Background: This interview was conducted by Trishla Jain, SFS'15, as part of Georgetown's participation in the President's Interfaith and Community Service Challenge. Chase Kimball is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), where he has served in many roles, including as a full-time missionary in the Netherlands. He has been involved in interfaith work since his days as an undergraduate in college, and he has continued that engagement, most recently as a participant in the D.C. Young Adult Faith Leaders Summit. In this interview, Kimball reflects on his introduction to interfaith activities, the close connection between faith and service, and how Georgetown students can best engage in interfaith dialogue.
Could you tell me about your personal faith journey and what drew you to pursue interfaith collaboration in your life?
I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I have loving and thoughtful parents who raised me in the church and instilled in me a deep sense of faith. They also taught me to ask questions and to explore and take delight in the world around me. I grew up in Evanston, Illinois, just outside Chicago, where Mormons were a small minority in my high school. From a young age I was accustomed to joining my Jewish friends for Passover seders, visiting the Episcopalian church down the road on Christmas Eve, and talking with my friends at school about my beliefs and theirs. I always felt respected, and I always felt at home in that pluralistic environment.
When I turned 19 I served as a missionary for my church for two years in the Netherlands. This was a wonderful, extremely formative experience. My love for the church and the Gospel grew much stronger, and my mission brought me in close contact with thousands of people from every different religious, ethnic, family, and economic background. Every conversation centered on questions like “How has your faith strengthened your family?” and “Who is God to you?” I left the Netherlands with a much deeper and loving understanding of these people and the traditions they represented.
After my mission I returned to Carleton College, a small liberal arts college in Minnesota. There I quickly got involved with interfaith activities on campus. I attended weekly Taize Vespers services and a biweekly discussion series, and I got a job in the Chaplain’s Office, helping with logistics for a whole range of religious and cultural events put on by the different communities represented on campus. At the same time I was also serving in the leadership of my local LDS congregation. My interfaith activities on campus added more richness and dimension to my religious life than I would have had without them. Hearing what others believe taught me to see the world in a new way, and seeing how others live their faith inspired me to live my life with greater virtue. Additionally, when I had to explain my beliefs to someone from another background, it forced me to articulate my beliefs in new ways and learn something new about myself in the process.
When I first moved to Washington after graduation, I did not know how best to engage with other faith communities. The real world did not offer as many structured opportunities as college did, and I was preoccupied with simply getting my bearings in this new city. But this year I have seen a surge of interfaith activity. After the D.C. Young Adult Faith Leaders Summit that took place in February, I have made many new connections. Since then I have attended lectures, discussions, dinners, and service projects; I have made new friends; and together with my other LDS friends we have made big plans for increased interfaith collaboration down the road.
What do you believe is the importance of interfaith dialogue and events such as the D.C. Young Adult Faith Leaders Summit? What impact can this kind of collaboration have on our society?
Interfaith dialogue turns strangers into friends. When we learn about each other’s beliefs and backgrounds, we are more likely to care for one another. And since the history of conflict in the world has so much to do with contention between different religious communities, it is important to sow friendship where animosity or ambivalence might otherwise crop up. Interfaith dialogue also brings together like-minded people. That might sound like a contradiction, but in a day where many people do not have any religious affiliation, interfaith events build bridges between people of faith who might not otherwise have a forum to come together. And as we build the friendships that naturally emerge from this kind of dialogue, we are prepared to link arms together to tackle issues we all care about.
How does your faith inform the service work that you do?
My faith informs everything I do. The Book of Mormon teaches: “When ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God” (Mosiah 2:17). And Jesus said, in reference to clothing the naked and visiting the sick: “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me” (Matthew 25:35-36, 40). For me, service and faith form a circle. The more I serve, the closer I feel to God, the stronger my faith becomes. And the stronger my faith becomes, the greater grows my desire to serve. It has most often been in the homes of other people—ministering to them and helping them when they need help—that I see the face of God.
Do both faith groups in general and interfaith groups specifically have unique places in service work and social justice?
Faith can be a powerful motivator of good works. While good people both religious and nonreligious will recognize the virtue of selfless service, I believe that faith can light fires in people and give them a passion for service that cannot always be replicated in the secular world. Moreover, faith groups have a special place in service work because they encourage accountability. It is one thing to tell yourself you are going to help; it is another to commit publicly to your community that you’re going to help. And it helps when your community is teaching the message of helpfulness and service every week.
What is your message to the average Georgetown student?
A professor of mine once said, “There are many ways to learn about other people’s cultures. But whatever the second best way is, it pales so far in comparison to the first best way as to hardly even matter. And the best way to learn about another culture is to learn that culture’s language.” The same is true for learning about other religions. In some instances, this may literally mean learning another language, just as a familiarity with Arabic would help any student of global Islam. But even traditions closer to home may require translation. If you want to learn about Mormonism, talk with Mormons. Learn some of their jargon and learn how they string phrases together to describe the world around them. Ask for suggested scriptural passages to read, or visit a service. Do the same thing with every tradition you encounter. Acquaint yourself with the nomenclature of different faiths, and you will find your conversations becoming richer and more intimate. You will make friends more easily.
