Reflections on a fake graduation (Plus: More thoughts on the LU Dems situation)
Last weekend, I took part in the 241st commencement at Brown University. It was a lovely, joy-filled ceremony, and I was glad to be allowed to walk with my friends in the class of ‘09, despite the fact that I won’t be officially graduating until December. Still, after donning my cap and gown and passing through the Van Wickle Gates, I can now say that I’m a fake-graduate of Brown (or what my friend called an “alumnot”).
As I sat in the pews of the First Baptist Church in America – a nod to Brown’s Baptist heritage – listening to the Baccalaureate ceremony unfold, I was struck by how many different faiths, traditions, and viewpoints were being successfully incorporated into the same ceremony. In the course of two hours, I heard a Protestant invocation of Jesus. A Muslim call to prayer. A Hindu dance. A rabbi reciting the Shehechiyanu. A poem from Emily Dickinson. A reading (in Hebrew) of Colossians 3:12-15. Taiko drums. A reading from The Prophet. In fact, the ceremony was almost laughably inclusive – Fareed Zakaria, the Newsweek International editor who gave the keynote address, noted that Brown’s Baptist founders “wouldn’t be too happy” with the ceremony’s ecumenicism.
But in that moment, peering down from my balcony pew and seeing a full spectrum of symbolism represented in the service gave the whole occasion a warm glow, a dignified sheen that enriched the meaning of commencement for all 1,443 graduating seniors, even the ones who weren’t Muslims or Hindus or Taiko drummers.
I thought of that warm glow when I read about Liberty’s decision to revoke the official status of its College Democrats chapter, and when I saw the conversations about diversity and inclusiveness that the ensuing PR frenzy inspired. (For background, check out my earlier post.) A few random thoughts that have crossed my mind since then:
- I have no doubt that Jerry Falwell Jr. (whom I’ve met, and who seems like a genuinely nice guy) wouldn’t mind having a Democratic group on campus. But, as this episode has demonstrated, the people whose opinions really matter in matters like these are Liberty’s parents and trustees, the longtime Moral Majority donors who fill the coffers, and the deacons of Thomas Road Baptist Church (who technically control the school, due to a bizarre organizational hierarchy Dr. Falwell put in place before he died). These groups, of course, tend to be older and more conservative than Liberty’s average student. (Chancellor Falwell hinted at this when he noted in his op-ed defense that “donors, parents and trustees” had called him “complaining that the club had been endorsed” in the first place.) Knowing the pressures Chancellor Falwell faced doesn’t excuse his decision, of course. But it makes it easier to understand why he did it. Liberty, more than most colleges, is shackled to its past.
- It’s generally accepted among the commentariat that this fracas will be bad for Liberty. It won’t. Liberty doesn’t have to please Democrats any more than West Point has to please anti-war activists, and it’s hard to imagine that the extra cash Liberty gets from Republican donors over this controversy won’t outweigh any losses. Also, to the people suggesting that Liberty’s tax-exempt status could be revoked over the Dems decision, I say “good luck.” Liberty has faced these church/state legal challenges for more than three decades, and has always emerged unscathed, either by shuffing things around (such as moving Creation Studies out of the Biology department when a Virginia education board ruled that it made Liberty’s science programs non-certifiable) or by lying outright (such as when Liberty beat an ACLU lawsuit in the 1980s by saying that its students weren’t being required to go to Thomas Road Baptist Church – when, in fact, they were). This week’s media controversy will dent Liberty’s public image, but it won’t ruin its finances.
- I’m by no means the first person to notice this, but it’s odd and telling that while Liberty has invited as guest speakers in the past few years the likes of Michael Behe (the intelligent design guru — a Roman Catholic), Newt Gingrich (a thrice-married former Baptist who recently converted to Catholicism) and Ben Stein (an anti-evolution Jewish moderate who gave the commencement address this year), it refuses to grant equal footing to its campus Democrats. It really raises the question: Is Liberty a religious university? Or a political one?
- In the wake of the controversy, Chancellor Falwell has offered the LU Dems a deal: re-affiliate under a new Democratic organization, one that stands for pro-life, anti-gay principles, and we’ll give you official status again. Unless he backtracks further in the coming weeks, here’s what the LU Dems should do: tell him no. As young Democrats, you should able to endorse whichever candidates you choose, no matter their views on abortion or gay marriage or any other single issue. When classes start next fall, say this. Loudly. Start Facebook groups and Twitter feeds. Go canvassing for new members. Put up posters. They’ll get taken down, but not before someone sees them. When you’re censored, take an iPhone photo and e-mail it to a blogger or a reporter (or me). And remember that although it may not seem like it, you’re not alone. Based on the e-mails I’ve gotten in the last few days, there are Democrats at Liberty – including professors and administrators – and it’s only a matter of time before people start speaking up in your defense.
