Toronto Star: Universities struggle to keep the faith
There is nowhere for Muslims to pray at McGill; the Montreal university shut the prayer room three years ago, arguing religious space has no place on a secular campus.
But at the University of Toronto, Muslims and anyone else who wants to pray between class can choose from among more than eight prayer rooms, including four at the airy new Multi-Faith Centre, where religion fuels discussions on everything from politics and peace to love potions. A potluck this spring called Faith, Food and Fornication let students sample aphrodisiacs from various traditions, “but we drew the line at Viagra,” quipped campus diversity officer Nouman Ashraf.
RELIGIOUS OPTIONS
How Toronto universities are getting religion:
• Ryerson University offers weekly women-only swims for those whose religion dictates modesty. Curtains are pulled across the windows in the hall so no one can see into the pool.
• The University of Toronto’s law school offers a prayer room at the request of Muslim students that also is sometimes used by nursing mothers. The university also scheduled an alternate corporate recruiting day for Muslim law students who fasted last year for Ramadan and also for Jewish students who were observing Sukkot.
• York University provides a prayer room in its Scott Religious Centre, and runs a kosher cafeteria in Winters College.
• York, U of T and Ryerson cafeterias offer some halal options.
As Canada’s religious diversity grows larger, universities grapple with students’ needs
Follow
