Oberlin Orthodox Christian Fellowship welcomes all to a Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts on Tuesday 4/3 at 6 pm in the Lewis House Multifaith Center. These special services are centuries old and are in keeping with the Great Lenten season encompassing repentance, fasting and intensified prayer. As with all of our services you do not have to be Orthodox to attend. Afterwards there will be a free Lenten soup/bread/fruit supper. We hope you can make it. And by "make it" this doesn't mean you have to be there for the entire program. If you can make the service, or a part of it - great! If you can only make the dinner - great! If you can only stop by to say "Hi" - great! We suspect the dinner will probably start around 7 pm. So, come late or early--no reservations required. 

Tuesday, 4/3, 7:30 pm: Happiness

Wednesday, 4/4, 12:30 pm: Buddhism

Wednesday, 4/4, 2:45 pm: Sustainability"

"Happiness, Sustainability, and Buddhism in Bhutan" is this year's theme for the Hiram College 2012 Lectures in Religion. This year's Distinguished Speaker will be Dasho Karma Ura, President of the Centre for Bhutan Studies.  All lectures are free and open to the public, and will be held at the Kennedy Center Ballroom.

Under Dasho Karma Ura's leadership, the Centre for Bhutan Studies has promoted and deepened the world's understanding of Bhutan's philosophy of sustainability, known as "Gross National Happiness." A socially-engaged thinker and painter of Buddhist art, Dasho Karma Ura's life and work reflect the holistic intertwining of religion, arts, and civic commitment. For further information, please contact Hiram College at 330-569-5900 or 330-569-5149.

Wednesday, 4/4, 7 pm, Wilder 112; 8 pm, Wilder 101

As part of Oberlin Queerfest 2012 Queers and Allies of Faith is sponsoring a pizza Meet-and-Greet for Queers of Faith! It'll be at 7 pm in Wilder 112 and will likely be a small social kind of format, just to take a break in the evening and get some dinner. Then, at 8 pm, there will be a screening of the film Two Spirits, which discusses gender diversity in Native American communities, in Wilder 101. (There will be tickets to Drag Ball at the film screening.)

Easter Sunday, 4/8, 6:30 am, Tappan Square Bandstand, Sunrise Service
Come greet the dawn and share in community at a college and community Easter sunrise service. The theme of this ecumenical service will be "Celebrating New Life." Light refreshments will be served in the Multifaith Center, 68 S Professor St. following the service. In the event of inclement weather, the service will be held at Peace Community Church at 44 E Lorain St. All are welcome! Sponsored by the Ecumenical Christians of Oberlin and the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life. With any questions contact Anita.Peebles@oberlin.edu.

Memorial Day Weekend at DePaul University

Starting the evening of Friday, 5/25, young adults from around Chicago and the US will be arriving at DePaul University to partake in this ecumenical event. Throughout the weekend, the Taizé Brothers will be holding prayer services several times a day, as well as small group sessions, workshops, and fellowship based on themes of solidarity and trust in the world. For more information on the Pilgrimage of Trust please follow the links to the Taize website. If you have further questions, you may contact the Brothers at chicago2012@taize.fr. or Michael Schmit (MSCHMI29@depaul.edu) in DePaul's University Ministry office. Registration for the conference is open now through the end of April here.

Tuesday, 4/10

Festival: Lunch Starting at 11:30 am, Program at 12:15 pm, Root Room

Lecture: Music Starting at 7:30 pm, Lecture at 8 pm, Finney Chapel

Save the date for Friendship Day 2012, when college and community will welcome Gustav Niebuhr, professor of religion and media studies at Syracuse University and former reporter for the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the Wall Street Journal. He is a leading writer about American religion and recently published Beyond Tolerance: Searching for Interfaith Understanding in America. He is also the grandson of H. Richard Niebuhr and the grand nephew of Reinhold Niebuhr, two of the most famous 20th c. Protestant theologians.

Friday, 4/13, 6-9 pm

Saturday, 4/14, 9 am-9 pm

Sunday, 4/15, 11 am-6 pm

Oberlin First United Methodist Church (45 S Professor St.)

