This has been, by every measure, a most unique week for me.A few years ago Pepperdine University and its dynamic Center for Faith and Learning received a grant from the Lilly Foundation to underwrite the costs of a "Minister in Residence" program.
Each fall semester, the university arranges for a week-long visit by some fortunate person who works full-time in ministry. This year I was invited to enjoy this experience.
So, I've spent the week teaching classes in several university departments, including social work, religion, university interdisciplinary studies, history and even one session at the Law School. I've enjoyed stimulating conversations with numerous faculty members and administrators.
My time with students, both in the classroom and one-on-one, has been incredibly encouraging. So many of these extremely bright young men and women have very clear visions about how they want to spend "the capital" of their lives. Most are trying to determine how to serve their communities as effectively as possible.
In every conversation, we discussed the needs of the poor in America and around the world.
Our nation's need to rediscover the priority of justice and equity in every part of our national life seemed to be front and center for these students--and that, believe it or not, unprompted by anything I said.
I leave this beautiful campus pretty much exhausted and battling a worsening cold. But, my soul is renewed by the youthful expressions of faith and fairness that I enjoyed among these incredible students.
Hope lives.
5 comments:
I typically feel that way when at Pepperdine too. Glad you enjoyed your week there. May God heal your cold SOON!
BST
It was a real blessing for our students--and faculty, too--to have you here at Pepperdine. I'm just sorry we ran you ragged.
By the way, I owe you lunch.
Larry, I find the concern for the poor and the desire to contribute a significant piece to others also to be widespread among the young adults I am blessed to stand before each day at Harding University.
I don't deny the historical trajectory of a "salvation primarily" model over a more holistic one, but I would attribute students' desire to make a difference in the socio-economic arena to numerous factors: (1) they read the paper; (2) they get exposure to more holistic models through campaigns thru their churches, apparently more than you might be aware of; (3) we have an emphasis on development ministry through a course conducted at HUT (Harding Univ. at Tahkodah) a global village experience in developing country conditions, and I'd guess other less visible means (the instruction of the Spirit?). There is a group of students that travel to LR every Friday night to be with the homeless, taking them gifts of food, clothing, etc. Admittedly more of a relief effort than a developmental one, but it manifests a heart for the poor. I know of a group who spent the summer in Athens, not at our campus there, but to work in a ministry among the poor.
As for motivation...... I can't speak for them. I confess sometimes to caring more about being known as a person concerned about the poor than about the poor actually having improved living conditions. But some days I do move out of purer motives, and I can only assume these students do also.
I'm sorry to be so slow to respond, particularly since I don't have a simple answer to the question regarding the motivation of Pepperdine students. But, here's a shot at an answer.
First, let me note that there are courses at Pepperdine that address social justice issues from a Christian perspective. In fact, students can take a four-course sequence entitled "Social Action and Justice" that combines issue-oriented instruction with service-learning requirements, all from a Christian perspective. I teach in this program in addition to my regular duties in political science and believe that it provides an important introduction for students seeking ways to understand social problems in the light of their faith.
More broadly, Pepperdine encourages students and faculty to strive for the integration of faith and learning. For many of us on the faculty, this means teaching political science or literature or psychology or whatever with a special emphasis on the questions that seem most important to us as Christians. For me, teaching international relations, this means giving special attention to human rights--not an issue that Christians "own," by any means, but certainly one that the Christian view of the imago Dei would support.
What motivates our students to concern themselves with matters of social justice? To begin with, it has to be said that many are NOT motivated to address injustice. Some of those participate in spite of themselves in service activities or other good works due to peer pressure or, occasionally, the requirements of a particular class. (Personally, I try not to coerce my students to serve. Service under duress strikes me as an oxymoron.)
Among those who do have a heart for service, the motivations are diverse. Some have deep faith commitments and a history of service through their churches. Others here at Pepperdine are thoroughly secular but nonetheless have what I suppose we might call a more humanistic commitment to social justice.
What, in my view, is most interesting--and I apologize for making you read this much to get to the good part--is that many students (and their parents, too, I suspect) seem to combine a genuine concern for the poor with beliefs regarding social policy that can't help but perpetuate injustice. For example, many believe that a low minimum wage makes perfect sense because (1) they've never known anyone who had to work for minimum wage and (2) they think that only teenagers take minimum-wage jobs. Or they're concerned about the environment but don't understand why a pickup truck or an SUV that gets 15 miles per gallon might not be a good choice for someone worried about air quality, climate change, or the disappearance of wilderness areas. In short, students (and people in general, I would argue) fail to understand the very real consequences of social policy. Whether we're talking about hunger, homelessness, health care, education, or any of a hundred other things, too many people seem to think that we, as Christians, ought to work and pray for a better world--just as long as it doesn't require a tax increase!
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