By Brian Grim

With 3,000 in attendance, the G20 Interfaith Forum kicked off with a tribute to the interfaith leadership of Dr. Vishwanath D. Karad, Founding President and Director General of the MIT World Peace University in Pune, India. His core philosophy is that the “union of science and spirituality alone will bring peace and harmony to the entire humanity.”

In my plenary remarks delivered in the magnificent MIT World Peace Dome, I drew attention to how an estimated one billion prayers from Christians, Hindus, Jains, Muslims, Sikhs, and more accompanied the successful landing of India’s Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft on the lunar surface on Aug. 23.

When I asked how many of here today prayed for the success of India’s moon mission, nearly all (if not all) 3,000 people raised their hands!

And the moon landing is evidence that Dr. Karad’s philosophy is not mere speculation, but a truth. Writing in RNS, the Hindu-American journalist Murali Balaji wrote an article titled “How India’s foray to the moon might help faiths get along here below: The success of the Chandrayaan-3 is a chance to build a more inclusive nation.”

I concluded by announcing that next month in New Delhi, we are taking this same transformative message to a wider audience of business leaders at the Dare to Overcome Unity in Diversity conference at the New Delhi Taj Mahal Hotel.

By Brian Grim (pictured above today with Dr. Vishwanath D. Karad, Founding President and Director General of the MIT World Peace University in Pune, India)

Plenary Remarks delivered at the MIT World Peace Dome on the occasion of a statue of Dr. Karad being unveiled in celebration of his contribution to science, spirituality and world peace.

At the start, I would like to ask all the students here to stand up [about 2,000]. I begin by “felicitating” you because Dr. Karad’s efforts are all aimed at raising up the next generation to take his great ideals of interfaith collaboration and engagement, and our differing spiritualities, and integrate them with our science and even business. As all of you head eventually to jobs, wouldn’t you like to take your spirituality with you and not have to leave it at the door?! Thank you! [please be seated]

At the MIT World Peace University’s inauguration, Dr Vishwanath D Karad said, “In coming years, India will play the role of the knowledge corridor of the world. We have combined science and spirituality to form a new education model. This university has taken its ideals from the path shown, by the forefathers of India, of peace and harmony.”

When Dr. Karad said these words, I don’t know if he foresaw that today India would be one of only four countries to successfully land on and explore the moon. Not only that, but immediately on the heels of that tremendous success, India just launched a mission to monitor the sun. Maybe he did foresee this [did you?].

I am certain that what he foresaw was the role spirituality and science, when working together, bring peace. And the moon landing is evidence that Dr. Karad’s philosophy is not mere speculation, but a truth.

Writing in RNS, the Hindu-American journalist Murali Balaji wrote an article titled “How India’s foray to the moon might help faiths get along here below: The success of the Chandrayaan-3 is a chance to build a more inclusive nation.”

Indeed, some have estimated that a billion prayers from Christians, Hindus, Jains, Muslims, Sikhs, and more accompanied the successful landing of India’s Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft on the lunar surface on Aug. 23.

How many of you here today prayed for the success of India’s moon mission? [nearly all 3,000 people raised their hands!]

As a Catholic Christian, I was especially heartened to hear that the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India celebrated, saying: “The progress made by our scientists and engineers in the field of space research is truly commendable and fills our hearts with pride.” Archbishop Andrews Thazhath, the conference president, also said that “the efforts of the [Indian Space Research Organisation] (ISRO) and the entire team behind the project serve as an inspiration to the entire nation.”

Journalist Murali Balaji further noted that “The successful landing of India’s Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft on the moon’s unexplored south polar region — making India just the fourth country to reach the moon — fostered an immense sense of national pride, among Indians and among the Indian diaspora around the world. India’s collective religiosity was on display in the days leading up to and in the moments after the culmination of the Chandrayaan-3 mission. Congregants at Hindu and Jain temples, mosques, Sikh gurdwaras and Christian churches prayed for a successful landing. Even as religious tensions in different parts of India continue to simmer and flare up, it was a remarkable example of unity. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi also hailed the landing as a moment for all Indians, a refrain echoed by his political rivals and critics.”

Balaji said, “here’s an opportunity for Indians and their counterparts in the diaspora, regardless of their faith or their politics, to re-engage with one another … The pride that Hindus, Muslims, Jains, Christians, Buddhists and Sikhs feel at this shared accomplishment should make us all open to working together in the future.”

Indeed, the moon landing is evidence that Dr. Karad’s philosophy is not mere speculation, but a truth. For sure, [the] Union of Science and Religion [or] Spirituality alone will bring Peace and Harmony to the entire Humanity”

India, the world’s most populous country, is also one of the most diverse. A core philosophy in India is Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, which is loosely translated into English as “One Earth • One Family • One Future.” It is the theme for this year’s G20 hosted by India and prominently featured in the G20 logo (above) in Devanagari script and English.

One of the tremendous socio-economic assets of India is it’s cultural and religious pluralism and diversity. Perhaps no phrase captures this more fully than “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam,” “The World is One Family.” From Gandhi and Nehru to Modi, India’s leaders have evoked the universal spiritual concept of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, taken from the Maha Upanishad, to elucidate the country’s national and global outlook.

As we gather on this evening for the opening of the G20 Interfaith Forum, we will do so right here in the MIT World Peace Dome, a seminal accomplishment of Dr. Vishwanath Karad. In addition to advancing the truth that, “Science and spirituality go hand in hand to establish a peace-loving society,” he also places a strong emphasis on the universal spiritual concept of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam.

In this transformative moment of national success with India’s landing and exploration of the moon, let the upcoming G20 Interfaith Forum held in this very same room be in union with the majority of G20 countries getting it right. Let’s here embrace Dr. Karad’s perspectives that Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, “One Earth • One Family • One Future”  and embrace the universal truth that “[the] Union of Science and Religion [or] Spirituality alone will bring Peace and Harmony to the entire Humanity.”

Finally, next month in New Delhi, also inspired by Dr. Karad, we are taking his transformative message to a wider audience of business leaders at the Dare to Overcome Unity in Diversity business diversity conference at the New Delhi Taj Mahal Hotel. If you’d like to learn more today about how business is also a powerful force for interfaith understanding, join us at the breakout panel B this afternoon at 1:30.

Thank you Dr. Karad for this inspiration – your impact is growing and growing.

By Brian Grim, Ph.D.

India, the world’s most populous country, is also one of the most diverse. A core philosophy in India is Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, which is loosely translated into English as “One Earth • One Family • One Future.” It is the theme for this year’s G20 hosted by India and prominently featured in the G20 logo (above) in Devanagari script and English.

One of the tremendous socio-economic assets of India is it’s cultural and religious pluralism and diversity. Perhaps no phrase captures this more fully than “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam,” “The World is One Family.” From Gandhi and Nehru to Modi, India’s leaders have evoked the spiritual phrase Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, taken from the Maha Upanishad, to elucidate the country’s national and global outlook.

As we gather this coming week for the G20 Interfaith Forum, we will also be celebrating the accomplishments of Dr. Vishwanath Karad, Founding President and Director General of the MIT World Peace University in Pune, India. As he has said, “Science and spirituality go hand in hand to establish a peace-loving society,” it is therefore quite natural that he also propagates the concept of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam.

An Indian Ministry of External Affairs recently pointed out that “the theme of India’s G-20 Presidency in English is One Earth, One Family, One Future. This is based on our civilisational ethos of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam which has received widespread support and permeates many of the initiatives that India has brought on to the G-20 agenda.”

China’s Objection: Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam may not seem a particularly controversial phrase. However, Chinese leader Xi Jinping may skip the G20 heads of state meeting at the end of next week, with one issue being objecting to India including “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” in Devanagari script at the bottom of the G20 logo (above), ostensibly because it’s not a UN language.

News reports further elaborate “… that China was the only country objecting to the use of the phrase, and even Russia, which has consistently opposed the language in G-20 text with regard to Ukraine, has not joined in the Chinese position on it. According to a number of diplomatic sources, the objection to Sanskrit is one of the several areas where Chinese and Indian negotiators have been wrangling over the past few weeks as the Chinese delegations have taken a more confrontational stance over several phrases introduced by the Indian G-20 Sherpa team.”

One has to wonder whether China is objecting only to the Devanagari script for not being a UN language, or to the very concept of universal values and rights. For more on that, see the recent Economist article, “China’s message to the global south – A new propaganda push: ‘universal values’ are a form of racism.”

There are reports that China leader Xi Jinping may even skip the G20 summit altogether. The row over the term Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam may be more than linguistic, but also ideological.

PROGRAM OVERVIEW

ELEVATE is a unique approach to cooperative education that offers an opportunity to hire the best business students from Catholic University. Students make meaningful contributions to companies, grow under the guidance of workplace management and ELEVATE advising, and create a hiring pipeline relationship. The program puts an emphasis on developing both hard and soft skills. ELEVATE will create opportunities for students to combine their classroom education, where they are learning about the value and dignity of work, with meaningful work experience, where they can apply what they learn to contribute to a company.

THE BENEFITS OF COOPERATIVE EDUCATION

• — INCREASE PRODUCTIVITY: Co-op students work part or full-time and have potential extendable contracts
• — BUILD FOR THE FUTURE: Develop relationships with employers who could one day be your boss
• — SUPPORT THE COMMUNITY: Hiring Catholic University students
• — SIMPLIFY TRAINING: Students are actively trained on workplace etiquette
• — SELECTIVITY: Students are pre-screened to ensure their interest, competency, professionalism, and values
• — PERSONALIZATION: Personalized plan for your goals to identify the best employers for your specific wants and needs
• — BUILD RELATIONSHIPS: Build a long-term relationship with the Busch School of Business where they can help reach students goals
• — ADVISOR ASSISTANCE: Assistance with performance feedback, coaching, and training to help reduce the learning curve

TESTIMONIALS

INTERESTED? CONTACT:

• Hannah Cundey
• Employer Engagement and Experiential Learning Manager
• The Busch School of Business
• Maloney Hall Room 430
• cundey@cua.edu
• business.catholic.edu
• Click here to schedule an appointment

Religious Economy Thrives in 7 Southern U.S. States

A new study from OnDeck reports that “Alongside its industrial might, America is also renowned for its faith. A 2021 Gallup poll found that religion is ‘very important’ to 49% of Americans, while three in four identify with a specific denomination. It’s also big business. A report from the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation found that religion adds $1.2 trillion worth of socioeconomic value each year, equivalent to the world’s 15th largest economy.”

“Religious institutions, according to our research, are the most popular disproportionate industry in the U.S., with above-average representation in seven states. Four of these — Mississippi, Tennessee, South Carolina and North Carolina were listed among America’s most religious states in a Pew Research Center poll.”

See full study.

Methodology

Religious Freedom & Business Foundation (RFBF) researchers are some of the world’s leading experts on religious diversity & inclusion in the workplace, as well as the positive socio-economic impact of freedom of religion and belief. RFBF’s founding president, Brian Grim, Ph.D. (Penn State), is a world expert in religious economies, religious demographics and religious freedom for all (including those without a religious faith). Some Key findings from our and related research are summarized here with links to full details.

A billion prayers from all faiths took India to the moon

By Brian Grim

Writing in RNS, Murali Balaji describes “how India’s foray to the moon might help faiths get along here below.” Indeed, an estimated billion prayers from Christians, Hindus, Jains, Muslims, Sikhs, and more accompanied the successful landing of India’s Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft on the lunar surface on Aug. 23, making India only the fourth country to accomplish this feat.

UCA News quotes the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India: “The progress made by our scientists and engineers in the field of space research is truly commendable and fills our hearts with pride.” Archbishop Andrews Thazhath, the conference president said that “the efforts of ISRO and the entire team behind the project serve as an inspiration to the entire nation.”

In this transformative moment of national success, the G20 Interfaith Forum will gather in Pune, India, at the World Peace Dome, to discuss how holistic development fosters world peace.

Panel: Role of Business in Peace

I’ll be leading a panel at the G20 Interfaith Forum that describes how business is a powerful force for interfaith understanding and peace. Indeed, the technological and scientific advances tied to business that put India on the moon are an example of how development and business can bring people together when they see success as a benefit to everyone.

Business can make significant contributions to advancing interfaith understanding and peace both through both core business and outreach activities. This set of case studies from the UN Global Compact Business for Peace platform and the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation fall into four areas:

Using Marketing Expertise to Bridge Borders: Companies can make positive contributions to peace in society by mobilizing advertising campaigns that bring people of various faiths and backgrounds together, as seen in Coke Serves Up Understanding Across Borders.

Incentivizing Innovation: Because cross-cultural dialogue and cooperation is an essential part of daily work for multinational companies, some have programs that specifically recognize and mentor social enterprises that foster inter-cultural and inter-religious innovation.

Incubating and Catalyzing Social Entrepreneurship: Business can also provide common ground where religious differences give way to shared concern and enterprise. Some initiatives offer support to new entrepreneurs in conflict-affected areas, which can reduce extremism and empower marginalized communities.

Supporting Workforce Diversity: When businesses are sensitive to the religious and cultural issues around them, they can not only increase employee morale and productivity, but also address unmet difficult social needs.

Joining me on the panel to explore these avenues to peace are Salesforce’s Sukie Gandhi, a Manager of Technical Consulting, and Executive Vice President of Salesforce’s “Faithforce Global Equality Group.”

In a visit to the Hyderabad headquarters of Salesforce, I met Sukie as well as the president of Faithforce India, members of their leadership team.

The Faithforce Business Resource Group (BRG) India is a network of 1,500+ members spanning multiple cities. In addition organizing inclusive mindfulness yoga in locations across the country as well as celebrating each other’s festivals and gaining knowledge of each other’s beliefs, they also collaboratively engage in community service.

For example, during last year’s December holidays and their champion month, each office put up a sustainable Christmas Tree through which they collected donations for children in need across India. The donations for this #BeAFaithSanta Drive included hygiene kits, educational kits, clothes, sports equipment and toys. Faithforce members planted the trees afterwards, in partnership with their environmental Business Resource Group – Earthforce.

Each floor also has a purpose-built mindfulness room for meditation and prayer, just as Salesforce offices do worldwide.

Also joining me on the panel is Kiran Yadav, Vice President of the India chapter of the International Institute for Peace through Tourism (IIPT India).

The International Institute For Peace Through Tourism (IIPT) is a not for profit organization dedicated to fostering and facilitating tourism initiatives which contribute to international understanding and cooperation, an improved quality of environment, the preservation of heritage, and through these initiatives, helping to bring about a peaceful and sustainable world.

It is based on a vision of the world’s largest industry, travel and tourism – becoming the world’s first global peace industry; and the belief that every traveller is potentially an ‘Ambassador for Peace’. A primary goal of IIPT is to mobilize the travel and tourism industry as a leading force for poverty reduction.

The IIPT Credo of the Peaceful Traveler is:

Grateful for the opportunity to travel and experience the world and because peace begins with the individual, I affirm my personal responsibility and commitment to:

• – Journey with an open mind and gentle heart
• – Accept with grace and gratitude the diversity I encounter
• – Revere and protect the natural environment which sustains all life
• – Appreciate all cultures I discover
• – Respect and thank my hosts for their welcome
• – Offer my hand in friendship to everyone I meet
• – Support travel services that share these views and act upon them and,
• – By my spirit, words and actions, encourage others to travel the world in peace

Using Marketing Expertise to Bridge Borders: Companies can make positive contributions to peace in society by mobilizing advertising campaigns that bring people of various faiths and backgrounds together.

Templeton Religion Trust funded project explores the role of chaplains in a society where fewer people are affiliated with formal religious organizations

Chaplains work across and bridge religious and spiritual divides. Chaplains serve people not connected to traditional religious leaders. What if chaplains were trained based on demand for their work in light of today’s changing religious context?

Understanding a Widening Gap

“The requirements of chaplains’ work have changed faster than educational programs can keep up with,” says Cadge. “Chaplains are trained in different ways to work in different sectors, siloed in ways that are best neither for the profession nor for the people they serve.”

Also, she adds, while the people who receive their care are diverse, chaplains are still overwhelmingly white, male and Christian. Most have graduate degrees in theology or the equivalent and some clinical training. But surprisingly, there’s no common standard for education, licensure or accreditation. Training curricula vary greatly, and truly interreligious courses or learning experiences tend to be the exception rather than the rule.

Under Cadge’s leadership and with funding from Templeton Religion Trust, the Chaplaincy Innovation Lab is engaged in a major, first-of-its-kind research effort. Working with an advisory committee of 28 stakeholders, including theological and clinical educators and social scientists, the team is collecting and analyzing quantitative and qualitative data about where and how the public interacts with chaplains, the skills chaplains need to do this work well, and how they are trained to do it.

The overall aim is to identify where there is demand for chaplains and their skills, how the current supply of chaplains meets these needs, and where there are gaps in meeting that demand – a first step toward igniting transformative change.

Wendy Cadge

Preparing for the Future

“We are convinced that educators cannot train chaplains well without information about where and how the work of chaplains is in demand, how they are enacting covenantal pluralism in those settings and what training best facilitates their key roles,” Cadge says.

“In some settings, this is demand for an actual chaplain. In other settings, the demand is for the skills of empathetic listening, improvisation, awareness of spiritual, religious and broad existential issues of meaning and purpose, and the knowledge and ability to comfort around death.

“In an age when formal religious identification is on the decline, it is tempting to suggest that the ‘benefits of religion’ have run their course and now are receding,” she continues. “We contend otherwise. Spirituality and religion are changing, not disappearing, and chaplains are changing in the process. Best preparing chaplains to lead in the current moment requires understanding how the public interacts with them and developing training programs based on that demand.”

FaithConnect event – Combatting antisemitism – with Google and the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation
From Wednesday, September 6
8:00 AM PT / 11:00 AM ET
Moderator: Marsie Sweetland

Please join us to hear Naomi Kraus from Google speak about antisemitism. Antisemitism is tragically on the rise and Naomi will speak about the current situation and what we can do about it.

Naomi Kraus is a founding member and current Global Chair of Google’s Inter Belief Network ERG and the Global Lead of the Jewglers subchapter. She is the granddaughter of four Holocaust survivors and she will speak on how employee resource groups build religious freedom for all by combatting antisemitism and all forms of religious bias and discrimination. Naomi has been with Google for 11 years and, as a Staff User Experience Content Designer, currently works on numerous projects related to Google Search and Maps.

Brian Grim, founder of the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation, works with the US White House on their current National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism and he will join us to share some opening words and to introduce Naomi.

On Thursday, October 12, 2023, Brian Grim*, President of the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation will keynote the Fabian VanCott Employment Law & Client Appreciation Seminar.

This year’s seminar will be focused on the theme of employment accommodations in the areas of disability, religion, gender identity, pregnancy, and breastfeeding. The seminar will also feature general updates in employment law, a discussion of data privacy, and a session regarding litigation readiness. Grim will address the impact of religion on workplace non-discrimination programs, DEI initiatives, and on the corporate bottom line.

The seminar will kick off with breakfast and registration from 8:00-8:30am. Following breakfast and registration, attendees will be able to attend five different sessions, ending with lunch and our keynote speaker’s address from 12:00-1:00pm. In addition to participating in the seminar’s programming, each attendee will receive a copy of Fabian VanCott’s complementary Employer’s Guide.

Fabian VanCott clients and those extended an invitation by a Fabian VanCott attorney are welcome to attend. There is no cost for this event.

*Brian Grim is the founding president of the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation and works with top corporations to include religion and belief as part of their DEI initiatives. Previously, Brian was chair of the World Economic Forum’s council on the role of faith, a Davos speaker, a TEDx speaker at the Vatican, and director of global religion data at the Pew Research Center.