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Understanding Islam

trevor.kenney — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 17:39:45 +0000

In an age when tension between religions has reached a critical point, the need for dialogue, understanding and tolerance has never been more important. An Endowment at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of lethbridge is supporting Islamic studies, and cultivating an understanding of world religions and appreciation of diversity.

By ERIKA JAHN (BA '08)

Islam is one of the world's great religious traditions – and one of the fastest growing in the West – but it is not without controversy. Since 9-11 particularly, Islam has been at the forefront of many discussions about the challenges of religious tolerance and increasing cultural diversity in the West.

It is also the subject of academic inquiry in the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge's small Department of Religious Studies and for students like Campbell Peat (BA '08) and James Falconer who study with religious studies professor Atif Khalil. What these students point out is that discussions about "Islam in the West" in the media, and by politicians and pundits alike, lack depth and empathy, and often are coloured by Islamophobia.

"That geopolitical conflicts have been framed in terms of religion or a clash of civilizations seems more like a convenient way for the West to label the 'other' as irrational and extremist while concealing the real roots of the conflicts," says Falconer.

As a student and research assistant in the Department of Sociology at the U of L, Falconer has studied Muslim immigration in the West, complementing his studies with courses about Islam to better understand the cultural and religious context of those he researches.

"The courses in Islamic studies have the potential to help transcend the profound misunderstandings about Islam held by those in western societies, myself included," says Falconer.
"Muslim immigrants are overwhelmingly educated, secularist, progressive and modern – that's why they immigrated to the West," he goes on to explain.

Muslim immigrants to western countries like Canada often find themselves confronted in their new country by misgivings and misunderstandings about their faith, and ultimately about them as citizens.

It was with the hope of dispelling these kinds of misunderstandings that one such Canadian immigrant, the late Dr. Mushtaq Khan, who was a senior research scientist at the Lethbridge Research Station for 28 years, and his wife Catherine Khan (BEd '72, BASc '77), who served as president of the U of L Alumni Association from 1975-1977, established the Mushtaq and Catherine Khan Endowment at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge.

Grad student Campbell Peat (right) is currently completing his MA on the Spanish Sufi mystic, Ibn Arabi, and intends to pursue doctoral work in the near future. Undergraduate James Falconer (left) has completed his degree requirements and will convocate in June 2011. He intends to pursue an MA in sociology.

"We wanted people to know what Islam really is, and that Muslims have about as much to do with terrorism as you or me," Catherine explains. "Most of the people who are Muslim are peaceful, law-abiding citizens who only want to live at peace with their neighbours."

After the events of 9-11, the need for education and cross-cultural understanding only grew. The Khans believed that in supporting education about Islam, they were supporting a future with increased tolerance and less fear.

"We thought if there was more education about what Islam really is then people wouldn't be afraid of it as much as they are," Catherine explains.

The Khans' financial support enabled the Department of Religious Studies to recruit Professor Khalil in 2007 and to attract prominent scholars to speak at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ on the topic of Islam. Khalil, who teaches classes ranging from world religions to upper-level philosophy and theology courses, notes the importance of studying Islam in a country with a growing Muslim population and intensifying anti-Islamic sentiments in the media.

"Canadians, in my view, should not be afraid. Even though there are forms of Islam that are isolationist and exclusivist, mainstream Canadian Islam, which is the Islam of the vast majority of Muslims, stresses peaceful coexistence and tolerance," says Khalil. He hopes that through his courses and the study of Islam and religion more generally, students will come to appreciate the diversity and complexity of religion, allowing them to form relationships of respect with their peers and neighbours, rather than fear or hostility.

Since Khalil's arrival at the U of L and the support from the Khans, the department has expanded its library holdings and attracted some high-profile speakers. Most notable, however, is the benefit to the student population and to the wider community.

"It is my hope that our courses on Islam instil in students a greater appreciation of the richness and diversity of our world, of our religious traditions and of the collective wisdom of the human race," says Khalil. It's a sentiment that has captured the imaginations of many who pass through the department and that is mirrored in the testimony of his students.

"If anything, the promotion of Islamic studies encourages the individual to adopt a reflective position that approaches Islam as a multidimensional display of human emotion and belief," says Peat. "Even a basic understanding of Islam goes a great way to combat ideas of cultural antagonism."

Falconer agrees, and says that he was surprised to learn that Islamic and western civilizations share the same intellectual roots. "They are more compatible than most would imagine based on modern western portrayals and perceptions of Islam," he says.

The Khans' donation has sown the seeds for a future in which mutual understanding and respect between people might blossom.

"Mushtaq was always tolerant of other religions and encouraged tolerance from others," recalls Catherine. "It was his hope that others in his adopted Canadian community could at minimum attempt to understand Islam."

The hopes that fuelled the donation to the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ are being fulfilled as hundreds of students every semester enrol in the department's courses and are increasingly exposed to the religions and cultures of their Canadian neighbours.

"The fact that the son of a farmer is able to study one of the world's great traditions in the southern Alberta town he grew up in is simply astounding," says Peat. "Even in smaller communities like Lethbridge we are able to see the effects of global integration. Without founding a multicultural spirit and exploratory ethos we run the risk of letting our ideas of Islam (or any religion, for that matter) become superficial and narrow."

The Khans' commitment to supporting liberal education and the study of religion is indeed one step in the right direction toward a society more tolerant, just and curious about the beliefs of others. It is clear this contribution is helping to mould thoughtful citizens, leaders and educators of tomorrow who are less focused on religious differences and more interested in exploring our shared human experiences.

