Religious interests rise, 'don't last'
Clergy see organizational decline
(Editor's note: This is the second of two articles on religion at the University of Kansas. The first appeared in the Wednesday Kansan.)
Kansan Staff Writer
By CASS SEXSON
Korean Staff Writer
The priest asked the congregation at Hoch Auditorium to gather around the altar for the consecration of the bread and wine. At the conclusion of the consecration, he intoned the phrase "Peace be with you," to which the congregation responded dutifully, "And with your spirit."
Then the priest turned to the young man serving the mass and, elassing both his hands, repeated the phrase. The youth looked surprised for a moment, then turned to a member of the congregation standing nearby and shook his hand. "Peace be with you."
The clasping of hands and the phrase traveled rapidly throughout the people gathered around the altar. A young couple kissed lightly and a white-haired woman smiled at them.
This incident is an example of the attempt being made by organized religions to become more relevant to the young.
Some ministers, however, think that, although the attempt to modernize the service and put it into new language has had some
rewarding results, the overall effect is temporary.
"The use of folk services and similar innovations helps perk up interest, but it doesn't last," said the Rev. Ronald L. Sundybe, pastor of the First United Methodist Church, 946 Vermont St.
MR. SUNDBYE SAID although efforts to attract the young through such devices do not meet with the most desirable results, they do help to increase commitment within the minority who are regular church-goers by offering them additional outlets and social involvement.
What then can be done to stop the exodus of people, especially young people, from the church?
Mr. Sundbye expressed the opinion that nothing could be done within religious bodies to reverse this trend.
"The movement of people away from the church is signaling the end of organized religion as far as numerical strength is concerned," he said. "What we will have is a more committed minority."
THE REV. BRENDAN Downey of the St. Lawrence Catholic Student Center, 1915 Stratford Road, expressed a similar opinion.
"Masses of people will move away from organized or 'church-y' activities and religion can become rare in that sense."
he said. "But the loss would be great. People need the moral support of each other."
THE REV. NOMAN L. Steffen, pastor of the University Lutheran Church, 2104 W. 15th St., said the reformation of the Roman Catholic Church was phenomenal.
"The Catholic Church is pushing open the doors for fresh air," he said. "Laymen and priests alike are open to listening to a new point of view."
A MAJOR RE-EVALUATION which has affected virtually all major American religious bodies is the new approach to the concept of God.
The "God is Dead" movement did some good for religion in that sense, said Mr. Sundbye.
Mr. Sundbye said he believed in God as "a Spirit, which reveals itself in love between people and in terms of courage and volition in the lives of people who are down."
Father Downey said God is "the element in which we live and move and have our being." "It's not simply a force," he said. "It's essence is love."
Court reverses rule for draft objectors
ST. LOUIS (UPI)—The Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in a ruling, said a person may be classified as a conscientious objector even though his beliefs are a product of logic, and not faith.
The high court reversed the conviction of 22-year old Ronald F. Levy, research assistant in mathematics at Washington University. Levy had been convicted of failure to report for induction, and the government had contended Levy could not be classified as a conscientious objector.
FATHER DOWNEY SAID he thought the new mode of religious thinking about God was aiding in the acceptance of the reality of a previous concept, that of a divine element.
The opinion by Circuit Judge Floyd R. Gibson of Kansas City, Mo., said Levy's beliefs, in a "community of the human conscience, requiring men to do that which is right," constituted a religious qualification for conscientious objection.
6 KANSAN Dec. 11 1969
Louis Gilden, Levy's lawyer,
said the court's ruling would
help establish the precedent that
a humanistic conscience is equivalent
to a religion. Gilden said
the theory of parallelism—"that
you can believe in a conscience
that causes you inwardly not to
fight or become part of the war
machinery"—was first established by the U.S. Supreme Court in the case of U.S. vs. Seeger in 1965.
Chet Nichols
is appearing at
PACONSHOP
"The universe conceived of in an abstract manner is emptied of a divine element so that it no longer has meaning—it's absurd," he said.
What is the Pawnshop?
Who cares?
We don't know, we just work there!!
Dec.11-Dec.14
Spiro Agnew's answer to television
Many ministers commended young people for their search for a deeper meaning in life. This generation, said one, is involved in determining for themselves the real basis of religion, even though they reject organized religion.
A great place to take a date!!
Of course, a banana would be better, dates aren't to receptive.
He added that he thought the
trend away from organized religion might be viewed as a "refresher" period to renew ideals that have been "lost in the jumble of materialism."
"These are the people who became disillusioned with what they found outside the church and are now looking back to see if there was anything there," he said. "Maybe it's more relevant than they think it is."
MR. SUNDBY POINTED out an interesting trend in the revival of interest in religion, particularly among those who had previously been alienated from the church.
Mr. Steffen expressed the thought that younger people, who have turned away from the church in search of a deeper meaning may return to find that meaning within the church.
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