College Students Seek Understanding and a Road to Peace Through Interfaith Dialogue
November 21st, 2004 by sfuqua
In October, Faith & Values Media, The National Conference for
Community and Justice, and the Interfaith Youth Core launched CampusQuest, in
which participants are invited to join a national youth movement for
interfaith awareness by creating a CampusQuest in their own
communities.
NEW YORK, October 12, 2004 – As part of the celebration of
interfaith awareness during October, Faith & Values Media has partnered
with The National Conference for Community and Justice (NCCJ) and the
Interfaith Youth Core to launch "CampusQuest," an interfaith
outreach project. CampusQuest is designed to help students promote
interfaith dialogue during the 2004-2005 school year, and to make this
dialogue a vital and visible part of campus life.
The NCCJ is a human relations organization dedicated to fighting bias,
bigotry and racism in America. Interfaith Youth Core seeks to build a
movement that encourages religious young people to strengthen their religious
identities, foster inter-religious understanding and cooperate to serve the
common good.
The launch of local CampusQuest campaigns will coincide with the
national premiere of "The Quest for Peace," an original television
documentary presented by Faith & Values Media, which is airing this month
on Hallmark Channel. The partnering organizations will provide screening
tapes of "The Quest for Peace" for student groups to preview at an
official launch party to kick-off the start of their local
CampusQuest projects. In addition, participating campuses will have
access to support resources at www.campusquest.org, national publicity, and
marketing materials including: brochures, t-shirts, posters, pens, and a
trailer of the program on DVD to promote the program on campus. Faith &
Values Media will also offer cash grants to student groups, selected by an
expert review panel, whose interfaith projects hold the greatest promise for
increasing understanding across faith lines.
"By developing their own initiatives to explore interfaith and
cross-cultural relationships on college campuses, students will have an
opportunity to be creative," said Edward J. Murray, president and chief
executive officer of Faith & Values Media. "With the help of
'Campus Quest' online support and resources, students can encourage
interfaith understanding on their campus and in the broader
community."
Students, faculty, and staff from participating colleges can log on to
www.campusquest.org to find information
about creating and implementing an interfaith dialogue project. Through the
interactive CampusQuest Website, students, faculty, campus clergy
and student advisors can access a variety of resources and are invited to
begin developing a "plan of action" for a six-month mission, to
culminate in April 2005. Participants will find practical suggestions for
developing a strategic plan, examples of successful interfaith activities,
and other resources, including: historical background and facts about the
three Abrahamic faiths, suggested readings, and practical suggestions from
the cast of the television documentary.
The Website will also include opportunities for participants to submit
comments about their project experience as it unfolds, to report monthly
progress, and to correspond with other student teams around the country.
The CampusQuest activities are modeled on "The Quest for
Peace" television program, which follows three multi-faith,
multi-cultural teams of students as they study the sources of interfaith
conflict around the world. During their six-week journey through communities
in the Middle East, North Africa and the United States, the Jewish, Christian
and Muslim students are shown exploring complicated questions about religious
tolerance and the prospects for peace. The 12 students from the television
program will serve as virtual guides and mentors for participants as they
begin their own "quests" on local campuses.
"The Quest for Peace" was produced for Faith & Values Media
by Pantheon Studios, Inc., and is a key component of Faith & Values
Media's celebration of interfaith awareness during the month of
October.
Please visit www.campusquest.org
or write info@campusquest.org for
more information about starting your own campus project.
About Faith & Values Media Faith & Values Media is the
nation's largest coalition of Jewish and Christian faith groups dedicated
to media production, distribution and promotion. Its member association is
made up of denominations, organizations, and individuals who encompass most
of the recognized Jewish and Christian faith groups in the United States.
Together, these faith groups have more than 200,000 congregations with 120
million congregants. (A list of member faith groups and organizations is
available upon request.) The award-winning programming services of Faith
& Values Media are available on Hallmark Channel and on
"http://www.faithandvalues.com">www.faithandvalues.com. Faith &
Values Media is a service of the National Interfaith Cable Coalition, Inc.,
established in 1987.
