In a celebration of Yom Kippur, Ramadan, Dussehra and Mahatma Ghandi’s birthday, the Howard Thurman Center sponsored the first multi-faith dinner at Boston University to connect students of different faiths in the George Sherman Union’s Metcalf Hall last night, counting government officials from Pakistan and Turkey as well as university administrators among the 300 guests.
“Our whole mission is to work to create common ground based on the philosophy of Dr. Howard Thurman, who believed in the unity of people,” Thurman Center Director Katherine Kennedy said.
The event’s main goals, Kennedy said, were to educate members of the BU community about respecting and celebrating the differences between some of the major religions of the world and helping to establish a friendship between these religions.
With about 300 members of the BU community attending the event, Kennedy said she was pleased with the turnout.
“[It’s] fabulous,” she said. “It is the first [multi-faith dinner] at Boston University and probably the first in the country on a university campus. We tried to bring religions together to break the fast [of Ramadan, Dussera and Yom Kippur] and to find a common ground.”
Many prominent government officials also attended the event.
Pakistan Consulate General Barry Hoffman said “Pakistan has many students here at Boston University” and said he hoped to be able to unite students through their culture.
Turkey Honorary Consulate General Erkut Gömülü said there are about 125 Turkish students at BU, and this dinner was an excellent way to bring some of them together.
The dinner started at 7 p.m. with a welcome address by International Students Consortium President Bilal Bilici. Bilici, a Muslim from Turkey, said the ISC has been planning the event since mid-July. The College of Arts and Sciences senior said BU was the pioneer of the multi-faith dinner, which showcased the teamwork of the community’s different faiths.
The event brought together people of Jewish, Christian, Islamic and Hindu faiths. The food represented the traditions of each group. The salads had dates and dried fruits, significant for Muslims, the dessert was made of apples and honey, significant to Jews and the entire meal was vegetarian out of respect for kosher practices and Hindu costumes forbidding consumption of beef.
Speakers included Marsh Chapel Associate Dean ad interim Sakena Young-Scaggs, Dean of Students Kenneth Elmore and Hillel Rabbi Avi Heller.
Two members of the Hindu Student Council, CAS senior Neema Shah and CAS sophomore Sanu Dev, presented a universal prayer before the crowded room. The prayer was translated into English, with the final line reading, “May there be peace, peace and perfect peace.” Both wore colorful Kurtas, traditional Hindu attire for younger, usually unmarried women.
“It’s really exciting to see this happen on our campus,” Shah said.
Dev said she hoped the event would take place in the future and not just because it happens to coincide with so many religious events.
“Hopefully, in the future, it will be an annual event,” she said.
CAS freshman Tal Raizer, who wore a Star of David necklace to symbolize her Jewish faith, said she was at the event to talk with people of other faiths and to learn about other religions.
Nondenominational Christian Matlin Gilman, a CAS freshman, said he attended the event for the same reasons. He said if people could “look past [their] faiths and love one another,” maybe a lot of conflicts in the world would end.
While many students came to the event for an educational experience, some also came to celebrate the end of their fasting.
“First of all, I’m really hungry,” CAS freshman Jason Katims said. “I haven’t eaten in 26 hours [for Yom Kippur]. I also wanted to learn more about the Muslim holiday of Ramadan.”