A dedication ceremony for the new Bannatyne Multi-faith Centre was held on Dec. 4. Located on the lower level of the Brodie Centre in Room 078, the space is open to Rady Faculty of Health Sciences students, faculty and staff of any faith. 

The space is operated by UM’s Spiritual Care and Multi-faith Centre, which opened a similar space on the Fort Garry campus in 2022.  

Sanatana Dharma Das, a monk with ISKCON of Manitoba

Edgar French, spiritual care co-ordinator for the university, said the goal since UM’s spiritual care office opened in 2017 has been to establish multi-faith centres on both campuses, but it took some time to find the right space on Bannatyne. 

French hosted the dedication ceremony, which was held in the Buhler Atrium and included greetings and prayers from several university and student groups representing Indigenous, Muslim, Buddhist, Jewish, Hindu, Christian and Sikh faiths. 

“One might say that we walk our spirituality, or that we are on a pilgrimage,” French said. “Many traditions might speak of journeying to a sacred place or destination. They would also agree that the journey ultimately leads to finding ourselves – the cultivation and rediscovery of our true selves. 

“My hope is that this centre will serve as a means to help Bannatyne members carry on this history.” 

Among the speakers were Margaret Lavallee, Elder-in-residence at Ongomiizwin – Education, UM Provost and Vice-President (Academic) Dr. Diane Hiebert-Murphy and Dr. Anastasia Kelekis-Cholakis, dean of the Dr. Gerald Niznick College of Dentistry, who spoke on behalf of the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences. 

“As educators of future health professionals, we have increasingly come to understand that health-care providers must take care of their own health and well-being in order to be of service to others,” Kelekis-Cholakis said. 

By recognizing all faith traditions and affirming religious pluralism, she said, the centre sets an important example of upholding equity, diversity and inclusion for those entering health-care fields. 

“All future health-care providers must be aware that patients come from a wide variety of religious and cultural backgrounds. It is vital that every patient is treated with respect.” 

Following the event, guests were invited to tour the centre. The open space has generous storage for sacred texts and prayer mats, as well as ablution spaces, which allow Muslim members to wash before they pray or engage in ceremony.  

French said the room, including furnishings and artwork, is designed to be neutral and welcoming for all.  

Prabhnoor Singh, president of the University of Manitoba Students’ Union

Tim Rozovsky, first-year medical student and co-founder of the Jewish Medical Students Association, said the space is welcoming and will enhance the multiculturalism experience on campus. 

“The creation of this space allows for students with shared or different belief systems to connect with one another and feel safe to practise their faith in a judgment-free zone,” he said.  

Greg Junghans, who spoke on behalf of the Christian Medical and Dental Association of Canada, said the centre shows that spiritual care is a priority at UM. 

“A lot of mental-health concerns are addressed in spiritual care, so I think it’s great for students, and I think it’s a great place to provide them a compass on the complexities of life and a sense of grounding.” 

Prabhnoor Singh, president of the University of Manitoba Students’ Union, said he is grateful that the space has opened.  

“Whenever I come to the Bannatyne campus, I feel this would be the place where I can come in for a moment of reflection, mindfulness or to meditate,” Singh said. 

“There is always something happening in life, and sometimes you just really need to pause and reflect on your own actions, as well as give yourself space, time and energy.” 

The space is available Monday to Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. To find out more about guided mindfulness meditation gatherings, monthly Monday mass or to book privately, visit the Spiritual Care and Multi-faith Centre or email spiritualcare[at]umanitoba[dot]ca. 

March 11: Start of Ramadan. Ramadan is the yearly fast that encompasses a whole lunar month on the Islamic calendar. It commemorates the gifting of Qur’an by Allah to the prophet Mohammed. Believers abstain from eating, drinking, engaging in sexual activities, swearing, and using drugs (including smoking) daily for an entire month from dawn to dusk.  Fasting is one of Islam’s main tenants; one among the Five Pillars of Faith. In abstaining from one’s desires for food and drink, believers cultivate the values of discipline, compassion, kindness, and gratitude and discipline. When believers abstain from food and drink, they show solidarity with those who are poor and don’t have easy access to food or water. This is meant to build compassion for those with less, and gratitude for having access to food and water. In a fast paced world, driven by the distractions of consumerism and self-gain, Ramadan is a “fast” of an alternate variety – a way Muslims hit the “reset button” and come back to what truly matters.

