Faculty and students from Hood and Haigazian University gathered to discuss current issues surrounding the Middle East during Hood’s first Religion and Politics in the Middle East conference.
The conference was held between Tuesday Oct.29 and Wednesday Oct. 30 and was sponsored by the provost and Middle Eastern Studies program. It was a collaboration between Hood faculty and faculty from Haigazian University, a prominent English-speaking institution based in Beirut, Lebanon.
Talks that took place during the conference focused on various issues concerning religion and politics in the Middle East including disappearing diversity, the role of feminism, and Western misconceptions of the region. Dr. Donald Wright, the director of Middle Eastern Studies at Hood and an organizer of the event, led the first talk of the conference, tackling the topic of disappearing diversity in the Middle East.
“The Middle East has always been a region of great diversity,” said Wright during his talk. “We tend to think of the Middle East as ruled by conservative Islamic groups, and sometimes this is correct. However, is not a religious view a prominent part of any political system?”
The conference was open to students and spectators from around Frederick, and after each talk, time was allotted for open discussion between the speakers and spectators. At the highest point of attendance during the conference there were 150 attendees and at the lowest 40 attendees, Wright said.
Hood College President Ron Volpe expressed the school’s appreciation of having a Lebanese perspective on the issues concerning the Middle East saying that Americans are able to disconnect from issues surrounding conflict in the Middle East whereas the Lebanese have to treat it as a “real threat.”
A number of topics discussed focused on current events in Lebanon including the rise of Christian Nationalism and the condition of Protestants in the country.
“We wanted, through this partnership, to organize a conference that would interest students, faculty and people from the local area,” Wright said. “Many students said it gave them food for thought. That is what we want, people to be thinking critically and develop an intelligent and informed world view.”