Bedtime with the Buddhists

On Wednesday we had the distinct opportunity to return to Madison to learn more about the Buddhist faith tradition including their form of meditation. It was really surprising to me first of all to see the number of people that gathered there regularly to participate in this faith tradition in Madison, Wisconsin! Upon our arrival we were quickly hustled into the community room and were expected to sit preferably in half or full lotus on giant pillows. After we founds our seats the leader of the meditation began to explain to us a little bit about the faith tradition. He explained how they originated and draw from the Chinese, Korean, and Japanese faith traditions. He also explained their chanting and invited us to participate. Not going to lie I thought it was very weird at first the whole singing the words to the clapping noise, but after a while the rhyming and beat seemed very natural.

The actual meditation I was a little worried about being the one person that moved during the ten minutes that we were supposed to sit still and contemplate the question "what am I" but I was happily surprised that the ten minutes actually seemed like two! I cant say that I stayed on topic the whole time during my meditation but it did really feel good to not worry about things and just focus on breathing.

Overall, I thought this was a great trip. It really opened my eyes to the Buddhism faith tradition and I felt honored to be invited to be part of the process.

Hiding Out With The Hindus

The trip to Aurora, Illinois was extremely bumpy and after three hours of being tossed in the back seat I was really hoping the long journey would be worth it. Much to my surprise I think my gasp of "Oh My" when we stepped out of the car was very telling. The beauty and design of the exterior of the temple was absolutely breath taking. I did not even consider the possibility that it could get any better when entering the building. Once we walked in we were greeted by our guide and taken to a community room to discuss the specifics of the faith tradition that we weren't already aware of. Some of the most fascinating aspects to me where the differences in the South Indian Hinduism and the North Indian tradition. One is able to tell the difference between the two by what kind of stone is used on their idols. The temple that we visited was of south Indian decent and used a black granite stone opposed to the white marble of the north Indian tradition.

The temple that we visited was built about twenty two years ago and is a very special sacred space because it houses two of the three major gods; Brahma, Vishnu, and Shima. Vishnu and Shima are both worshiped in this temple. The temple opens daily at nine o'clock and closes each night after the gods have been put to bed at nine as well. The space is very clean because it is a requirement to remove shoes.

Our guide said 'One reach heaven by praising the Lord'. Therefore the Hindu's have four different paths to reaching salvation they include:

• Meditation- Concentration
• Serve the poor, sick, needy
• Preach- spread the word of the Lord
• Worship and Prayers (Occurs in the temple)

Overall, I found the Hindu faith tradition to be the most different from the others; however, it was also the most interesting. The Hindu culture is very proud of everything they believe in and take their rituals and practices very seriously. I felt very blessed that they opened up their sacred space to us as a manner to learn more about different religions. Great success of a day!

Mid-day at the Mosque!

I was particularly excited about the adventure to Cedar Rapids this morning because I knew I would leave the mosque with a lot more knowledge about Islam than I walked in with. When it comes to Christianity and Judaism, I think I know the basic facts from either elementary classes or people I have known. In complete contrast, I have not had the privilege of knowing any Muslims where I have been able to see their faith in action. Upon arriving at the Mosque I was initially surprised that it did not match my predetermined expectations of appearance. I thought it would be very large and lavish with a lot of gold and bright colors. There was a touch of blue around the outside of the building as well as decorative art pieces in the interior. My favorite piece of art or decoration by far, I found on the way out of the building at the end of the tour. The picture was of a man in prayer and the outline of the drawing or sculpture rather because it looked as though it was made of a brass material, written in Arabic a passage of the Qur'ran. I thought that this piece of art beautifully represented the actions and words behind the faith tradition; the belief and the practices.