March 20: March 20 is the Spring Equinox. Here are some words from Elder Norman Meade about what Spring Equinox celebrations mean to Indigenous folks:

“The teachings of our Elders tell us that Spring Equinox is the understanding of balance. A teaching of the natural world of which we live and help to create and take care of (in a Spiritual way). This teaching helps us to find balance in our personal lives. It is a time of renewal and the beginning of a new season – a new life with new beginnings. A time when we need to listen and watch the birds and animals coming back to their birthplace and to help us (as humans) understand how to care for our young ones. This is a time when we observe the natural laws of the land as it speaks to us in so many different ways. It is a time for planting that seed in Mother Earth so that she can help us grow in our faith. A time for us to reconnect to the land and our children in search of that balanced life that each of us need to find— bimaadiziiwin, the good life.”

March 20: Translating to “New Day” in English, Naw-Rúz is the New Year celebration of the Bahá’í faith and marks the first day on the Iranian calendar. This holiday is observed with meetings for prayer accompanied by a feast signaling the end of a 19-day fast– a period of spiritual preparation and regeneration for the incoming year. Festivities also include gatherings filled with singing, dancing and embracing new possibilities with loved ones.

March 21: Marking the new year in the Farsi seasonal calendar, Nowruz honours the renewal of life and nature in Persian and Zoroastrian culture. Families clean and declutter their homes as a way to rid their lives of the past year. People often collect items that symbolize their hopes for the new year such as health, wisdom, fertility, wealth and prosperity. Celebrations are exuberant with feasts, public bonfires, and street performances. Nowruz promotes the sense of belonging and fosters respect between different communities. It also reflects the harmony between human life and other aspects of the natural world.

March 23: The celebration of Purim commemorates the salvation of the Jewish people from Haman of the ancient Persian empire, who plotted to annihilate all Jewish people. Esther, the Queen of Persia, revealed her previously concealed Jewish heritage in order to save her community. As one of the most joyful holidays on the Jewish calendar, Purim is celebrated through traditions including reading the Book of Esther, hosting feasts and giving baskets of food and drinks to others.

March 25: The Hindu Festival of Colours, Holi, welcomes the arrival of spring after a long winter and symbolizes the triumph of good over evil. The vibrant tradition of throwing colourful powders in the air and coloured water on others is a joyous celebration of love, new beginnings and a cleanse from the past. While the festival originated in India, Holi has become popular across the globe and connects communities with South Asian heritage around the world to each other and to their cultures.

March 28-31: Easter Triduum – the celebration of the Easter Triduum (three days) opens with the evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper, reaches its climax in the Easter Vigil, and closes with Evening prayer on Easter Sunday. Christians celebrate the suffering, death, and resurrection of Christ. It is the high point of the liturgical year.

Springtime growth, warmth and rejuvenation have different meanings to each person, but the start of something new is a universal source of hope across a variety of faiths and backgrounds. It’s the time to reflect while looking forward to what’s ahead.

See Spiritual Care & Multi-Faith Centre’s interfaith calendar for other holidays or commemorations observed by our campus community. Connect with the Centre or follow on social media to hear of upcoming related holiday events [at]um.spiritual.care.

“There have been several instances when the university community has been impacted by large-scale incidents of white supremacy,” says Edgar French, Spiritual Care Coordinator. “As a spiritual care provider who works with many new-comer students, members of the BIPOC community and faith groups mostly comprised of racialized folk, I always sensed there was something missing as it relates to our supports here at the university.”

The Spiritual Care and Multi-Faith Centre and the Student Counselling Centre are collaborating to offer a new group this fall: Understanding and Healing from the Soul Wounds of Racialized Trauma.

Students identifying as Indigenous or Bodies of Culture* are invited to join. This group will focus on understanding the impacts of racialized trauma, recognizing how racialized trauma may be present in the body, as well as individual and community healing strategies. Specifically exploring the healing component, the content will revolve around active body processes and processing feelings that arise in response to racialized trauma.

This group will run every Tuesday (1:00 – 2:15 PM) from October 17 to November 17, 2023. Each session in this 4-week group will deliver 75 minutes of content from the facilitators and 15 minutes to hold space for student support if needed.  

Michelle Pearson, Counsellor at the Student Counselling Centre, also speaks to this opportunity to expand in student support offerings:

“In my work at the Student Counselling Centre, I’ve worked with many BIBOC students who have experienced trauma personally or were impacted by intergenerational, institutional or historical trauma. They’ve asked for support around racialized trauma, racial stress and distress, microaggressions and racism on campus.”

