Center Message October 2022

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Hi everyone – I’m Sofia Sayabalian and I am an undergraduate Student Affiliate at the Center for Ecumenical and Interreligious Engagement at Seattle University. From our Website to our Operations, I work within our team at The Center to create and maintain an authentic ecology among Web and Communications, so that together we are telling a consistent story that is inclusive of the rich canopy of life all around us.  It is a pleasure to welcome you as we enter the month of October and explore this month’s Newsletter.  

A large part of what intrigued me about the Center was that it is a dynamic and fruitful hub at Seattle University. It is a kind of Center that not only encompasses Seattle U’s vision statement to become one of the most innovative and progressive Jesuit and Catholic universities in the world, but within only a little over a year, it has really blossomed into something exciting, genuine and full of promise.  

Month after month, the Center for Ecumenical and Interreligious Engagement works to coordinate innovative and transformational events. Last summer, in the midst of these exciting plans, I had the pleasure of transforming the web interfaces of both our home Seattle U CEIE Website and our sister-site, the Religica Theloab, which is our Living Laboratory found at religica.org. 

Our theme this year is to imagine and shape a university that is acknowledged for its excellence, purpose and impact. As an emerging professional studying at Seattle University, I feel confident that the work we do at the Center for Ecumenical and Interreligious Engagement mirrors these attributes. All of the work happening behind the scenes - from our staff, faculty, students, alumni, community leaders and additional leaders is refreshing, intelligent, and strategic.  

For instance, as you may have heard, CEIE is offering a series of Webinars, Workshops, and Courses this year.  

• On October 13, 2022, Dr. Edward Donalson is hosting a webinar called the #BlackLivesMatter Movement: Toward an Intersectional Theology.   
• In addition, CEIE is offering a Winter Workshop called The Art of Spiritual Direction with Carla Orlando, which will span three dates this season. You can register for both Dr. Donalson’s Webinar and Carla Orlando’s Workshop now on our Center website at seattleu.edu/thecenter.  
• Also on the website, you can find more information about upcoming Webinars, such as an exciting one happening in November with Bruce Knotts. For more information on event details and registration, be sure to read our October Newsletter. Another exciting venture that the Center is conducting this academic year is a Course Offering on Religious Literacy. CEIE is partnering with the Parliament of the World’s Religions in the creation of this non-credit course. In this course, you can learn about the rich Ignatian heritage that teaches us how knowledge involves a myriad of literacies, from cultural to value-forming kinds.  The course encourages the learner to understand literacy as a journey for learning that values people and their stories over the arc of a lifetime.  

In conjunction with the National Council of Churches in the United States, the Center is also pleased to present new podcasts in the month of October as a part of a unique ecumenical Faith & Order Podcast Series. In this issue, we also address the 30-year anniversary since the United Nations adopted its Framework Convention for Climate Change. Now, in November of 2022, member nations meet in Egypt and assess the world’s ongoing commitments at a particularly fragile time. 

Finally, in this issue you will learn about the Lutheran Summit taking place at Seattle U this month, and you’ll hear from Paul Chaffee’'s Monthly Interfaith Roundup. 

Welcome. I really am thrilled to be a part of The Center’s evolution, as we continue to enter our Fall Quarter this year at Seattle University. 

Thank you, 

Sofia Sayabalian

Student Affiliate for Web and Communications

Center for Ecumenical and Interreligious Engagement 

Seattle University