This story first appeared in the Spring issue of SAM. For a look at the entire SAM magazine in a flipbook format, follow this link.

Rethinking stress

trevor.kenney — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 17:07:42 +0000

Stress. There's a good chance you are experiencing it in your life right now or know someone who is. It's a buzzword that's become so pervasive in our culture that we hardly give it a second thought.

However, U of L management professor Dr. Bob Boudreau's research is raising a new awareness of the topic by showing how stress can lead to severe burnout – a serious epidemic sweeping across the nation.

Through a recent survey, Boudreau found that an alarmingly high rate of four in 10 Canadians suffer from burnout, a long-term debilitating condition marked by emotional exhaustion, lack of accomplishment and depersonalization. In taking his research further, Boudreau discovered an even more startling find.

"We found that one out of two doctors experiences burnout," says Boudreau. "In all other occupations there is no evidence of differences in burnout rates – it doesn't matter whether you are a policeman, nurse, fireman, lawyer or farmer – the rates are more or less the same. But relative to other professions, physicians are by far the highest at risk."

We tend to think of doctors as healers, those we turn to in times of sickness. So it's a troubling realization to find that they may be the one group needing urgent care the most.

Boudreau attributes the high rate of physician burnout to many factors, not the least of which is the pressure that comes from being responsible for the well-being of hundreds of patients. Tie that to an overtaxed health-care system rife with shortages, plus the day-to-day pressures of running a busy practice, and it's the perfect prescription for professional exhaustion.

With plans to continue and expand his work on professional burnout, Boudreau hopes to better the working environments of not only physicians, but professionals across the board.

"Once we understand burnout, we will be in a better position to manage many of its related workplace issues such as increased job conflict, poor performance, absenteeism, lateness and poor health," says Boudreau.

"The strategy is to find cracks in each occupation we study and develop the tools people need to cope with their own professional situations. Hopefully, as we progress, we will create more positive work and life spaces."

The tricky relationship between farming and water

trevor.kenney — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 20:44:50 +0000

It's a staggering statistic: more than 70 per cent of southern Alberta's water consumption is used to irrigate farmers' fields.

But even as water issues are coming into the fore, farmers' water choices are still being made independently, as government hasn't stepped in to regulate water use, explains Dr. Kurt Klein, a professor in the U of L's Department of Economics. The agricultural economist and former farmer says this might change when water becomes more scarce. There's also a strong need to understand how to balance farmers' business interests with the protection of the resource before tough choices need to be made.

Klein has done extensive work on bioproduct-based economies and trade partnerships. In 2003, he earned one of the largest Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) grants in the U of L's history ($650,000). In recent years, he's turned his attention to water issues and says understanding the economy of water is crucial to planning for the future.

Unlike countries such as Australia and the United States, there's been little research done in Canada on how to use economic instruments (like subsidies and taxes) to motivate farmers to use water in more efficient ways, without harming their ability to make a living. Because agricultural enterprises have such a narrow profit margin and are susceptible to both environmental and market changes, it's crucial to make well-informed policy decisions.

"At the heart of this is the profitability of agriculture," says Klein.

Dr. Klein and his colleagues, Drs. Henning Bjornlund and Ruth Grant Kalischuk, are working to fill this gap in the literature. They're contributing to a study examining some of the sociological factors underlying how water is used on livestock farms in southern Alberta.

Bjornlund, a professor in the U of L's Department of Economics and a Canada Research Chair (Water and the Economy - International), has done extensive work on water management both in Australia and Alberta. Much of his recent work has focused on the Government of Alberta's new Water for Life strategy, which seeks to strike a better balance between environmental and human needs.

He explains that this study of livestock farmers, which began in 2006, explores the environmental and public health issues associated with water use on farms, how farmers decide to allocate water and deal with wastewater issues, and how surrounding communities perceive livestock operations.

Bjornlund and his associates are collecting data via surveys and focus groups with farming families and residents in surrounding communities. So far, data reveals that farming families are quite concerned about the operations' impact on human health.

This doesn't come as a surprise to Grant Kalischuk, who is a nurse researcher within the School of Health Sciences.

"They were aware of the impacts of the huge farming industry in Alberta and realized that there's a huge runoff from manure and urine," she explains, adding that most people surveyed feel that the livestock industry is generally associated with the degradation of the area's water supplies.

Grant Kalischuk says the solutions to health-related water issues require understanding the viewpoints of an entire community.

This research program provides one example of the multidisciplinary research currently taking place at the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge. Drs. Klein, Bjornlund and Grant Kalischuk believe that their collaborative efforts will improve our knowledge base about the tricky relationship between farming and water use.

"Through our multidisciplinary approach, we are endeavouring to create a more comprehensive picture," Grant Kalischuk says.

Rethinking stress

trevor.kenney — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 16:33:44 +0000

Stress. There's a good chance you are experiencing it in your life right now or know someone who is. It's a buzzword that's become so pervasive in our culture that we hardly give it a second thought.

We tend to think of doctors as healers, those we turn to in times of sickness. So it's a troubling realization to find that they may be the one group needing urgent care the most.

With plans to continue and expand his work on professional burnout, Boudreau hopes to better the working environments of not only physicians, but professionals across the board.

UNews - farmer

Understanding Islam

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Rethinking stress

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The tricky relationship between farming and water

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Rethinking stress

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