“There is much by way of cognitive content and education in the areas of systemic racism, societal ills, generational trauma and more, but not much in terms of helping racialized folk deal with racism in their daily lives,” French adds.

While Pearson’s work in trauma-informed care has certainly provided effective interventions, students continue to experience difficulties that are somatic in nature, as in their trauma is felt in their body as panic, stomach aches and chronic pain. After pursuing training that specifically delves into this matter, Pearson is ecstatic to bring it to life in this group by using the healing principles of somatic abolitionism to help students heal from the impact of racialized trauma and build resiliency within their communities.

Both French and Pearson have a wide range of training, expertise and personal experiences that translates well into offering support for racialized trauma. Having learned from other professionals in their fields and even other students they have worked with at UM, they are excited to provide the physical and emotional space that will contribute to UM’s active mission to improve supports for its diverse community. 

For more information on the workshop or to register, contact spiritualcare@umanitoba.ca . Registration deadline: Friday, October 13.

*American Anti-Racist therapist, educator, and activist, Resmaa Menakem coined the term “Bodies of Culture” to expand the meaning of the popular category, ‘people of colour.’ Menakem indicates he prefers this term as it takes the focus off skin color and onto culture. Defining people as bodies firmly grounds our human experiences, including racism, in the physical realm which in our society we often overlook. Furthermore, it serves to displace other terms that make white bodies the norm.

BIBOC stands for Black, Indigenous, Body of Culture. BIPOC stands for Black, Indigenous, and people of color. Pronounced “bye-pock,” this is a term specific to the United States, intended to centre the experiences of Black and Indigenous groups and demonstrate solidarity between communities of color.

From October 17 to 21, the centre is hosting several activities to celebrate this expansion and providing an opportunity for the campus community to discover the many ways that Spiritual Care provides support in spiritual well-being, regardless of someone’s spiritual or religious background.

“We know that many faith-based communities do not have spaces to call their own, or to gather. It is our hope that  student communities can find a sense of belonging and rooting in this space,” says Edgar French, Spiritual Care Coordinator. “Perhaps now, more than ever, contemplative and quiet spaces to recharge and be grounded are needed. We hope the Multi-Faith Centre can be that for many students.”

One of the new options at the Multi-Faith Centre is the ability to smudge within the space at designated times. “We all need spaces to cultivate our individual sense of community and belonging,” French says.

Beyond this, French and the Spiritual Care staff are also excited to see how the new centre, as a physical space, will foster connections between students of all faith backgrounds and worldviews, and allow students to learn from each other.

For a community as diverse as the one at UM, French affirms that we also need “spaces that transcend our community distinctives and bring us together, forums where differing groups can engage with each other, grow in respect for one another, and discover they have a lot more in common than they realize.”

Spiritual Care has remained committed to providing support to the UM community especially throughout the pandemic, and being able to gather and enjoy the Multi-Faith Centre at this point in time is a rewarding experience – and they are delighted to share it with you.  

The upcoming events and activities are as follows:

• Faith and Ritual: Celebrating the Diversity of Spiritual Traditions through Photography, will debut on Monday, October 17^th at 11:00 am showcasing the artwork of local freelance photographer Colin Corneau. As the perfect start to the upcoming week of events and activities, Corneau will speak about the inspiration behind his work and share the beauty of his photography. The exhibit will then run until the end of the Fall term and will be open on Mondays from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm in 521A/B UMSU University Centre.

• On Tuesday, October 18 from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Fireside Chats: Talks on Indigenous Knowledges will take place on Zoom and provide an opportunity for all to learn from Elders and Knowledge Keepers.

• John’s College and Lutheran chaplains are gathering a Wellness Group for conversation and connection about your week and the academic experience. Join the group on Wednesday, October 19 at 10:30 a.m. in 521 A/B UMSU University Centre and have refreshments afterwards!

• Enjoy a pizza lunch at the Menno-Office Pizza Gathering! Enjoy toppings of your choice, meet some members of the community and hear how the Menno-Office can support students on Wednesday, October 19 from 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m.

• The Multi-Faith Centre Dedication Ceremony will be streamed on YouTube on Thursday, October 20 at 9:00 a.m.. The multi-faith community gathering will be led by a diverse group of UM and external community faith leaders, marking the offering of a new space and service on campus.

