Connections Quarterly Winter 2018 - World Religions

CO NNEC T I O N S Q UA R TE RLY W I N TE R 2 0 1 8 WELCOME World Religions S chools continually have any number of constituents lobbying for time for a variety of great new innovative studies. To remain focused on what curricular areas are the most essential, we must think strategically and critically. World Religions could be thought of as a historical artifact of an earlier understanding of an educational need, and not thought of as important or relevant today. Yet the hor- ror at the Tree of Life Synagogue this fall, not to mention all of the misinformed hate directed in recent months and years to Muslims and the followers of other non-Christian religions, demon- strates how truly essential it is for our students to be informed about the various world religions. This edition of Connections points to the vital need to ensure that World Religions reside somewhere in the curriculum. Studying World Religions fills a variety of needs. First, history, politics, and literature are often strongly influenced by the religion of the culture in which they live. In order to truly “understand,” you often need to understand the religion that influ- enced the author. Second, many of our schools embrace globalism in some way. Can this be done well without giving students an accurate understanding of something like sharia law, or is that left to the misinformation of social media? Third, to understand belief and non-belief. This is not to advocate that schools need to teach students what to believe. Students need to see belief and nonbelief as a one of the many elements of diversity that need to be respected. Students in our schools should feel comfortable sharing their perspective and may need help learning how to do that without negatively judging those who don’t share their belief. This edition of Connections has various perspectives, including articles from a Muslim educa- tor, a conservative Christian, a Unitarian minister, a world religions teacher, and a chaplain at a largely secular school. All independent schools are comprised of all sorts of different voices. I hope this edition will help to ensure that all voices feel comfortable speaking, and that we work hard to make sure all are clearly understood. l I want to highlight a new kind of event that CSEE is launching: Online Courses. These events will have an expert speaker and the ability for you to engage in discussion with other partici- pants. BUT these events will be done online, saving you the time and expense of travel. See more at www.csee.org/onlinecourses. Bob Mattingly, Executive Director of CSEE CSEE Connections Winter 2018 Page 1

Connections Quarterly Winter 2018 - World Religions | Page 3