LEONARD SWIDLER is Founder and President of the Dialogue Institute, as well as Founding Editor of the Journal of Ecumenical Studies. He is Professor of Catholic Thought and Interreligious Dialogue in the Religion Department of Temple University, where he has taught since 1966. At Temple, and as a visiting professor at universities around the world – including Graz, Austria; Tübingen, Germany; Fudan University, Shanghai; and the University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur – Prof. Swidler has mentored a generation of U.S. and international scholars in the work of interreligious dialogue. Prof. Swidler has a Licentiate in Sacred Theology from the University of Tübingen, and received his Ph.D. in History from the University of Wisconsin; he also holds honorary doctorates from St. Norbert’s College and LaSalle University. Prof. Swidler has published more than 180 articles and 70 books, including: Jewish‑Christian‑Muslim Dialogue (1978); Religious Liberty and Human Rights (1986); After the Absolute: The Dialogical Future of Religious Reflection (1990); A Bridge to Buddhist-Christian Dialogue (1990); Muslims in Dialogue: The Evolution of a Dialogue over a Generation (1992); Jesus Was a Feminist (2007). The recipient of numerous international awards, he was most recently honored with the establishment of the endowed Leonard and Arlene Swidler Chair in Interreligious Dialogue at Temple University.

dialogue@temple.edu
http://astro.temple.edu/~dialogue/Swidler/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonard_Swidler 
215-204-7251
513-508-1935

Racelle Weiman, Ph.D., is the Executive Director of the Dialogue Institute. She holds a B.A. in Jewish Studies from UCLA and M.A. and Ph.D. from Temple University in the field of Interreligious Studies. Because of her dissertation and specialization (“From Recognition to Reconciliation: The Catholic Church and the Jewish State”) she was asked to serve on the committee for the historic papal visit of Pope John Paul II (2000) and the oversight team at the Oberammergau Passion Play (2000).  Concurrently, she received accreditation in Mediation at the Truman Peace Institute at Hebrew University, Jerusalem (1993), and participated in a training film “From Confrontation to Cooperation” between Israelis and Palestinians.  She pursued post doctoral research at Fletchers’ School of Diplomacy at Tufts University in ethnic conflict resolution (1995) exploring the religious elements in conflict, and the Program on Negotiation at Harvard University (1997). She has been a member of the pioneering work of the International Scholars’ Abrahamic Trialogue, traveling worldwide since 1993. Dr. Weiman received the highest civilian award, the Order of Lakandula, from the Philippine Government (2005), and was honored by the Bulgarian Government (2002). Producer of several award winning documentary films, including a National Emmy finalist, (CBS TV, 2004), she also is a senior research consultant for the BBC (1997 Prize). Prior to her current appointment, she served as founding Director of the Center for Holocaust and Humanity Education, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, Cincinnati Ohio (2000-2006). She received national acclaim and awards for the creation and development of interactive multimedia museum exhibitions, including the permanent exhibit Mapping Our Tears on WWII testimonies (2004).  She has written numerous textbooks and co-authors curriculum and teacher training, and appears on radio, TV and in the print media worldwide. She has served as scholar-in-residence in over 40 locations internationally. She served on the faculty of the University of Haifa, Israel, (1986-2000) where she taught and developed projects relating to tolerance education, prejudice reduction, and Holocaust and genocide studies, and was a fellow at the S. Neaman Institute on Professional Ethics.

rweiman@temple.edu
Office: 215-204-7570
Cell: 513-256-8106

JULIA SHEETZ-WILLARD, Ph.D., is Administrative Coordinator for the Dialogue Institute and the Journal of Ecumenical Studies. She holds a B.A. in religion and psychology from Earlham College, an M.Div. from Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, and a Th.M. in applied theology from Harvard Divinity School. She received her doctorate in Religion and Society from Temple University, together with a Graduate Certificate in Women’s Studies; her dissertation is an analytical history of contemporary debates about homosexuality in the Presbyterian Church (USA). As an adjunct instructor and teaching assistant in Temple’s Religion Department Dr. Sheetz-Willard has taught courses on women in religion, religion in America, Christianity, New Testament, and Hebrew Bible. She also taught as a preceptor at Lancaster (PA) Theological Seminary. An ordained Presbyterian (PCUSA) minister, Dr. Sheetz-Willard served churches in upstate New York, New Jersey, and suburban Philadelphia. In addition to her pastoral work, she has provided leadership locally, regionally, and nationally on denominational committees and interfaith efforts engaged in peacemaking and social-justice ministries.

jsheetz@temple.edu
215-204-7520

ANGELA ILIĆ has been a graduate intern at the Dialogue Institute since 2007. A doctoral student in the Temple University Religion Department, Ms. Ilić holds a B.A. in Journalism and an M.A. in European Studies. Parts of her master’s thesis, “Church and State Relations in Present-Day Serbia,” have been published. Her articles have appeared in journals in the USA, UK, Belgium, and Serbia and in books in Italy and the Netherlands. She has presented papers at various international conferences in Europe and at annual meetings of the American Academy of Religion. Her academic interests include interreligious dialogue, church and state relations in Eastern Europe, ethnic minorities, and human rights. Her first book, The Role of Churches and Religious Communities in Preserving the Identity of the Hungarian Minority in Northern Serbia, was published in Budapest in 2007. A native of Hungary, Ms. Ilić has actively participated in interreligious dialogue and community building efforts throughout the Balkan region.

