There is nowhere for Muslims to pray at McGill; the Montreal university shut the prayer room three years ago, arguing religious space has no place on a secular campus.
But at the University of Toronto, Muslims and anyone else who wants to pray between class can choose from among more than eight prayer rooms, including four at the airy new Multi-Faith Centre, where religion fuels discussions on everything from politics and peace to love potions. A potluck this spring called Faith, Food and Fornication let students sample aphrodisiacs from various traditions, “but we drew the line at Viagra,” quipped campus diversity officer Nouman Ashraf.
From no prayer room to a full assortment, from halal sausage stands to women-only swim times, Canadian universities are grappling in often starkly different ways with the growing religious diversity of their students.
“We’re not the spirituality police,” said Ashraf, “and we’re not taking a stand in favour of one religion by providing space for worship. But we recognize religion is part of many students’ identity so we don’t make them check that at the campus gate.”
The comment from the Christian student about having exams scheduled during the Triduum was interesting. During a conference in Toronto in the spring, I took a half day and wandered around. While walking back to my hotel, I came across Wycliffe seminary, on the grounds of UT and right across from Ontario Parliament. I thanked God for placing the Evangelical institution where He had.
“Faith, Food and Fornication”
Oh good grief. See what your education dollar buys you. What a waste.
Muslims can pray anywhere. I have seen people performing the ritual prayers without fanfare in hotel lobbies, gymnasium dressing rooms, next to the steps up to the airplane (this was the pilot!) — in fact, anywhere there is a space. If there are sufficient numbers of Muslim students who want to have a prayer space, that is, a mosque, let them, like Baptists, Catholics, or anyone else, pool their money and rent a room. The insistence that the public provide mosques is political, not religious.
Religion is not only part of individuals’ identities, but it is an essential part of the identity of the University. The idea of a neutral University catering to a diverse religious individuals shows that historical amnesia is rapidly enveloping our institutions of “higher learning”. I pray that St. Michael’s College at U. of Toronto doesn’t lose its Catholic institutional identity.
Katherine You hit the nail squarely on the head. St. Paul was quite capable of praising the Lord – even if meant he was in a Roman prison bound with chains. When I was in the Navy aboardship there was a group of us meeeting in a small compartment and we praised the Lord with voice, two guitars and one mandolin. We did have a chaplin and when he heard of us (literally) he asked us if we were willing to conduct a wednesday evening evangelical service. We rejoiced and said yes. Of course he was there to make sure no military or religious protocol was violated. We’ll never know on this earth if this time of worship bore fruit but they did have a chance to hear – we did our best.