I am rather surprised and disappointed by the negative reaction that has been generated by Messiah's hosting of the Compassion Forum. As a student at Messiah College I would like to address some of the concerns about bigotry raised by Mr. Reitan.
Mr. Reitan stated that "Messiah College has a severe lack of compassion towards its LGBT students. The school's community covenant prohibits "homosexual behavior" and effectively bans LGBT students who are open and self affirming from attending Messiah." What he does not point out is the fact that Messiah's Community Covenant also prohibits sexual activity between heterosexual couples, unless married. Whether a student at Messiah has gay, straight or bisexual tendencies, he or she is expected to abide by a certain code of conduct that they are well aware before enrolling at the school. This is not discrimination. It is what we believe to be a reflection of our faith in Christ.
The article also made no mention of any of the countless compassion-driven projects students and faculty at Messiah participate in every year. Just a brief perusal of the list of groups, clubs and organizations on campus will attest to the student body's commitment to positively impacting our community, nation and world.
Diversity goes hand in hand with differences, which are to be embraced. As Messiah College's Community Covenant states "We honor God"s creation by celebrating"not merely tolerating"the unique beauty and diversity that each person and group contributes to the family of God."
Speaking of Compassion
This Sunday, Senators Clinton and Obama will be taking part in something called the 'Compassion Forum' at Messiah College in Pennsylvania. Ironically, Messiah College has a severe lack of compassion towards its LGBT students. The school's community covenant prohibits "homosexual behavior" and effectively bans LGBT students who are open and self affirming from attending Messiah.
Exactly a year ago to the day of the 'Compassion Forum', the Soulforce Equality Ride made a stop at Messiah College. The Equality Ride is a nation wide bus tour of LGBT and straight allied students working to end anti-gay policies on America's college campuses. It is a journey that I founded after finding that hundreds of college campuses have these discriminatory policies.
When I was an undergraduate at Northwestern University, I met a young gay man who went to Wheaton College, which counts itself among the hundreds of discriminatory colleges already mentioned. I asked him what it was like to be gay at Wheaton.
"Well, I can't come out," he responded. "If I did, the school would kick me out."
I was taken aback. "That is a horrible policy. We must try to change it," I said. What my friend said next, I was wholly unprepared to hear.
"Actually, I think it is a good policy. I think being gay is a sin."
With that, I knew there was a problem in America. This young man had been raised in a home, in a church, and in a community that had taught him to reject himself. It is for him and countless others like him that the Soulforce Equality Ride exists. We are trying to change America.
In spite of our visit last year to Messiah College, their discriminatory policies are still in place. This brings into question why Senators Obama and Clinton would agree to discuss compassion in this setting. Both Clinton and Obama speak about uniting America and both speak against the politics of fear and division. It also calls into question the judgment of the Faith in Public Life center.* Why would they select a college where gay people are not welcome to hold a discussion on issues of compassion? There are plenty of faith-based colleges to choose from. I attend one. I am a second year Masters of Theological Studies student at Harvard Divinity School.
That is what makes this situation so sad. As a person of faith and a divinity student, I believe it is important for our elected officials to take part in forums where the issues of the day are addressed through the prism of faith. Indeed, I was a big fan of the last faith forum aired on CNN. The host for that forum was the Rev. Jim Wallis of Sojourners. I know Rev. Wallis. He was a professor of mine at Harvard and he represents the sort of faith based politics that unites rather than divides, that seeks to widen the circle of God's grace rather than limit it.
At this late date, I highly doubt if a more suitable host for this weekend's faith forum can be picked. If the location of the forum is not changed there exists a challenge for Senators Clinton and Obama. When they speak at Messiah College this weekend they must make a choice. Will they speak out against the Messiah's policy that would bar me and countless other Americans from attending the school? Will they make clear to the American people that LGBT people are wonderfully made in the image of the Creator and loved as they are by the Creator without reservation?
When it comes to faith in America today there are few statements of faith needed as greatly as one that affirms the dignity and worth of LGBT people. As a gay man I know too many friends who have been rejected by their loved ones and too many others, who like my friend at Wheaton, have rejected themselves. Perhaps this weekend will allow these issues to take center stage. Perhaps Senators Clinton and Obama will rise to the occasion and speak out in favor of the God given equality that my LGBT brothers and sisters and I deserve. Perhaps the politics of hope and unity will give way to a religion of hope and unity as well. That is my prayer for this weekend.
* Update: I regret that I made a factual error in the original post. Faith in Public Life is NOT a program of the Center for American Progress. They are their own organization and you can learn more by visiting their website at www.faithinpubliclife.org and by emailing them to clarify their stance on anti-gay policies at college and universities at press@faithinpubliclife.org.
