I traveled to Germany to attend a conference at the University of Erlangen, organized by my colleague Ute Verstegen, the professor for early Christian archaeology. My flight from Istanbul on Wednesday February 13 arrived in Munich at 12:30 and I took a train to Erlangen.
I had come a day early, so I had the next day of Thursday February 14 available to spend in the University of Erlangen library, proofreading the indexes to the Gustaf Dalman volumes that I had just received. That evening I attended the opening session of the conference about Shared Memory. Parallel use of religious sites in interreligious and interdenominational contexts. The opening lecture was followed by a reception. Later I went to a local restaurant with some of the conference participants.
The next day, Friday February 15 I attended the full day of the conference. My presentation about Shared Use of Religious Sites in India was in the afternoon. I spoke about three examples in India.
First, the Basilica of Our Lady of Health in Velanganni, Tamil Nadu, a major Roman Catholic pilgrimage shrine that many Hindus come to, which I had visited in December 2011without fully realizing how interesting the place is.
I joined the conference participants that evening for a restaurant meal.
The next morning, Saturday February 16 I took the half-hour train trip to Bamberg and spent the bulk of the day and the next checking the Dalman indexes. On Sunday I met my two colleagues Anja and Ilse at a restaurant to talk about our up-coming India project. That evening I went to see the movie Lincoln, dubbed in German.
Monday February 18 I also spent on the University of Bamberg campus, where I met my colleague Klaus. That afternoon I took the train to the Frankfurt airport in plenty of time for my 9:30 flight to New Delhi. At the airport people were protesting for a ban on night flights to cut down on noise.
I had come a day early, so I had the next day of Thursday February 14 available to spend in the University of Erlangen library, proofreading the indexes to the Gustaf Dalman volumes that I had just received. That evening I attended the opening session of the conference about Shared Memory. Parallel use of religious sites in interreligious and interdenominational contexts. The opening lecture was followed by a reception. Later I went to a local restaurant with some of the conference participants.
The next day, Friday February 15 I attended the full day of the conference. My presentation about Shared Use of Religious Sites in India was in the afternoon. I spoke about three examples in India.
First, the Basilica of Our Lady of Health in Velanganni, Tamil Nadu, a major Roman Catholic pilgrimage shrine that many Hindus come to, which I had visited in December 2011without fully realizing how interesting the place is.
Some people, apparently Hindus, bringing their offerings of coconuts to Our Lady of Health in Velanganni.
Second, the Baba Budhan Giri shrine in Kerala, a shared Muslim-Hindu shrine for centuries that aggressive Hindu nationalists have been trying to take over in recent years; I knew about this from two articles by Yoginder Sikand in the Journal of the Henry Martyn Institute that I had edited back in the day.
A photo off the internet of Indian government security personnel keeping the peace at the Baba Budhan Giri shrine.
Third, the case of Sai Baba of Shirdi, the god-man who attracted Hindu and Muslim followers before he died in 1918, but whose shrine in Shirdi, Maharashtra, which I have visited, is now totally Hindu.
An historic photo off the internet of Sai Baba of Shirdi at the “mosque” where he lived.
The protesters at the Frankfurt airport
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