Finding God at Dartmouth

IN A SINGLE WEEK ON CAMPUS, STUDENTS OF VIRTUALLY EVERY FAITH FIND VALIDATION OF THEIR BELIEFS—AND FRIENDS TO SHARE THEM WITH.

when Eleazar Wheelock founded Dartmouth in 1769 with a mission to spread "Christian knowledge among the savages," he could not have envisioned religious life at the College today. Nine varieties of Christians, as well as Muslims, Jews, Baha'is, Buddhists and Hindus worship on campus.

Twenty-five religious groups have been assigned campus advisors by the Tucker Foundations United Campus Ministry, whose guidelines specifically support the right of religious practitioners to express their beliefs with the understanding that some of these beliefs are not compatible and that respect for religious plurality is therefore essential.

The advisors run the gamut from College employees who volunteer to ministers with local congregations. The guidelines also lay out specific rules on proselytizing. Expressing ones beliefs to an.acquaintance is acceptable; forcing an unwelcome conversation is not. Sending out mass invitations to an event is acceptable; canvassing an entire dorm or floor is not.

Most religious students practice a faith they brought with them to Dartmouth and speak openly about the comfort it gives them.

SUNDAY: Noon, 28 Silsby Evangelical Christian Worship

Even evangelical students like to sleep late. The students in Logos, an outreach program of the Lebanon Korean Presbyterian Church, congratulate each other on waking up in time for the noon service. Two male students—one sturdy and earnest-looking, the other thin and solemn—plug in guitars. A young woman swings back her long, dark hair as she sits in front of a keyboard. A blonde girl squeezes next to her to sing harmony. Because of its connection to the Korean church, most of the 30 students are Asian, but Logos has a commitment to being a multi-ethnic community, and there are African-American and white students as well.

The first guitarist steps forward to the microphone and says, "Let's really focus our hearts on worshiping God." The students rise and the words of the hymn swell: "You fill my soul with your living water." Two students in the front row groove to the music, arms raised, eyes closed, heads back. From the happiness on their faces, it's evident they are taking in spiritual nourishment.

SUNDAY: 5 p.m., The Edgarton House Episcopal Holy Eucharist

Seven students make their way into the chapel at the Edge, a modest brick building on School Street owned by St. Thomas Episcopal Church. The small room is filled with the indistinct air of transformation.

The service varies the format for Holy Eucharist with a few egalitarian modifications. Instead of a sermon, the Rev. Erik Turnberg, the Episcopal campus minister, leads a discussion on a Rheinhold Neibuhr quote that reads, in part, "Nothing worth doing is completed in our lifetime; therefore we must be saved by hope."

Liz Harrington '05 speaks quietly about her time in Africa last spring. "I was so embraced by my experience there, but at other times so overcome by futility. The problems are so enormous. Faced with the impossible problem of the distribution of goods, I was occasionally—and nonsensically—overcome by hope. This hope is as nonsensical as Jesus, the improbability of God becoming human. And this nonsensibility makes more sense than anything else."

TUESDAY: 6 p.m., Rayton Road, Hanover Quaker Fellowship

There is a bumper crop of freshmen at the Quaker gathering in the home of campus advisor Nancyrose Logan. All are enthusiastic about a supportive group to ease the transition to college life.

proselytizing comes up. A central tenet of Quaker philosophy is the belief that all persons hold within them a light of Christ, and this belief informs their pacifism, ideals of social justice and tolerance. Over a convivial dinner of chili and cornbread, the topic of

Students say they enjoy respectful, friendly and often close relationships with people of different faiths. Acceptance is the norm. But there are exceptions. Nick Rule 'O4 tells a poignant story of arriving at Dartmouth as an evangelical Christian and slowly realizing that he is gay. "Last fall I needed a place to stay," he says. "Some of my friends who are evangelical wouldn't let me stay with them because of my sexual orientation." He is now planning a Quaker wedding with his gay partner.

TUESDAY: 6:30 p.m., Rollins Chapel Eastern Orthodox Christian Vespers

The chapel is dark, lit by only one light. Two men carry out icons, censers, candles from a storage closet, transforming the left alcove into a candlelit enclave of orthodox spirituality.