• Join Bouncing Back to the Beat – Drum Circle Drop-in on Friday, October 21 at 12:00 p.m. in 521 A/B UMSU University Centre for a fun and creative way to de-stress. The drop-in drum circle will help attendees make connections, learn the basic of drumming and feel great! No drum experience required, and drums will be provided.

If you have questions, please send the Spiritual Care office an email. 

The new Muslim prayer room is in Room 121 in the Chown Building. The space gives Muslims, who traditionally engage in prayer five times per day, an easily accessible private room.

“Part of their prayer involves prostrating, kneeling on the floor,” says Edgar French, UM spiritual care and Multi-faith Centre co-ordinator.

“Now that they have this room, they are able to pray in a private space.”

The Fort Garry campus provides a prayer room for Muslims. Abu bakar Siddik, a PhD candidate in medical microbiology and infectious diseases at the Max Rady College of Medicine and a representative of UM’s Muslim Students’ Association (MSA), says the group has been looking forward to a similar space being established on the Bannatyne campus for some time.

“We did not have a prayer room on the Bannatyne campus because there is a place in the hospital beside the campus [Health Sciences Centre] for multi-faith purposes. However, during COVID it has been tough and sometimes impossible to go to the hospital,” says Siddik.

“Three times of prayer during working hours has become impossible for many people who don’t have a place in the lab, or don’t have an individual room. They can now do that easily because the new space is not that far.”

Abu bakar Siddik inside the new Muslim prayer room.

With the holy month of Ramadan beginning on April 1, Siddik says the space will be helpful for Muslim students who may be on campus after hours to have a place to break the fast and take some time to rest.

“This space provides that sense of privacy and security to allow me to focus on prayer rather than on my surroundings which is so valuable,” says Murtaza Jafri, a first-year medical student at the Max Rady College of Medicine.

Jafri along with Mirha Zohair, another medical student, had been discussing the need for a Muslim prayer room at the Bannatyne campus and organized a meeting with UM Spiritual Care to convey the importance of establishing the room with Ramadan approaching. This led towards the agreement to open the temporary space with plans for a larger room in the future.

“These spaces are essential for our university to truly put forward real action towards inclusion and acceptance on our campus. Coming from a health care background, we know how important it is to respect someone’s spiritual needs when it comes to improving health-care outcomes in the hospital or clinic setting,” says Jafri.

Siddik is excited about the space as a prayer room as well as a place where new Muslim students looking for guidance can meet others in the Muslim community on campus.

The MSA has worked closely with UM Student Affairs – Spiritual Care and Rady Faculty of Health Sciences to find an appropriate room for the time-being and to outfit the space with prayer rugs and resources such as copies of the Qur’an and signage. The room will serve as an interim space until something more suitable is found. The current room is small and does not have a sink/plumbing for the traditional washing ritual of wudu. Washrooms are located nearby.

“We are still discussing how we can get a bigger room and separate rooms for men and women,” says Siddik.

French emphasizes the importance of having more sacred spaces on campus that allow for quiet contemplation and meditation.

“Anything we can do that will help learners become more resilient and allow for proactive wellness practices, we are all for. When it comes to mental health and spiritual health, I think resources are merited,” says French.

The Muslim prayer room is open to any students, staff or faculty who wish to use it. Swipe card access to enter Bannatyne Campus is required to access the Muslim prayer room. Due to the space limitations of the current room, priority is given to students.

These past two years have been a wild ride. We have lost students, colleagues, friends and family. We’ve planned for partial returns that tuned into false starts when the virus proved it wasn’t done with us. At the same time, we have adapted to new ways of learning, working and finding community. Many new supports, programs, services and technological advances have helped us to uphold and advance our teaching and learning mission.

“As we reflect on how far we’ve come, and what the past two years have cost us, I am proud of our community and how we have worked together during these very trying times,” says UM President and Vice-Chancellor Dr. Michael Bennaroch. “We are an institution that thrives in community. As more students, staff and faculty return to campus, I’m encouraged by the opportunities ahead.”

To mark the two-year anniversary, St. John’s College Chaplaincy and UM Spiritual Care and Multi-Faith Centre invites the campus community to pause and reflect. “Riding the Waves: Reflecting on Two Years of Pandemic Living,” is a hybrid event happening on Wednesday, March 23, from 11:30am-12:30pm. We will look back on the challenges we have faced, how we have overcome them and how we find collective hope for the future. There will also be the opportunity to acknowledge the losses our community has faced during the pandemic.

