The Pluralism Project at Harvard University
Gregory McGonigle
Harvard Divinity School
Mapping Religious Diversity in Rhode Island
Project Description
Greg McGonigle's research documents the distinctive multireligious diversity of the State of Rhode Island—a state famous as the historical birthplace of American religious freedom, and significant for its unique immigration patterns of religious populations from colonial times to the present. Please see his online historical essay and captioned slide show "'A Lively Experiment': A Multireligious Historical Overview of Rhode Island." Center Profiles include Native Peoples', Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist and Interfaith religious centers—including the first Baptist church, the oldest synagogue, and the first Zen monastery in the United States. Collaborating with Omar Haque, he photographed Rhode Island's diverse Muslim populations. He also began to explore new experiments in interreligious cooperation by the State Council of Churches, the National Conference for Community and Justice, and several multifaith chaplaincies.
Center Profiles
Buddhist Meditation Place, Providence, RI (Buddhist)
Providence Zen Center (Diamond Hill Zen Monastery), Cumberland, RI (Buddhist)
Wat Thormikaram of Rhode Island (Khmer Buddhist Society of New England), Providence, RI (Buddhist)
Watlao Buddhovath of Rhode Island (Southeast Asian Cultural Center of New England), Smithfield, RI (Buddhist)
First Baptist Church in America, Providence, RI (Christian)
Vedanta Society of Providence, Providence, RI (Hindu)
Brown University Office of the Chaplains and Religious Life, Providence, RI (Interfaith)
National Conference for Community and Justice, Rhode Island and South Eastern New England Region, Providence, RI (Interfaith)
Roger Williams National Memorial, Providence, RI (Interfaith)
Touro Synagogue (Congregation Jeshuat Israel), Newport, RI (Jewish)
Narragansett Indian Church, Charlestown, RI (Native Peoples)