Interfaith Council Panel: Does Religion Do More Harm Than Good?
Interfaith Panel was held at the Ben Schulman Center on March 12th, and hosted by Vanderbilt’s Interfaith Council. Interfaith Council invited religious leaders in the Nashville community to speak about the good and the evils in religion, answering the question: “Does Religion do more Harm than Good?” The vegan and kosher cafe at the Ben Schulman Center, Grins, catered for the event.
Over 150 people attended this event, with about 40-50 members from the Nashville area, outside of Vanderbilt affiliation. The evening started with the Panelists seated at a table in the front of the room: an Atheist, a Christian, a Hindu, a Jew, and a Muslim. Each panelist gave a short minute introduction with their view on the topic. Each panelist was highly educated, with at least half with degrees from Vanderbilt Undergraduate or Graduate school. These panelists were sure to keep a very open interpretation of their religion, realizing the wide range of beliefs within their belief system. The moderator of the night was Mark Forrester, Vanderbilt University’s Chaplain.
Each member in the audience was offered a pen and a single notecard to write their question on. Interfaith Council would review the questions submitted, and pick a few to hand to the moderator, who would open the question for debate. The questions were intelligently answered, and the panelists made sure to defend their religion. The conclusion of the evening was unanimously determined that it is not necessary to be of a certain religion to be a good person, but to have good ethics and to follow them.
Visit the OUCRL Flickr page to see some photos from the event here.
