Conditional religious freedom
The latest ad placed by Western Presbyterian Church, Hillel and the GW Board of Chaplains continues to illustrate the anti-Christian bias that permeates this campus. The Board of Chaplains is supposed to represent all religions and should not?take favorites, but their ad widely condemns the many Christian students on campus who follow the Great Commission to reach out to those not in the religion.
These three organizations have shown they are all for freedom of religion, so long as it is not following the Christian scriptures. They go as far as to “condemn” those who reach out to those not in Christianity.
Christianity and religious outreach are inexorably intertwined. To demand the end to outreach on campus is to end true Christian life on campus. The Great Commission at the end of the gospel of Matthew is very clear on what Christians are to do. Chapter 28, Verse 19-20 states, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” One can not separate the Christian belief from outreach and the actions of these organizations do nothing toward religious reconciliation other than send the clear message that Christians are not welcome.
-Mark Harris, sophomore
SA bureaucracy
The George Washington University has a widely known reputation for being a bureaucratic machine. It is surprising, however, to find that this same bureaucracy permeates the Student Association. I made a trip to the Student Association office to make an appointment with the president. The SA secretary informed me that I would have to call or e-mail the Student Association in order to make such a request. Perplexed, I asked her who would receive such an e-mail. I was informed that she would be the recipient. When I asked her why I could not simply make the appointment right then, she smiled and replied, “That’s just how things are done around here.” If the Student Association cannot set a better example of efficiency and productivity even in small administrative matters, perhaps they are not the best advocates for the truly important issues concerning the student population.
-Noah Wall, freshman
Misplaced priorities
It seems to me that the powers that here at GW are kind of like used car salesmen. You never really know what you are going to get from them. Sometimes they surprise you and you are left thoroughly happy; other times, you are left in the dust, very confused as to what just happened. The most recent set of ideas for developing the old hospital site leave me, and I hope many other students, confused in the dust. In my mind, the slow rise of GW through the 1990s, which has culminated with 20,000 applications last year, seems to be in response to the demand for a strong academic institution that approaches learning through a fresh and innovative way. Twenty thousand high school seniors did not apply to GW because they desperately needed a college that had a Gap, Banana Republic, and J Crew.
In the words of Terry Schario, University spokesperson, “It’s prime real estate … this is number one.” So, if this is the number one piece of real estate in downtown D.C., shouldn’t how GW decides to develop this piece of land represent our highest priorities? Furthermore, if GW dedicates 75 percent of the building to shopping, and the other 25 percent to education, is this the physical representation of our highest priorities? Why not build an academic hall like D.C. has never seen. Have the centerpiece be a six-story glass-topped atrium surrounded by classrooms, labs, and study rooms. Wouldn’t building something of this magnitude show what GW’s priorities are as we enter this new century? Instead it sounds like we will have a shopping mall, which I hope is not indicative of GW’s actual priorities.
-Tommy Newman, sophomore
