World Cafe

On October 3rd CRC had an interesting twist in their Religions Modernity and Culture class through participating in a cross cultural discussion with Taiwanese students from National Chengchi University. This dialogue provided a stimulating intercultural exchange which allowed all students to engage with each other coalescing unique and individual contexts with their broader cultural scale of identity. 

“Culture exchange is an interesting experience, especially with foreign students. Everyone is easygoing and natural which makes us Taiwanese students feel comfortable to exchange our differences. I think that Taiwanese people are is vivid and shy at first but we like to communicate with different kinds of people but sometimes don't know how to do it. Through this workshop, it supplies us a chance to share our culture and it was really nice to participate in. I will never forget the smiles of Long Island University students.”

Moon Cake Baking

On October 1st CRC went to a famous Taiwanese bakery known as Kuo Yuan Ye Foods with their Chinese language instructors. Surprisingly, we were greeted first through ringing gong bells before we entered as well as going through the museum.  Everyone watched a film about the history of moon cakes as well as exploring the social aspects surrounding Taiwanese lifestyles.  Of course since this experiential learning would not be complete if students did not participate in making their own moon cakes! 

 “We learned how to make their pineapple filled cakes and toured the museum. The bakery is well known for their wedding treats, so we learned about wedding traditions and some students dressed up in traditional wedding clothes. After, we tried the cakes we had made and other treats the bakery is known for- a delicious way to learn more about Taiwanese culture and practice some Mandarin!”
-Caitlin Kawaguchi 

Confucius' Birthday (Teacher's day)

Two days after CRC visited the Confucius temple they attended the annual Confucianism celebration in retrospect of his birthday which is Teachers Holiday. They experienced ceremonial music and dance that enlightened everyone about the ritual traditions that remain cherished throughout Taiwanese culture. 

“The solid order of Confucianism was really pronounced at the ceremony therefore, I felt like I was watching a military performance more than scholars. The drum beating and the wind rushing around everywhere made me feel like the enormous spirit of Confucius was marching into the temple to watch his very own birthday party.” – Jason Gill

Confucius Temple

On September 25th students visited the Confucius temple in Taipei. This temple incorporated the artistic values of Confucius’s core philosophies throughout historical and educational exhibition halls throughout the internal structure. Our tour guide Seth Clippard provided us with informative insight towards understanding Confucianism as well as how embedded it is into the social and political fabric of Taiwanese society.

“Naturally letting go to flow within, this peaceful place immerses you without choice, transcending thought into realms of light.”
-Forrest Nuemann

"For that brief moment, in the Confucius temple I felt like I could be sitting anywhere. But I wasn't, I was sitting all the way across the world in a space my imagination couldn't even conjure up; how humbling to concentrate for fifteen minutes on the sheer fact of that." 

-Nicole Kangos

Hsing Tien Kong Temple

On the 18th of September the Comparative Religion and Culture program visited the Daoist temple, Hsing Tian Kong. This was led by an amazing and witty tour guide, David Hong who has worked in the temple for more than twenty years! In the temple everyone experienced various forms of worship such as the Shoujing ritual which is a practice performed by elder women aimed at cleansing and unifying an individual’s soul.

“There is a certain magic from watching the sun set upon the domino align red tile roof of a Chinese architectural masterpiece. Sitting outside of the Xingtian temple, the dragon gargoyles are brought to life with their wicked eyes, opened fiery mouth and sharp claws as they turned the incandescent lighting around the temple. Your weary heart will come to the realization that the people that surround you are your family and this place IS home.”
-Maria Obando

A lovely picture of the group

Mengjia Longshan Temple

On September 10th CRC students experienced their first religious site, exploring the popular Mengjia Longshan Temple in Taiwan. This temple was extremely unique because of the combination of three popular religions which synthesized; Daoist, Buddhist and Confucius elements. This was exemplified through devotional worship such as lighting incense and praying to multiple deities.

“The Longshan temple was the first place of worship that we visited once arriving in Taiwan. The intimacy of each spiritual interaction was made clear, and everyone participated in the rituals putting aside awkward inhibitions upon entering a new culture. It was a great way to start off the year in CRC and get used to all the new experiences that we will continue to have throughout this long year program!”
-Hannah Simon

Here is a picture of the group at the front of this temple.