Network Notes

Ok. First of all, my deepest apologies for being a day late on this blog. I've been having some trouble knowing what day of the week it is.
That said, my name is Melissa and I'm a junior at Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina. I just spent two months traveling in Turkey, Greece, and Italy with the religion and philosophy departments at Furman, and Kelsey asked me to share something of this experience with all you faithful readers! So I'll do my best.

My biggest fear coming home, was knowing that I'd get here and everyone would say "so, tell me about your trip!" It is so hard to know what to say and where to start, after two months of travel. Instead of boring you all with a list of churches, museums, monasteries, and historical facts, I'll try to sum up the things I learned and some overall impressions.

In all my travels, but in Turkey especially, our group was an obvious minority. I remember being in two cities in southern Turkey, one about 20 km from the Syrian border, where many students in our group (including myself at times) felt very nervous. These cities were on the conservative end, and were not particularly fond of the United States (probably with good reason). Needless to say, we had to be cautious while traveling here. And even though a lot of people did not enjoy being in these cities, I felt grateful for the experience, because I did not want to be sheltered from knowing how different communities function, or from knowing how those communities might view America. I think it was good for me to be in a position where I was the one having to adjust, as I think that in many cases, we often expect others to adjust to our way of life. It was also good for me to at least get a glimpse of what it can be like to be a religious and ethnic minority, because I certainly am not in this position in the United States.

Speaking of religion (since it was a religion trip after all!), I should also mention being in different worship spaces and communities. It was refreshing, for me, to see how the Orthodox Christian community has kept the mystery of Christianity alive in their worship. All of the communities we visited, whether Muslim, Greek Orthodox, Armenian, or Catholic, seemed to uphold the sacredness of worship. I think this is something that the church in America could learn from, as we often tend to accomodate the larger culture or use our brains too much in worship, trying to understand that which may always remain mysterious. Maybe this is one area in which East and West could learn from one another.

Finally, I learned how much of the earth's resources I use every day, and how little of that I really need.

It was, indeed, the trip of a lifetime for me! I saw some incredible sights, and learned lessons that I will, hopefully, carry with me forever. Shoot me an email if you have any questions or would like to know more! Melissa.McNair@furman.edu

Love y'all!