s a professor of Jewish education in the
United States, the most unusual situa-
tion in which I might imagine myself is as a
consultant/scholar in a Christian private
school in Hong Kong. In January 2003 this
unusual situation became a reality as I trav-
eled with my Catholic colleague and partner
in interreligious work, Dr. Mary C. Boys of
Union Theological Seminary (see page 6), to
the Hong Kong International School
(
HKIS). It is a school with 2500 students
from kindergarten through high school on
two campuses. We were invited as the
Charles W. Dull Visiting Scholars to work
with students, faculty, and families to explore
the meanings of religious pluralism and the
implications for their school.
HKIS was founded by Lutherans of the
Missouri Synod as a Christian school with a
strong commitment to the beliefs and prac-
tices of the Lutheran tradition. In the 21
st
century they find themselves to be a very
diverse school religiously, with Christians,
Muslims, Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, followers
of Bahai and other religious traditions. The
cultural and national origins of the students
and their families span the globe. The HKIS
mission statement describes the school as “an
American-style education grounded in the
Christian faith, respecting the spiritual lives of
all.” Given the origins of HKIS, their current
social and religious reality, and their commit-
ment to “respecting the spiritual lives of all,”
the school faces an educational and cultural
challenge of remaining true to the Christian
tradition of their founding but aspiring to
become a school that is truly reflective of
religious pluralism.
We were invited, based on our work of
the past 18 years in the field of religious
pluralism and particularism, in the
hope that we could help them move
toward this aspiration. Our work with
Jewish and Christian educators and
scholars is based on a belief that it is
very important to educate students,
young and old, in our respective reli-
gious traditions and toward knowledge and
appreciation of the religious other. If reli-
gious pluralism is to be more than a slogan
in our society then religious education must
prepare people of all faiths to be deeply
grounded in their own religious particular-
ism while affirming the value of the religious
particularism of others. We believe that this
poses an educational challenge for which
teachers, educators and clergy need to be
prepared, and that has been the focus of our
work and our research.
The location of HKIS on Hong Kong Island
places one in an interesting meeting of cul-
tures. On the one hand, Hong Kong is part
of China and much of Chinese culture is in
evidence. At the same time, Hong Kong
retains much of the British influence from
the days of being a colony, and is home to
expatriates from all over the world who work
in this important commercial and financial
center. Skyscrapers and all the hallmarks of
prosperity and Western culture stand side by
side with human density that is startling and
a mix of Asian cultures that remind one that
this is a very different place. HKIS reflects
this same juxtaposition of cultures – a school
that is American in its curriculum, the dress
of its students and the origins of many facul-
ty members – and yet a school where the
students are from many cultures and reli-
gions, where the learning of Chinese is
mandatory, and where Chinese New Year,
as well as other Asian celebrations, punctuate
the school year and are taken for granted,
whatever the origin of the students.
Our visit involved sessions with students,
faculty, families, and administrative staff. In
each of these encounters the objective was to
allow participants to share their understand-
ing of their own religious and cultural
commitments and to explore how that plays
out in an environment committed to reli-
gious and cultural pluralism. In
dialogues with High School and
Middle School students we shared
some of the experiences we have had
working and learning together. We
asked the students the following ques-
tions. “How has your experience at
HKIS influenced how you think about
yourself as a member of your tradition?
About other traditions in the school?”
Some students were quite puzzled
when confronted by the reality that a
dventures of Professors Lee and Weisberg
By Professor Sara S. Lee
Director, Rhea Hirsch School of Education,
HUC-JIR/Los Angeles
A
(
continued on page 32)
Professor Lee and Dr. Boys with the faculty of the Hong
Kong International School.
Professor Sara S. Lee with Dr. Mary C.
Boys and scholar Dr. John LeMond.
2003
ISSUE 62
15