TOMBALL, Texas – In an era dominated by cultural conflicts and a media too willing to amplify divisive rhetoric, the Lone Star College-Tomball Soul Sessions boldly presented an open-minded conversation on six of the world’s religions. The faiths included Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Church of Jesus Christ and Latter Day Saints, and Baha’i; religions that are some of the world’s largest yet are often misunderstood in the United States. And while these religions comprise only a small percentage of the U.S. population they are significant and influential parts of our national culture.
“The most surprising thing was just the resounding impact that each session had on us,” said Cory Colby, professor of political science at LSC-Tomball, “Thinking about what these individual speakers had shared and the really authentic place that they came from, that’s what really drew me in.
“And that the [speakers] were sharing from who they were, not just as part of some kind of lesson, but this is their life, this is defining who they are as a person and it brought a lot of power to the sessions.”
Professor Colby came up with the idea for the Soul Sessions as part of his involvement with the college’s Center for Civic Engagement. He enlisted the help of Dr. Margaret Jelinek Lewis, a professor of psychology and faculty fellow for the Center for International Education, and together they created a unique forum to stimulate dialogue, understanding, and community. The six guest speakers were chosen for their broad knowledge of the religion they represented. The informal sessions were held over what amounted to a long lunch break in a room with chairs placed near the speaker who also sat during the discourse. There was an open invitation to anyone who wanted to attend.
The Soul Sessions were structured so that everyone, the speakers and the audience, would find the sessions approachable and open-minded. The guest speakers were provided with the same questions in advance and responded to them mostly uninterrupted for the first part of the session.
“By asking all of the speakers the exact same questions, you have a reference point for making comparisons and it really helps you start to see a common thread through them, which I think is valuable for education,” Colby said.
“The value here really is that you're not getting [information] from a textbook, but [informed] by people who live their faith every day. They're your neighbors and the people you work with. [We] don't have these conversations with them, except in a setting like this. For me, to bring understanding in a time that’s so divided, that was really the goal.”
During the session on Islam a question about why there is evil in the world brought a thoughtful and nuanced response. The speaker, Heba Khan, a Muslim who holds a master’s degree in Religious Studies from Rice University and is an expert on Islamic traditions, spoke about her faith.
“It is always a struggle to try and understand why God would create and allow evil to exist,” Khan said, then suggested that it may be a way for people to determine for themselves what is good from what is not. “With the power to choose between good and evil, a person’s will is tested and their choices eventually judged.”
The six Soul Sessions, held during the fall semester at LSC-Tomball, are now viewable on YouTube. The online access came in handy while Dr. Jelinek Lewis and a group of her students were traveling abroad.
“We visited a Buddhist temple and some of the students had no background at all to draw on for visiting this temple,” said Dr. Jelinek Lewis. “So I went and found the YouTube link to the Buddhism session and texted it to all of my students. It was a terrific resource that I was able to access immediately.”
Professor Colby believes one of the things that made the Soul Sessions unique was what they weren’t.
“The sessions were not a debate and not part of some kind of political structure. These were the stories of people being told, not about religion but about faith and that's a different thing,” Colby said. “What came through very strongly is that religion is a personal experience and our speakers shared what their faith means to them, that it is personal and they felt safe [to discuss it] in our setting.”
“I think the thing that sticks out in my mind the most was the student who walked up to us afterwards, in tears, thanking us for providing the session,” said Dr. Jelinek Lewis.
Video recordings of the six Soul Sessions are available on YouTube.
Lone Star College-Tomball is located at 30555 Tomball Parkway, at the intersection of SH 249 and Zion Road. For more information about the college, call 281.351.3300 or visit LoneStar.edu/Tomball.
Lone Star College offers high-quality, low-cost academic transfer and career training education to 99,000 students each semester. LSC is training tomorrow’s workforce today and redefining the community college experience to support student success. Stephen C. Head, Ph.D., serves as chancellor of LSC, the largest institution of higher education in the Houston area with an annual economic impact of nearly $3 billion. LSC consists of six colleges, eight centers, two university centers, Lone Star Corporate College and LSC-Online. To learn more, visit LoneStar.edu.
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