Tuesday, September 18, 2001

Holding true
Religious understanding now vital
Grasping for answers to the questions raised by last week’s terrorist attacks,

Americans flooded churches, mosques and temples this weekend for spiritual guidance and reassurance.

Some services were ecumenical while others subscribed to a particular faith. After attending a Christian service of his own Sunday, President George W. Bush visited the Islamic Center Monday in Washington. He hoped this stop, captured by photographers, would remind Americans that Muslims, particularly those of Arab descent, are gladly counted among the nation’s citizenship and are not to be considered targets for revenge.

Attorney General John Ashcroft emphatically reassured reporters at a press conference Monday, “we do not, have not, will not target people solely based on their ethnicity.”

The nation’s leaders are pleading with Americans to hold dear to an ideal established more than 200 years ago — tolerance. Tolerance for other religions, tolerance for different cultural beliefs and tolerance for our neighbors in the world’s largest melting pot.

However, tolerance is not enough. Understanding is the next crucial step.

Across the world, Jewish people are finishing their celebration of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. A time of joy, the holiday precedes 11 days of deep introspection until Yom Kippur arrives — the Day of Atonement. At that point, as one Jewish student explained, those in the skies decide the eternal fate of the worshippers.

For a campus dominated by Christians, this holy time is the perfect opportunity to train in the art of tolerance and understanding. Ask religion professors about the meaning of the holiday. Talk to Jewish students about the importance of the introspection period. Examine how the beliefs of the Jewish faith parallel or contrast the beliefs of your own faith system.

In doing so, the base for understanding another belief system is formed, paving the path for further study of more cultures.

Thus, this nation can hold true to the very beliefs upon which it was founded.