To be clear: I loved my time at Liberty, and I have a ton of friends who still go there. I’m not sympathetic with the Huffington Post commenters who rave about the “clowns” and “automatons” that populate LU, and I don’t fantasize about the school being blown up. But I do think Liberty students deserve better.
A couple people have chastised me for my earlier post, saying that it’s Liberty’s right, as a private institution, to sanction whichever student groups it wants to sanction. They’re right, of course. Liberty doesn’t have to do anything in response to the LU Dems controversy (and, as I noted above, it would probably be stupid of them to do so). But after Chancellor Falwell stated last month that he wanted to “enter a new phase of history” by limiting enrollment to the truly qualified and adding oomph to Liberty’s academic programs, I took him at his word. It seemed like finally, after 35-odd years of clinging to galvanized ideology and unflexing political rhetoric, the world’s largest evangelical college was ready to bridge the divides of the past, drop some of the paranoia, and become a true Christian liberal arts school.
And now I’m disappointed.
I am also graduating from college this year (though I’m still a few days away from finishing), and when I was reading your description of the ecumenicism of Browns graduation ceremony, I did not feel a warm glow, I felt like vomiting. The fact, whether we like it or not, is that as long as there are religions there will be divisions along religious lines, and it is not possible, in theory or practice, to have a religious ceremony that is inclusive of everyone. This is why our founding fathers chose to create a national government that endorses no religion rather than all.
So who was left out of the Brown ceremony? Without having attended I can’t be sure, but it sounds like my group, the atheists and agnostics and otherwise godless Americans were excluded. And we make up at least ten percent of the population in this country, and presumably a greater proportion of the student body at an institution like Brown.
Here’s the big question: was Christopher Hitches up there talking about the evils of religion? How about Richard Dawkins? Sam Harris? I’m guessing not, as that sort of talk would not have fit well with the unthinking attempt at inclusiveness it sounds like this ceremony represented. The problem is that from my point of view as a strong atheist, a clergyman talking at a graduation ceremony feels just as divisive as any of the aforementioned atheists would to a christian or muslim. The clergyman, regardless of the inclusiveness of the language he chooses or how many of them there are, represents the view that religion is a positive force in the world, that it is something to be respected, that it is something we can and should unite behind, that we should (to use Daniel Dennett’s phrase) believe in belief, whether or not we are believers ourselves. Well I do not believe that religion is a positive force in the world, I do not respect it, I cannot unite behind it, and I have no more belief in belief than I do in the supernatural itself. So including clergy in a commencement ceremony necessarily excludes people like myself, whether that is the intent or not. For a ceremony to include all views, it would have to include the view that religion is the root of a lot of evil, that the world would be a better place without religion. And including that along with the clergy wouldn’t make anyone happy.
At least at my school, commencement is one of only two times that an entire class is in the same place at the same time. It is supposed to be something that can unite us, that we can all participate in, it is when we come together for the last time with the people who have been our community for the last four (or five) years and say in one voice “we did it.” Why dirty that with divisive religious talk?
— Frank Bellamy
May 27, 2009, 9:06 am
As always, good thoughts on the matter. I appreciate your continued respect of the school even with this ridiculousness. I feel like I constantly have to look at LU from a ‘hate the sin, love the sinner’ perspective because the school does SO MANY unfair things that bother my conscience, yet the hearts are good. I dont know if the student democrats will win this one, but maybe some change will come.
And also, I get the feeling that LU is so tight & restrictive, not just because of donors and parents, but because of fear. They fear becoming just another school where God is a warm fuzzy feeling. I understand that fear. But what they end up doing is overcompensating for their fears & overreacting. The pendulum continues to swing. Alas.
— Lara
May 27, 2009, 1:40 pm
Great post. I agree with you, I hope that somehow Liberty is allowed to have their democrat club, and other clubs like that, no it won’t hurt the college if they don’t let them, but it hurts the kids that go there.
