What are the different practices and ideologies of religions different from our own? How have Quakers left a mark on politics as a result of their theological beliefs? How do Unitarian Universalists believe the afterlife is set up?
Students were given the chance to find answers to these questions and more last Thursday, Oct. 22, at the Interfaith Human Library inside the Falvey Library’s Speakers’ Corner. This event is held once each semester as part of a partnership between the Multifaith Ministry, the Department of Theology and Religious Studies and Falvey Library.
This installment served as a chance for students, regardless of their religious backgrounds, to learn from “human books,” or representatives of different religions. The list of religions included the Baha’i Faith, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Roman Catholicism, Sikh Tradition, Society of Friends and Unitarian Universalism.
“In the Human Library, each of the ‘books’ speak from their lived experience of faith, sharing how cherished practices and vital communities impact their daily lives,” Director of Multifaith Ministry Rev. Sheetz, PhD, said. “Stereotypes and misunderstandings regarding unfamiliar religions fall away as students can ask questions and make genuine human connections.”
To make establishing these connections even easier, the organizers enlisted the help of multiple Villanovans to form the team of human books, including faculty and staff, graduate students, Villanova parents, neighbors and community members.
Sheetz describes this event as offering students a “window” into lived religion, or religion acted out in daily interactions with others.
For example, take Quakerism. Quakerism is noncreedal. It is not a single truth or set of beliefs, but rather a religion defined by your actions in everyday life. As a mark of its noncreedal nature, Quakerism has evolved to the point where the laity has been eliminated for the sake of individual, direct experiences with God.
Unitarian Universalism, another religious tradition highlighted at the event, was built by working people. It highlights strong beliefs in spirituality and science, as well as a different kind of afterlife that those who practice Christianity may not be familiar with. This religion has deep ties to the Civil Rights movement, as Unitarian Universalists fought hard alongside African Americans to achieve abolition.
“The Human Library offers an experience that foregrounds curiosity as a path to interreligious understanding and encounter,” Sheetz said.
She believes that the Interfaith Human Library helps students appreciate the richness of religions other than their own and invites them to find common ground.
“I think it is very important to understand different religions to both understand people, but also understand why you may appreciate your own faith even more,” freshman Dennis Young said. “It can also help people who are on the fence about religion.”
Villanova University prides itself on the values of Veritas, Unitas and Caritas, which the Interfaith Human Library combines. The event works to establish unity despite the different backgrounds that have formed the Villanova community and emphasize the sense of solidarity between students and faculty of all different religions.