“It’s important to value and acknowledge these experiences, particularly the social and community losses people have endured,” says Rev. Helen Holbrook, St. John’s College Chaplain. “At heart, it’s important to come together to remind each other we’re not alone in these feelings and experiences.”

You can participate in the event in whatever way you’re most comfortable. Up to 100 people will be able to attend in-person at the Chapel of St John the Evangelist or people can join online via the UM website. The event will feature a wide range of perspectives from members of our campus community, including members of the administration, representatives from UMSU, staff from Spiritual Care and Multi-Faith Centre, alumni, Elders, students and faculty.

“In the sharing of stories, we hear the resilience embodied in people,” Spiritual Care Coordinator Edgar French says. “It’s important to be aware of this strength for both those who share, and those who listen.”

It is an understatement to affirm how extremely disruptive the pandemic has been on people’s lives, how it has impacted every facet of living – physical, social, mental, emotional, and spiritual.  Daily and seasonal practices, rhythms that typically endowed our days with a sense of purpose, connection, and overall wellness have been upended.  I have noted, however, that over these 16 months of limitations and setbacks people have carried on as best as they can.  There is a wisdom I have seen reflected in many neigbourhoods around the city, particularly over the noon and evening hours.  As options for wellness have lessened, it would appear many have returned to the basics and essentials.  I am referring to the practice of walking, an unassuming human activity that has shaped our species to the very core.  As writer and journalist Wayne Curtis has posited in his book, The Last Great Walk: The True Story of a 1909 Walk from New York to San Francisco, and Why it Matters Today, “We got where we are today, both literally and figuratively, because of walking.”[1]

Not a day has gone by, since that fateful one on March of 2020, where my yearning to walk has dissipated.  It has only increased.  Lunch hour and after-supper walks, on my own or with my family, have become standard self-care custom.  Curiosity piqued; I felt the need to do a little reading on the practice of walking.  What’s behind my drive, or should I say, stride?  Extensive research and studies have shown the broad range of benefits walking bestows on our cognitive, emotional, and physical states of being.  Ferris Jabr’s article in the New Yorker, Why Walking Helps Us Think, points out how walking stimulates creative and innovative thinking.  Writers, for instance, have instinctively and experientially known this to be true.  A journal entry penned by the celebrated American essayist, poet, and philosopher, Henry David Thoreau, reveals this truth: “Me thinks that the moment my legs begin to move, my thoughts begin to flow.”[3]  Physically, you develop some of the same benefits that runners typically experience with less of the strain on the body: blood circulation and flow of oxygen increases, a feeling of well-being overtakes us thanks to the flow of endorphins, fatigue ebbs away.  Personally, what has intrigued me most and got me thinking about the importance of walking is Curtis’s exploration of the relationship between walking and our uniquely human evolutionary path. 

Walking as it turns out, and not brain size (anthropologists suggest larger brains in our human ancestors developed two to three million years after we ventured off on two feet), launched our species down a road of development.  Walking enabled us to find new uses for our hands and arms, from gathering food, carrying new-born, to crafting tools.  Walking, an economical form of mobility, allowed us to travel farther, burn less calories, and consequently populate the entire earth.  Curtis concludes that “standing upright and moving forward one step at a time is more than simple locomotion.  Walking makes us human.”[4]

And yet it is not simply how walking has propelled us to where we are now, there is something so deeply profound about the practice of walking and its relation to being human.  It is engrained in our psyches, reflected in our frameworks of meaning and language, and typified in our responses to all forms of adversity.  Empathy, for instance, is visualized as the practice of “walking in someone else’s shoes.”  Most of the world’s great religions relate walking as a way of being and living a good and virtuous life.  Consider Buddhism’s tenants for good living in the Noble Eightfold Path, or Hinduism’s four paths of Yoga practice.  Judaism’s central experience, the Exodus, was a literal walk out of slavery, followed by the character-refining process of walking in the wilderness.  Early practitioners of Christianity were known as People of the Way.  Islam’s first surah in the Qur’an, prayed and recited by devout Muslims, asks Allah to “Guide us in the straight path, the path of those whom Thou has blessed.”  Many faiths incorporate pilgrimages as spiritual disciplines.  Social initiatives, like the BLM movement and Reconciliation, are described as journeys.  Movements that are forces for positive social change, are typically sparked or enhanced by marches.  To walk is to live, learn, become our best possible selves, thrive, and overcome setbacks. 

