2008 Woodie Awards
Religious discussion reveals varrying views
The Samford Crimson
Issue date: 9/19/07 Section: Opinion
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Abortion. Homosexuality. Blasphemy. Gluttony. Even readers who only have time to skim this week's articles will be confronted with frequent references to controversial religious issues.
To lighten the mood, the Opinion section this week features a few humorous takes on life at Samford that make no mention of defining moral boundaries or questioning your faith system. Nonetheless, four out of six columnists argue for or against some of today's most prominent debates within Christianity, and a fifth witty writer mentions the "sin of gluttony" within the first paragraph of a column that otherwise refrains from religious discourse.
Bear in mind that columnists choose their topics of their own accord and are often inspired by recent events about which they hold a strong opinion. Thus, two columnists who have articles with similar messages have not necessarily teamed up to beat an issue to death. Instead, their columns generally reflect a simultaneous response to an overwhelming murmur on campus, which, this week, happens to be the historical assumption of religious fundamentalism with which Samford has long been associated.
Look closer at this week's columns, and you'll notice that the arguments are geared toward an audience with an assumed commonality: Christianity. One columnist even goes so far as to address Baptists specifically, which makes sense given the denominational heritage of this university. Another columnist implores readers to see her point with phrases such as, "as Christians, we must..." and "who are we as sinners...", although she finishes with the paradoxical plea, "ask yourself if that judgment is truly justified in your faith system, whatever it may be."
To outsiders, this may seem contradictory, but to those of us who have attended Samford long enough to notice its system of cultural norms, such statements make perfect sense. Most students agree and acknowledge that we attend a Christian university; what students cannot seem to agree on, however, is what the term "Christian" means.
To lighten the mood, the Opinion section this week features a few humorous takes on life at Samford that make no mention of defining moral boundaries or questioning your faith system. Nonetheless, four out of six columnists argue for or against some of today's most prominent debates within Christianity, and a fifth witty writer mentions the "sin of gluttony" within the first paragraph of a column that otherwise refrains from religious discourse.
Bear in mind that columnists choose their topics of their own accord and are often inspired by recent events about which they hold a strong opinion. Thus, two columnists who have articles with similar messages have not necessarily teamed up to beat an issue to death. Instead, their columns generally reflect a simultaneous response to an overwhelming murmur on campus, which, this week, happens to be the historical assumption of religious fundamentalism with which Samford has long been associated.
Look closer at this week's columns, and you'll notice that the arguments are geared toward an audience with an assumed commonality: Christianity. One columnist even goes so far as to address Baptists specifically, which makes sense given the denominational heritage of this university. Another columnist implores readers to see her point with phrases such as, "as Christians, we must..." and "who are we as sinners...", although she finishes with the paradoxical plea, "ask yourself if that judgment is truly justified in your faith system, whatever it may be."
To outsiders, this may seem contradictory, but to those of us who have attended Samford long enough to notice its system of cultural norms, such statements make perfect sense. Most students agree and acknowledge that we attend a Christian university; what students cannot seem to agree on, however, is what the term "Christian" means.