AVP is a means to gain skills in nonviolent conflict resolution, self-affirmation, communication skills, and anger management. AVP began in U.S. prisons in the 1970s and has grown out into communities to teach skills like intergenerational communication, domestic communication, and trauma healing. Additionally, it has spread to dozens of countries around the world including many in the Middle East, Central and South America, and sub-Saharan Africa.

AVP workshops use the shared experience of participants, interactive exercises, games and role-plays to examine the ways in which we respond to situations where injustice, prejudice, frustration and anger can lead to aggressive behavior and violence. The training is highly experiential with participants choosing many of the ways in which the exercises and skill learning occur. Anyone who is interested in learning new and creative ways to respond to conflict in personal relationships and groups is welcome. We are using a sliding fee scale to cover the expenses, from $20 to $100, depending on your financial means. Please decide what you are able to pay--no one will be turned away even if they cannot afford $20. To register, please call or email David Snyder at (440) 574-9501 or davidasnyder@hotmail.com (please put "AVP" in the subject line). Sponsored by Oberlin Friends (Quaker) Meeting, Oberlin College Student Young Friends, and Oberlin College Office of Religious and Spiritual Life. More information on AVP is here.

Saturday, 4/14, 10 am, Departing from the Multifaith Center

Lunch will be available for $5 at Udupi Cafe. Everyone should wear clothing that covers shoulders and knees (no tanktops, shorts) and women should bring a headscarf for visiting the masjid. To register please email greg.mcgonigle@oberlin.edu. Sponsored by the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life.

Saturday, 4/14, 12-2:30 pm, First Church in Oberlin (UCC) Undercroft
This is an opportunity to learn about and support a creative effort to alleviate poverty and homelessness on a local level. The training will explain IHN's work, bringing together diverse congregations to host homeless families and help them get back on their feet. They will focus on preparing students to serve as volunteers. Service opportunities, which require a training, are available throughout the week of the April 15. Please RSVP to David Fisher at david.fisher@oberlin.edu by Friday, March 23 if you would like to attend the training, and/or if you are interested in joining a service opportunity. 

Sunday, 4/22, 1-6 pm, Starting at the Multifaith Center

REGISTER BY CLICKING HERE

OC students of all religions and philosophies are welcome to engage in this Interfaith Service Day, which will focus on intentional ecological service in celebration of Earth Day. We will register at 1 pm, serve in local non-profit settings, and conclude with reflection and a meal by 6 pm. All are welcome. Registration information available soon. For more information please contact Alyssa.Phelps@oberlin.edu or Lara.Griffin@oberlin.edu.

Thursday, 4/26, 7:30 pm, King 306

Director Jacob Bender will screen and discuss his film "Out of Cordoba: Averroes and Maimonides in Their Time and Ours" which explores some of the most vexing issues of our time: Is there a "clash of civilizations" between Western and Muslim civilizations? Are Jews and Muslims incapable of peaceful coexistence? Does religious faith lead inevitably to xenophobia and violence? Sponsored by the Mead Swing Lectureship Committee, the History Department, La Casa Hispánica, Cinema Studies, Peace and Conflict Studies, and Comparative Muslim Cultures and Civilizations.

Saturday, 4/28, Time TBA, First Church in Oberlin UCC

Members of the Oikos Ensemble will lead a workshop in collaboration with local artists on the spiritual side of jazz music and its use in worshipful settings. Sponsored by the First Church in Oberlin UCC.

Saturday, 4/28, 6 pm, First Church in Oberlin UCC

Guest Speaker John Gates, "Guatemalan Returned Refugee Communities Today"

All proceeds suport scholarships, teachers, and projects in the Guatemalan communities of Santa Elena and Copal AA. Tickets: $10 Individual, $25 Family (2 adults and 2 children under 12) available 4/20 at Ben Franklin or First Church.

Sunday, 5/27, 1:30 pm, Warner Concert Hall

All are welcome at this multifaith spiritual celebration with music, prayers, inspirational readings and an address to give thanks for, inspire, and bless the Class of 2012. This year's address will be given by Daisy Kahn, Executive Director of the American Society for Muslim Advancement, which was a major partner in the effort to build a mosque and interfaith center near Ground Zero in New York City. ASMA is also engaged in domestic and international programs to promote Muslim women's and youth empowerment and leadership and to deepen the discourse of progressive Islam. Sponsored by the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life and the Commencement/Reunion Weekend Committee.