— Lindsay
May 27, 2009, 3:26 pm
Excellent post. As a proud Libery grad and Republican, a former aid to PA Governor Mark Schweiker, and a PA registered lobbyist, I cannot tell you how dissapointing this whole situation has been. This is worse than the teletubbies episode, in my opinion, because its not just about the founder of the University, but it is about the University itself. When I was a student at Liberty, the College Democrats were known and discussed. I had no idea that they did not recieve “official” club status at the time, but in the late ’90s Liberty was a far more politically homogenous place than it is now. If anything, a functioning College Democrats organization on campus would make for a more lively, informed debate on issues, rather than a race to see who could appear more conservative, more pro-life, more anti-socialist, etc.
Granting official status, and then revoking it, is harmful to the University’s reputation in the world of politics and government. The University would have been better to never grant that recognition in the first place, rather than grant and then rescind it. The whole thing boggles the mind, and the way that it is currently being “resolved” (coercing apologies out of the club members, forcing allignment with barely functioning Democrat organizations) is just as harmful to the University’s reputation. I agree, it may make some of the contributors happy, but in the end it will only hurt the value of a Liberty degree in the political world. As a political professional in that world, and an alumni, I strongly object to the current decision-making process concerning the College Democrats. The scent of ugly partisanship is heavy in the air, thanks to this unfortunate mess. And, ironically, the contributors who are no doubt pushing this policy are not doing it for partisan reasons, in my opinion. I believe they are doing it simply because it makes them feel that Liberty won’t evolve with the times. Well, good luck stopping the sea as it crashes against the sand.
One final thought: poll after poll shows that Americans hate partisanship now more than ever before. What a time for Liberty to appear harshly partisan. Too bad common sense and thoughfulness is not ruling the day in this situation.
— Chad Forcey
May 27, 2009, 4:46 pm
Frank Bellamy, I am saddened by your views on religion but I understand where you are coming from. I pray and believe for you that one day you will come across a REAL DISCIPLE of Jesus Christ, not just a so-called “Christian” (by name only). And the genuine love, joy, peace and abundant life that springs forth from them regardless of their circumstances will make you wonder how they obtained it. When they walk through all the fear, darkness and despair in this world with an inner peace beyond comprehension…….. you will then go…. I want what they have !!!
Until then…….
— Gabriele Sessions
May 27, 2009, 9:33 pm
Gabriele, your response to Frank Bellamy was so sad, if typical. Has it ever occurred to you that Frank probably has met numerous “Real Christians,” and rejected your imaginary playmate anyway?
I attended Bob Jones Academy (the high school associated with Bob Jones University) as a teenager, but not by choice. I did so because my mother sent me there. I spent the first forty years of my life imprisoned in fundamentalist (evangelical) Christianity. I believed everything Liberty University teaches, and believed it very sincerely.
If I was not “saved,” nobody is.
And I walked away. I thought it through (not an easy process, I assure you, but a very long and painful one), and realized that Jesus was not real, God is not real, all of it is a fairy tale borne of deepest wishes and dreams of humanity’s longing for some sort of immortality.
Kudos to you, Frank Bellamy. I could not agree with you more.
The situation at Liberty is not surprising at all. It’s typical and completely what I would expect them to do. I was at BJU when John Kennedy was assassinated, and remember well that they refused to fly the flag at half mast. When some students visited the university president’s office to quietly voice their objections, they were severely disciplined.
This is a normal set of circumstances in fundamentalist circles. Unquestioned obedience to authority, be it God, or the Bible, or the university president, or the pastor, is expected, demanded and coerced if possible.
I am so very glad to be free of all that.
— Sally Davis
May 28, 2009, 8:05 am
Sally, thank you for your comment. Let me allow to clarify (expand upon) my first comment.
Before I do, however, I know what you mean about being boxed in by religion. I grew up in the Catholic faith with all the rules, regulations and traditions that come with it and had I not moved away from my home country and my Catholic faith I would have ended up a very frustrated lifeless “Catholic believer” or an atheist like many of my friends from back then.
I believe true salvation and transformation only comes from the INSIDE OUT not from the OUTSIDE IN. Until we have a real encounter with the living God it won’t matter how many times we go to church and do all the religious things on the outside. We just end up being just like the Pharisees in the New Testament “whitewashed tombs with dead bones on the inside”. Jesus had some very hard words for the “religious” people of His day.
It was the people who had a real encounter with Him, may it have been fishermen, prostitutes, tax collectors or just other regular folks that were changed from the inside out and were never the same thereafter.
I have had an encounter with the living God and I believe in a supernatural God. I am a Pentecostal/Charismatic believer (and no, we don’t “handle snakes”) and I believe in the Gifts of the Holy Spirit (1.Cor. 12) being alive and well and not ceased, because I walk in a number of them myself.
