Presbyterian & Pluralist Week

Davies Fellows Presentation & Showcase
10:40-11:40 a.m. | Belk Chapel Rotunda

Current Davies fellows will be presenting information of their particular focus areas in the realm of religious pluralism during the 2024-25 academic year. This also serves as an interest meeting for students who are considering applying to be Davies Fellows for the 2025-2026 academic year. Davies Fellows will receive a $2000 honorarium ($1000 per semester) to concentrate on a particular area of interest in the realm of religious pluralism. All Fellows will also have a budget of $1000 for research of program costs. If you would like to know more about the Davies Fellowship, or how to apply, please join us for this event, and/or reach out to Chaplain Adrian (birda@queens.edu).

Maggie Dineen: Unsilenced: Guatemalan Migration stories
6-8 p.m. | Belk Chapel

Please join us for an evening of storytelling, as Projects for Peace recipient Maggie Dineen shares stories of her encounters with the people of Guatemala this last summer. Joining Maggie will be joined Dr. Commins, former Queens Chaplain, Rev. Dr. Diane Mowrey, and Queens student Antonella Castillo Chavarria, for an evening of conversation and delicious Guatemalan food. For more information, please contact Maggie Dineen (dineenm@queens.edu). Register now!

Sophie Lange, “Pluralism for Young Professionals Today”
12-1 p.m. | DICE lounge

Lunch will be provided for those who register. Register now!

About the presenter:

My name is Sophie Lange (class of 2024), I majored in International Studies, was a member of the Queens Swim Team, and I was a Belk Chapel Davies Fellow. During my time at Queens, I partook in research projects aimed at raising awareness about hate toward religious minorities within and around our community, and I hosted community events that inspired camaraderie, tolerance, and celebrated our religious and cultural diversity! I took advantage of the many trips and adventures offered through Queens and attended the 2023 Parliament of the World’s Religions, the 2024 Border Immersion Trip in Douglas, Arizona, and studied abroad in Vienna, Austria! Through it all, my Queens experience has empowered me to follow a career designed to protect and empower my community with dignity and integrity.

During my final year at Queens, I conducted national research which was presented alongside esteemed FBI employees and hosted our beloved Charlotte Sikh community on campus to celebrate the spring harvest holiday of Vaisakhi. Join me for a casual lunch & learn as I share how these opportunities of growth, interfaith, and leadership propelled me to pursue a career with the Bureau.

Interfaith service opportunity: Room in the Inn
Tuesday, Feb. 11, 4 p.m. – Wednesday, Feb. 12, 8 a.m. | Belk Chapel

(various shift opportunities)

During the cold season of January and February, Belk Chapel hosts 6 guests and neighbors per week (each Tuesday-Wednesday) from the unhoused community, as part of our partnership with Roof Above. Room in the Inn encourages faculty, staff and students to live into our university motto in meaningful ways. For more information, please contact the Room in the Inn student coordinator, Maggie Dineen (dineenm@queens.edu). Sign up now!

Interfaith Operation Sandwich Service Opportunity
9-10 a.m. | Belk Chapel Rotunda

Each month we partner with Roof Above for their Operation Sandwich program, providing sandwiches for the unhoused community in Charlotte. Please register to secure your spot on the sandwich making team. For more information, please contact Chaplain Adrian (birda@queens.edu) or Darryl White (whited4@queens.edu).

Service Opportunity: Off Campus Lunchtime Service with Roof Above
10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. | Roof Above

We are looking for a team of 5-6 to serve drinks at Roof Above, Wednesday Feb. 12. Transport to and from Roof Above will be provided. To sign up, please use our form. If you have any questions, please contact Chaplain Adrian (birda@queens.edu) or Darryl White (whited4@queens.edu).

Interfaith on College Campuses: A dialogue between students from Queens University and the University of South Carolina
4:30-5:30 p.m. | Virtual meeting

This is a wonderful opportunity to virtually ‘meet and greet’ students from the Interfaith A to Z at the University of South Carolina. For more information, and to receive a link to the conversation, please contact Chava Rosenberg (rosenbergz@queens.edu).