My second favorite part of the experience was the passion and beauty behind the reading of the Qur'ran. I thought that when he read it sounded a little bit like a song or poem, and that there was a lot of feeling behind his voice. I was very confused when reading about the differences in text and the loss in transition prior to this event. There definitely is a noticeable difference that I now understand. I also thought it was really wonderful how our tour guide explained and kind of defended the common misconceptions of the religion. I'm sad to say that I had believed a few of them, just due to pure ignorance and not knowing any better. All in all as I previously stated I thoroughly enjoyed this trip. Can't wait for our next adventure, 'til then!

Journey Through Judaism

Today in our adventure to Madison, Wisconsin we had the pleasure of touring and deepening our understanding of the Jewish religion at the Beth Israel Center. Upon our arrival we were immediately greeted by Elizabeth Copelovitch, our fantastic tour guide and leader of Jewish religious education at the Synagogue. Our journey then began in the actual prayer space where the Jews conduct their services everyday. In an question/answer session with the Rabbi of the center we were able to learn a great many of Jewish traditions.

Some of these traditions included the intense course study necessary to become a Rabbi. The usual course study includes a University degree and commonly five to six years of seminary school. In this specific Rabbi's case eight years of seminary school was attended due to his love of study. Other qualification would include the ability to speak and understand Hebrew, Aramaic, and English. There are also four different classifications or movements of which Rabbi's can be apart. These four classifications are Left-reform, Conservation (of which our Rabbi is), Orthodox, and Reconstructionist renewal. Other important facts that he covered were that Rabbi's can and do get married and have children, as well as be both men and women, gay or straight. These rules do change depending on which movement they are in. Although his time with us was short, I thought the Rabbi did a wonderful job answering our questions and shedding light upon the many of the specifics and common inquiries of the Jewish Religion.

Due to his need to leave the synagogue for a previous engagement Beth took over. Through this we moved from questions to a tour of the synagogue itself and the Islam center. She began with a description of the the Jewish Sabbath. This day of prayer begins on sundown Friday night to sundown Saturday night. This celebration is fashioned around the seventh day of creation of which God rested. In our modern understanding of resting, Jewish people believe that they are not allowed to create anything such as light, food, operation of vehicles, etc. She explained this to be a very interesting occasion because everything must be prepared before hand. The most interesting thing I found about this process was the escape they received from society. Although they spend a majority of the morning in prayer and worship, the afternoons are completely open to spend time with each other and their family.

Another aspect unique to the synagogue would be the everlasting light that must be located in the sacred place, in this case above the sanctuary. Also, the sanctuaries must face towards Jerusalem or the promised land. The sanctuaries in Jerusalem are located on the western wall. They also have in these sanctuaries the Torahs. These Torahs are full of the five books of the Torah. These religious books are handwritten on scroll of parchment. Due to the sensitivity of the book, worshipers are not able to touch it with their hand so they use a decoration stick called a "Yad" or pointer.

All in all, I found this journey extremely enjoyable; from the wearing of the Yamikas to respect their place of worship to the tour of the kitchen and lesson on kosher, I learned a great deal. I now appreciate the Jewish religion a lot more due to their dedication to tradition. It was a red letter day and I look forward to the next adventure.

Brunch at the Basilica

In the amazing opportunity today to travel to two very distinct Christian sacred spaces, I learned a deal on what makes a space truly sacred; it's detail and gran velour or the reason it is there. In our first destination I was immediately overtaken with surprise and awe at the size and detailed architecture that was the Saint Francis Xavier Basilica in Dyersville; I had no idea that the magnitude of the interior was simply a small taste of the interior. Upon my entrance, my immediate focus went to the altar. The bright pastel colors that lined and emphasized each piece, the beauty of the tabernacle, the detail in the murals, the statues, all kept my eyes moving at a rapid pace in attempt to take everything in. In the two hour time period spent with our wonderful guide, John, numerous specific characterizations of the Basilica were made known. However, I fear if we had not been given such a list of details- the meaning of why people were there may have been lost on distraction. Mass is a time of prayer and worship. It is a small portion of time we give to God; a time to reflect, pray, and prepare ourselves to receive his body and blood. With all of the ornate aspects of the place I feel like many people would spend their time there looking around distracted from the words of our Lord. In all fairness I believe there is a great deal of importance in paying homage to the many people such as apostles and other disciples in the Catholic religion; however, I feel there is a time and place and in such great abundance a large church is not necessarily one of them. With this profusion of detail people are unable to concentrate on the mass as well as the actual importance of the object. I feel as though it crossed the line from reverence to decoration. I am sure many are able to find the balance between appreciation for their surroundings and prayer; however, personally I felt it quite overwhelming and prefer a more simplistic setting.

