The Pluralism Project at Harvard University
Dr. Russell Rhoads,
Mr. Joel Beversluis and Ms. Ghazala Munir
Grand Valley State University, CoNexus Press and Grand Rapids Interfaith Dialogue Association
Reaching Out: Minority Religions and Community Service in West Michigan
Project Description
This project, "Reaching Out: Minority Religions And Community Service in West Michigan," documents the contributions of minority religions to community service in West Michigan. The objectives are (1) to document the prevalence of minority religious communities in the West Michigan Region, using surveys and interviews; (2) to describe the ways that minority religions provide out-reach and community services both to adherents within the religious community and to non-member constituents of the community in general; (3) to analyze the issue of "voice" and "visibility" that confronts minority religions in their quest to reach out and provide assistance to members of the community; and (4) to involve members of local interfaith groups (e.g. IDA), minority religions, and GVSU students in a service learning capacity.
The Current Project Status and Links:
During 1998-2000, Professor Rhoads and 20 students combed southwest Michigan, primarily Grand Rapids, Holland and Kalamazoo collecting faith center profiles. Students participated from both research methods and comparative religions courses. Several conducted independent research and presented in professional fora. Although we covered much territory, we focused our efforts on one site for an in-depth look (case study) of interfaith in action, the Sri Sri Sarada Mata Ashram ("Woman's Trust/Woman's Place") in Fennville, Michigan. We are involved in the ongoing process of creating a database of religious groups and places of worship, and a mailing list. During 2000-2001, Professor Rhoads visited India on a research sabbatical. Since his return, we have resumed work on the pluralism project. We are in the process of updating center profiles and duplicating slides and images. Similarly, the affiliate Web site will be back on line by December with updated center profiles and photos.
Selected links: