Members of the new student religious group, the Round Table, met Sunday at the Islamic Center of Greater Lansing in an effort to understand the positions various religions have taken on the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Students mingled with members of the community as they listened to American Indian prayers, Buddhist chanting and a Christian parable of the Prodigal Son learning that all religions share an underlying message of love and compassion and non-violence.

"I've always been interested in interfaith groups and the message of understanding in the community," said Round Table member and international studies and political science senior David Dworin, who is Jewish.

That understanding is the goal of the Round Table for the MSU student community.

"It helps me to understand my faith better seeing how it is viewed by others," said Tim Brown, a Christian Round Table member and international relations sophomore who is taking a year off from studies.

Jason Ardanowski, an international relations senior and founder of the Round Table, said the group was initiated in the 2003-04 school year.

Ardanowski, who is Christian, said the interfaith group officially became a campus organization this fall.

"We don't mean that an interfaith group is to blend together all the diverse and wonderful religions into one mish-mash," Ardanowski said.

"We want people to take ideas that other people in other parts of the world have developed and use them to enrich their own backgrounds, their own academic learning and their own religious communities."

In April 2004, Ardanowski partook in a viewing of the movie "The Passion of the Christ" with a group of 40 to 50 Jewish and Christian students. The discussion and insight that followed the film convinced him to cement a multi-religious student organization.

"We gain a greater awareness and tolerance for each other's differences," Ardanowski said.

There are 80 students on the Round Table list-serv, the means of communication for the irregular meetings that currently revolve around interfaith meetings in the community.

Christianity, Judaism and Islam are the religions currently represented, but members are optimistic that members of more religions will join.

"It's catching on," Dworin said. "There's an interest and hopefully it will become a fixture."

To join the Round Table, contact Ardanowski at ardanows@msu.edu.