EDISON, NEW JERSEY, August 14, 2007: Hindu Temple Executives, representing 97 temples and Hindu Organizations from more than 25 states of US and Canada and Caribbean, converged in Edison, New Jersey, to attend the second Hindu Temple Executives Conference (HMEC), from August 10, 2007, through August 12, 2007. They traveled from as far as British Columbia in Canada, Hawaii, California, Florida and the heartland of America, with a mission to nourish, protect and sustain Hindu Dharma in America. This very successful HMEC-2007 follows the first ever such Conference of Executives of Hindu Temples held in Atlanta, Georgia, in June 2006, which was attended by representatives of 57 temples from all over North America. The executives represented a wide cross-section of the Hindu community. These attendees, who numbered over 200, were physicians, scientists, businesspersons, homemakers, engineers, etc. besides being temple executives with deep commitment to fulfilling the spiritual and social needs of Hindu-American community. The group was diverse in terms of age, race, generation, as well as national origin. A 29-year-old Temple President represented the Hindu Youth at the Conference.
Addressing the temple executives from across the country, Swami Dayananda Saraswati of the Arsha Vidya Gurukulam and keynote speaker, emphasized that the Hindu Temples should be halls of learning for the Hindu youth besides being the altars of worship. At HMEC 2007, Hindu Temple executives collectively deliberated on the evolving social, religious, cultural and spiritual needs of the 2.5 million strong, confident, diverse and vibrant Hindu-American community. The conference had some parallel sessions for the youth representing temples from across the nation.
In the concluding session of the Conference, the delegates agreed on a series of action items and passed the following resolutions unanimously for consideration of their temple’s boards.
Resolution 1: We commend the US Congress in general and Senator Harry Reid in particular for taking the courageous act of inviting Shri Rajen Zed to perform the invocation for Senate session with a Hindu Prayer. We will work together, and work with public institutions, to enhance the presence of Hindu traditions in public sphere.
Resolution 2: We will work together and with US Governmental agencies to ensure that the upcoming eligibility criteria for issuance of R1 Visa by US authorities for Hindu “religious workers” does not adversely impact the operations and effectiveness of Hindu Temples.
Resolution 3: We agree to adopt and promote within the US school system the Hindu Dharma supplement published by Hinduism Today (“Hinduism from Ancient Times,” a history lesson for sixth grade, see https://www.hinduismtoday.com/education/). An action committee shall be constituted to enhance the dissemination and sustenance of this effort.
For additional details of the conference, contact Vijay Narang at source.