Our Lady of New Melleray Abbey, the second stop on our Christian sacred spaces journey was exactly what I was hoping for. Due to the fact that my grandparents live in Dubuque and have a special relationship with many of the residents of New Melleray Abbey, I had visited a time or two in my childhood. Also, the photography hanging in the gift shop outside of the church of the different places and people of the Abbey were taken by my uncle. Therefore, I felt a strong connection to the space due to the fact that many of the pieces that making it so wonderful are hanging on the walls of my house. In Minnesota I attended the Convent of the Visitation for both grade school and high school. This institution was founded by the Visitation sisters and continually teaches the great ideas of salesian spirituality and the works of Saint Francis DeSales and Saint Jane DeChantl. One of the most important virtues for Francis was simplicity. This would explain both my comfort in sacred spaces in accordance to the monastic life as well as minimalism.

There were many things specific to this Abbey that made for a personal connection with me. Firstly, the fact that the Abbey was started with monks from Ireland that came to America during the famine was very interesting due to my Irish heritage. Also, I spent a lot of first semester studying the life and works of Thomas Merton and his emphasis on solidarity and joy that he found in his participation in the monastic life. In our study of Merton we learned a great deal on the importance of finding one's 'true self'. This journey for the true self is an everlasting one. It is an internal search for truth and belief in returning to the person that God created us to be. In Brother Stephan's description of many aspects of the church I found a connection between them and Merton's teachings; primarily in the architecture. The fact that the limestone was not originally built meant to be seen created the walls to be very raw and real, ranging in varying shapes and sizes of stones. This could have reflected many ideas such as the people of the church that no matter big or small important or not when brought together in celebration are able to find a connection through faith. Also, it demonstrated the fact that although things may not be lavish their importance is not found in value but instead on purpose. In this case, the purpose being to house the celebration of many people dedicated to following the will of God.

There were many things that made the Basilica in Dyersville a Christian sacred space. However, the three main ones that were prominent to me were the three characteristics that distinguished it from both another church and a cathedral. These three aspects are the half opened parasol, the code of arms, and the bell. The purpose of the half opened parasol located to the side of the altar is in respect and possible preparation for the coming of the Pope. Because the Pope is seen as the pastor of the Basilica if he ever found his way to Iowa, he would be welcomed and properly cared for in Dyersville. This parasol may be used to either protect the Pope from rain or shield him from the sun. The code of arms is specific to the Basilica and as is the bell.

In contrast the aspects of the Abbey that I found to be particularly applicable to the Christian faith were the tabernacle, icon, architecture, and worship. I found the comparison of the tabernacle to a tent to house visitors and create a warm place of comfort and solitude extremely relevant. Also, with the only one icon of Mary and her son Jesus, it amazed me how much symbolism and strength there could be to find in just one detail. From the emotion of their faces, to the structure that held it in place, the joyful meanings being everything were amazing. As for the architecture and worship, the space was very warm and welcoming allowing the monks to truly feel as if they were guests in the home of our Lord. The fact they worshiped facing each other demonstrated to me that they were willing and able to participate in the celebration together, helping one another on their journey towards God.

Overall, I found this day of trips to be quite enjoyable. I learned a great deal of information about both places as well as a little bit more about myself and my faith life. I have high hopes for our future endeavors as I know they will be equally as enriching.