Islam: Myths and Realities (In Person)

April 28, 2025 – 6:30-8:00 PM

No fee to attend; however, donations are welcome. Please direct your contribution to: Defense for Children International: https://www.dci-palestine.org/

Location: Assisi Heights (1001 14th Street NW, Rochester, MN 55901) Click here for map.

Learn more about Islam and discover the truth vs. misconceptions of its beliefs. We may have more in common than you realize!

Our Presenters:

Ailya Vajid serves the Carleton College community as Associate Chaplain for Muslim and Interfaith Life. In this role, she supports the religious, spiritual, and broader meaning-making and life journeys of the Muslim, multi-faith, and wider campus communities through pastoral counseling, educational offerings, worship, advocacy, and circles of connection and dialogue. Ailya is committed to connecting to the depths of our humanity and to witnessing this Divine presence in each person as we engage across difference and through the challenges we face in our world. Ailya has previously served campus communities over the past decade in Pennsylvania, Minnesota, and Virginia, and she holds a BA in Religion and Islamic Studies from Swarthmore College and an MA in Theological Studies from Harvard Divinity School.

Ailya Vajid is Assistant Professor of Comparative Theology and Director of the Encountering Islam Initiative at the University of St. Thomas. He has previously taught at Gustavus Adolphus College and Williams College. He received his PhD from Georgetown University in Theological and Religious Studies, focusing on Islam, with a minor in Christianity. His scholarly interests include Islamic intellectual traditions in philosophy, theology, and mysticism, Islam, colonialism, and modernity, Muslim encounters with religious others, and geographically, Islam in South Asia. He speaks widely on questions and issues related to Islam, Muslims, and interreligious engagement and dialogue.

Welcome to this in person program at Assisi Heights! Please refrain from attending if experiencing any symptoms of COVID-19 or other illness or have been exposed to any persons infected with COVID-19. Please park in the lot in front of Assisi Heights and enter through the main entrance.