The Harvard Pluralism Project is Still an Important Multifaith Resource
A virtual visit to the Harvard Pluralism Project
The Pluralism Project at Harvard University is an interesting digital home for both a global overview of world religions and a hyperlocal look at worship in all different faith traditions in the Boston area and beyond. I remember visiting during the early years of the site. Also, I took a course that used the 2002 book by the professor who guided this project: A New Religious America: How a “Christian Country” Has Become the World’s Most Religiously Diverse Nation by Diane Eck. It was really great to see how this project has expanded into more of a modern Digital Humanities site.
It reminded me a little of my seminary training 25 years ago. Every weekend, for one year, we went on a field trip to a local house of worship throughout every borough of New York. We would observe the customs, culture, religious beliefs, rituals, and the way people worshipped. The idea was to learn the tenets and principles of each faith but also to learn how to be a respectful visitor and observer of all faith traditions. We learned how to celebrate each faith, along with those who practiced these diverse traditions.
Our teachers arranged for us to sit and talk with the clergy persons involved. I remember, in the Mosque on 96th Street, the modern Iman allow the women students to wash their feet before entering and to sit up front with the men; and in an ancient Synagogue downtown, the women were in the top row of the temple while the men were below, davening (praying). We went to Hindu Temples, Baha’i houses of worship, Buddhist temples, etc. It was one of the most meaningful parts of my training as an interfaith minister. So I was happy to dive into this site and see how it gives such a great overview of how people worship.
History
The website morphed from an in-person class into an online portal that covers a wide array of information on faith traditions and interfaith relations.
It is related to and was inspired in by, Professor Diana Eck’s 1991 class at Harvard University on “World Religions in New England.” The changing face of the student and the different faiths they represent led to the course and in this course, Eck worked with 25 students to research and document the increasingly diverse communities and houses of worship in the area. The research was published in a printed guidebook called World Religions in Boston: A Guide to Communities and it led to greater research into the area but also was a model for looking at the overall changing religious landscape in US cities. [1]
The initial class and project morphed into several different projects:
1994: Harvard Students began to develop a CD-ROM and the scope expanded from the local focus to other key US cities.
1996: The Pluralism website (pluralism.com) was released
1997: A related book called On Common Ground: World Religions in America was released by Columbia University Press. It was cited in 1998 as an “extraordinary resource” and a “pioneering work.”
2003 and 2008: New and updated editions of the first CD-ROM were released.
Diana Eck and the Pluralism Project also have been involved in films and documentaries, and offering mini-grants to filmmakers. Those projects have included:
- Becoming the Buddha in L.A.
- On Common Ground
- Acting on Faith: Women’s New Religious Activism in America
There has been consulting about multireligious America, “World Religions in America” summer sessions, and the creation of an Interfaculty Working Group related to immigration and religious pluralism.
Over the years, the website has been their most crucial part of “outreach and education,” says the website. It has been adapted and expanded over time. “The site is regularly updated and expanded; it has been redesigned a number of times to improve usability, with a thorough redesign in 2016,” it says. “The most recent version of this site launched in spring 2020 with extensive content and design updates and the archiving of older materials: our goal is to position this website as an enduring and accessible resource for students, scholars, and the general public.”
A Wonderful Resource
This site is simple in many ways, for the user, but it is powerful. It came about at a time when the interfaith movement was in its heyday and embracing diversity and the oneness of spirit in all traditions was an important part of New Thought spirituality. At this time when the world is overcome with racism and religious hatred I think it is especially important to have a soft spot to land to learn about world religions without feeling you are being exposed to dogma and judgment. This site, overall, seems to offer that. Their coverage of religion is presented in such a way that it makes age-old traditions a little more understandable. Whether someone is seeking to learn more about a particular religion or practice, or trying to understand more about someone who hail from a different world, this a good resource. It is also used by students, scholars, and researchers.
Religions
The site is set up in a user-friendly manner.
There is a vertical/topic in the top navigations called “Religions.” It leads to this landing page.
The introduction, called Rivers of Faith, explains: “The religious traditions of humankind are shown here as circles, each containing a commonly used symbol of that tradition. But this visual image of separate boundaried circles — graphically convenient as it is — is highly misleading, for every religious tradition has grown through the ages in dialogue and historical interaction with others. “ [2] You can also click from there to a Rivers of Faith Essay.