Tu B’shvat – Painted Pottery Party (Happy Birthday to the Trees) (Hillel)
1 p.m. | DICE Lounge

Join us for a creative celebration of Tu B’Shvat, the New Year for Trees! Embrace the beauty of nature as we paint and decorate pottery with vibrant designs and connect with the themes of growth and renewal. Whether you’re an artist or a beginner, this event is perfect for all ages and skill levels. Let’s celebrate nature and creativity together! Register by Monday, February 10.

Greek Orthodox Concert: “Come, let us purify ourselves” – The Liturgical Journey through Eastern Orthodox Lent
7:30 p.m. | Belk Chapel

Featuring Saint Nektarios Byzantine Choir & Guests

Witness the beauty of Byzantine music as we embark on a spiritual journey through the hymns and chants of Eastern Orthodox Lent with the Saint Nektarios Byzantine Choir & Guests (Samuel Herron – Protopsaltis; Fr. Andreas Houpos – Narrator). This concert explores the rich tradition of liturgical melodies that inspire repentance, reflection, and renewal, guiding the soul toward Pascha—the celebration of Resurrection. Experience centuries-old chants performed with reverence and artistry, evoking the timeless essence of faith and purification. Join us for an evening of sacred sound and contemplative reflection. For more information, please contact Dr. Varvara Pasiali (pasialiv@queens.edu). Register now!

Mayah McNelly, “Freedom of Speech and Building Interfaith Bridges”
10:40-11:40 a.m. | DICE Lounge

Effective Interfaith Spaces: Promoting free speech and minimizing interpersonal hostility in higher education through interfaith programming. Register now!

The Beauty of Hijab: Inspirational Conversations
2-3:30 p.m. | Ketner Auditorium

Hosted by MSA

What is Hijab? Why do some Muslim women choose to wear it? What does it signify and what role does it play in their life, both physically and spiritually? Join us as we share personal Hijab stories, experiences, and what the Hijab means to Muslim women who choose to wear it, despite the challenges that come along for the ride. We are highlighting local Charlotte women heroes who are quietly doing good and hard work in their communities, all while donning their beautiful hijabs proudly. Register now!

• Deborah Muhammad, Registered Nurse – Deborah Muhammad is a 3rd generation African American Muslimah. She has two adult sons and 4 grandchildren. She is active in the Muslim community working with new reverts to Islam. She has been a Sunday School teacher for many years and served on the Muslim Community Center of Charlottes board and executive board. She’s a registered nurse and manages two outpatient medical practices and a walk-in clinic for a local hospital system in Charlotte NC. In her spare time, she loves reading and learning more about the Quran and volunteering wherever she is needed.
• Lamia Ashour, Personal Stylist – Lamia is a Palestinian Syrian American Muslim who takes pride in curating the perfect modest ensemble for herself, friends and clients. Lamia has always had an eye for fashion, and you will always spot her in the crowd with her oversized bow collar, high heels and a fabulous bag. One thing that is always constant is her hijab. She loves styling it and is never afraid to try bold prints or shimmery fabrics. Hijab has been woven into her identity and is her driving force in the workplace and personal life.
• Aseel El-Haj Mahmoud, Youth Coordinator – Aseel El-Haj-Mahmoud is a student at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She is dual majoring in Elementary Education and Communications. She is also a student at Qalam Seminary in their Classical Arabic program. She is the Youth Director at the Muslim Community Center in Charlotte. These youth programs have helped guide hundreds of kids in solidifying their connection with the mosque and Islam. Aseel is also the co-host of Noorayn: The Two Lights Podcast – a podcast dedicated to showing Islam as a beautiful holistic lifestyle. Her mission in life is to instill in the younger generation a sense of love for their Muslim identities and cultivate safe spaces that allow for that growth.

Dr. Garcia wrote: “Having incorporated aspects of cultural pluralism during teaching my global communication course this semester, I have some experience discussing the subject with my students already. I would want to integrate the subject as a means of discussing the importance of religious pluralism in the context of media representation.”

For more information, please contact Dr. Garcia (garciac@queens.edu).

