Author: Timothy Knepper

On Sunday, April 12, we will celebrate the annual holiday of Vaisakhi from roughly 12:00 to 2:00 pm with the Sikh gurdwara in West Des Moines, the Iowa Sikh Association (1115 Walnut St.).

The service will include many of the elements of a typical Sunday worship service: the signing of hymns (kirtan), reading from sacred scripture (Guru Granth Sahib), community prayers (aardas), and the sharing of the sacred sacrament (karah prashad, the so-called “holy pudding”), after which a free vegetarian meal will be served (langar). Dress modestly, remove shoes at door, and don a head scarf (available at the door for both women and men). Also, refrain from pointing outstretched legs toward the holy book/altar.

This event is part of the “Meet My Religious Neighbor” series, which is co-programmed with CultureALL, the Des Moines Area Religious Council, and Interfaith Alliance of Iowa.

On Sunday, March 16 from 11:00am–1:00pm (roughly), we will join the Hindu Temple and Cultural Center (33916 155th Lane, Madrid) in the annual celebration of Holi. Guests will be able to tour the temple, observe the Holi fire ritual (Holika Dahan), throw colored powered at one another, and dance.

Please dress accordingly if you are going to participate in the throwing of colors.

Lunch is available for purchase from the temple.

This event is part of the “Meet My Religious Neighbor” series, which is co-programmed with CultureALL, the Des Moines Area Religious Council, and Interfaith Alliance of Iowa.

On March 8th, from 6:00–7:30 pm, we will attend a Ramadan prayer and Iftar meal at Masjid an-Noor (1117 42nd St, Des Moines). The event includes the sunset (maghrib) prayer, the breaking of the fast, and an iftar meal.   

Please dress appropriately: women should be covered below the elbows and knees and should cover their head/hair with a scarf. Men should wear long pants.

This event is part of the “Meet My Religious Neighbor” series, which is co-programmed with CultureALL, the Des Moines Area Religious Council, and Interfaith Alliance of Iowa.

On Thursday, October 20, members of the local Jain community will visit Drake University to speak about Jainism and conduct Jain practices. The event, which will take place on the lower floor of the Olmstead building, inside of Sussman Theater. We will start at 5:30 pm, and will feature several presentations, darshan (sacred viewing of a Jain Tirthankara), aarti (sacred waving of flame), and Jain vegetarian “snacks.” This is the second “Meet My Religious Neighbor” event of the semester, most of which feature “religions without sites.” (MMRN is co-programmed by CultureALL, the Des Moines Area Religious Council, and Interfaith Alliance of Iowa.)

IOWA INTERFAITH CONFERENCE (4/8-4/10)

This year’s “Iowa Interfaith Conference” will be hosted by Drake University on April 8-10. Participants will learn about interfaith leadership and religious literacy, visit places of worship throughout greater Des Moines, and meet student interfaith leaders from other universities and colleges.

SCHEDULE

• Friday, April 8, 7:00—9:00pm: reception, poster session, and Hindu bhajan at the Mercy Holiday Inn
• Saturday, April 9, 9:00am–12:00pm: interactive sessions on interfaith leadership and religious literacy at Drake University (Meredith Hall)
• Saturday, April 9, 4:30–9:00pm: site visits to Wat Phothisophan, Hindu Temple and Cultural Center, Islamic and Cultural Center “Bosniak” and es-Selam Mosque (see the Meet My Religious Neighbor tab for more info about each)
• Sunday, April 10, 9:00am–12:00pm: interactive sessions on interfaith leadership and religious literacy at Drake University (Meredith Hall)

At this conference, you will have an opportunity to share a personally meaningful faith experience, practice, or belief. Ideally, by identifying a moment in your life in which you discovered some insight about your religious tradition, community, or life. This narrative will be around 200-300 words. To share your initial ideas about your story, please go to the conference registration site.

Register to attend this event here.

For more information or to attend, please contact Timothy Knepper at tim [dot] knepper [at] drake [dot] edu, Professor of Philosophy and Director of The Comparison Project at Drake University.

IS GOD THE MAKER OF THE WORLD? HINDU PROOFS AND JAIN AND BUDDHIST DISPROOFS OF THE EXISTENCE OF ‘GOD'” (ISHARVA)”

Tuesday, March 22, 7:00 pm to 8:00 pm

Drake University, Olmsted Center, Sussman Theater

MEET THE SPEAKERS

Marie-Hélène Gorisse

Marie-Hélène Gorisse is a Postdoctoral researcher at the University of Birmingham in the project “Global Philosophy of Religion” supported by the John Templeton Foundation. She specializes in Jainism and in the way its epistemology and hermeneutics developed in dialogue with other South Asian philosophico-religious traditions. She also works on the contemporary relevance of Jainism as a contributor to global philosophy.

Agnieszka Rostalska

Agnieszka Rostalska is Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Ghent University, Belgium, where she pursues a project Cross-cultural Conceptions of the Self: South Asia, Africa, and East Asia (awarded by University of Birmingham’s “Global Philosophy of Religion” project, supported by the John Templeton Foundation). She specializes in Indian and Cross-Cultural Philosophy with a focus on the debates over authority and social justice by philosophers in India and contemporary philosophers in the field of social epistemology.

For more information or to attend, please contact Timothy Knepper at tim [dot] knepper [at] drake [dot] edu, Professor of Philosophy and Director of The Comparison Project at Drake University.

The second Meet My Religious Neighbor (MMRN) of the spring semester occurred on a warm Sunday afternoon on March 8th from 11-2 pm. It took place at the Hindu Temple and Cultural Center of Iowa, and beyond discussing the religion itself, visitors were able to participate in Holi. Holi is the celebration of the banishment of the demon Holika and the triumph of good over evil. During this festival, they banish negative thoughts, emotions, and energies allowing the fire to consume them. The colors represent happiness and the sharing of happiness without judgment. 

I have driven past the Temple many times as it is on the way to my grandparent’s house. It is beautiful and unlike any of its surroundings. Situated in the middle of a cornfield down a gravel road, is a beautiful overarching Hindu Temple. The entrance on the side directs you to a room where you are able to leave your shoes and coats. After this, I joined a large group of people gathered in the main area of the temple, where statues of the gods could be observed. Looking back at the past MMRN, this event had a much larger turnout. We circled around one of the main priests and listened to the history of the Temple in Madrid and Hinduism. One thing was prominently repeated which was that Hinduism is more than a religion, it is a way of life. 

After a while, a woman took over the tour. She guided us around the Temple counter-clockwise, beginning with Vishnu in the middle. During the tour, she introduced us to each God and their story. Unfortunately, as this was a larger event, I was not able to hear or see everything perfectly during the tour, but I am sure there was, even more, to be discussed. I will admit, it is also difficult to focus in these situations because you are in such a different and new environment filled with unknown people, so don’t be too hard on yourself if you attend and find yourself getting distracted by all the rich culture surrounding you!

Ella Stafford
First-Year Religions of Des Moines Student