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  Unity Meets Diversity at Loyola U. | ||
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Every year Loyola University (IL) hosts an all-campus celebration called "Unity in Diversity." This is one of the school’s attempts to deal with the racial divisions that are very real on campus. The many organizations that join in represent different ethnic groups, and each one performs dances and shows that are representative of their heritage. The event is well-attended, fun and educational, and it builds awareness of different cultural backgrounds. It’s a great evening of entertainment, but it is also starkly segregated. The Filipino group does their dance, then the Indian group, followed by yet another ethic enclave.
Beth Hedges, the staff worker at Loyola, identified this incongruity two years ago. "My concern with this showcase of ethnicity is that although diversity is well-represented, unity is not," Beth says. "All you see is the diversity, but where is the unity? The different ethnicities never appear on stage together." As Beth looked at all the ethnic clubs on campus, the only one where she saw true diversity blended with genuine unity was InterVarsity. The I-V chapter has all kinds of different ethnicities; students are Korean, Latino, Indian, Greek, Filipino, German, Vietnamese, Polish and more. She longed to show the campus the unity these students had in Jesus. She shared her dream with Celia, a Filipina chapter member who loves to dance and was friends with the planners of the celebration. As a result of Celia’s connections with the other ethnic clubs and the respect they had for her, the InterVarsity group was given the grand finale spot on the program last spring. The InterVarsity students made the most of their opportunity. Celia began by reading from the Scriptures, "There is one body and one Lord." With a diverse cast of students from different backgrounds, they performed an Indian dance, an American dance and a Latin dance. The Indian dance was performed by one Indian and three white students, all dressed elegantly in saris and gold bracelets. It was so authentic that many of the Indian students in the audience were noticeably impressed that non-Indian dancers had learned many of the intricacies and nuances of their native dance. It was a visible witness to the power of the gospel. In Jesus, the Christian students at Loyola went beyond celebrating diversity. They celebrated being connected together by a loving Father who made them unique in the first place. And the campus saw their unity. |
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. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . --Shannon Marion is an area director in Chicago. Talk to us! Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of this article for educational purposes provided this permission notice, and the copyright notice below are preserved on all copies. Not to be reprinted in any other publication without permission. © 1997 InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA. All rights reserved. Questions about the website? Contact the Webservant Member of the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students
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