World Religions Week at The Emery/Weiner School

Emery seniors visited South Main Baptist Church as part of their World Religions Week. (Photo: Smith Photography)

Every January, The Emery/Weiner School devotes one week to enrichment out of the classroom. Freshmen, sophomores and juniors travel to Big Bend National Park, Eagle Wings Retreat Center and Camp Eagle, respectively. They have the opportunity to reach out of their comfort zones, try new activities and get to know new people.

Meanwhile, seniors embark on a different type of journey: exploring the world’s religions. This year, the senior class spent the week learning about Christianity, Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism, and though time was limited, they had a great time visiting different sites and speaking with people of other religions.

Each morning, students came into school for an introduction and a short lecture taught by history, Judaics or Comparative Religions teachers at Emery. The first day focused on Christianity, specifically the Baptist Denomination. After learning about the core beliefs in the Baptist Church, students went on a site visit to the South Main Baptist Church, where they took a tour and were able to have a Q&A session with Kevin Sinclair, Minister to Youth/Missions at the church.

Students spent the following day learning about Catholicism. In the morning, they walked across the street from Emery/Weiner to the Corpus Christi Catholic Church, where Father Smithson showed them around and answered questions. 

Emery/Weiner students visited Corpus Christi Catholic Church as part of their World Religions Week. 

That afternoon, students visited Christ Church Cathedral and enjoyed an interesting session with Rev. Barkley Thompson, dean of the cathedral.

The following day, students were introduced to Islam. After learning about The Five Pillars and gaining a broad understanding of the religion, the class rode to the Islamic Center of Eastside (Bellevue Masjid). There, they met with Shariq Ghani, a gentleman who left no stone unturned when it came to the tough questions. He discussed everything from women’s rights to his own personal faith experience to debunking harmful stereotypes about Muslims.

The next day focused on religions of India, particularly Hinduism and Buddhism. Ms. Mehra, Comparative Religions teacher at Emery, introduced students briefly to these religions before the class traveled to BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Sugarland, TX. Emery students were able to participate in a service at the mandir and observed the rituals of the people around them.

That afternoon, the class went to Dawn Mountain Center for Tibetan Buddhism. After a quick tour, they sat for a meditation session guided by Temple Manager Claire Villarreal, long-time Buddhist practitioner-scholar and mindfulness teacher. Students reported feeling relaxed and de-stressed after the meditation session, a definite must for busy high schoolers these days.

At the end of the week, the senior class had a final debrief of what they learned. Emery/Weiner invited Justin Kelley, Rice University graduate student and former monk, as well as re-inviting Kevin Sinclair and Shariq Ghani. These representatives spoke on a panel about their own faith experiences and how their respective beliefs relate to or diverge from Judaism.

Five days is not nearly enough time to learn about the world’s religions, but the organizers of this event, Ms. Mehra, Ms. Stockdale, Rabbi Morgan and Rabbi Vernon, managed to teach and expose students to as many different beliefs and ways of life as possible. World Religions Week was an experience that none of the students are likely to forget.