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Monday, December 9,1996
Bird's EyeView
Choosing my Religion
Many students find that their faith is tested more than ever once they reach college.
Story by Bradley Brooks
Illustrations by Martina Witte
aking tests is nothing new for students at the University of Kansas. Whether it is Math 002 or History 516, there always seems to be another exam to be taken. But for many students, the biggest test they encounter at the University is a test of faith.
"Iused to go to church every Sunday," said Kristine Kobs, Meade junior. "Both of my parents were Sunday school teachers, and we went religiously."
But like many students, Kobs arrived at the University and was free to set her own religious agenda.
said. "If someone comes from a fairly sheltered, conservative background, it may be that the ideas they encounter once they get to college persuade them to explore different views."
Chad Snoddy, Charleston, Ill., junior, did exactly that: He went on a philosophical exploration and ended up accepting a faith that greatly contrasted with the one in which he grew up.
"I was raised a Baptist," I was raised a Bap
tist," Snoddy said. "But I started
practicing Buddhism when I
moved to Lawrence."
"Now I have the choice to be what I want," she said. "I may not go to church every Sunday, but I know what I believe in."
"Now I have the choice to be what I want.I may not go to church every Sunday,but I know what I believe in."
Daniel Batson, a professor of psychology who specializes in the psychology of religion, said the reasons for students losing or gaining religious beliefs was pretty obvious.
"There is a tendency for a person to go along with the accepted wisdom of their family, whatever it may be," Batson
Snoddy said that he was interested in Buddhism while in high school but didn't explore that faith.
"It was as simple as where I lived in Illinois — there just weren't any Buddhists," he said. "But when I moved here, I found the Zen Center. I got involved to see if I was really interested in practicing Buddhism rather than just reading about it."
Kristine Kobs Meadajunior
Snoddy said that his decision to become a Buddhist had obviously caused some changes in his lifestyle and caused difficulties with members of his family.
"It is still an issue with my parents. They think of Buddhism as a cult," Snoddy said. "It is, understandably, very foreign to what they think of as a religion."
As for his life in
Lawrence, he said that there were two major changes.
"I've become a vegetarian. It's not necessary, but it is a common practice," he said. "Buddhism has made me more centered, more compassionate toward other people and animals; anything that is living."
Snoddy said that once he got to college and had the freedom to chose his own faith to believe in, Buddhism seemed like the best choice.
"It didn't seem like a religion burdened with opinions. Concepts that other religions enforce, Buddhism leaves open," he said. "So many things are not forced upon you."
Although many students do make religious changes once they get to college, others weather the emotional roller coaster of the
"I grew up as a Christian Scientist," he said. "But anytime you get away from the people who were most instrumental in raising you in a religion, you run into
first few years and keep their faith, or lack thereof.
"When I was little, my parents took me to church for a couple of years," said Peter Carlson, Kansas City, Kan., senior. "But there came a time — the third grade — when I said 'this is all bull—,' and made a good enough case about it that my parents didn't make me go."
"I have been exposed to a lot of religious views, and it has given me a lot to think about," he said. "I reexamined my philosophical stances and eventually ended up where I was before. I've never seen anything in my life to lead me to believe that things aren't as they appear to be. I've never needed a god to explain things."
Carlson said that despite encountering all types of beliefs in his college career, he has retained the feelings he found when he was nine.
Trace Schmeltz, a Leawood law student and the religious polar opposite of Carlson, said that he had gone through the same types of tests in retaining his faith in college.
"As long as people actually follow their beliefs and aren't hypocrites,I'll respect them." Peter Carlson Kansas City, Kan., senior
doubts."
Schmeltz said that the first few years of his college career were when his faith was truly tested.
"I had to reprove my religion frequently," he said. "I'm much more established, religiously, because of that. But every time I come into a new environment, my views are tested again."
But for Carlson, the flavor of faith that people choose isn't so important as the way they go about exercising those beliefs.
"I don't believe other people are necessarily wrong," he said. "As long as people actually follow their beliefs and aren't hypocrites, I'll respect them."
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