Religious boundaries can be demolished if and only if, we as a society learn to love and appreciate every individual for who they are.
We make assumptions based on the way people look, talk, and speak. Religious boundaries exist because people are afraid of what they do not understand. We have boundaries because people refuse to get to know other individuals if we find them different.
On April 11, Multicultural Day, Dr. Kuldeep Singh, the Director of Outreach and Priest/Granthi at the Nanak Sadan Sikh Temple in North Hills, gave a lecture about religious boundaries and why our world has them. Singh has lectured at universities, colleges, and interfaith councils worldwide, including the U.K., India, Singapore, Malaysia, and the U.S.
“Who knows one, knows none,” said Singh.
The meaning of that saying is that if you only associate yourself with people of the same culture, how do you know anything about our world? It is so important to surround yourself with people of different cultures and faith because each and every person brings something new and unique to the world.
Every student in the lecture was encouraged to share their thoughts and opinions on religion and the boundaries that surround it.
Elise Urias, a 20-year-old physics major, was one of the many students who shared her beliefs towards the class.
“Everyone has their own conviction about how the world works and that’s okay,” said Urias. “What’s important is that we need to respect those convictions.”
Being in an environment where every student felt they could be open and honest with their feelings is one of the major perks of Multicultural Day. Multicultural Day is so important because it allows us to learn about other cultures and beliefs that would never be brought up in a class lecture.
Samantha Cornejo, a 20-year-old geography major, found that because of this lecture she was enlightened towards the topic of religion.
“Multicultural Day is important because it features and celebrates the diversity of cultures,” said Cornejo.
Religion is something that is a big part of many people’s lives. Whether you are Christian, Jewish, Atheist, etc., everybody believes in something. If we as a society learned to love our differences, we would have no boundaries.