Sub-deacon Paul Feeney, the Eastern Orthodox chaplain, emerges in a black robe, his face somber with reverence. There are five worshipers who bow and cross themselves at the name of God. Some passages are chanted, and the scripture is read in a particular canting meter. When Feeney sings the prayers, his voice is so rich that it seems a choir has descended into the almost-deserted chapel.

Asked why he comes to vespers, Evan Chriss '08 explains: "I'm a premed biology student so I understand science. But there are things out there that we don't understand and I don't think we ever will. You need faith to keep faith in this world."

TUESDAY: 8 p.m., 206 Dartmouth Christian Impact

The topic at tonight's meeting is "Walking with God." Chris West is the campus advisor to Christian Impact, a group once known as Campus Crusade. He is a soft-spoken, thoughtful man who speaks of the soul's greatest longings, and how loving God fulfills them. He also speaks of the difficulties in holding on to a commitment to love God in an environment that is not conducive to it. He throws out a question: "What helps you in your walk with God?"

Alex Jordan '03, Th'05, says, "I've been involved in a book discussion comparing C.S. Lewis to Freud. They have completely different perspectives on happiness. For Freud it's achieving material goals. For Lewis happiness is unfettered access to God."

Another student picks up on this theme. "Yeah, it helps to know if something crazy happens to our GPA, the Lord is still with us."

WEDNESDAY: 7 a.m., 103 Reed Zen Meditation

Allyn Field is the Zen chaplain at Dartmouth. A tall man with closely cropped black hair, he wears a dusty, stiff black robe that marks his status as a lay ordained monk.

As three students enter the room, he stands in front of a desk covered in a red velvet cloth. There is a small statue of the Buddha on a wooden brick, a candle, and a plastic cafeteria bowl functioning as an incense holder. After the students have settled themselves on zafu cushions, Field rings a small bell and bows three times before the Buddha. He lights the incense and the candle and seats himself regally on his cushion.

The room is quiet as the practitioners meditate silently. After 25 minutes Field rings the bell three times.The students stand and bow, then begin chanting the Heart Sutra. The language is an ancient form of Japanese and the syllables resonate in the still morning air. Kan ji zai bo sa gyo jin....

Adam Sigelman '05 started meditating and practicing yoga three years ago, and he maintains a daily practice. "Before I started meditating I was very much a typical Dartmouth student—an over- achiever, very hard-working, stressed out. I was almost controlled by the desire to succeed. Now, I'm still as hard-working, but I'm not so focused on results as on the learning itself. I find more joy in my work, athletics, everything." His friends joke that he's not such a hot head on the ultimate Frisbee field now that he's "found" Buddhism.

WEDNESDAY; 8 a.m., 218 Collis Daily Christian Prayer

Six students stand in a circle, an even mix of men and women. They hold hands; someone begins a hymn: "You alone are my heart's desire, and I love to worship thee...."

A student prays for those who are undergoing the stress of job hunting. Another prays for a spirit of peace rather than judgment. A young woman prays for Christian love so contagious and magnetic that people can't help but be drawn in.

As a subtle counterpoint to the articulated prayers, one young man murmurs quiet, tumbling prayers that pour forth like a stream from his soul. He tilts his head back, eyes closed, lips moving ceaselessly, his face euphoric.

WEDNESDAY: 5:30 p.m., Rollins Chapel Shanti Hindu Meditation

Eight students gather around a pink blanket in the south alcove of Rollins Chapel. Lacking a permanent worship space, they store their religious paraphernalia in a cabinet. The group is geographically diverse, hailing from Nepal, Zambia, India and the United States.

After introductions and socializing, Hema Mohan '06 presses the button on a boom box. As spellbinding Indian music plays, students close their eyes and meditate. Afterward they hold a relaxed discussion about the process of meditation, punctuated with friendly laughter.

Asked how it feels to practice Hindu meditation under a stained glass image of Moses, Shreyan Poudyal '08 says, smiling, "We have a saying, 'Everyone is born Hindu, and then they take up other faiths.'"

A Nepalese student says it was a bit of a shock to arrive here. "Nepal is the only Hindu kingdom in the world. There are temples on every corner. Here, the first thing I saw was the Hindu cabinet."

"You had that at least!" retorts one student cheerfully.

