News & Events

The Ansari Institute condemns the October 27 shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue. We mourn with friends and relatives of the eleven worshippers killed by gunfire, and stand in solidarity with all Jews in Pittsburgh, across the nation, and around the world. At a historical moment when ethno-religious nationalism is rising, and we see more and more anti-Semitic and anti-Muslim rhetoric, it is tragic but not surprising that the gunman, who “wanted all Jews to die,” also was outraged that HIAS, the global Jewish non-profit that protects refugees, had aided displaced Muslims and migrants of other faiths. Evidence suggests the assailant shot the worshippers because HIAS is resettling “invaders” that “kill our people.” But, for us, all …

Read More about Ansari Institute statement on mass shooting at Pittsburgh synagogue

The new Rafat and Zoreen Ansari Institute for Global Engagement with Religion at the University of Notre Dame will officially launch with private and public events this month.

On Oct. 25, religion historian Thomas Tweed, founding director of the Ansari Institute, will deliver the inaugural keynote address titled “Engaging Religion” at 5 p.m. in the Hesburgh Center for International Studies auditorium. The lecture is free and open to the public.…

Read More about Ansari Institute for Global Engagement with Religion announces inaugural events

Thomas Tweed, a historian committed to improving public understanding of religions, has been appointed founding director of the Rafat and Zoreen Ansari Institute for Global Engagement with Religion at the University of Notre Dame’s Keough School of Global Affairs, effective July 1.

Tweed came to Notre Dame in 2013 as the Harold and Martha Welch Professor of American Studies and professor of history, roles he will retain. He is the former president of the American Academy of Religion, the largest society for scholars of religion in the world, and has also served on the international advisory board for Notre Dame’s Tantur Ecumenical Institute in Jerusalem.…

Read More about Thomas Tweed named founding director of Rafat and Zoreen Ansari Institute for Global Engagement with Religion

Rafat and Zoreen Ansari and their family, of South Bend, Indiana, have made a $15 million gift to the University of Notre Dame for the creation of an institute dedicated to the study of religion around the world.

"The need for people of faith to focus on what unites us rather than on what divides us has never been more urgent,” said Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C.…

Read More about Ansari family’s $15 million gift to Notre Dame aims to unite global religions