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"MOSAICS OF FAITH" TO FOCUS ON THE CZECH REPUBLIC The Center for International Studies at the University of St. Thomas, Houston, TX, will present its annual program called "Mosaics of Faith" in Spring, 2012. It will focus on the Czech Republic and will be coordinated by Dr. Rogelio Garcia-Contreras, Assistant Professor for International Studies at UST. It will begin with a concert of Czech music on Feb. 28, 2012, at 7:30 p.m. in the Chapel of St. Basil on the UST campus. The concert will be presented by Dr. Michael Sust, an accomplished Czech bass-baritone. It will include a variety of music related to the Mosaics of Faith conference. The core of Mosaics of Faith will be a four-person panel discussion on Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012, at 7 p.m.,in the Ahern Room of the Crooker Center at UST. A reception will be held there at 6 p.m. prior to the program. The concert, reception and panel discussion are free and open to the public. The theme of the panel discussion will be "the resurgence of Orthodox, Jewish, Catholic, and Protestant faith communities in the Czech Republic today and their influence on society there." The four members of the panel will be: Dr. Michael Sust, pastor of Harvest Bible Church, St. Louis, MO., Rev. Elias Rafaj, pastor of St. John Chrysostom Byzantine Catholic Church, Houston, TX, Most Rev. Peter Esterka, STD, Auxiliary Bishop of Brno, the Czech Republic, and Dr. David Brenner, Visiting Assistant Professor of Comparative Literature at the Honors College, the University of Houston. In connection with the Mosaics of Faith conference, there will be a display of related materials in the Doherty Library on the UST campus. The display will feature each of the four participating faith communities, and will highlight each one’s early heroes, symbols, photographs of the speakers, typical hymns, pictures of principal places of worship, and publications authored by the four panelists. The display will run from Feb. 20 to Mar. 2, 2012. "Mosaics of Faith is an annual conference geared towards stimulating active interest in the vast universe of social, anthropological, and political manifestations resulting from the intertwined relationship between culture and faith," according to Dr. Garcia. "The conference is meant to explore connections and divisions between the U.S. and other parts of the world by considering the spiritual journey of different cultures and their long-standing struggles to live according to their faith and conscience." The University of St. Thomas (www.stthom.edu) is located at 3800 Montrose near the intersection of Montrose and Alabama. Paid parking is available in the garage on Graustark, near Graustark and Alabama Streets.

Established in 1995, the Czech Center Museum Houston (CCMH) is a 501[c][3] non-profit cultural arts organization, with no political or religious affiliation. The Center is based in Houston and was created to celebrate, share and promote the rich cultural abundance of a major Slavic ethnic group and their history. With a worldwide membership composed of members with multiple heritages, its museum and cultural center are considered essential resources for learning about one of our nation's diverse cultures and interwoven histories with others. For additional information, go to Czech Center Museum Houston

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