Session 1: Engage – exploring religious diversity

Introduction

In this first session of the course, you will:

• reflect on the challenges and opportunities presented by religious diversity in present-day Europe
• gain insights into the attitudes of young people to religion, toleration and history
• be introduced to the RETOPEA clippings collection
• learn how to help young people engage effectively with this material.

Now watch Video 1, which introduces the material for this ‘Engage’ section. It shows learners in three different settings: London (UK), Leuven (Belgium) and Granada (Spain). As you watch think about how these learners engage with the historical sources they are given. Use the note-taking box to record your ideas. (Please note this is one of the films you can show to your group during the ‘Engage’ phase of your own workshop.)

Download this video clip.Video player: Video 1

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Transcript: Video 1

[MUSIC PLAYING]

NARRATOR:

From the sunny south to the frozen north of Europe, young people are engaging with the new educational project.

KAREL VAN NIEUWENHUYSE:

It aims to examine how people deal with religious diversity in the past.

NADIA HINDI:

Normally, there's a negative view of religions in the past, considering the religion as an inherent source of conflicts.

KAREL VAN NIEUWENHUYSE:

The idea is to inform and enrich particularly young peoples' thinking and to inspire ways forwards towards peaceful religious coexistence.

NARRATOR:

In Granada in the south of Spain, a community based youth group is taking up the challenge.

NADIA HINDI:

We provide them educational materials in order for them to reflect in a way that they can connect the past with the present and with their own experience.

KAREL VAN NIEUWENHUYSE:

The idea is not to impose what young people should think, but really to inspire their reflection on issues about religious diversity.

NARRATOR:

These 16-year-olds are based in a city center school in London, England.

ANNIE POWELL:

I think our young people really benefited. They were quite daunted initially by the sources that they were working with. But once they got their confidence up there, they started to have some ideas.

STUDENT 1:

I learned an incredible story about Roger Williams and how he created this incredible society where Christians, Muslims, Jews were all welcome.

STUDENT 2:

He's an example of progressive attitudes back in the past. And I didn't know that there was people like that back then. So yeah, that was really interesting.

NARRATOR:

The project website provides essential resources called clippings.

NADIA HINDI:

The information is presented in the clippings could be a text, could be a video, or could be an image. A very important thing is that it comes with a context.

NARRATOR:

The clippings are deliberately thought provoking, designed to stimulate discussion on the theme of religious toleration and peace. In Leuven, Belgium, this group of students are inspecting these resources.

INSTRUCTOR 4:

So this main text here, on the page, that is the actual clipping text.

STUDENT 3:

This morning, we started educating ourselves about religious tolerance and what it means to deal with that. And we basically started by going to the website and looking at different clippings.

NADIA HINDI:

We always give them a question in order to encourage critical thinking.

STUDENT 3:

There's one set of values, another set of values. When you're in a country, and they all come together, it's finding a way to make them fit.

NADIA HINDI:

And then always try to narrow down and think and reflect about what they can learn and how this relates to their present.

NARRATOR:

The questions are a stimulus for lively debate.

INSTRUCTOR 4:

It's easier to say, well, you can believe whatever you want. That's easy. But it's way more difficult to say, well, you can show your belief to whoever you want. You can manifest your belief.

STUDENT 4:

Yeah, because it's something very personal. But people also take offense to that in a personal matter. So there's always two sides.

KAREL VAN NIEUWENHUYSE:

We share collective memories in different communities and so on. So experiences from the past help to shape our present and how we look at the present. And this is why we need to engage with that past.

NARRATOR:

Teachers and group leaders often draw their inspiration from the area around them.

NADIA HINDI:

In Granada, we are very lucky because it's very obvious when you go into the streets. There's many churches. And these churches also used to be mosques. So one of these places, the tower is a minaret and reflects the mixing culture in Granada.

STUDENT 4:

One of us mentioned, in Leuven, there's a lot of religious buildings. And we got thinking buildings, streets as well. And we were thinking about what is a street name.

NARRATOR:

Some students find inspiration in events from the past.

STUDENT 3:

We started with the clipping about the Kindertransport during World War II in Britain. And then we're thinking about, OK, how do people think about religion? What can you say or what can you not say?

NARRATOR:

While others find parallels with their own community.

STUDENT 5:

In the clipping, it talks about different faiths and those who don't have a faith. And our school's very much like that.

ANNIE POWELL:

Using a historical source, sometimes it can feel a bit distant. But in fact, once we then linked it into their community, their experience, it made so much more sense to them.

NARRATOR:

It's all about overcoming barriers to understanding.

NADIA HINDI:

There's an obstacle, and that is presentism. Presentism is the way they present the past by dominant ideas of the present. This way we get to biased conclusions or stereotypes.

KAREL VAN NIEUWENHUYSE:

If you look at history education, the impression arises there that only political leaders, military leaders, kings, white males, have the ability to make changes in society, which is, of course, not true.

NADIA HINDI:

A way to avoid simplistic views and opinions is through studying the context. And this helps us to have more deeper understanding.

NARRATOR:

As the young people work through this stage, they are invited to develop a more critical line of inquiry.

STUDENT 4:

I think my ideas about religious peace and tolerance it change a bit.

STUDENT 1:

We all had good ideas, and we started off really good.

STUDENT 2:

I thought it was really interesting.

KAREL VAN NIEUWENHUYSE:

If we look at changes during the past, many changes stem from actions of common individuals, common groups. And this is an important benefit from the RETOPEA project.

INSTRUCTOR 5:

We show respect for other faiths and people of no faith.

KAREL VAN NIEUWENHUYSE:

You show young people how all of us have the ability to change the world we live in into a better place.

End transcript: Video 1

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