In honor of Presbyterian and Pluralist Week here at Queens University of Charlotte, I am pleased and excited to inform you of an optional workshop that will be offered to all Queens University Cato School of Education MEL candidates:

Date: Monday, February 10, 2025
Time: 6:00-7:30 p.m.
Topic: Cultivating Conversations for the K-12 Classroom: Religious Pluralism

Dr. Abernathy wrote: “Utilizing a variety of published sources, including my own work in this field, this workshop will provide valuable learning and insight for the pre-service educational leader. Through attendance and participation, you will leave this experience with a toolkit of ideas to utilize with your own school faculties in the ongoing support and attention to the rich diversity of religious backgrounds represented in your classrooms and schools. Again, this is an optional professional development being offered for the MEL candidates exclusively. There is no impact on your grade or program completion if you attend or do not attend. This is being provided as a supplement to your learning and growth as a future school leader.”

If you wish to join, please do so through Ring Central using following link:

Join from PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android: https://meetings.ringcentral.com/j/1440096991

If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to Dr. Abernathy (abernathyd@queens.edu).

Dr. Koplas wrote: “My course is focused on learning about faith traditions and how they can impact interactions in clinical settings. Chaplain Adrian Bird will visit my class to discuss his experiences with different settings (work in other countries and locally) to discuss how his Christian faith and work with other individuals from the same or different faith tradition have influenced interactions centered on public health and community.”

For more information, please contact Dr. Koplas (koplasp@queens.edu).

Dr. Commins, Darryl White, and Chaplain Adrian will be incorporating the dynamics of religious pluralism into the border immersion class in preparation for our trip to Agua Prieta/Douglas on the Mexico/US border, Feb. 28-March 6, 2025. The course, which delves deeply into issues surrounding immigration and human migration, will specifically address these issues through the lens of inter-religious identity and ethics during Presbyterian & Pluralist week.

For more information, please contact Dr. Commins (comminsm@queens.edu).

Sustainability and Religion: This writing class in the Sustainability Learning Community will read about and discuss how different religious traditions view sustainability and interact with the earth.

Dr. Giffin wrote: “I am using the indigenous text Restoring the Kinship Worldview by Wahinkpe Topa and Darcia Navaez to explore the concept of sustainability. The book contains 20+ essays on various cultures around the world and how they reject colonialization and consumerism and show respect for the earth. I think it would be interesting to add in a layer about how other spiritual and religious practices align with these indigenous worldviews.”

For more information, please contact Dr. Giffin (giffinh@queens.edu).

Dr. DeBell wrote: “I will be providing background materials on religious diversity in Al-Andalus / Muslim ruled Spain prior to 1492 with a focus on some of the cultural and scientific achievements that occurred and key figures of Muslim, Jewish, and Christian backgrounds. I’d also like to acknowledge the imperfect nature of the “religious pluralism” that existed and compare and contrast it to contemporary Spain as well as our own experiences in the United States. This topic will provide the background for our in-person conversation practice during this week’s class session. This will be an excellent opportunity to connect Presbyterian & Pluralist Week to our study of Spanish language and culture.”

For more information, please contact Dr. DeBell (debelle@queens.edu).

10:40-11:40 a.m. – Belk Chapel Rotunda
12:00-1:00 p.m. – Everett Library

Liz Childs Kelly, MA, ’97 is a writer, award-winning researcher, educator, community builder, author of Home to Her: Walking the Transformative Path of the Sacred Feminine, and host of the popular Home to Her podcast, which is dedicated to amplifying the voices of the Sacred Feminine. Her writing has been featured in a variety of online publications, including Forbes, Mashable, Rebelle Society, Human Parts (a Medium publication), and Braided Way, as well as the Girl God Books anthology Just As I Am: Hymns Affirming the Divine Female.

The Sacred Feminine is first and foremost a historical (make that her-storical) fact – as evidenced by an abundance of myths, art and archeological evidence dating back nearly 30,000 years. She is also a powerful spiritual idea in Her own right, with distinct characteristics and principles that distinguish Her wisdom from many of the dominant religious traditions today.

Most importantly, She is the remedy for a world desperately out of balance. Female-identified bodies, along with attributes, emotions and experiences that have traditionally been labeled as “feminine,” have repeatedly and historically been viewed as less important and less relevant than male bodies, attributes, and experiences. The Sacred Feminine represents the drive to restore balance and wholeness first to ourselves, then our communities and our planet.

