Interfaith Club is a club for those who want to learn about other religions. The Interfaith Club welcomes local religious leaders to after-school meetings to discuss various aspects of their faith. Members can learn about many different faiths: Judaism, Islam, Quaker, Buddhism, Sikhism, the Bahai faith, and many denominations of Christianity are just a few.

These leaders are there to educate and help establish a middle ground between the religions through thought-provoking discussion. “The Interfaith Club is meant to remind students that there are multiple faiths represented at Bob Jones,” stated Mr. Congo.

Teaching Tolerance, an educational resource, states, “The United States Constitution specifically protects religious freedom in its First Amendment. Despite that, some Americans are suspicious of others who have religious beliefs with which they are unfamiliar.” At school, sometimes this results in bullying. “When students see common ground, they’ll be less likely to say hurtful, disrespectful things or outright bully others,” said Mrs. Panagos.

In general, learning about other religions can be interesting and beneficial. Jorge Ramirez shared on a Quora forum: “From a human and humane standpoint, we all need to understand other people and cultures better. And one of the biggest influences in human culture is religion, no question about it. Knowing more about the religion of other people, specially if parallels can be drawn, goes a long way in understanding their actions and mindset, and therefore helping in establishing dialogue and cooperation.” In the same forum, Greg Clifford shared, “The older religions are also inextricably linked to culture and the development of civilization, seen in buildings, language, food, traditions, ceremony and almost every aspect of life… Learning about all of the significant religions gives a deeper understanding of people.”

If  you have any questions about Interfaith Club or want to join, contact Mr. Congo and ask to join the club GroupMe.

The first meeting is Tuesday, January 14 after class in B212 from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.