Walking is at the heart of our being and well-being, and perhaps it is its simplicity and accessibility[5] that has attracted me to it as a wellness practice in a time of great complexity.  It may very well be our saving grace in all manner of ways, through this pandemic and beyond.  Edward Weston, the seventy-one-year-old whose epic walk from New York to San Francisco set a record in 1909, put it this way, “Anyone can walk.  It’s free, like the sun by day and the stars by night.  All we have to do is get on our legs, and the roads will take us everywhere.”[6]     

[1] Wayne Curtis, The Last Great Walk: The True Story of a 1909 Walk from New York to San Francisco, and Why it Matters Today (New York: Rodale, 2014), 43.

[2] Ibid

 [3] Curtis, 43.

[4] I am well aware this not the case for all and want to acknowledge the limitations imposed by individual’s differing physiologies, and the walkability of neighbourhoods in urbanized settings

[5] Ibid, 223.

“We support individuals whenever they’re going through losses, crises and transitions, particularly with their ability to make meaning and live purposefully,” says Edgar French, the Spiritual Care Coordinator. “Any situation that would make it difficult for them to feel like their life has an element of coherence, whenever there’s a challenge to their understanding of self, the world around them, or their sense of belonging and connection.”

Students can access confidential individualized support through one-on-one appointments with spiritual care providers from a variety of traditions not only related to religion, but also to philosophy and world view. At this time, appointments are offered by telephone or a secure video chat platform.

Depending on a student’s spiritual identity, there are ways to engage whether they identify as spiritual, religious, atheist or agnostic.

French explains: “We try to inform students that spirituality is an essential component of well-being that involves all people regardless of how they identify. It’s just that we all have a unique form of what that looks like.” 

French takes pride in the growth of the department and its work in helping students from different backgrounds. Students have opportunities to connect with a number of chaplains from various traditions, Indigenous Elders, active faith groups, and other related campus-based resources. Nonetheless, those who feel less comfortable meeting with a spiritual care provider that represents a specific faith tradition can further discuss other available options. Spiritual Care, ultimately, provides person-centered care, offering care that is attentive to the particularity of personal values and traditions.

In addition to providing outstanding support to students at an individual level, another purpose of the programs offered by Spiritual Care is to cultivate an environment that embraces diversity in spiritual identities at the University of Manitoba. “Part of our role is reminding people that we have a beautifully pluralistic and diverse community, and that we can honour and treat difference with dignity,” French highlights.

Spiritual Care offers workshops and programs that revolve around spiritual health and wellness education as they relate to intergroup and interfaith dialogue. Their approach to supporting students evidently focuses on helping each person with personal challenges while simultaneously equipping them with skills to openly engage with others of different beliefs and values. In turn, the department can support individuals in bridging the gap in potentially divisive atmospheres, ultimately building a more inclusive environment for all members of the UM community.

Students interested in accessing or learning more about the types of support services provided by Spiritual Care are encouraged to contact the department. More information on Spiritual Care, including contact information, can be found on their website.

Spiritual Care began interfaith gatherings and dialogues out of the conviction that in a pluralistic and interdependent world, it is not enough to simply learn about each other’s worldviews and religions from a comfortable distance or behind a book. In an effort to mitigate the biases, fears, and prejudices that thrive in ignorance and misrepresentation, engagement with one another in open, honest and meaningful ways is essential. These are not lofty ideals, or pursuits of secondary importance reserved for open-minded folks. A conflicted and highly polarized world, abounding in violence, points to the dire need for such exchanges. They are integral to our survival. As Diana Eck, professor of comparative religion and Indian studies at Harvard University, so succinctly puts it, “Dialogue or die!”

Equally important is the function that dialoguing serves, on a more personal note, in human development. When it comes to meaning, making and living an authentic life, nothing says growth like encountering the “other.” Activist and theologian Vinoth Ramachandra states, “We don’t know what we believe and why, let alone how much our lives match up what we claim to believe, until we engage in serious dialogue with others, especially those who are profoundly different to us. In other words, the other is indispensable towards our own self-discovery.”

Two years ago, Spiritual Care began hosting dinners and evening gatherings that would bring students together. Through the sharing of a meal and discussions, over a wide range of topics, these gatherings aimed to develop insights and understandings of diverse represented world-views and faiths, through relationship building. The pandemic has definitely put a wrench in such efforts. However, all is not lost!

