Tragedy: Coping Through Faith

DZHULETTA AVANESIAN

Campus faith leaders shared advice for coping with tragedy Monday night as part of the GW “Peace Not Prejudice” Week. Chaplain Meraj Allahrakha , Rabbi Yoni Kaiser-Blueth , and Father Greg Shaffer shared  their views in a forum sponsored by the GW Muslim Student Association. The lecture held at Funger Hall was attending by about 25 people of different religions. Members of Muslim Student Association, GW Hillel and Newman Catholic Student Center participated in the panel discussion.

Each leader shared examples from recent tragedies. During the discussion, Father Greg remembered the Newtown, Conn. school shooting of last year.

''We have to cope through tragedy,faith richness and to gather together. We are dealing with mystery,'' said Shaffer.

Kaiser-Blueth talked about his rememberance of Hurricane Katrina and how people dealt with the tragedy that moment, a time during which he was working at New York University.

''Why did God allow the Holocaust to happen? Why would something like this happen?'' he said.

Responding to an audience question on coping with disaster, Allahrakha said, ''It's easy to say when you are not suffering the tragedy.People are not punished collectively. There is a lesson in every tragedy.''

Participants lauded the event for connecting the different religious organizations on campus around the common theme of hope. President of the Muslim Student Association  Aabid Mohiuddin reflected on the event as bringing the campus community together with relatable experiences, particularly difficult events.

Regardless of religion, according to participants, everyone experience grief and tragedy. However, a shared desire for healing lies in faith.

“I believe that when faith shines, people who believe in faith and see the circumstances, come out through that situations stronger than they were before, '' said Mohiuddin.

Each leader stressed the importance of uniting to find comfort and hope through faith.

''Just hope. Each person has a  faith,'' said Shaffer.

Students Celebrate the Power of Words and Faith at Interfaith Dinner

by Justin Lee


Students celebrated diversity and the power of words at the 11th annual interfaith dinner held in the Marvin Center on Tuesday night. The theme of the two- hour dinner was words, and how they can be used to build and destroy relationships. Each guest was asked to take a slip of paper at the door with a positive action words can create. The guests were then asked to sit with people who were given the same word as them in order for guests to mingle and share their faiths and creeds with those around them. 

Through out the dinner different religious organizations spoke about how their faith includes the themes of words and communication. Sticking with the theme of communication, faith based singing groups The Voice Gospel Choir and Shir Madness, expressed their faith through song.  George Washington University president, Dr. Steven Knapp, also spoke about the importance of open communication between religions and the power of words. 

The Muslim Student Association and the Jewish Student Association started the Interfaith Dinner 11 years ago in order to open peaceful dialogue between the two groups.  At the original dinners, the two organizations ate both Kosher and Halal food in a show of mutual respect and tolerance. This tradition was extended to all student religious organizations in the name of multiculturalism.  This year a variety of food from different cultures was served.