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Being Buddhist

Colin M., M4

Though I was raised Buddhist by my parents, my own exploration of Buddhist thought and philosophy coincided with my interest in pursuing a career in medicine, both of which blossomed during my sophomore year of undergrad. Compared to other religions, Buddhism can have somewhat less of a community aspect, but the monastery just outside of my hometown was essential to my practice, knowledge, and development. As with most cities in the United States, there is a small but active Buddhist community in St. Louis; Wat Phrasriratanaram is the main Theravada center, and there are more Mahayana options available if those are of interest to you. The humanism and compassion intrinsic to the teachings of Buddhism lend themselves very well to a career in medicine and were undoubtedly influential in my choice to make medicine and research my career; the tenets of medicine align very well with the Eightfold Path, and there are few other careers that are so inseparable from science while being simultaneously based on generosity, virtue, and compassion. I’m not very vocal about my upbringing or practice due to the fear of being exoticized or categorized as “new-agey,” but if any of you reading this are curious about Buddhism or just want to talk, feel free to reach out to me, as I really enjoy talking about it!

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Being Catholic

Tucker H., M1

I was pleasantly surprised by the Catholic community and churches at WashU. The stunning Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis is within walking distance from the medical campus, but I prefer to attend Mass on the other side of Forest Park at the Catholic Student Center (CSC) located on the Danforth Campus. Many students from all of WashU’s schools and divisions attend Mass at the CSC, so it is easy to find and become a part of the WashU Catholic community. The CSC puts on both religious and social events every week and has food catered from delicious restaurants after the 4:30 pm Mass every Sunday. Father Gary and the CSC campus ministers go out of their way to try to get to know you, and the former makes himself available on the medical campus every Wednesday at lunch in the interfaith chapel. In short, WashU is a great place to be a Catholic medical student.

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Being Christian

Brooke R., M1

Since coming to WashU, I have found great opportunities for Christian community both within and outside of the medical school. At WashU, there is a group called the Christian Medical Association (CMA) that meets weekly and learns from physicians and other health care professionals about how their faith relates to medicine. One of the things I love most about CMA is that it is an interdisciplinary group, with students from the OT and PT programs attending as well. Because of this, CMA has been a great way to meet classmates as well as new friends of like-minded faith from other programs. In the broader St. Louis community, there are also a variety of churches to get involved with of many different denominations. Finding a church community has been a great way for me to meet community members from outside the medical school, too!

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Being Hindu

Kushi M., M4

St. Louis has a pretty large Hindu community for a smaller-size city. The biggest Hindu temple is a traditional South Indian temple in Town and Country, which is about a 20-minute drive from campus. It is a great place to worship. They have many events there throughout the year, and if you get on their mailing list you will be informed of most Hindu things going on in the area. If you go there around lunchtime on the weekends, they usually have a meal for prasadam as well. There is also a Chinmaya Mission Sunday School in Kirkwood on Sunday mornings, close to the temple. Their community is quite tight-knit, but it is mostly for children.

There is also an ISKCON temple near Saint Louis University, about a 30-minute walk down Lindell or 20 minutes if you use the MetroLink and get off at the Cortex. This is a wonderful community that is very welcoming. At their Sunday Feast program held on Sunday evenings, they have a full hour of kirtan, a full hour of lecture from various scriptures, and dinner prasadam. Many devotees here are heavily involved, so if you’re looking for a serious weekly congregation, this is the place you’ll find it. The ISKCON community also does a lot of home programs in families’ homes in the suburbs as well, which are wonderful and can really provide you with a family here. A Swamiji visits fairly often (I think four times a year) as well, and gives lectures in the temple and in people’s homes. I come here regularly, so I would love to introduce any newcomers to the community. There are many people in the community that are willing to give you a ride to/from the temple or any of the home programs if you need it.