The newly launched Interfaith Speakers’ Series Wisdom Wednesdays is a means by which the department seeks to carry on this important conversation and engagement. Over the next eight weeks, community faith leaders and tradition representatives will speak to pertinent issues facing the world today through their spiritual lens, their wisdom. The aim is to provide students and all UM community members with the opportunity to glean from such insights, dispel misconceptions and engage in conversations at a time when social connection is greatly limited by distanced learning.

To register for Wisdom Wednesdays or assist with future gatherings, contact Spiritual Care today at spiritualcare@umanitoba.ca 

For previous recordings of sessions, see Spiritual Care’s postings.

It has been said that in life, change is the only true constant. We are in a constant state of flux in all ways, from the microscopic – in how our bodies regenerate themselves on the cellular level, to the experiential – discovering suddenly, after years of avoidance, that you really like cilantro! Most of life’s changes occur over long periods that we hardly notice them (like my waist enhancement). At other times, however, we are brutally thrust into change without any warning. 

The process of change can also linger for a very long time, making the experience even more unbearable. Author and theologian Richard Rohr defines it as entering and inhabiting liminal space.

Liminal spaces are in-between spaces where our former ways of being are challenged or changed. Often they are hard spaces to live in, spaces of disorientation and discomfort, perhaps like hanging in mid-air. These days we’re all inhabiting liminal space in very concrete ways. We find ourselves cut off from our campus and the routines that defined our semester as students, staff and faculty. We’re confined to our homes, our rooms in residence, cut off from experiences and people we mostly took for granted. Life in pandemic is truly liminal. 

Liminal spaces have a way of overturning the daily rhythms and practices that give our lives an element of cohesion, manageability and meaning. They upend those rituals in life where we derive comfort. Life in pandemic now means I don’t commute on the bus anymore and spend an hour, each weekday, to be in thought and preparation, usually meditating/praying for my day. It means I don’t mingle with my co-workers and share life on life over lunch or coffee-break. And it means I don’t get to greet students at my office door and be physically present to them. All of these in some way provided a level of comfort to the way my days flowed.

While liminal space might put an end or infringe upon our rituals and rhythms, they can also provide an opportunity to be more intentional, creative and develop new rituals. There is a healing ingenuity that can arise from fearful and anxious times as the ones we are living in. Psychologist Miriam Greenspan writes, “If fear is only telling you to save your own skin, there’s not much hope for us. But the fact is that in conscious fear, there is potentially revolutionary power of compassion and connection that can be mobilized en masse. This is the power of fear. Our collective fear, which is intelligent, is telling us now: Find new ways to keep this global village safe…. Learn the ways of peace. Find a new ceremony of safety so that not just you and I but all of us can live together without fear” (Miriam Greenspan, Healing through the Dark Emotions The Wisdom of Grief, Fear, and Despair). Our university village is doing just that! I think of the many creative virtual gatherings that have recently provided strength and encouragement, celebration and hope, in trying times like these. These gatherings have celebrated student achievements like the virtual graduation Powwow. They have provided spaces to grieve and care for one another, in the form of a virtual care circle, in the wake of recent and ongoing racial discrimination and injustices perpetrated against members of the BIPOC community. I’ve had the opportunity of co-facilitating an interfaith gathering, represented by a wide groups of diverse students and staff, to find a renewed sense of connection and solidarity especially at a time when our sense of isolation is heightened (https://youtu.be/F_4NgWkIx_c).

Life in liminality offers us the opportunity to be intentional about our rituals, our needs, but also the needs of each other. What new and life-giving rituals have arisen for you in life in pandemic? What new daily practices and rhythms have you been intent on committing to, never had the chance, and finally now you can?

As difficult and discouraging as times of liminality truly are, they also harbor promise and opportunity. All losses, all crises, all changes do. It is the gift of change. I’m reminded of the Greek myth of Pandora’s Box. When all the ails of the world came streaming out of the box, Pandora looked into it and discovered the small gift meant to counter the unleashed sufferings of life – hope.  Sometimes, to discover these gifts, it helps to have someone to talk to, to reflect and wonder with, to laugh and yes, to cry and grieve with. Spiritual Care can help you cultivate a sense of hope and discover the opportunities and promises hidden away in liminal spaces. Be well friends.

You can contact Edgar French, UM’s spiritual care coordinator at edgar.french@umanitoba.ca, or 204-298-2467.