"And then you got us," says another.

WEDNESDAY: 7 p.m., North Mass Dorm Lounge Provision Christian Fellowship Meeting

This African-American group meeting draws two students from Africa and two Americans of African descent. Oyebola Olabisi '06 is from Nigeria and Kwasi Ohene-Adu '05 is from Ghana. Lavon Morgan '07 and Brian Donaldson '07 are from the United States.

The four friends stand to pray. Olabisi says to God, "Help us to bring hearts to worship and praise you." They begin to sing, holding hands in a circle: "There is none like you." The two women's voices blend above the deeper male voices, and they begin to sing faster, clapping and moving. As more people arrive, the group welcomes them into the circle.

Ohene-Adu leads a lecture on David and Goliath; his take is that no problem is insurmountable when turned over to God.

WEDNESDAY: 7:30 p.m., Tucker Foundation Lounge Baha'i Study Group

The small group of students meeting for the Baha'i study group reflects the roughly 250,000 Baha'i practitioners in the United States. Kelly Miller '05 and Philip Rehayem 'OB have both been raised in the Baha'i faith. Vedant Mehra '07 and Shreyan Poudyal have wandered over from the Shanti meditation to learn about this little-known religion, which originated in 1844 in Iran.

The basic tenets include the elimination of inequality based on gender, race and wealth, and belief in one god and in the oneness of all religions. There are no clergy and no houses of worship, although there is a Baha'i temple on every continent, and each temple has nine entrances, one for each of the major world religions. Followers of Baha'i see leaders of these religions as messengers from God, each expressing the divine truth appropriate for that time on earth.

The Hindu students from the Shanti group remark that this concept is strikingly similar to the Hindu concept of avatars. Miller says it is a unifying faith. "I can talk to my friend who is Christian, and express my love for Jesus," she says. 'And I can talk to my friend who is Muslim, and express my reverence for Muhammad."

These tolerant beliefs come with strict moral guidelines. Baha'i faithful do not drink alcohol or take drugs, and they refrain from sexual activity before marriage. Rehayem admits that maintaining this moral stance is difficult at Dartmouth. But, he adds, "The ecstasy of prayer offers such complete spiritual pleasure that it almost blots out any other pleasure that you can conceive."

WEDNESDAY: 8 p.m., 213 Baker Mormon Institute of Religion

Tonights meeting of Latter Day Saints students is based on Matthew 5:48, "Be ye therefore perfect, as your Father which is in heaven is perfect." For Mormons, perfection translates to a clear list of "do's" and "don'ts," including chastity, tithing and abstention from alcohol, drugs and caffeine.

The group tackles the question with enthusiasm. It is made up of both Dartmouth students and local young people, all of whom quote scripture to bolster their points. The quest for perfection to these young people is a reminder, as one young woman says, that "we are spiritual beings having a physical experience" in preparation for an ultimate spiritual transformation. They take the injunction to be perfect seriously—very seriously—but with an understanding that it is a goal not immediately attainable.

Bobby Calderwood '05 will graduate with the class of 2007 because of his two-year mission. He is a football player who is also taking biblical Greek, a pursuit clearly outside his engineering/econ major. Asked what it's like steering a different moral course than most college students, he shrugs. "It's lonely," he says. "I've got all my friends most of the week, and come the weekend I'm alone in my room. It's nice to have the group. When all else fails we're here for each other," he says.

WEDNESDAY: 9 p.m., Tucker Foundation Third Floor

Baptist Bible Study Under the sloped roof of the Tucker Foundation, Sandy Hale of Trinity Baptist Church leads a Bible study for three very different students. Melanie Kohn '08 is from North Dakota, looking for support in the familiar as she adjusts to College life. Vaughn Booker '07 is from Philadelphia. They are joined by Vedant Mehra, a true religious polyglot, here at his third religious meeting of the day.

Hales topic is nurturing joy. The students eat Teddy Grahams while discussing different ways to worship.