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Being Jain

Sanji B., M2

Since Jainism is a pretty small religion that most people haven’t even heard of, I’ve gotten pretty used to having very minimal community almost anywhere I go. However, in St. Louis, there is a small derasar located inside the Hindu temple on Weidman Road. The derasar is also the location of the Jain Center of St. Louis. Though COVID has caused some disruptions, typically, they celebrate major Jain holidays like Mahavir Jayanti, Diwali, etc. The Hindu temple also has poojas and other celebrations for Hindu festivals. Since it’s hard to have a Jain community within my class or even the school in general, the derasar and these events are a great place to meet people and connect. The hardest part about being Jain in St. Louis for me has been paryushana. It’s almost impossible to find food that meets every dietary restriction unless you cook it yourself, and I find fasting to be really hard when I’m in school. For me, this means that I just shift when I practice paryushana a week or two around so it coincides with a break when I’m visiting home. There I can observe the whole week with my family around me rather than by myself in school. Overall, although there are definitely challenges, St. Louis isn’t a difficult city to be Jain in. It has a great variety of vegan/vegetarian food options, a small derasar, and a community if you look for it.

As a side note, there is also an ISKCON temple in St. Louis which hosts weekly Sunday Feasts with vegetarian meals, Kirtan, and other activities. They also host weekly yoga classes and Bhagavad Gita classes. There are many serious devotees that attend these programs, so it might be easier to find a religious or even an ethnic community here, even if it’s not strictly Jain.

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Being Jewish

Ethan B., M1

Coming from the Northeast, which has a really large Jewish population, I was apprehensive about what sort of Jewish life there would be in St. Louis and WashU. I definitely did not expect there to be nearly as many events as there have been! Having only been in St. Louis for three months, I’ve already been to a ton of Jewish events and it’s been incredibly easy to connect with other Jewish students in the medical school and in the St. Louis area. Chabad Central West End hosts dinners for the high holidays and has events every week such as babka making classes, barbecues, and rooftop networking sessions. Rabbi Yossi and Goldie who run Chabad CWE are incredibly kind and welcoming and have really made my transition to being Jewish in St. Louis much easier by inviting me out to coffee and inviting new Jewish students to events at their home. Also, WUSM itself has the Jewish Medical Student Association (JMSA), which has hosted a bunch of events such as Shabbat dinners and yoga sessions. Ultimately, you will not find a more welcoming and better place to be a Jewish medical student than in St. Louis at WashU.

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Being Lutheran

Matthew B., M2

Since this was my first time moving away from Minnesota, where I grew up in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, I didn’t know what exactly I would find for the religious community here in St. Louis and at WashU. I have been delighted to find that more of my classmates are religious than I would have expected, and I have gotten to have many insightful conversations with classmates where we have learned about each other’s traditions. I have also made time to find a new church home here, where I make the effort to attend on a weekly basis. This has been a much-needed reset from school each week, and the support from a community outside of school is invaluable. 

One of the people who helped me find this new church home was the Rev. Callista Isabelle, who serves as WashU’s Director for Religious, Spiritual, and Ethical Life. She talked to me about various congregations in the area and helped me think through what I might want in a new church. She is happy to talk to anyone who is seeking a religious, spiritual, or ethical community in St. Louis or who just wants to talk with someone about spiritual topics. She can be reached at callista.isabelle@wustl.edu. 

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Being Muslim

Aseeyah I., M3

Growing up in the Atlanta suburbs, I’ve had a spectrum of experiences as a Muslim and hijabi, but was still just a little bit worried that St. Louis, being in the Midwest, would be a harder place to find community and resources as a Muslim. After moving here though, I’ve been pleasantly surprised. The few mosques I’ve been to so far (including the Islamic Foundation of Greater St. Louis, which is a 25-minute drive out, and Masjid Bilal on Saint Louis University’s campus just a couple miles from the Medical Campus) serve a large and incredibly diverse community. You’ll find more than enough opportunities to get involved if you’re looking for it! The Muslim community is also very involved in serving the general St. Louis community with various charities and free clinics that are supported by the mosques. Also, if you eat halal, it’s fairly easy to find food and groceries suitable to your needs in St. Louis, and there are great restaurants to try too! On campus, you will easily find space to pray in the Danforth Chapel, and there’s also a chapel in the hospital where Jummah prayers are held. Also, WashU School of Medicine now has a brand-new, official Medical Muslim Student Association (MMSA) thanks to our amazing classmates, Ranya G. and Ahmed H., and we all look forward to welcoming you!