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Equality Ride's own website is very complimentary toward the group's experience at Messiah College a year ago:
"The visit to Messiah College ... proved to be a huge success. We spent the day in informal conversation with students on campus, visited two classrooms for discussion, and were part of a panel discussion on the topic of 'Loving Like Jesus.' We were also guests at a community dinner hosted at a student's off-campus house, where nearly fifty were in attendance. Among these guests were students, community members, and alumni, all of whom pledged to continue this work for LGBT equality in the local community surrounding Messiah. The students on campus had also begun printing and dispersing flyers for a first GSA (gay/straight alliance) meeting, although not sanctioned by school administration, and were offered sponsorship by attending alumni. ..."
However, Mr. Reitan, I am concerned that you are accentuating the negative policy in this blog post at the cost of the significant, positive changes that have occurred at Messiah College--some instigated by your own group. You are correct that the policy at Messiah College has not changed, but as a student at an institution of higher education, I am sure you are aware that instituting a major policy change within a year's time would be highly unusual. The Messiah community continues to hold open discussions about homosexuality, which is the only way the policy will eventually change. Why not encourage their efforts?
"With that, I knew there was a problem in America. This young man had been raised in a home, in a church, and in a community that had taught him to reject himself."
Your equating the man with his sexuality is the same fault you seem to see in the college. The man accepts his religion's claim that homosexuality is a sin. What's wrong with that? He presumably doesn't condemn himself but accepts that he has faults to overcome, his improper sexual attraction being one of them. Do you think that because you're sexually attracted to other men that it's not sinful? I have sinful behaviors too, but I don't claim they're not sinful. I work to outgrow them.
Discrimination is a function of intelligence.
"Being gay" isn't a sin.
Everyone has impulses. It's how we choose to act on those impulses that defines us, not the impulses themselves.
That being said, it's possible to lose control of impulses to the point where you are no longer capable of suppressing them. This is not much different than being a drug or sex addict.
In a society that so utterly refutes the natural, inborn impulse to want to associate with people that look them yourself and call it racist, I find it hard to believe that people object to society refuting homosexual impulses in the same way. What's the difference?
Interesting that you equate the bodies natural response and following through with that as an addiction. When you kiss someone you are sexually attracted (or any other physical signs of effection/intimacy/attraction) do you liken it to an addiction?
This is the problem with too many people, using their own moral values (which is usually based on someone else's interpretation of a collection of books centuries old) to judge others. Their righteousness in condemning and damning someone for instincts they have no part in choosing and cannot change is a little sickening... that the judgment itself is often times against the spirit AND the word of those texts is just sad.
Boggles the mind. How can a condition of one's being, be a "sin?" That your friend could accept that premise means he's more out of touch with himself than I can readily imagine.
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Stop tv, before it kills again.
Compassion like caring about religious fanatics who kill there own women and children about a cartoon of Mohammed? Or blow up innocent school children because they might learn that there is another way to live. Compassion for our own veterans who gave so much for freedom for those who think freedom is free. Compassion for third world countrys that fight against people having freedoms we take for granted. Or compassion for those in our own country that die because of our greedy health care system. Or the lack of compassion in our religious thinkers that think feeding the masses will justify no birth control. Compassion for the thousands that will die in the name of Allah, because some educated zealot knows how to get the people up in arms. The Muslim religion will be fighting amongst them selves for a few hundred more years until the inbreeding stops and IQs go up above room temperature
It appears that with or without compassion, the norm is to suspect and speculate,rather than learn the truth and state facts. When we have never had a Pres who was known as anything but a white man, folks wish to speculate and suspect what kind of president an American afro will become. We must put all of these false illusions aside and vote for Obama, and when Obama is President , only then can we begin to document what it is about him that inspired us in 2008. We need to leave off these false claims taken out of context that he is just like any other afro American up from Slavery. America stop the drama. Compassion begins with you. Wait until the meeting at the college then compare how the students report on these candidates and how you think or thought about Obama or Hil. We need to stop using the antique method of learning to judge folks. Each one is, of his own making or via the influences of his family, friends and Significant Others, the man or Woman destined to be, from a little child. If we were taught as a child, to be evil, to hate, to fight, to love, to be of good spirits, do school work, then these values, good or bad, will influence your growing up and your adulthood. These appear to be worthy candidates for the Presidency and full of compassion.
I'd like to correct a factual error in this column. The organization sponsoring the Compassion Forum, Faith in Public Life, is not part of John Podesta's organization, the Center for American Progress (CAP). CAP does have a faith project, which is the Faith and Progressive Policy Initiative. Faith in Public Life is a separate, independent organization.
Sally Steenland
Senior Policy Advisor
Faith and Progressive Policy Initiative
Center for American Progress
From Reitan's blog, I'd say Messiah is a very suitable location for the two Democratic candidates to posture about "compassion." One candidate is a proclaimed member of a blatantly homophobic religious congregation and the other the wife of the man who brought us Don't Ask-Don't Tell and the Defense of Marriage Act.
