Chaldean and Roman Catholic, Protestant, Muslim and Sikh teens learned about one another’s faiths and cultures and heard from representatives of other religious and ethnic groups at the Listen, Learn and Live summer camp for teens, sponsored by the Mount Clemens-based Interfaith Center for Racial Justice.
The sessions were held at St. Mark Parish and Mount Calvary Lutheran Church, both in Warren.
Representatives of Macomb County’s Chaldean, Hispanic, African-American, Hmong and East Indian communities gave presentations. They also heard presentations on the Jewish, Muslim and Hindu faiths, and listened to a talk by civil rights pioneer the Rev. Richard Gleason.
Local government officials talked to the teens about Macomb County’s changing demographics.
The Chinese visitors even gave lessons in how to play ping-pong, said the Rev. Michail T. Curro, a United Church of Christ minister who serves as ICRJ’s executive director.
There were also play breaks, and the lunches were provided by a different ethnic group each day.
The teens also took part in a service project one morning during the week, weeding a community garden in south Warren.
“I learned things about the Muslim religion I never knew before, and things about other cultures,” said Maryous Esho, 15, a member of St. Joseph (Chaldean) Parish in Troy, on Aug. 10, the final day of the camp.
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Luigi Hernandea Zaldana, 15, a member of St. Francis of Assisi/St. Maximillian Kolbe Parish in Ray Township, said, “It’s been good. I learned lots about different cultures I didn’t know a lot about, like how Muslims can’t date and have all these religious rules they follow, and about Jewish holidays.”
Said Shaima Kassim, 13, a member of the Islamic Organization of North America mosque in Warren, “All of us had the opportunity to give to each other and we all communicated in a good way.”
Shaima said she also liked learning ping pong.
David Hopps, 13, a member of Mount Calvary Lutheran, said the week had been very interesting and served a worthwhile purpose — “to help future generations be less discriminatory toward people they don’t know.”
“I’m happy to be here and to be a part of this camp, and that we’re making a difference for the future,” he added.
Fr. Stanley Obloj, St. Mark’s recently appointed administrator, said he was glad the parish could once again serve as one of the host facilities for the camp. He said the camp serves a good purpose, even though — with a mostly older congregation — only a couple of couple of the teens were connected with the parish.
