This is Not a Day Care. It’s a University!
Oklahoma Wesleyan University
This past week, I actually had a student come forward after a university chapel service and complain because he felt “victimized” by a sermon on the topic of 1 Corinthians 13. It appears that this young scholar felt offended because a homily on love made him feel bad for not showing love. In his mind, the speaker was wrong for making him, and his peers, feel uncomfortable.
I’m not making this up. Our culture has actually taught our kids to be this self-absorbed and narcissistic. Any time their feelings are hurt, they are the victims. Anyone who dares challenge them and, thus, makes them “feel bad” about themselves, is a “hater,” a “bigot,” an “oppressor,” and a “victimizer.”
I have a message for this young man and all others who care to listen. That feeling of discomfort you have after listening to a sermon is called a conscience. An altar call is supposed to make you feel bad. It is supposed to make you feel guilty. The goal of many a good sermon is to get you to confess your sins—not coddle you in your selfishness. The primary objective of the Church and the Christian faith is your confession, not your self-actualization.
So here’s my advice:
If you want the chaplain to tell you you’re a victim rather than tell you that you need virtue, this may not be the university you’re looking for. If you want to complain about a sermon that makes you feel less than loving for not showing love, this might be the wrong place.
If you’re more interested in playing the “hater” card than you are in confessing your own hate; if you want to arrogantly lecture, rather than humbly learn; if you don’t want to feel guilt in your soul when you are guilty of sin; if you want to be enabled rather than confronted, there are many universities across the land (in Missouri and elsewhere) that will give you exactly what you want, but Oklahoma Wesleyan isn’t one of them.
At OKWU, we teach you to be selfless rather than self-centered. We are more interested in you practicing personal forgiveness than political revenge. We want you to model interpersonal reconciliation rather than foment personal conflict. We believe the content of your character is more important than the color of your skin. We don’t believe that you have been victimized every time you feel guilty and we don’t issue “trigger warnings” before altar calls.
Oklahoma Wesleyan is not a “safe place”, but rather, a place to learn: to learn that life isn’t about you, but about others; that the bad feeling you have while listening to a sermon is called guilt; that the way to address it is to repent of everything that’s wrong with you rather than blame others for everything that’s wrong with them. This is a place where you will quickly learn that you need to grow up.
This is not a day care. This is a university!
I would suspect most could make a right or left case of this, and that seems shortsighted to me. Narcissism, particularly in this country, does not know many boundaries. As I near my 50's I seem to be treading on a road that many ahead of me have been wherein I look backwards at younger people and shake my head at their selfishness. Every generation since the great depression has been spoiled and had it much easier than the one before it. Still, reading this story, I hardly think the University is the only place where such brutal selfishness exists.
ReplyDeleteOut of pure curiosity, has anyone here volunteered for anything lately?
When you reflect back to the Mizzou fiasco recently, this example was the 180 degree opposite in managing the issue. Imagine if the person that resigned in Mizzou would have addressed the issue in a similar manner. Remove from the team all the players that refused to play, ending their scholarships. Suspend any agitator on campus that did not comply with campus rules. The last statement says it all:
DeleteThis is not a day care. This is a university!
Instead they (I assume the board) forced him into the politically correct solution of resignation.
It's an interesting observation you make of each generation. As an older parent, I could easily be my daughters grandfather, I hope to have instilled the work ethic and respect that is needed in the world today. So far she's a stellar student and has not allowed the campus life to distract her from her goals. She begins as a teaching assistant in the computer science department next semester. She set a goal and is close to attaining that goal.
Imagine what the parents of the students instilled in their children as they were growing up. Has nothing to do with left or right but has to do with how they raised their children and the expectations set for them as they grew up. Was it the everyone gets a trophy attitude?
The volunteer thing, suspended for another month or so, had to replace the hip as the disease continues to ravage my joints. Doing a little work from home for a few of my customers to pass the time. Life continues on whether we chose to participate in it or not.
That' fourth para there sums it up. My Dad was actually 100% apolitical, but was a very hard worker. My Mom was initially a little more left leaning from my memory, though she has gone full Clint Eastwood now that she is in her 70's. After my folks split, she was a single Mom working in a electronics sales and had to really hustle to make a decent living. They instilled a pretty good work ethic in us by example more than by talking about it. Interestingly, my racist uncle has bombarded my cousin with his ideology for years and my cousin has not exactly lit the world on fire.
DeleteThere is something, I think, to the everyone gets a trophy attitude. I still have not learned to be gracious in defeat, but am generally able to compete, deal with the win or loss and move on without giving it endless thought or looking for validation that I'm still a worthy human being. I will, however, take a victory lap when school is done in a couple of weeks ;>
I was volunteering up until I started school, and hope to volunteer as an NP when I get some experience. There are plenty of places around the country where that kind of help is needed. Bouncing back from a hip takes a lot of work, be well my friend.
The hip is a piece of cake.
DeleteDid the anterior. They cut few muscles so recovery has been easy compared to the posterior approach. Doing 1-2 hours on the exercise bike. Still after walling for a half our or so it tends to get weak. Need a bit more time.
Off to the food bank in Strasburg to help out this afternoon. Said I could sit as much as needed but still wanted my help.
Food bank Central NC every other month third Thursday anyone want to join me?
ReplyDeleteThe drive is a little long for me, but I'm a big supporter of food banks. Good on both of you guys for volunteering at one.
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