Senior Professor James LaRue, who is Baha’i, said he was drawn to Pepperdine because it is a Christian university. An element of the Bahá’í faith is an “independent search for truth,” which means striving to discern one’s beliefs in Bahá’í teachings, LaRue said.
College is a time when students can explore their identity and step into their own personas, no longer bound by their family’s beliefs and values as they once were. Students like LaRue said Pepperdine was a place where they were able to discern their faith.
“that [LaRue’s spiritual journey] It wasn’t a straight shot,” LaRue said. “I’ve been studying all my life.”
discover new perspectives
Larue said a principle of the Baha’i faith is to associate with and learn from people of other faiths. Attending his Christian college encouraged LaRue to look beyond himself and have meaningful conversations with people of other faiths. He said these thought-provoking conversations shaped his beliefs and understanding of religion.
“My life has changed because I’ve been exposed to different ways of thinking that I didn’t have before,” LaRue said.
Similarly, junior Brent Long said being exposed to different perspectives on religion, especially Christianity, had a positive impact on his Christian faith. While the diversity of Christian beliefs has been a point of controversy and disagreement, Long said he believes all perspectives are valuable and worth understanding.
“I feel like I have a whole box of ways to look at the Bible from different perspectives.” [under] It’s this beautiful magnifying glass,” Long said.
Similarly, being surrounded by different perspectives has strengthened LaRue’s faith, he said, and he hopes to provide other students with exposure to different beliefs. LaRue, along with two of his friends (junior year student Michaela Shackleford and his senior year student Colin Wiese), formed an interfaith group on campus called “Beyond the Bubble.”
“What I wanted to offer the students was… [the opportunity to] Explore and share their faith, but also learn from those who are not like you,” LaRue said.
What is faith without doubt?
Exposure to a wide range of new perspectives and interpretations of texts changed the students’ beliefs, they said, but also challenged them.
During her first year of college, third-year student Aria Grogan experienced what she describes as a “crisis of faith.”
Growing up in a Christian household, Grogan said he always had a relationship with God. But it wasn’t until she went to college and started having spiritual conversations with others that she realized that the relationship had been superficial all along.
“I was like, ‘Oh, this is it.'” [my faith] It’s actually much shallower than I thought,” Grogan said.
One of her friendships in particular aroused Grogan’s doubts and doubts. Grogan’s friend did not know much about Christianity, but during their friendship they brought up many spiritual and Biblical questions in conversation. Grogan didn’t have answers to these questions, but he said he realized his faith lacked deep understanding.
“I realized there were a lot of holes in my faith,” Grogan said.
Long, who was baptized in a Protestant church during his senior year of high school, said his faith has grown stronger since coming to Pepperdine and he is excited to continue his spiritual walk in college.
During freshman orientation, Long said God called him to change his major from history and political science to religion. His religion major allowed Long to question and grapple with his faith, which he said made him stronger. Long said he believes doubts and doubts are tied to faith.
“the [being at Pepperdine] It challenged me. I have doubts. I started to doubt that,” Long said. “It made me walk through fire. And it’s a beautiful, purifying fire, but it still burns.”
The wrestling that both Grogan and Long have worked on is not uncommon for young people to experience.
embrace wrestling
Fallon Barton, Christian University Campus Chaplain, and Rachel Collins, Visiting Assistant in Religion, both use their services as spiritual leaders/resources for those struggling with their faith, religious beliefs, and others. Our goal is to understand how we can care for and nurture people with . They said they were either traumatized or religiously uninterested.
Burton and Collins said they have a deep love for people seeking faith, as people who were not raised in the faith but instead discovered their faith.
“I care a lot because I’ve been there,” Barton said.
When students open up to Burton and Collins with their questions and doubts, the two women act as non-threatening presences, available to listen to students and process what they are thinking and feeling. I would like to ask you a question.
“My purpose is to hear their experiences. Period. Full stop,” Collins said. “Their experiences, opinions and feelings about all of that are worth preserving.”
Burton, who has years of experience in campus ministry, said he has heard it all and doesn’t want students to be ashamed of what they present.
“They are [students] They are not alone in this experience,” Barton said. “There are people who can hear their voices, who won’t turn away from them, who will work with them to help them process their problems. For me, [I believe] That God hears them, believes them, and is with them. ”
Burton and Collins learned to approach questioning conversations with peace and understanding, rather than problem-solving. She said this allows students to feel safe, no matter how chaotic their emotions may seem.
“Mentally, it can be a turbulent wave,” Barton said. “As someone who is listening to you and processing with you, I don’t have to be dragged into the water either. I can hold on to something, even if just for a moment.”
At the end of one conversation, Burton and Collins said they knew the students’ questions were unlikely to be answered, but they hoped it would bring healing.
As a campus leader, Barton recognizes the importance of his theology. It sets the standard for how she works with her students. If theology is based on the recognition that God is an angry God, they will respond to doubt with anger. But if one’s theology is based on the recognition that God is a God of love, then one will approach doubt with love.
“that [Our theology] It ends up shaping how we interact with other people, which shapes who we are, and how we treat ourselves when we’re experiencing that suffering. It will form,” Barton said.
Communities of Faith Embody God’s Love
Senior Natalie Alderton said she grew up in a non-religious household. When she first started attending church in high school, she found everything about church unpleasant to her.
Alderton quickly realized she didn’t speak the church’s language and didn’t know exactly what she believed, she said. Over time, she developed a deep love for God.
“I began to realize that God had always been there. [did] I don’t know his name,” Alderton said.
Although Alderton believed in God, he remained hesitant about church for a while. This was a result of seeing how hypocritical and hurtful the church can be. Alderton said she realized that her congregation was made up of flawed people who weren’t always able to perfectly express the gospel.
“That was a big learning experience for me – [knowing] “Church doesn’t have to be perfect for me to be a place,” Alderton said.
Initially, Pepperdine’s Christian status worried Alderton. She is tired of the church culture on campus, she said. Looking back on the past four years of her college career, Alderton said Pepperdine helped her repair her views and relationship with her church.
“I realized that as Christians, we should belong to a community and that we could value each other more, love each other and support each other,” Alderton said.
Alderton is a member of John and Sarah Burton’s Bible study. John Barton is Director of the Center for Faith and Learning and Professor of Religion, and Sarah Barton is University Chaplain.
Alderton said the Bible study was life-changing for her. In her weekly meetings, she said, she addresses big questions about her faith and reconciles them with her understanding of who God is.
“It’s really what I’m looking forward to most in life,” Alderton said. “Tuesday night Bible study is very valuable to me.”
The spiritual growth she experienced while attending a Bible study led to her decision to be baptized in February. Ms. Alderton said she took her time to have her baptism because she wanted to be sure this was what she wanted in her life.
“I didn’t want to get baptized and think it was something I could take back or change,” Alderton said. “For me, it was a true decision to follow Christ for the rest of my life.”
Long and LaRue also participate in the Barton family Bible study.
Despite having a minority religious identity, LaRue said she never felt isolated on campus. He said he encountered his genuine curiosity about different religions and his eagerness to learn more from other students.
LaRue said she feels her Baha’i identity is accepted at Pepperdine and considers the university her home. Students like LaRue said they are grateful that Pepperdine provides a place for students to learn and grow in their faith.
Collins said she wants her students to know that faith is not something you can lose. Rather, it is something that is constantly unfolding.
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Email Yamillah Hurtado: yamillah.hurtado@pepperdine.edu
