Religious Emphasis Week Enjoys Great Turnout

January 30, 2009

Author: Sam Jenkins

Source: The Guilfordian

http://media.www.guilfordian.com/media/storage/paper281/news/2009/01/30/Features/Religious.Emphasis.Week.Enjoys.Great.Turnout-3605194.shtml

"It's an opportunity for the community to celebrate our dynamic, multi-faith religious community on campus," said Campus Ministry Coordinator Max Carter of Religious Emphasis Week, a 19-year-running event which was celebrated Jan 23. through 30.

With a turn out of over 500 people this year, the week-long religious rager was definitely a success.

The week was kicked off right on Monday when Shane Claiborne, author of "The Irresistible Revolution and Jesus for President" (with Chris Haw) and founder of The Simple Way Community in Philadelphia led a discussion in Boren Lounge. "(Claiborne) is a man who is truly free," said junior Martha Orhai. "He's not being bound by the conventions of society and is free in a lot of ways people don't usually let themselves be."

Claiborne comes from an evangelical Tennessee background, but has decided to rise up against the anti-gay, judgmental, and hypocritical characteristics he believes most non-church-goers use to define Christians.

"I would say with confidence that he is none of those things," said Orhai. "He is basically embodying the solution to the hypocrisy that people see in the church, and is one of the most real people I have ever come in contact with."

Other events during the week included distribution of the Gideon's Bible in Founders, meetings in The Hut for those interested in Catholicism, Pagan Mysticism, and Buddhism, and even a showing of "Life of Brian," a Monty Python classic about a young Jewish man who is mistaken for Jesus.

See also: Interfaith, Campus