7:00 p.m. – TBA

Imam Abdullah Antepli will be receiving the 2024 Stan Greenspon Upstander Award which is bestowed upon an individual who has taken great risks and exhibits great courage in responding to hate. His speech that night will be titled, “To Heal Our Broken World: The Role of Interfaith Efforts in Uniting Us.” The program will take place on Tuesday, February 6, 2024 at 7:00 pm at Queens University. Imam Abdullah Antepli is a globally-acknowledged scholar and leader of cross-religious and cross-cultural dialogue in American higher education and in the non-profit world.  His Muslim Leadership Initiative helps young Muslim American leaders understand Judaic and Israeli studies and cultivates compassion in the face of fear and hate.  He has built multiple organizations that facilitate religious and spiritual life on America’s college campuses, sowing seeds of understanding between religions, while upholding their cultural integrity and dignity.  This program is sponsored by the Stan Greenspon Holocaust and Social Justice Education Center at Queens University, the Belk Chapel at Queens University, and Queens Hillel/Jewish Life Program.

10:40-11:40 a.m. – Belk Chapel Rotunda

Rev. LeDayne McLeese Polaski has been the Executive Director of MeckMIN since October 2019. She previously served on the staff of the Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America ~ Bautistas por la Paz for 21 years, ending as Executive Director, and she began her career as the Minister of Youth at Myers Park Baptist Church. LeDayne and her husband Tom are active members of Park Road Baptist Church. We are delighted to have LeDayne share her experiences of Interfaith Leadership in Charlotte as part of Presbyterian and Pluralist Week at Queens University.

6:00-8:00 p.m. – Belk Chapel

As a Black woman in this country, with its brutal history of genocide, enslavement, and oppression, Rev. Gail Henderson-Belsito embraces and embodies the hope that empowered her ancestors to endure all that they endured for the sake of future generations. Her antecedents lived with an irrepressible hope for true liberation, if not for themselves, then for their children and their children’s children. Despite the current political and social climate in our world, in our nation, in our city, in our faith communities, and even within ourselves as individuals, Gail remains convinced that, if we are to continue to make progress in the work of peace, liberation, and justice for all, we must exercise muscular hope. Drawing on her faith and her personal story, Gail invites deep reflection about the hope that has “brought us thus far on the way” and challenges us to live into the hope that will guide us forward into the future.

About our speaker: Reverend Gail Henderson-Belsito is a pastor, preacher, teacher, wife, mother, daughter, sister, friend, traveler, and beloved child of God whose deepest desire is to accompany others as they navigate their journeys towards authenticity, belonging, faith, and hope. Among the many things she has done in the church and the world, Gail has served as the associate minister at Caldwell Presbyterian Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, been the keynote speaker at the Montreat Youth Conference, and offered the Tom York Lecture at Knox Presbyterian Church in Cincinnati, Ohio. Gail participates as a member of the Advisory Board for the Katie Geneva Cannon Center for Womanist Leadership at Union Presbyterian Seminary. Before and between all of that, she homeschooled her two children from birth until college, traveled extensively, earned awards and academic scholarships as a student at Union Presbyterian Seminary, learned how to make journals by hand, teaches journaling as a spiritual practice, and owns an impressive collection of Pilot Precise V5 Rollerball pens.

1:00-4:00 p.m. – Uptown Charlotte

Belk Chapel is arranging a trip to the ‘Seeing Auschwitz Exhibit’ in Charlotte.

We will be leaving from the campus at 12:45 p.m. from behind Byrum Parking deck via Turtletop bus.

For more information about the exhibit, go to Seeing Auschwitz: The Exhibition in Charlotte.

6:30-9:00 p.m. – Sandra Levine Theatre

Join us as we screen the documentary, 36 Seconds: Portrait of a Hate Crime, and engage in a valuable discussion with the filmmakers!

Film Description – In 2015, three Muslim-American students were executed while eating dinner in their home in Chapel Hill, NC. In 36 Seconds: Portrait of a Hate Crime, filmmaker Tarek Albaba makes an impassioned case for justice for these innocents and for his community. The film charts the victims’ families’ agonizing overnight pivot from trauma to advocacy as they struggle to prevent their loved ones’ deaths from being dismissed as the result of a random parking dispute.

They courageously speak the truth about the hate crime that has destroyed their lives, about the overt and insidious ways racism plays out in our society and about the need to reform a hate crime system that is broken. This is a project about grace and the will to fight for the truth in the worst of circumstances.