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Buddhist
Community Religious Adviser Catherine Anraku Hondorp Sensei, a Zen Buddhist priest and Smith Community Religious Advisor will offer two workshops on the "Intersections of Privilege: Healing the Trauma of Whiteness and Rank as a Pathway of Healing." This two-day participatory workshop is part of Smith's Engaging Identity series developed by the Wellness Office. Part I will focus on the "Neuro-physiology of Whiteness: Anxiety, Anger and Apathy" and will be held on Tuesday, March 28, 5:30p.m.
in CC103/104. Part II will discuss
"How We Can Transform these Stressful Survival Patterns to Find Greater Ease for Effective Personal and Community Change" and is scheduled in CC205,
5:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 30. The workshops are open to everyone.
Rhonda Shapiro-Rieser,
CRSL's Interfaith Spiritual Advisor, will moderate a panel, entitled "Religious Identity: Spiritual and Social Intersections"
on
Thursday, April 13, in CC 103/104 at 5:30 p.m
. The workshop explores issues of religious identity through the eyes of students who identify respectively as Muslim, Jewish, and Hindu. The panel, which is also part of the Engaging Identity series, will be followed by small group dicussions. Snacks, including Kosher for Passover treats, will be provided to participants.
Passover services at Smith will include First Night Seder in the Chapel sanctuary, led by the Smith College Jewish Community. SCJC is an active student-led religious organization which holds a weekly Shabbat dinner and discussion at the Kosher Kitchen. The group stands in strong opposition to the current executive order, which bans Muslims and refugees from seven Muslim countries from entering the U.S. Read a statement written by SCJC here.
"My Islam: An Exploration
of Identity"
will be held on
Thursday, March 30, 7:00-9:00 p.m
.
in the Chapel sanctuary with a reception in Bodman Lounge. Co-sponsored by CRSL, the open mic and photo exhibition serves as a platform for Muslim students and students racialized as Muslims.
Wright Hall Prayer Space will serve as an alternative space in central campus during the Neilson Library renovations. The construction project will cause the Washburn Prayer Space to close temporarily. CRSL staff held meetings with student users of Washburn to gain feedback and creative ideas on how to repurpose Wright Hall Room 004 as a devotional space.
Al Iman, the Muslim student organization, sent 16 members to attend the third annual InterMSA Summit at Princeton University last month. The theme was "Empower the Spirit, Empower Others," a discussion designed to reflect on the unique challenges of Muslim youth in America. CRSL invites members of the Smith community to congregate for Jummah Prayer and lunch on Fridays at the Helen Hills Hills Chapel at
12:20 p.m.
Student Religious and Spiritual Organizations lead Bible studies, general meetings, and healing groups on campus. This semester with the help of CRSL students organized an interest meeting for Catholic students and a student-led meditation program. A new spiritual group -
Sisters of the Yam, named after scholar, feminist, activist bell hooks, meets on Wednesdays at
6:00 p.m.
Mindfulness Week,
organized by the Jandon Center for Community Engagement and co-sponsored by the Center for Religious and Spiritual Life, the Schacht Center for Health and Wellness, and the Wurtele Center for Work and Life, runs
March 18-25. The highlight of the week is "Mindful Action: Social Justice, A Day of Mindfulness with Kaira Jewel Lingo," a renowned lay Dharma teacher and former nun of 15 years. The free program on
Saturday, March 18 at 9:30 a.m. in the Smith Conference Center encourages a day of meditation, mindful eating, joy and sharing. A "Mindfulness and Self-care for Students of Color" workshop will be take place on
Tuesday, March 21, at 12:00 p.m . in Neilson Browsing.
The Smith Community Religious Advisor Breakfast
, facilitated by The Rev. Matilda Cantwell, will meet on Tuesday, March 28, 9:00-10:00 a.m. in CC102. Participants are encouraged to attend for information exchange, joint project development and idea-sharing to put faith in action. February's meeting featured a discussion on "sanctuary."
The CRSL Sanctuary received a much needed upgrade last month with state-of-the art audio/visual equipment, including a built-in screen, data projector and sound system updates, controlled by a touch screen. The Chapel is one of several locations around campus serving as a replacement space during the Neilson Library renovation.
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Sacred Space and Beloved Community at Smith
By Matilda Cantwell
The Yoga aphorisms of Patanjali from the 3rd century CE state "what we truly worship we make sacred." This philosophy rings very true for me. I believe it applies to "worship" in the broadest sense - quiet, alert walks in the woods; moments of meditation or revelation; meaningful conversation and engagement in reading, study, dance, or art - deep and reverent engagement either inside or outside a traditional place of worship.