It is yours and Frank’s prerogative to call Him “my imaginary playmate” and until you have an encounter with Him there is nothing I can do or say to change that.
Having said all this, I have to agree with Sally and Frank both that I found the “all-inclusive” ceremony at Brown worthy of vomit. Obviously for different reasons, but nevertheless we can definitely agree on that point.
— Gabriele Sessions
May 28, 2009, 10:43 am
Re: Baccalaureate ceremony. I didn’t keep my program, but I remember each reading had a footnote saying “from Judaism” or “from Islam” or something like that. But one of the readings - I think it was the Dickinson poem - was labeled “from The Silence”. I don’t know what that means, but I remember thinking it might be some sort of nod to the godless community.
Aside to Kevin: The masked man in the lion dance- was he wearing a Bush mask, or just a mask that really looked like Bush?
— Iris
May 28, 2009, 4:43 pm
Kevin, this is OT, but the Liberty U. fracas over the Democratic Club gave me the nudge I needed to find your blog. I just wanted to let you know how impressed I was by your book (and thanks for letting me read it on my Kindle!). You made even this “unsaved” DFH yellow dog Democrat and Episcopalian see the good in a place and person (Rev. Falwell) I had erroneously assumed wasn’t really there. Please keep writing — you’ve got a fan in Savannah old enough to be your grandmother.
— Marion in Savannah
May 28, 2009, 8:34 pm
Congratulations on your book, Kevin, which I found to be extremely interesting and insightful. Instead of a Study Abroad, you departed for what many of us would consider a “foreign land”: Lynchburg, Virgina.
Kim Fassler, who has a popular blog in the Honolulu Advertiser, is aware of your book. She recently brought the Liberty situation up to her readers.
http://quarterlifecafe.honadvblogs.com/2009/05/27/give-liberty-students-a-real-college-experience/
The discussion is one of the most important and liveliest Kim has ever hosted and I would urge everyone who is interested in the subject of politics and religion to check it out and contribute! Thank you again…we all stand to gain by this discussion and debate! Aloha!
— Richard
May 28, 2009, 9:36 pm
Congratulations, Kevin, on an amazing book!
For a lively discussion on this topic, happening in Hawaii, check out:
http://quarterlifecafe.honadvblogs.com/2009/05/27/give-liberty-students-a-real-college-experience/
— Richard
May 29, 2009, 2:18 am
The IRS will likely revoke the university’s tax-exempt status if they refuse to reinstate the democratic club. They are simply not allowed to play politics and support one party over another, regardless of ideology.
I hope that the IRS reviews the political activities of all churches which become PACs during the election. They can’t have it both ways - either stick to preaching and feeding the poor and remain tax exempt, OR play politics and start paying taxes. In today’s economy, it may be the patriotic thing to do!
— AtheistDude
May 31, 2009, 1:21 pm
Kevin, I enjoyed your book, but have a few comments. I’m a Bible-believing Christian who attended secular universities that were similar in academic standing and student bodies to Brown. We are out there, but “in the closet,” so to speak. I don’t focus on things like Biblical “infallibility,” to the extent that means that everything in the Bible must be taken as literally true, in the way that we understand words in 21st century America. But I do believe that the Bible (and not Jerry Falwell or “The Church”) is the ultimate authority. As a Christian, I believe that the Old Testament describes God’s plan for the redemption of mankind and that the New Testament fulfills that plan, through Christ’s death and resurrection. I don’t see redemption through belief in Christ as exclusive, because it is open to all who accept it. I hope you will continue reading the Bible and consider things like whether Paul is right when he says that the whole world is guilty before God and that and that mankind cannot right itself on its own–just some things to ponder as you continue on your spiritual journey.
— Wordly Believer
June 3, 2009, 12:37 pm
Kevin,
Congratulations on your graduation. You’re one of my favorite writers.
Claire
p.s. I dig your continuing comments re LU’s…Interesting behavior.
— Claire
June 9, 2009, 10:11 pm
I decided to find your blog after reading your book and wanted to say I thoroughly enjoyed it and not just for the subject matter - but as a fellow writer - the style and skill in which it was written (but I’m a poet so excuse my bad grammar!)
Look forward to your future work and have fun finishing up your classes
I received my MFA back in January and it was such a wonderful and completely secular ceremony.
Best - Jessie
— Jessie Carty
June 20, 2009, 3:32 pm
Soma to florida….
Prescription drug called soma. Soma to florida….
— Soma.
July 26, 2009, 5:22 pm