The Democrats know that GLBT Americans have long demonstrated their willingness to be politically manipulated in exchange for the fewest of stale crumbs from power. The party could care less.
Not to mention that Trinity is a proud member of the United Church of Christ, and Sen. Obama has spoken openly about his support for his denomination's strong support of equal civil and ecclesial rights for LGBT people.
Trinity Church is known for reaching out to GLBT people. You are mistaken.
ohboy, Trinity Church openly welcomes LGBT members, even purchasing billboard advertisements to publicly announce their openness.
A quick review of the Trinity website reveals that they have a "Singles Community Ministry" that welcomes "All unmarried brothers and sisters, ages 22 and older, whether never-married, single parents, **same-gender loving**, 40 PLUS, divorced or widowed as well as unmarried couples." [**emphasis added**]
Also, Trinity hosts "Community Families Monthly Meetings" that serve a number of different family groupings including "Single Parent", "Divorced/Widowed", "40 P.L.U.S.", and most notably for this conversation "Same Gender Loving Family".
Check it out for yourself: http://www.tucc.org/single_community.htm
And while you're at it, why not google the topic of Trinity and the gay community? We won't hold our breath for you to return and apologize for your misrepresentations. We don't think you a liar; just ignorant.
"same gender loving"? oh, man. how about "creatures of parallel persuasian"? of course that excludes the t in your lgbt, but that is likely little concern to please-save-me-jesus homosexuals who find comfort behind the veil of political correctness.
gays, blacks, hispanics and muslims are all welcomed by the republican party, too. it doesn't alter the core classist and xenophobic mentality of the group. these wannabees just pay their dues and tow the line, and get along fine. and if they're ultimately served crumbs, why, they're still at the table. and for that, they, and apparently you, are eternally grateful.
"MESSIAH COLLEGE" IS NO DIFFERENT THAN ANY OTHER..........MY GRANDSON WENT THERE FOR A YEAR AND A HALF AND BELIEVE ME = THERE WAS NO GREAT PUSH FOR GOOD BEHAVIOR OR RELIGION. THERE'S DRINKING AND DRUGGING AND ABUSE AS IN ANY OTHER.....
I believe that Messiah College would welcome all students regardless of their sexual orientation. As a Christian school, Messah's policies reflect its commitment to integrity and to faithfulness in marital relationships. All students are challenged to follow to Christ in his compassion and to live out their God-given vocation. As one who is committed to full opportunity to LGBT people and who also has a son who recently graduated from Messiah, I challenge skeptics to go to Messiah's campus, speak with their president (a woman) and with faculty and students. The college strives to be a community of Christ's compassion for all and is an apprpriate venue for the upcoming forum.
stemstan,
I was one of the Equality Riders who visited Messiah College, so let me please be clear with you--Messiah absolutely does not welcome all students regardless of their sexual orientation. In fact, as Jake already pointed out, the "community covenant" of the college expressly forbids "homosexual behavior," whatever such a term refers to (holding hands? dating? the sexual act? simply identifying as gay?). Furthermore, I spoke with not one but several closeted students at Messiah. They did not experience Messiah College as a welcoming and affirming place--they were forced to keep secret an essential part of who they are and at times endure hateful rhetoric masquerading as the Gospel.
I also spoke with faculty at Messiah. Many were disheartened that the school continues to commit itself to discrimination and bigotry. Many were ambivalent. I also spoke with President Phipps. She is a warm and gracious woman, but the personal respect and kindness she showed to me as a guest of the college does not mitigate the institutional discrimination of Messiah. As you are a person who is committed to full opportunity to LGBT people and also a member of the extended Messiah community, my challenge to you is to contact the college and ask them why they continue to enforce a policy that is harmful, demoralizing and dangerous to its LGBT students.
The place to be to talk and learn about compassion this weekend is Seattle, with the wealth of events on compassion happening in conjunction with the Dalai Lama's visit.
What can a meat-eater like the Dalai Lama know about compassion?
Are you familiar with the phrase"holier than thou"?
Indeed? And will any of the candidates dare to meet with him?
Jacob -
Messiah College describes the topics of the forum as, "Now more than ever, Americans motivated by faith are bridging ideological divides to address domestic and international poverty, global AIDS, climate change, genocide in Darfur, and human rights and torture. The Compassion Forum will provide the opportunity for candidates to discuss how their faith and moral convictions bear on their positions on these important issues." All of these issues are more important to Americas, both of faith and not of faith, than colleges with discriminatory policies towards LGBT people (as much as such policies disgust me). Yes, it's been hard for me being a LGBT person in America. But I care more about what a candidate will do for those who suffer the most than relatively comfortable people like myself.
