Day 2 in Utrecht. Basically our day was made up of 2 parts: first an interactive training on sexual diversity and religion. After lunch, a look at multicultural Utrecht.
Examining how sexual diversity and religion relate or interact was very tricky. Today we studied it in terms of Islam, but I think this issue can be just as difficult in other religions and cultures. Nonetheless, the focus on Islam was refreshing because it is not as familiar to us as Christianity or Judaism may be. On that note, a distinction can be made between how homosexuality can be reconciled in the Catholic and Muslim faiths. Omar talked about the sources that Muslims turn to when they have questions: the Koran, the Sayings, compensation, etc. If a Muslim wanted to challenge a norm that is supposedly dictated by God, then he or she would have to prove that it is not dictated by God, but instead that the norm is an interpretation that is more arbitrary than justified.
On the other hand, when Catholics have a question, they turn to the Pope. His decisions are supposedly guided by the Holy Spirit. It makes me wonder then, who will have a more difficult time accepting homosexuality: the Catholic faith or the Muslim faith? It seems like there is a strategy to cracking the barrier between Muslim and Homosexual identity, but in terms of Catholicism it seems like it all depends on one individual (the Pope)...and how he will interpret the Bible and other things (omens? i dont know how he makes decisions). But don't lose faith (no pun intended), maybe there is a strategy to bringing homosexuality to the front of Catholic issues and revealing that both identities are compatible.
Multicultural Utrecht:
We talked to people in the Mosque and on the street and both experiences were enlightening. I don't want to spend too much time on this because I want to write about Ulu, the Turkish Youth Center, but I will just say that it was really something to hear a little about Dutch values from the Dutch people themselves. As Sophie was saying, it seems like we've been talking about how the Dutch are this and that, and how great Dutch society is, but to hear how tolerant people are here, from both Dutch Muslims and "mainstreamers" was great.
To me visiting the Turkish Youth Center has been the highlight of our stay in Utrecht (so far). Where to start? Well the music was amazing. I love all kinds of music, including "foreign" so it was great to hear them play. At one point the percussion reminded me a little of samba music from Brazil. But the band and the music also reminded me a little of a musical genre in Argentina called "cumbia villera" ("villa" means "slum" in Argentina). But it's not because they sound alike, (although the keyboard is extensively used in both) but instead because of what they represent. In mainstream Argentina cumbia villera is not very popular. Instead it is mostly enjoyed by the poor masses, especially among immigrants or people of immigrant background, immigrants from other parts of South America like Bolivia, Peru or Colombia, who for the most part look as different from Argentines as the Turks do from the Dutch. Seeing the Turkish guys sing and dance to their music, (a genre which I imagine is far from being mainstream in the Netherlands) reminded me of cumbia villera, and it reminded me of my own experiences as a minority when I lived in Argentina, and of being a minority now that I live in the States.
What I think was so great about the experience with the Turkish Youth was that we didn't talk much about politics (which is unusual for me, especially in situations like these, which I usually take advantage of). This time, for some reason, these issues never came up. Everything was just about having fun; whether it was solving riddles, playing cards, playing pool, dancing, or making music, and hopefully on Wednesday we can find some time to play soccer with them. If I didn't talk about multiculturalism, or Islam with the Turkish youth, does this mean that I blew a fine opportunity to learn something? Certainly not. This time, I can let not talking about that stuff slip. As Luis said, today we can all draw something from our experiences, from our interactions. Today I learned volumes about making friends with people of a very different cultural background. We've all met Muslims before, but how often do we come across those who live in a country such as the Netherlands, whose liberal values we thought inevitably clash with those of the Muslim faith. Kudos to the staff for their flexibility in terms of dinner today. Having dinner at the Youth Center was a better idea than going out to a restaurant--by far.
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