The Pluralism Project at Harvard University

Dr. George Wiley

Baker University
World Religions in Northeast Kansas

 

Current Research

Since 2002, world religions students at Baker University have visited religious sites in Kansas and created profiles of the sites. Kansas City is two cities, one in Kansas and one in Missouri, so some of the centers profiled are in Missouri, too. The large urban areas are Kansas City, Topeka, and Wichita.

Kansas is a large Midwestern state, measuring 200 by 400 miles. Most religious centers in Topeka, Lawrence, and Kansas City are within an hour's drive of Baker University, but exploring the numerous Buddhist temples in Wichita involves a three-hour trip one way. The Vietnamese Buddhists who work at meat-packing plants in western Kansas are out of reach for the students, so far, as the one-way distance approaches 300 miles.

Kansas is chiefly an agricultural state, with even small towns featuring a grain elevator and a railway link. Wichita is home to an aircraft industry; Topeka is a rail center; and Kansas City's diverse economy includes the world headquarters of Embarq (formerly Sprint). The largest universities, Kansas State University and the University of Kansas, have attracted practitioners of many faiths to the state.

We have located Muslims in Lawrence, Topeka, Kansas City, and Wichita; Buddhists in numerous parts of the state; Hindus in Kansas City, Lawrence, and Topeka; Jewish people in every large city, Sikhs in Kansas City, and followers of Chinese traditions in Lawrence.

Center Profiles

Baha'i Faith of Topeka, Topeka, KS (Baha'i)

Lawrence Baha'i Community, Lawrence, KS (Baha'i)

Amitabha Buddhist Association, Lawrence, KS (Buddhist)

Fo Guan Shan Affiliated Temples, Leawood, KS (Buddhist)

Kansas Zen Center, Lawrence, KS (Buddhist)

Manhattan Zen Group, Manhattan, KS (Buddhist)

Southwind Sangha S�t� Zen Association, Wichita, KS (Buddhist)

Lawrence Chinese Evangelical Church, Lawrence, KS (Christian)

Lawrence Institute of Religion, Lawrence, KS (Christian)

Ninth Street Missionary Baptist Church, Lawrence, KS (Christian)

Saint Alban’s Anglican Church, Lenexa, KS (Christian)

Saints Peter and Paul Antiochian Church, Topeka, KS (Christian)

St. Sophia Orthodox Church, Lawrence, KS (Christian)

The Institute of Religion (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints), Lawrence, KS (Christian)

Bhaktivana Yoga Center, Baldwin City, KS (Hindu)

Hindu Temple & Cultural Center of Kansas City (Hindu/Jain Temple), Shawnee Mission, KS (Hindu)

Islamic Center of Lawrence, Lawrence, KS (Muslim)

Islamic Center of Topeka, Topeka, KS (Muslim)

University of Kansas Muslim Student Association (MSA), Lawrence, KS (Muslim)

Beth Israel Abraham & Voliner, Overland Park, KS (Jewish)

Chabad House Center of Kansas City, Overland Park, KS (Jewish)

Congregation Beth Torah, Shawnee Mission, KS (Jewish)

Kehilath Israel Synagogue, Overland Park, KS (Jewish)

KU Hillel Foundation, Inc., Lawrence, KS (Jewish)

Lawrence Jewish Community Center, Lawrence, KS (Jewish)

Native American Church at Haskell Indian Nations University, Lawrence, KS (Native Peoples)

Eckankar Group of Topeka, Kansas, Topeka, KS (Other Traditions)

Gaia Community, Overland Park, KS (Pagan)

Mystic Moon Coven, Kansas City, KS (Pagan)

Midwest Sikh Association, Shawnee, KS (Sikh)

Zoroastrian Association of Kansas, Lenexa, KS (Zoroastrian)

Rime Buddhist Center & Monastery/Tibetan Institute of Studies, Kansas City, MO (Buddhist)

Soka Gakkai International-USA, Kansas City, MO (Buddhist)

Kansas City Meditation Group Self-Realization Fellowship, Kansas City, MO (Hindu)

Vedanta Society of Kansas City, Kansas City, MO (Hindu)

Al-Inshirah Islamic Temple, Kansas City, MO (Muslim)

Islamic Society of Greater Kansas City, Kansas City, MO (Muslim)

Congregation Beth Shalom, Kansas City, MO (Jewish)

New Reform Temple, Kansas City, MO (Jewish)

Temple B’nai Jehudah, Kansas City, MO (Jewish)