The Doyle Engaging Difference Program - Georgetown University

Whether one identifies as religious or not, it is impossible to deny the ever-present influence of religion around the world today.

Although I was raised Catholic, my family’s practice of religion has dwindled slightly each year as my siblings and I grow older. As a result, I often find myself failing to consider my faith throughout my daily endeavors. In other words, as I have entered into my early adult years, my practice of religion has begun to reflect the notion of “out of sight, out of mind.”

That said, I was recently presented with an opportunity to change this reality. Last winter break, I encountered a note about the Doyle Global Dialogue program as I read through my weekly emails. While at first I considered that I might not be the ideal candidate for this program given my lack of self-identification with strong religious practices, I soon came to terms with the idea that this same truth might make me a uniquely equipped applicant. Not only that, but I identified an opportunity to reconnect with my religious roots and explore them in a new environment. In an effort to “engage difference” and grow as a student and individual, I set out on the seemingly challenging journey presented to me by the DGD program. Sure enough, months after my acceptance and the near completion of the program, I believe these realities to be true.

At the end of February, I arrived in my host city of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Shortly thereafter, I met and moved in with my host family, an older couple with 7 children and 15 grandchildren. Throughout my past four months of experiences learning and living as a student in the city of Buenos Aires, I have become abundantly aware of Argentine culture and society. However, beyond being a mere bystander, the DGD program urged me to be an active observant and participant of the culture and society in which I lived. Through weekly DGD prompts and social media posts, I was asked to reflect on various questions pertaining to religion and its influence on culture, politics, and society. In doing so, I feel as though I have developed a more heightened awareness of religion than I have felt in several years.

Prior to moving to Buenos Aires, I had little knowledge regarding its religious composition. Quite frankly, all I knew is that Pope Francis is Argentinian. As I quickly learned upon acclimating, the city is actually composed of a population in which 92% of individuals identify as Roman Catholic. At first, this religious makeup was not overwhelmingly obvious to me. Aside from the abundance of churches and catholic sites and symbols pervading the city, I initially heard little discussion of religion nor religious beliefs. That was, until I strengthened my relationships with my host family and my friends’ host families. As I got closer to the Argentinian individuals in my life, I simultaneously got closer to understanding their central beliefs and values. Amongst the older population of affluent Roman Catholic individuals in which I was often surrounded, I heard discussions of anti-abortion movements and other political hot topics. Throughout these conversations, there was frequent reference to “God” and the Catholic faith as a whole.

Although Argentina proudly proclaims to possess a separation of church and state, I quickly recognized the inherent infeasibility of such a reality in a society so markedly defined by its religious population. In this sense, despite lawmaking of the last decade that has legalized abortion, much controversy has prevailed, especially amongst the Argentinian Catholic population. Whether it be through brief comments in conversations overheard with family and friends or the frequent and widespread protests and demonstrations throughout the city, I recognized the interwovenness of religion in all aspects of argentinian life. Just as much as religion seeks to shape politics, politics seek to shape the society in which religion permeates.

When I arrived in Buenos Aires, I had not yet developed the skills and tools needed to see religion in my daily life. However, in actively participating in the DGD program, I have gained a much stronger awareness of religion and its influence on daily life. In this process of observing and engaging with religion in Argentina, I developed an understanding of the need for open-mindedness in all relations. In many instances, I witnessed events or overheard comments that made me feel uncomfortable or contrasted with my own viewpoints. Nonetheless, in order to acknowledge cultural differences, I did my best to rid myself of all judgment and simply listen and learn. While at times it was hard to do so, I can now say confidently that it was worth it in the end.

In my own personal journey of engaging difference, I set off to Buenos Aires where I learned how to be religiously open to growth and hearing new perspectives. While I had not seen this clearly in the United States, religion is certainly all around, everywhere we go.