You’ll find 17 Faith traditions on the page in alphabetical order. They are represented by their religious symbol that can be clicked on so you can learn more about each faith. It’s very user-friendly. Does it list ALL FAITHS that every existed in the world? No, but its an excellent representation. You’ll find links to the following:
Click on any of the symbols or faith names, and it will take you to a web area devoted to that faith, with many different areas of information on everything from history and worship to current issues. For example, the Buddhism page covers four verticals/topics: Introduction, Buddhism In America, The Buddhist Experience, and Issues for Buddhists in America.
Interfaith Encounters
Click on the vertical/topic “Encounter” in the top navigation and it takes you to, “A survey of the interfaith encounter in the U.S. through portraits of interfaith organizations and essays highlighting the historical and contemporary challenges of religious diversity.” It is kind of a mixed bag of information but it looks at “Interfaith Infrastructure” and has essays such as The “Free Exercise” of Religion, African Religion in America, and Alternative Altars, up through more modern times. Interfaith dialogue has been around for several decades, but over time the conversations have changed as the world has changed and people of all backgrounds have become more connected in our global world.
Landscape
This is an important part of the website that offers a very local view of religion. It opens with this quote: “The religious landscape of America is changing. In the past fifty years, new immigrants have arrived from all over the world seeking political freedom and economic prosperity. They have come with their cultural and religious traditions, their Qur’ans and Bhagavad Gitas, their rituals, prayers, and forms of meditation, their songs, dances, and arts. They have put down roots in American soil and created community centers and sacred spaces.” [3]
On the left side column/rail of this area, there are four places to click, including: “Interfaith in Boston” and “World Religions in Greater Boston.”
- The latter brings up a home page that has a listing for ALL the faiths listed under the “Religions” page, with a local angle: Judaism in Boston, Native Traditions in Boston, etc.
- It also has a full map representing all faiths, with locations related to houses of worship — such as a Hindu Temple or a Synagogue — or a related spiritual group — such as a local chapter of devotees to the Hindu hugging Saint, Ammachi.
- It has a Legend that shows the user which symbols represent which faith, so they can click on the above map for what they are looking for.
- When you hover over the map it gives you the name of the organization or house of worship, address, and website.
- When you go to that left side Colum/rail, you can click on any faith and be taken to a related page that also has a map of related spiritual organizations for that particular faith.
I am just giving an overview. You can click around and dive in more deeply.
The setup for localized religion gave me an idea for future projects in Queens and Manhattan!
The “About” Page(s)
Tracking back to the first vertical on the website, there are four major sections. Professor Eck sets the tone and asks this question in a video on the “About” page: “How do we all live together in this society of increasing diversity? That’s a critical question of our time, especially in the United States where religious and cultural diversity are present as never before. Encountering that diversity is pluralism. Pluralism isn’t just the fact of diversity, but how we respond to it.” [4] She defines pluralism in the video.
Here you can find the explanation that, “An ongoing research effort, the Pluralism Project studies and interprets religious diversity and interfaith relations in the United States.” You can also find the mission statement: “The Pluralism Project at Harvard University studies and interprets the changing religious landscape of the United States. We conduct research with the help of students, in collaboration with others in our field, and in partnership with religious communities and interfaith organizations. Our award-winning educational resources are informed by this ongoing research.” [5]This section talks about the current projects they are working on and introduces and gives credit to the team. Here are the key areas in which to find the background information:
Current Initiatives: https://pluralism.org/current-initiatives
Mission and History: https://pluralism.org/mission-and-history
People: https://pluralism.org/people-pluralism
Project Resources: https://pluralism.org/project-resources
Summary
Overall, I think this is a great project. I did not read every single item. That’s how content-rich it is. I am sure people of some faiths or traditions may read about their own and find things missing, or a little off in some cases. But I think they did a good job of giving both a global and historical overview, a US overview, and a sense of the diversity, cultural celebrations, and houses of worship (and how to find them) in the Boston area.
Laurie Sue Brockway, posted on Jun 9, 2023
SOURCES
[1] Harvard Pluralism Project, “Mission & History,” pluralism.org, accessed June 9, 2023, .
[2] Harvard Pluralism Project, “Religions,” pluralism.org, accessed June 9, 2023, .
[3] Harvard Pluralism Project, “A Changing Religious Landscape,” pluralism.org, accessed June 9, 2023.
[4] Harvard Pluralism Project, “About,” pluralism.org, accessed June 9, 2023.
[5] Harvard Pluralism Project, “Mission & History,” pluralism.org, accessed June 9, 2023.