THURSDAY: 12:30 p.m., Rollins Chapel Ecumenical Christian Service

College Chaplain Richard Crocker presents a sermon on an aspect of the Apostles' Creed, the foundational statement of Christian beliefs formulated in the 4th century. Martin Habermehl, a German exchange student, is happy to hear specifically Christian beliefs discussed. "In Germany, especially with Protestant Christians, religious practice is so eclectic. I could hear about having a service with Muslims or getting together with Hindus, but it is not especially clear what we believe. Meditations on the Apostles' Creed help me to reflect on what we believe in as Christians."

THURSDAY: 8 p.m., 13 Carpenter Navigators Christian Fellowship

This gospel-based multi-denominational group is popular. There are more than 60 students—mostly white, surprisingly hip—in attendance; the Navigators' e-mail list has more than 500 names on it. The topic of tonights meeting is service. Rebecca Wehrly '06 speaks shyly and passionately about her zeal for justice. "I realized that I care about poverty more than the average person," she says. "Over time I began to see that I cared so deeply about this issue because God put it in me. Service is a natural response to taking in the Word." Wehrly urges students to sign up for service projects, as does the Navigators' campus minister, Craig Parker.

The meeting ends with the warm and easygoing camaraderie with which it began. A student leader steps to the microphone and says, "God is love. We are called to love one another. If you're in need, we'll be around afterward to listen and pray and be there for you."

Sarah Messner '05 is a leader in the Navigators. She sees their mission as stepping away from traditional conversion activity toward a mission based on support and friendship. "Why all this condemnation of people who don't believe the same way we do?" she asks. "Jesus says that all of the law can be summed up in loving God and loving each other."

THURSDAY: 10 p.m., Aquinas House Catholic Mass

The brightly lit stained glass windows of Aquinas House appear as a beacon. Inside, about a dozen students gather in the church.

The Mass begins with singing. Three priests with green cassocks over white robes approach the altar. Father Brendan Buckley preaches a sermon on living life in accordance with the gospels. During the prayers, a young woman prays for the end of "abortion and contraception."

At the celebration of the Eucharist, the students gather in a circle around the altar. The faces are joyful; two of the students kneel. "Ritual is an incredibly powerful tool for spiritual life," says Crystal Wirth '06, a Catholic student leader. "Going to Mass daily, praying daily connects me to practicing Catholics around the world."

FRIDAY: 1:35 p.m., Muslim Prayer Room Juma'ah (Congregational) Prayer

Dale Correa '06 walks into Rollins Chapel wearing a hijab (head scarf) and a jellaba (robe). The president of Al-Nur, the Muslim student group, Correa wears clothes from Morocco, but the only requirement for worship is that a woman's body be covered so skin won't be exposed during the prostrations.

Inside the Muslim Prayer Room, small carpets are laid over the red carpet to face Mecca. At the front of the room, a small white sign proclaims the Shahadah or "witnessing" in Arabic calligraphy: La ilaha ila allah, wa Muhammad rasool allah. This is the solemn statement Correa made on August 14,2003, when she converted to Islam. "There is no God but God, and Muhammad is his messenger."

A middle-aged man with a red beard stands in the main hall of the chapel and issues the adhan or call to prayer. The service begins with the opening verse of the Koran, and the participants praise Gods greatness and pray to be led on a straight path. They move through a series of chanted verses and bend before God in three ways—at the waist, to the knees and with head pressed to the floor. The word "Islam" means submission, and the worshipers are expressing with voice, body and soul their submission to Gods will. After a short khutba, a sermon on the gifts of reciting the Koran, there are final prayers.

Correa talks about her conversion to Islam after her parents encouraged her to explore different faiths. In Islam she found a religion that fit her intellectual and spiritual beliefs. "I was very aware of the problems of the religion. There are terrorists. But I was also drawn to the beauty in it," she says. "The description of creation in the Koran fits my belief in evolution. There is also equality between the sexes inherent in the Koran, although this is not always evident in practice. It seemed purely logical to enter Islam."

FRIDAY: 4:30 p.m., 101 Collis Agape Christian Fellowship

Craig Parker of the Navigators is the guest speaker at Agape today. Formerly an Asian-American Christian fellowship, the group is still largely Asian.

"God makes every promise come true," says Parker. He then launches into a story of his daughters time at Boston University. "Everyone liked her—she was the one who took care of them when they were drunk, helped them through their problems. One day she knocked on every door on her floor and told each person, 'I'm having a discussion on faith in my room tonight at 7. See you there.' Out of 50 people, 20 showed up, and four came to Christ."

