8

Page Eight

THE COLLEGE NEWS

Friday, March lL 1968



Platforms

groups. And wouldn’t it be a good idea
” to have interchanges and panel discussions
among the groups, exchanges which could
be open to the whole college? One sub-
ject for such a conference might be: the
Significance of religion to a church-
affiliated college student,

Interfaith should continue to bring the
interested student in touch with her own
church, A coffee with local rabbis and
ministers, for the special benefit of in-
. ~@oming freshmen but open to all, would
be a nice idea,

Finally, Interfaith should tuse new spi-
rit into its avowed goal of establishing
a worship service or several types of
services which would be significant to
and in harmony with the gamut.of re-
tae views at Bryn Mawr - admittedly,

a very difficult task. One service could
be designed for Jewish thought, another
for Christian and still another for Eas-
tern. There is the possibility of having
an hour of chamber music and meditation
every Sunday afternoon. Monthly concerts
sung in the Library Reading Room at
Sunday noon could be reinstituted,

Interfaith can do and contribute so much,
and it should!

Margaret Byerly

Over the past few years, I have be-
come interested in the relation between
religion and the problems of life. Do
we practice what is preached? Churches
take collection every week. Some build
extensions on their present buildings;
some send missionaries out to convert
others, But how much does the church
do in its own neighborhood about the
racial situation, for instance, or poverty?
How many people think about their react-
ions to their church service longer than
througti Sunday dinner? How many go
to church because it’s the thing. to do?
Are Christians being distracted from the
main goals of Christianity through the




rivalry various sects? In England,

the huge cathedrals all over the country
hold services for a mere handful of
people, and even in mostly-Catholic Italy,
attendance is poor. Doesn’t bad atten-
.dance reflect on the influence and worth
of religion?

I am not saying that we could solve
all these problems in Interfaith, but I
do feel that it would be beneficial and
interesting to try to find the cause of
religious apathy and to define the place
of religion in society ahd its responsi-
bility to help to improve some of the pro-
blems of society today. I speak not
only of Christian and American churches,
but of religions all over the world.

I also feel, myself, a lack of knowledge
about some American religious sects,

‘Mormons or Mennonites, for instance.
I have met people who did not know that
Mormons are Christians or what Quakers
are. I think that as well as being
conversant with foreign religions,
we should learn about the various groups
in our own country. How do they differ?
Why were they formed? Perhaps an-
swers to questions like these will help
in a search for the answer to the bigger
problem of the worth of religion in gen-
eral, I would like to hear some atheists
tell what caused them to reject their
faith. How did their churches fail to
reach them?

The theory that God is dead has been

_ argued both ways, but the fact that the

rumor arose in the first place indicates
religion somewhere. Why do



in
not

to bring speakers to the campus and arouse
student interest in religion. Because of

the diversity and general interest of the |





speakers and programs, such as the
2) EY we sigs ’

film, ‘‘The Phoenix,’? Interfaith carries
out the aims of the Committee on Reli-
gious Life in a way that is relevant
to the college community.

Interfaith’s most active role on cam-
pus has been the sponsoring of q lecture
series. Many of the speakers in the past
have talked about subjects of general
interest to students rather than on speci-
fically theological subjects. Most of the

Jecturesare—of--interest to more than

a single denominational group. I would
like to continue this program of spea-
kers, with topics that would be interest-
ing to more than a minority of stu-
dents,

Interfaith itself is non-denominational;
it represents the religions of all stu-
dents on campus, Several denominational
discussion groups have been organized
on campus, and more would be welcome,
I would like to encourage communication
among the groups. This year I have
worked with Interfaith as a dorm re-
presentative,

Peggy McGarry

The fact that there are five candidates ..

running for the presidency of Interfaith
this year, ii comparison to the situation
of last year in which no one was willing
to run for the office, can be taken hope-
fully as a sign of a renewed interest
in Interfaith on campus. This interest
should be pursued and’ encouraged, I
think, through the organization’s main
activity, its lecture series. Through the
use of a campus - wide questionnaire,
much like the one the Social Committee
distributed at the beginning of this year,
the suggestions for topics and speakers of
interest to many students might. be uti-
lized to make the series an important
and constantly relevant part of the general
‘campus life. As one of the Big Six
organizations with dorm representation,
in light of the funds available for this
series, and surely by virtue of its na-
ture, Interfaith owes to the campus apro-
gram of wide appeal.

If this kind of lecture series and accom-
panying interest could be realized, I
think arrangements should be made where-
by students wishing to do so could come
together at some time after the lecture
for discussion. In relation to this a
speaker should be urged to come pre-
pared to provide those interested with
a bibliography on his topic.