When we have done these activities in a place repeatedly, the space becomes imbued for us with a deep sense of connection, and this is a sort of sacredness. For years I have walked the path that begins just beyond the boat house and travels along the Mill River. Its contours, and the various features of the landscape, like the two boulders abutting the water at just about the half way point, have a sacredness that for me has arisen from a sense of connection that has been cultivated over time.
However, a space that is sacred is so only in proportion to how much of our authentic selves we bring to it. Our times outdoors or in places that are sacred to us may not always feel peaceful or immediately rejuvenating; sometimes we seek a sacred space because we feel broken and alone. Sometimes a sacred space can even elicit sadness because in it we are struck by our own longing or need.
Read more here.
Matilda Cantwell, Interim Director of Religious and Spiritual Life, serves on the Smith Refugee Integration Committee, initiated by the Jandon Center for Community Engagement. The Helen Hills Hills Chapel sanctuary is open to and used by many groups both within and outside of the Smith community, who come to sing, study, worship and give expression to the human condition through the arts. This semester we have increased our "hospitality practices" and offer delicious homemade treats on Friday afternoons and at other times throughout the semester. Come visit us!
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The Sanctuary Movement:
A Brief History
By Rhonda Shapiro-Rieser
As a religious concept, "sanctuary" is connected to a sense of holiness and means to be "set apart." The word sanctuary, when used in the context of political movements, has come to also mean places of physical safety, as in the current designation of Sanctuary Cities.
Yet, the roots for this idea come from the Hebrew Bible which recounts the creation of "Cities of Refuge." In the
 case of accidental death, the killer could flee to a City of Refuge. That person was then protected from vengeance by the family of the slain. Later, Greek and Roman societies both held the concept of refuge and places of sanctuary. By the 4th century the right to sanctuary was formalized among early Christians.
By the 13th century a person could hide in a church for 40 days and in some instances stay indefinitely. This was known as seeking "sanctuary" and it seems sanctuary was known then as synonymous with the word "refuge." Charles the Second offered asylum to persecuted Calvinists from France in 1681. This may be the first instance of a state offering protection to people who were citizens of another state. Laws of sanctuary remained in place more or less until the 20th century when the state then began to claim full authority to enter churches.
Read more here.
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The "Sanctuary" at the Center for Religious and Spiritual Life
By Emmett Wald '15
The meaning of "sanctuary" has evolved significantly over the approximately seven centuries since the word was first coined. The English word comes from the Latin "sanctuarium," which in turn is derived from "sanctus," an adjective meaning "holy." In its original form, a sanctuary was quite literally a holy place - a space for holy worship or a reliquary for holy artifacts.
In the 14th century this meaning began to broaden to include a non-ecclesiastical place of refuge or protection. In 1879, "sanctuary" acquired an additional meaning: land set aside for plants or animals to breed, protected from hunting or harvesting.
So now, in the modern era, the word "sanctuary" has a trinity of meanings: holy space; place of asylum; and nature reserve. These meanings often interweave and shade the nuances of one another. Students discussing sanctuary at a Soup, Salad and Soul lunch recently talked about how natural spaces often feel sacred and safe, removed from the mundane - a union of everything the word has come to mean.
Read more here.
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London Launch: Giving Students Vision Abroad
By Lizzie Stephanie '18
The Smith Christian Fellowship is organized through a larger organization called Intervarsity, a Christian campus ministry with the vision "to see students and faculty transformed, campuses renewed, and world changers developed." For students who are abroad, Intervarsity coordinates weekend retreats and spring break pilgrimages, as well as provides information on how to get involved in Christian community. The weekend of
February 10 - 12, I had the opportunity to attend a retreat in London. Two Intervarsity staff members and seven other American students studying all across Europe joined me at The Highbury Centre, a not-for-profit charitable organization with the purpose to provide affordable Protestant Evangelical guest housing for those involved in missionary and church building activities.
The weekend started off with introductions and stories about cross-cultural interactions. Perspectives were widely diverse with students coming from different schools all across the United States. Students were from University of Southern California to Colgate University and all studying in different places throughout Europe from Stockholm, Sweden to Edinburgh, Scotland, sharing their unique experiences abroad.
Intervarsity is well known for its inductive Bible study technique, which involves observation, evaluation, and application of the text. The group looked at Acts 8 as well as Daniel 1, using this inductive Bible study method to discuss and analyze scripture. The chapters were printed out for each student to write on and make notes as they studied the text. Every student participated in some way in making observations or discussing the text during the retreat.
Read more here.
Smith Christian Fellowship is a student religious organization at Smith. During spring break students from the Five College community will travel to New Orleans for a Serv Up community service project, assisting families still affected by the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
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