He does not cross the line laid out by the United Campus Ministry and tell the students to violate campus guidelines by canvassing. But he continues. 'And what if we don't respond to God's promises? Your life becomes a sad tragedy without faith. Without God, you die to the mystery of life."

FRIDAY; 6:30 p.m., Roth Center Hillel Jewish Shabbat Services

The Roth Center is filled with a happy buzz of activity as Hillel members gather to welcome the Sabbath. Part of this evening's animation is the decision to hold separate reform and conservative services. Generally the two are combined.

Ethan Levine '03, Th'05, leads the conservative service. As he begins he cracks a joke about his inability to keep a tune, a limitation eclipsed by his enthusiasm.

The voices of the congregation strengthen as the chanting continues. It's difficult to decide which is more beautiful: the power of the ancient, mystical Hebrew or the poetry of the prayers in translation as the congregation welcomes the Sabbath queen and prays for peace.

FRIDAY: 7:30 p.m., 24 School St. Chabad Orthodox Jewish Shabbat Dinner

"Tell me this isn't the best bread you have ever tasted," says Rabbi Moshe Leib Gray, putting a loaf of challah bread made by his wife, Chani, on the long table taking up most of his living room. It is part of the four-course meal she prepares every Friday as part of an Orthodox Jewish Sabbath meal in their modest condo.

students do not disagree. A long-haired young man says, "I'm not even Jewish. I come for the family atmosphere. A group of us come and play poker with the rabbi Thursday nights." Across from him sits a member of the Navigators, here to learn more about Judaism.

The entire wall devoted to Hebrew literature attests to a serious intent along with the good cheer. Gray is here to reach out to secular, unaffiliated Jews. At a certain point some students leave, coincidentally just prior to the rabbi's father-in-law standing up to tell of his conversion to Orthodox Judaism. The remaining group is passionate, intellectual and diverse. A conversation springs up in Russian. The English conversations cover topics as diverse as chaos theory, Yiddish words for food, and the most primitive forms of human prayer.

Although the mission of the Lubav- itcher Hasidim, which supports Chabad, is generally understood to be "converting Jews to Judaism," Jewish students in both Hillel and Chabad insist that there is no conflict between the two groups. Gray an- nounces a class he will be teaching jointly with Rabbi Edward Boraz of the Roth Center. One student is on the boards of both groups. Still, the theme of conversion, played out elsewhere during the week, is not absent here.

ACROSS THIS KALEIDOSCOPE OF varied practices, there are some constants: The study of scripture as a guiding and transformative practice has been urged in religions as diverse as Buddhism and Islam; the submission of the ego and the body to a set of moral laws appears in dif- ferent faiths, although the set of laws is not uniform. Religions offer fellowship, teach compassion, urge service. Some religious students feel set apart from mainstream Dartmouth life, but virtually all feel respected for their beliefs. In spite of epidemic tolerance, the joy students feel in their particular faith spills out in subtleand not so subtle proselytizing—and the occasional conversion.

Seeing the Light Kwabena Safo-Agyekum '06 at an Aquinas House Catholic Mass (top left), Tim Tregubov of the Computer Science department worships at Eastern Orthodox vespers (center left) and Jiayi Hao '08 prays silently at a meeting of Logos (bottom left). Rollins Chapel (right) is home to an ecumenical service Thursdays at noon and to a variety of groups at other times.

Windows on the World Rabbi Edward Borazreads the Torah (topleft), a student readiescollection baskets at aLogos service (topright) and Muslimsface Mecca (bottom).

The Faithful (From left) Catholics sing out, Pastor Thomas Carrenard leads evangelical Christian worship, Father Brendan Buckley offers communion, Bibles are ready for students in service, Buddhists meditate.

Private and public acts of devotion take place at all hours in many different locations, as is evident from this week-long diary of religious life on campus.

One student murmurs quiet, tumbling prayers that pour forth like a stream from his soul. He tilts his head back, eyes closed, lips moving ceaselessly.

The participants praise Gods greatness and pray to be led on the correct path.

CATHERINE FAUROT is a freelance writerwith an undergraduate degree in religion. Shelives in upstate New York.