Keep Earlham's Religion Department

We, the students of Earlham College, are aware that we are at risk of losing the religion department and major. We understand that there is a misconception regarding our interest in the study of religion. Although the number of students who choose to major in this area is currently low, the courses offered by the religion department are essential to the spiritual growth and wellness of the student body.

Courses such as James Logan's "Religion and Culture of Hip Hop", and "Criminal Justice and Moral Vision" or Lyn Miller's "Activism Beyond Ego" regularly generate high interest among students. These courses are filled not only with those whose main area of study is religion, but also with students in the sciences, the arts, and other branches of the humanities. Here, students are able to discuss some of the many moral and political issues faced by our generation through the common language of religion.

Students from across the world can come to understand each other's points of view through shared religious themes, whether they be found in the Christian Bible, The Quran, The Tanakh, or other religious text. Few classes incorporate the cultural, historical, political and personal as thoroughly and as effectively as religion courses, which allow students to share parts of themselves that aren't accessible in labs and lecture halls. Religion courses break barriers and challenge modes of thought. They connect the theoretical to the actual. As students at Earlham College, we witness this everyday.

Our interest in these courses can't be understood solely through statistics and percentages that show how many of us do or do not practice religion. In religion courses, students explore religion, we explore ways of being unreligious, and ways of being spiritual. In the classes that are central to the major, we explore what religion may mean to us based on our race, our country of origin, or our culture. Religion courses teach us about ourselves.

Lastly, we would like to emphasize the need for consistent and tenured professors of religion. Time and time again, professors like Lyn Miller and James Logan have been the empathetic ear to student concerns and fears. Religion professors have overwhelmingly shown great concern over the welfare of students because of the very courses they teach, which allow us to reveal ourselves to them in ways that cannot be encapsulated by any assignment or project.

Earlham College is a quaker institution. Without quakerism, Earlham would not the be institution it is today. Our roots in quakerism guides our principles and practices, and inform the culture of the institution. Without the study of religion as a major and as a department, the students of Earlham College cannot thrive.