Saints can help people maintain relationships with their loved ones in the afterlife, said a professor from the Brite Divinity School.Carolyn Osiek, the professor of New Testament in the Brite Divinity School, discussed the “Communion of Saints,” and how it merges society into a single community, Wednesday night in Sadler Hall.

Following the dinner conversation, Interfaith Council watched an episode from the television series “Charmed,” and discussed issues in Paganism.

Osiek said the idea of Saints is important because death is not the end of a relationship with loved ones. People can still relate to them in God and use them as examples in how to live on Earth, she said.

James Russell, a freshmen humanities major and member of Interfaith Council, said learning about the saints helps people understand the Catholic faith and the religion’s history.

The Interfaith Council hosts three or four dinner conversations each year in which they educate students on different religious denominations. This year, they have hosted dinner conversations about the Hajj, the Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca and the Chinese New Year.

Brittney Smith, the program assistant for University Ministries, said the goal of the Interfaith Council is to increase awareness and support for unity in the university community. Smith said “Communion of Saints” would help create unity throughout the campus.

“The purpose of the Interfaith Council is to promote campus-wide understanding and respect of diverse spiritual beliefs by means of communication, dialogue, education and advocacy,” Smith said.

Smith said the event is important because TCU’s Mission Statement is to “educate students to think and act as ethical leaders and responsible citizens in a global community,” and programs like Interfaith Council broaden student’s ideas of religious diversity. By learning more, students are better able to assimilate into our global community, she said.

“The saints are pivotal to Catholicism and, of course, religious history,” Russell said. “They are, after all, whom we as Catholic Christians see as the perfect models of living in the image of God and Christ”.