In connection with such a drive toward
a wider appeal in its, lectures and a

reater impact on the life of the college,
Int th must expand its efforts to in-
crease the cooperation between itself and
the other organizations on campus,
particularly Alliance and League. With

the emphasis today in religious circles,
especially those in which younger people
are involved, being put increasingly on
the ‘‘witness’’ aspect of faith, the col-





































‘ house,
- taining her non-sectarian policy, has a

of these might be increased and: new
programs initiated. Forums and panel
discussions combining the political,
social, and religious moral aspects of
topics like the above, abortion, the use
of violence in social change, the impli-
cations of imperialism on another culture,

~-etc., would make use of the resources

of many groups, have a broader appeal
and further integrate life outside the col-
lege with that within it.

This cooperation between campus
groups might also help in renewing the
much-discussed ‘Bryn Mawr com-
munity.”? In addition, I would like to see
this policy extended within Interfaith
itself; to see the various religious dis-
cussion groups, some of which are now
quite strong, participate. in this effort.
An endeavor to enter into dialogue with
one another in the coming year would be
both beneficial to them and their mem-
bers, and would aid in increasing the all-
over impact of Interfaith on the campus.

Finally , I think Interfaith must act,
as it has not in the past, as a vehicle
for communication between interested stu-
dents and groups on campus and the va-
rious--national- student’ religious groups
and movements.

Mary Schrom

I believe we are in the’ midst of a
religious revival. Let me hasten to ex-
plain myself. I certainly do not mean
religious in its institutional sense nor
revival with all its Billy Graham connot-
ations, The phenomenon is indeed limited,
But I do méan that in the past year, along
with increasihg. threats ofa’ still darker future, I have
seen many evidences of an increased in-'
terest in and respect for what we call ‘‘re-
ligion.”’ This interest and respect
comes from many quarters. Primarily,
I think, it can be seen in two areas:
in social action, where the basis for par-
ticipation has become something more
than a vague humanitarianism or the is-
olated struggle of a itn he

Me : ;
of society, and in the field of rational

thought. The legacy of the eighteenth
and nineteenth century Rationalists is be-
ing diminished by persons who insist
that wholly rational systems do not pro-
vide all the answers -and that psychic
reality forms a large part of each in-
dividual’s world, Hence we have Dr. Viktor
Frankl and his school of logotherapy
(will-to-meaning) and the Committee of
Ministers and Laymen who oppose the war;
we have Professor Raskin speaking at
Haverford on ‘‘Religion as the Basis for
Social Action’’ and persons studying for
joint degrees in psychiatry and religion,
This year has seen consistently higher
attendance at Interfaith lectures; the de-
mand of students to major in religion
at Haverford or to improve the depart-
ment at. Bryn Mawr, — Religion in Cu-
lture at Haverford has to turn away st-
udents. The Jewish and Episcopal dis-
cussion groups meet regularly and en-
thusiastically,

It seems to me that this situation, ho-
wever limited it is, is where the Bryn
Mawr Interfaith organization should find
its reason for existence. Its traditional
role of providing a lecture series and
sponsoring discussion groups needs to be
implemented by some sort of guiding pu-
rpose in order for Interfaith to be a
viable part of campus life, something
more than an organizational clearing-
Bryn Mawr College, in main-

tendency to bend over backwards too far
-and sts any part that religion might

"Play, in a student's life beyond its role —
- “as an academic
es ae ns certainly no need for In-

c discipline, On the other
—_ ee



religion, No one wants to force any-
thing on anyone, But Interfaith should
provide abundant opportunity for all st-
udents who are interested to learn and
grow and worship and become involved
in matters concerning religion, Inter-
faith should strive for optimum comm-
unication among. .students, faculty,
neighboring churches and institutions and
outside religious organizations, Above
all, Interfaith--through its members and
contacts and activities--should provide
resources for all students, regardless
of her creed or non-creed--from the
freshman who wants to know how to
get to the Baptist church, to the Jewish
girl interested in the current theology of
her faith, to the. total non-believer who
needs information on the Roman Church
for a sociology paper.

League
Astrid Lipp

Through tutoring and working on the
Campus Fund Drive I have come to

understand League’s. role at Bryn Mawr.
Lea; is a noncredit insight into the



lives and thoughts of people many of us
have not encountered before, By tutoring
a center-city junior high schooler you see
a world very different from the Bryn

Mawr campus, In tutoring and talking
to youngsters you are, of course, doing
something no one else has bothered to
do. Yet you cannot expect to work
miracles with weekly visits, It is hard
to measure what you accomplish, but you
do know that you have learned some-
thing.

League organizes those activities in..
which students want to engage. This

‘year’s list of activities includes the Phila-

delphia Tutorial Project; work camps in
Philadelphia; visiting a delinquent girls’
home, an orphanage and Haverford Men-
tal Hospital; and smaller projects, Lea-
gue even has a small allotmentfor a spea-
ker,

Only a quarter of Bryn Mawr’s stu-
dents participate” in League activities.
Probably more publicity and more teas
would nof change this figure. Not every-
one has the time or ese desire to parti-
cipate.

Nevertheless, League must keep
the campus. informed of its activities
and be eager to initiate new programs
that are suggested,

Every year League must re-evaluate
whether its activities are worthwhile.
All reactions and suggestions are
welcome,



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