Religion and the Silk Road
The Silk Road, the trade route that once linked Asia to the Mediterranean, is the theme of this year’s Houston International Festival. Here’s a freelance piece I did for the Houston Chronicle about “Religions of the Silk Road,” a morality play that celebrates the faiths found along the road.
Silk Road performance celebrates corridor of faiths
By MONICA RHOR FOR THE CHRONICLE
The Silk Road.
The phrase evokes the great dynasties of China, the mighty Mongol empire of the East and the legendary exploits of Marco Polo. The 4,000-mile trade network from Asia to the Mediterranean spanned continents, linked cultures and fostered a thriving exchange of goods that lured merchants, adventurers and missionaries.
It also became an artery that connected the great faiths of the world. Along the trade routes, Islam and Buddhism flourished and spread from one region to the next. So did Hinduism, Christianity, Zoroastrianism and Judaism.
For Lauren Santerre, director of Interfaith Relations with Interfaith Ministries for Greater Houston, the Silk Road’s intersection of beliefs inspired her to create Religions of the Silk Road, a play set against the backdrop of the historical route and being staged at the 2011 Houston International Festival, where this year’s theme is “The Silk Road: The Journey Across Asia.”
“Our mission is to promote international understanding through multicultural education. This event really just points out that mission,” said Rick Mitchell, artistic director and interim president of the International Festival. “It’s a way of respecting the differences of these religions while looking at the commonalities in their teachings.”