Spirituality in the classroom
Most college students value spirituality or religion in their personal lives, but many find that their professors and schools do little, if anything, to encourage their interest, a new UCLA study says.
The national study, based on a survey of 3,680 students at 46 colleges and universities, found that 73 percent of those polled say their religious or spiritual beliefs helped develop their identity. In addition, 77 percent say that they pray, and 71 percent indicated that they find religion to be helpful.
At the same time, 62 percent report that their professors never encourage discussion of religious or spiritual issues, and 53 percent say the classroom has had no effect on their beliefs.
—Stuart Silverstein, staff writer, L.A. Times.
Are you passionate?
“Our culture has redefined passion as emotion. But while sex and romance can be beautiful things, they are only moments in time. Passion surpasses all emotions. It becomes the vision to live for God’s greatness.”
—Charlie Hall, quoted in “Divine Compulsions: the Passionate Pursuit of God” by Mike Parker, Christian Single, December 2003.
Religion and news
Terry Mattingly teaches at Palm Beach Atlantic University and is senior fellow for journalism at the Council for Christian Colleges & Universities. He interviewed Martin Marty about the place of religion in the news: “When I read newspapers, I see religion all over the place,” said Marty, whose University of Chicago Divinity School career has led to 50-plus books and countless media appearances. “This has always been the case. I simply think it has been easier for others to see this reality during the past year.”
For decades, Marty has been America's most quoted expert on the question: “What is religion news?” But the University of Nebraska’s journalism school challenged him to answer a new question: “Is There Any Non-Religious News After 9/11?”
It is certainly harder for journalists to avoid religion now, said Marty. This is true from Washington to Islamabad, from Wall Street to Hollywood. But the deeper reality is that September 11 didn’t change anything. It only made the power of faith—as a healing force, as well as a deadly force—more obvious.
Truth is, most Western leaders have long believed that religion would inevitably fade, he said. Thus, the West has been dominated by two big ideas.
“One idea was that every time you looked out your window, there was going to be less religion around than there was before. The other idea was that whatever leftover religion you find, it was going to be tolerant, concessive, mushy and so on. Instead, there has been an increase in religion, and the prospering religions are all extremely intense.”
Countless despots have learned that faith cannot be killed with force. This is especially true outside what Marty called the ‘spiritual ice belt’ that extends across Western Europe and North America. Soon, Africa and Asia will be sending waves of missionaries to the West.
—Terry Mattingly, adapted from the Evangelical Press Association Web site.
Let's play!
“Just because the gospel is a life-and-death matter doesn’t mean we have to act as if we’re dead. Apparently, people knew how to play even in Jesus’ time.
“Yet play is an expression of God's presence in the world. Play is not an escape; it is the way to release the life-smothering grip of our stress. Playfulness is an expression of hope, a celebration of the flickering light of the gospel. Instead of wearing sackcloth and ashes as a lament for our world, maybe we should strike up a game of capture the flag in our neighborhood.”
—Mike Yaconelli, from his book, Dangerous Wonder. Quoted in Current Thoughts & Trends, 1/7/04.
Getting students to talk
Preliminary results from a study at Pennsylvania State University indicate that online chat rooms may be an effective way to get introverted students to participate in discussions. “People who were not comfortable speaking up in class were very comfortable speaking up in a chatroom,” says Edward J. Glantz, one of the researchers. . . . William R. Klemm, a professor at Texas A&M University . . . has concluded that online bulletin boards work better than chat rooms because students can participate at their convenience. . . . He has also found that some students still won’t participate in online discussions unless the instructor requires contributions from everyone. “They’re called lurkers,” Mr. Klemm says. “They sit back and read. They don’t get engaged.”
—Adapted from The Chronicle of Higher Education, December 12, 2003.
Listen to the beats
“We believe our entire generation is being led into deeper God-knowledge through the music. We just have to listen, understand and appreciate the heart of the beats. . . . We think the hip-hop community has been hated on too long. People are always in their business. It is easy to be a critic. But the hip-hop community possesses unmatched strength and potential. They are a gifted and courageous people. And we believe God will use that. Remember, it’s not where you're from. It is where you’re going, and most important, where you finish. The haters don’t see that hip-hop leaders are being raised up for spiritual purposes as a chosen generation.”
—Alex Gee and John Teter in Jesus & the Hip-Hop Prophets (IVP).
Small churches, good fit
About 60percent of U.S. churches are small, having 100 or fewer in weekly attendance. “The small church is the right setting for many adults under age 35,” says analyst George Barna. He predicts small churches will remain prevalent. Only one-sixth of the Buster generation attend churches with 500 or more members, because they prefer community. They are also lukewarm to organizations led by Boomers.
—From Leadership, Winter 2004, quoted in Current Thoughts & Trends, 2/5/04.
Changing colors of high school grads
The number of students graduating from high school in the United States will continue to rise steadily over the coming years, reaching a peak of 3.2 million in 2008-9, according to a recent study.
The report’s predictions . . . also show a major shift in the racial profile of new high school graduates over the next decade, with the number of Hispanic students surging and the number of white students continuing to decline. The report predicts that there will be 73 percent more Hispanic students graduating in public schools in 2014 than in 2002. During that same period, there will be 11 percent fewer white graduates and six percent more black graduates.
—Source: The Chronicle of Higher Education, February 6, 2004.
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