Tag Archives: community

A Note About The Use of Sacred Texts

Dear Friends, On behalf of the Smith College Center for Religious and Spiritual Life, I write to condemn the recent use of a sacred text to illustrate a political point. Christian scripture in particular has been manipulated to oppress black … Continue reading

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Seeking Refuge in Uncertainty: A Rite of Passage for These Times

My college graduation was very strange. I had been accepted into the Smith College School for Social Work and was scheduled to begin the summer program there on June 4. This was, however, the very same day of my undergraduate … Continue reading

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On Isolation and Consolation

As we all know, in these days of quarantine, loneliness and isolation are prevalent. Zoom is as depleting as it is efficient. Social distance may be wearing on us, our own particular responses to stress may be in full action. One … Continue reading

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Liberation Poetry

In this midst of this COVID-19 pandemic The Center for Religious and Spiritual Life  invited members of the Smith community to reflect on the concept of liberation; what does it mean, how is it embraced, what can it illuminate? Smithies … Continue reading

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Times of Captivity, a Time of Liberation

For the next two issues, our newsletter will focus on the theme of liberation. Passover, the holiday which began last night, April 8, commemorates the successful exodus of the Hebrew people out of slavery in Egypt. The COVID-19 crisis kept … Continue reading

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Uncertainty

There is a Jewish holiday dedicated to uncertainty. Its very name, Purim, means “dice.” During the holiday, the community reads the Book of Esther, a biblical book in which God is never mentioned. In the Book of Esther, God works … Continue reading

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Smith College Vespers Scriptural Readings, Poems, and Prayers

Smith College Christmas Vespers  December 8, 2019  WELCOME Advent is the season when the revolution of people aligns with the revolution of the earth. Advent is a time when people – all people all over the world – light candles … Continue reading

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Otelia Cromwell Day 2019

Tribute to Adelaide Cromwell ’40 I met Dr. Adelaide McGuinn Cromwell in the mid 1980’s as a student at Boston University. Professor Gulliver, as she was known then, was my sociology professor in Afro American Studies, and one of only … Continue reading

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Statement on Sri Lanka from Religious and Spiritual Life

Dear Students, Once again we are writing our horror, grief, and outrage about yet another massacre at a place where people were practicing their faith, this time on Easter, the highest of Holy Days for Christians. https://www.commondreams.org/news/2019/04/21/outpouring-sorrow-after-more-200-killed-easter-sunday-bombings-sri-lanka While the Christian … Continue reading

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Inclusion in Action: Remarks from the Center for Religious and Spiritual Life

Friends, Below are the remarks and prayers shared at the opening ceremony on April 10, 2019, the Day of Inclusion in Action by advisers at the Center for Religious and Spiritual Life. Matilda Rose Cantwell, Kim Alston, and Rhonda Shapiro … Continue reading

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