room

The Tufts Muslim Student Association in conjunction with the University Chaplaincy, Fletcher Islamic Society, and the Africana Center presents “Black Muslim Narratives in Boston: Perspectives of Leaders” on Saturday, February 22. This event focuses on highlighting Black Muslim narratives and intersectionality through featuring perspectives of various community leaders. The event will have a panel featuring Chaplain Imam Abdul-Malik, Nasteho Ali, and Dr. Tahirah Abdullah all of which will discuss their work with the Black Muslim community in the Boston area as well as their experiences as Black Muslims in America. Dinner and refreshments will be served. Facebook event here.

Mindfulness and Mental Health: A Conversation with the Chaplains
Wednesday, March 11^th, 5:30 – 7:30 p.m., Alumnae Lounge

Please join the University Chaplains for a panel on mindfulness and mental health with dinner and discussion to follow. Come meet the chaplains, learn more about the implications of self-care in different practices. Dinner will be provided, and all are welcome. More information can be found on the Facebook event here.
This event is co-sponsored by the Tufts Interfaith Student Council and the Tufts University Chaplaincy.