|
| Letters |
|
"Was there no one on campus you could have interviewed who has a personal relationship with God?"
What Happened to Religion?
We
read with interest the article "The Way They Do It Now" in the Summer
2000 issue. It appears to me that the present status of religion
on campus still leaves a lot to be desired. If any school was ever
thoroughly religious in its founding, it was Oberlin--even named
for an Alsatian pastor. Early leaders and students were most committed
to Christ. The Lane Seminary from Cincinnati came on board because
of the school's stance in favor of the abolition of slavery. Charles
G. Finney, the prime evangelist of the 1800s, left his indelible
mark on Oberlin.As a former theologian, I and many of the seminarians
and the Oberlin family will always feel that the seminary was tossed
out as somewhat of an embarassment to the college and conservatory,
claiming the seminary's buildings and endowment. To be true, a token
sum of money and six professors were sent to Vanderbilt Divinity
School. Perhaps Oberlin will always suffer from this incident.As
Isaiah said, ""Look to the rock from which you were hewn and the
quarry from which you were dug."" Might not hurt Oberlin to be doing
some of this in the new millennium.
Raymond
Gaylord '46
Grand
Rapids, Michigan
I
read with interest your story about religion on campus, having been
a campus ministry intern there in 1965 while studying at the Oberlin
Graduate School of Theology. While I realize the story was about
the present, it was interesting to note the resurgence of spirituality
there and the lack of mention of the founder of the college, John
Frederick Oberlin, himself a spiritual leader, and Charles Finney,
who probably would have preached against much of contemporary spirituality.
In a paradoxical way, the interest supports the contention many
of us made when the college sought to close the graduate school,
that you can destroy the buildings, but not the spirit. Ironic that
the prophetic spirit of Oberlin turned on itself!
Rev.
John Morgan '66
Reading,
Pennsylvania
The
article on ""religion at Oberlin"" demonstrates how little God there
really is at Oberlin. Only at politically-correct OC could an article
span four pages and not mention Jesus, the Son of God, nor the Holy
Spirit. God the Father was mentioned three times, albeit in a dangerously
disrespectful way, engendered by profound ignorance of the subject
matter.Was there no one on campus you could have interviewed who
has apersonal relationship with God? Lastly, we Spirit-filled, born-again
believers (yes, they also exist in the Oberlin student body!) aren't
primarily members of "religions." Rather, our self-definition centers
on faith developed as a result of an up-close and very personal
experience. Charles Finney and the early OC community knew exactly
what I'm talking about.Anne
Wickham
'69
Miamisburg,
Ohio
|