angelailic@yahoo.com

PER FAALAND is a graduate intern at the Dialogue Institute who started in 2008.  A doctoral student in the Temple University Religion Department, Per holds a B.A. in History, an M.A. in Psychology and an M.Div. emphasizing world missions, and has earned certificates in urban ministry, addictions counseling, and teaching.  His work experience includes teaching, counseling, church planting and leadership, school development and administration, and college instruction on several faculties.  Per’s academic interest is in the role of dialogue especially in the development of ‘realogical’ and prescriptive statements and processes for generating and expressing these in ‘inter-perspectival’ contexts (crossing cultures, religions, ideologies, and disciplines.)    

per.faaland@temple.edu

REBECCA MAYS is a new intern at the Dialogue Institute as of fall, 2008.  She is also a new graduate student in the Temple University Religion Department.  Ms. Mays holds a B.A. in English from Earlham College and an M.A. in Folklore and Folklife from U. of Pennsylvania.  She has been a professional editor/publisher for the Religious Society of Friends at Pendle Hill, a Quaker Study Center in Media, PA, for twenty years.  She taught Quaker Studies and Synoptic Gospels classes there in which she became involved in Jewish-Christian dialogue work.  That work led to her meeting Len Swidler and coming to this program. Prior to coming to Temple, she directed the Masters’ program in English and Publishing at Rosemont College.

rebecca.mays@temple.edu

STEVEN EDELMAN became an associate at the Dialogue Institute in 2008. He earned his B.A. in Religious Studies from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and is a doctoral student in the Religion Department at Temple University focusing his research on the concept of the “Other” and its role in spiritual development. Born and raised in Nebraska and Wyoming, his work and life experiences range from ranch hand to inner-city Americorps Teacher (Chicago’s Project YES!). Steven has an actively creative life directed in particular to music, sculpture and cooking.   

edelsteven@hotmail.com

MARIA “MARSHA” KAPLUN is a Dialogue Institute associate as well as the book review co-editor for the Journal of Ecumenical Studies. She holds an A.S. from Delaware County Community College (DCCC), a B.A. from Rosemont College, and an M.T.S. from Harvard Divinity School. Over the years she has taught courses on World Religions, Eastern Mythology, Philosophy, Ethics, and ESL at DCCC and Rosemont College. Ms. Kaplun is a Presidential fellow in the Religion Department of Temple University whose research interests in the field of interreligious dialogue focus especially on Muslims living in the former Soviet Union. Marsha is a formally trained classical pianist, a medical interpreter for Russian-speaking patients, and a writer, with fiction, translations, and academic works published in print and online. 

maria.kaplun@gmail.com

ACHMAD MUNJID became an associate at the Dialogue Institute in 2007. A native of Indonesia, he holds a B.A. in English and an M.A. in Comparative Religion from Gadjah Mada University. He is concerned with interfaith conflict resolution and has worked for the non-profit organization Interfidei based in Indonesia. Mr. Munjid is a doctoral candidate in the Religion Department at Temple University where he is researching the primary theorizers of interreligious dialogue in Indonesia today. He has presented papers at conferences and seminars of the American Muslim Social Scientists (AMSS), the American Council for the Study of Islamic Societies (ACSIS), the New Jersey Council for Humanities (NJCH) and Legacy International. His articles on interreligious issues regularly appear in newspapers, magazines and websites in Indonesia.

amunjid@temple.edu

AHMAD RAFIQ is an associate of the Dialogue Institute. He holds a B.A. in Qur’an and Hadith Studies from the State Institute of Islamic Studies, Banjarmasin, Indonesia, and received a double master’s degreee in Interreligious Relations and Islamic Studies from the State University of Sunan Kalijaga, Indonesia, where he is also a member of the faculty. He has worked for the Center for Religious and Socio-Cultural Diversity and the Center for Religions and Local Cultures in Yogyakarta. A Fulbright scholar in the graduate program of the Religion Department of Temple University, Mr. Rafiq is researching local religious practices and approaches to the Qur’an among Muslims in Indonesia.

ahmad.rafiq@temple.edu

Fred Rowland purchases print and electronic materials, provides library instruction, and supports student and faculty research.  Mr. Rowland has a B.A. in German Literature from the University of Virginia, an M.L.S. in Library Science from Drexel University, and an M.B.A. in Business Administration from Temple University.  In regular contact with Temple's Religion Department, and as a consultant for the Dialogue Institute on the Interreligious Literacy Project, he helps educate a diverse student body in religious traditions from around the world, past and present, and provides a challenging and resourceful environment for scholarly research. 

frowland@temple.edu
215-204-3188
RIS Department, Office 316
Paley Library, Temple University
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