Anyway, maybe you should try to work at your own school and get it to mention fighting homophobia and heterosexism in its mission statement, as the school I have my MDiv from does. . .
Dr. King said it best: "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." Please don't dismiss the suffering of LGBT people.
Dear araker,
Glad that you are at a comfortable place with your sexuality and life. For you to suggest that other issues are more important than the verbal, physical and mental torture that Gay youths (and adults for that matter) of today are "still" victim to, minimizes and trivializes those victims and their pain. It seems a very "uncompassionate" stance for a MDiv. I think it is always appropriate to speak out to injustice and inequality, especially for those in the office of the President. They should be the "most outspoken" for those who feel they don't or shouldn't have a right to be who they are, (as the student in the article stated) because they "have been taught to believe" who they are is something vile and sinful. Frankly, I'm sick and tired of "most People of Faith" (particularly of the christian faith) feeling so superior ("or is it just, forgiven"? lol). I have recently been watching the Docu-Drama of John Adams and the rest of our founding Fathers and my belief system in our Democracy and the fact that our founding Fathers were "adamant" that "Religion and Faith" (the Bain of our existance; in "my opinion"!) should have "NO PLACE" in government has been renewed. So if you don't think that Clinton or Obama should speak out at this University (that I'm sure enjoys a tax-exempt status from "the peoples" gov't) against their bigotry and ignorance then maybe you should pray to your god about it.
While I agree with your sentiments, I think it demeans our collective human experience to compare what is happening to Darfur or Zimbabwe, or what will happen because of global climate change, to the state of my fellow LGBT people in the US. I agree that we need to speak out about this. But, even as a LGBT person, this is not the most pressing societal or human/civil rights issue I see.
I had the opportunity to visit Mexico two summers ago. Before going on our trip, one of my friends, a young African-American male and our white lesbian professor had gotten into some arguments about issues of privilege, with he being very adamant that immigration from Mexico was deeply hurting his community, which was already suffering considerably as it is. While walking through a squatted community, where the residents had made houses out of materials they gathered from the local dump, my friend said to our professor, 'You know, over there" - and he pointed at Arizona, just a few miles away - "you and I are on different sides of the lines of privilege. Over here, we're both privileged."
I don't want to dismiss the suffering of my LGBT sisters and brothers, and I apologize if I came off that way. But we also cannot dismiss the suffering of people around the world simply because we want to take a firm stand that resonates with an important voting bloc in these tight primaries. . .
OBAMA"S LATEST PASTOR PROBLEM: THE ANTI-GAY RACIST REV. MEEKS
http://tinyurl.com/2w3rcj
Okay, the latest manufactured scandal. Are you a concerned Democrat or just a Rovian Republican trying to repeat any smear you can loud enough to drown out the real issues?
btw Obama has not been timid about lecturing homophobes--in a Black Baptist church in Texas, f'r Chrissake!--about their homophobia. Let us hope that he and/or Clinton will bring up the issue at Messiah.
Well written Jake. For as long as religion has been around, there have been those who sought to misuse it on occasion. And for centuries, others have come forward to right the wrongs that have been done in the name of religion. A movement is afoot to right the current intolerance in communities of faith. A conversation is beginning that will take us all down a path of tolerance and respect for gays and lesbians.
Who will stand up every time they see this intolerance? Who will help start that conversation?
Thanks for taking the time to point this out.
Misuse religion on occasion? History is littered with the "misuse" of religion. Not to mention, you start from an unsupported and arguably false assumption - that religion is somehow intrinsically good, and that only misuse results in bad things. Enough bad has been done, and continues to be done under the banner of religion, that I would argue the bad is at least as intrinsic as any good. Further, I would argue that religion is by definition a "misuse" of how we look at the world - since it invariably argues that deities and magic books exist, when there is no evidence of either. A movement is indeed underway to address these issue " but it"s a movement spearheaded by atheists who refuse to accept religion"s general exemption from critical analysis. Join us.
"Further, I would argue that religion is by definition a "misuse" of how we look at the world - since it invariably argues that deities and magic books exist, when there is no evidence of either."
There is no evidence that they DON'T exist, either.
"Truth"osaurus, you're screen name is a misnomer because I don't think you and your atheist brethren would know what truth is if you tripped over it.
Yes, there is no question many abominations have been, and continue to be, perpetrated in the name of religion, but that has to do with PEOPLE, NOT religion itself. Religion itself IS, INDEED "intrinsically good," it's just that it's PEOPLE who have corrupted it. Overall, and in its purest sense, religion is NOT a "misuse of how we look at the world." On the contrary, the exact opposite is true. It's a beautiful way of looking at the world when it's used the way it's MEANT to be used, but then, I can speak only for Christianity.
Posted April 9, 2008 | 11:58 PM (EST)