Courses: Grade 11 World Religions & English
Date: Fall 2018
Teachers: Marlene Regnerus & Ena Weverink
World Religions is a required course at London Christian High (LCH) as we believe it is important for our students to recognize they live in a country filled with multiple faith communities. Jesus commanded us to love our neighbours, which He defined as those both similar to us and those who are different (Luke 10: 29-37). Within this context, we believe learning to respect one another in all contexts is an important life skill in today’s world.
Team teaching English and World Religions has provided many opportunities to learn about religion alongside some of the stories in various faith and ethnic communities. For example, we combined our study of Islam in World Religions with the study of Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner in English. Students used knowledge gained about Islam to help them come to a deeper understanding of how being Muslim impacted the choices of the novel’s main characters.
To integrate this learning in our local community, our class spent some time both at a local Muslim Community Centre as well as at a local Muslim high school. The latter experience provided an opportunity for students to connect with and learn from other students their own age. Often walls
and barriers between people are broken down with a personal connection and this was certainly the experience of many students who participated.
As Christian school teachers, we believe it is important to teach our students how to see the world through Christ’s eyes. When Jesus walked this earth, He not only spent time with people like Him, but He also interacted with people such as the Samaritan woman and Zacchaeus, a tax collector. Jesus built relationships by extending mercy and love to people of all faiths, teaching that everyone is our neighbour. Our project was one opportunity to engage with neighbours we do not know well, to break down walls of misunderstanding, to increase awareness of our similarities as well as our differences, and in that way, to open possibilities for deeper conversations that allow us to share God’s love with His world.
Marlene Regnerus & Ena Weverink, Teachers
In a multicultural society, our Muslim neighbours face many challenges that we may not relate to, but that doesn’t mean we should be quick to judge. Everyone has struggles and challenges to overcome within their beliefs and religions, not only Muslims. We need to realize that and appreciate diversity. We hope that our school community will be able to see our wall display, gain information, and be compelled to break down stereotypes.
– Lyric Huygen, Student