Evaluation Response Form
The purpose of this evaluation response form is to surface strengths and weaknesses within the Encounter World Religions Centre (EWRC) program in order to make improvements.
One of the indispensable principles of the Community of Christ is our belief in a calling to be a prophetic people. As such the members of the church are commissioned to learn the communication skills necessary to engage in dialogue with one another on issues that strike at the heart of how we live out our collective faith in the world. Whatever the issue, whether it is related to peace and justice, human sexuality, spiritual development, theological controversies, or organizational structures, dialogue is the key to our being able to think and act together in synergistic, prophetic, ways.
One of the primary purposes of Encounter World Religions Centre (EWRC) is to provide practical opportunities for members and friends to learn the skills of dialogue through intentional interaction with people of diverse faith perspectives.
The Centre attempts to accomplish this by:
· exposing participants to diverse people, their religious customs and beliefs,
· fostering an awareness of the symbolism of religious ritual and icon of other faith communities through explaining, comparing and contrasting with the symbolism behind Christian rituals and icons; and,
· encouraging participants to revisit their own faith tradition to rediscover the richness and spiritual depth that is resident there as a result of their exposure to the customs and beliefs of other faith traditions.
Through each of these elements it is hoped that the participants will acquire and build upon the necessary understanding and skills to both appreciate and respect those who are “other” while re-discovering the roots and meaning of their own faith tradition.
As a person who has participated in a program sponsored by the Encounter World Religions Centre (EWRC), I believe your opinion will be of value to us as we try to improve our programs.
Would you please take some time to reflect on the questionnaire and then share something of your experience at EWRC and its impact on your life?
Your responses will be combined with those of other participants in order for us to discover patterns of meaning that are visible in the whole. We will seek to identify questions, concerns, insights, that your experience with EWRC has brought to the forefront of your life. The staff at EWRC will use your input to refine and improve the services that we offer both to the church and to the larger community of which we are a part. Thank you for your help in this matter.
In many aspects within the life of the church we are being encouraged to “think together” as we struggle with the difficult and complicated issues that face us. We call this—dialogue. Dialogue is a way of communicating with other people and it is also a way of “being”. It encompasses active listening, mutual respect, being willing to suspend decision and/or judgement while engaged in conversation, and discovering and sharing one’s own voice. Encounter World Religions Centre (EWRC) provides opportunities for people to experience these attributes of dialogue first hand. Please help us with your responses. There are ten questions followed by several background questions.
1. Please describe your understanding of inter-religious dialogue prior to your participation at the Encounter World Religions Centre (EWRC)?
2. What changed, if anything, as a result of your experience in EWRC?
3. One of the basic tenets of dialogue is active listening (the process of listening to another person with the intent of understanding what they are saying and why they are saying it in the way they are). How did your experience at the EWRC give you opportunity to listen to people who were different from yourself?
4. Another basic tenet of dialogue is mutual respect (respecting one another for who we are and where we have come from). Throughout your experience at EWRC, did you develop a new respect toward people of other faiths? If so, how? If not, why not?
5. Did you feel pressure, or expectation, to change your own belief or to consider your faith less worthy than others? If so, how? If not, what did you feel instead?
6. Another tenet of dialogue is the willingness to suspend (suspending) the urge to decide/judge just long enough to hear the views of others that may be quite different from one’s own. Did you experience this? If so, how? If not, why not?
7. True dialogue is possible only when one has opportunity to discover and share their voice (I am affirmed in voicing who I am and am free share my views with others as part of the collective process of creating insight and meaning). What did you discover about who you are as a person as a result of your experiences at EWRC? And, What impact, if any, does that discovery continue to make in your life?
8. Have you had practical opportunity to apply these principles of dialogue, or interfaith communication, since your EWRC experience? Can you briefly outline what you have done, for example, travel, community work, mulitfaith worship experiences, congregational work, etc.
9. In you opinion, of what value was the EWRC program in helping you develop dialoguing skills (listening, respecting, suspending, and voicing)? (Please be specific)
10. In what other ways does EWRC benefit the Community of Christ? (Please be specific)
Current Age
Member of Community of Christ? Yes No
Member of Community of Christ priesthood?
Yes
No
If yes, what office?
Which Encounter World Religion Centre program did
you participate in? (check all that apply)
| Graceland Winter Term | Week Long Retreat |
| Sacred Symbols Seminar | Something New Under the Sun Seminar |
| Labyrinth Event | All in Good Faith worship |
| World of Faith tour |
What is your gender? Female Male
Thank you for the time that you have taken to respond to these questions!