At a time when polling shows 55 percent of Americans consider religion to be “very important” in their lives, it comes as no surprise that many Binghamton University students feel the same way. Through Binghamton University’s religious clubs and associations, students with a wide range of faiths have been able to find religious support on campus.
Of the approximately 180 student-run groups chartered by the Student Association, at least 15 have some type of religious affiliation — including Hinduism, Islam, Judaism or Christianity. Enrollment in each club ranges anywhere from 20 to 1,200 students, and while many have been founded in the last 20 or so years, some, such as the Campus Bible Fellowship, can trace their roots back to the 1960s.
The role of religion may have been renewed on a national level as well.
As reported in the Washington Post on Sept. 13, President George W. Bush said that he “senses a ‘Third Awakening’ of religious devotion in the United States that has coincided with the nation’s struggle with international terrorists.”
But does this “Third Awakening” apply to student life?
On campus, the verdict is still out.
Father Bob Sullivan of Newman House, the University’s Catholic center, said that he had not noticed any particular increase in religious interest, and that membership has more or less remained the same in recent years. And David Hagerbaumer — who has worked for the University in the campus life office for 25 years also said that he had not noticed any renewed interest in religion.
But David Mayner, an adviser of the Campus Bible Fellowship, said that over the past few years, he’s noticed “a more openness to spiritual things” among incoming members.
This increase, he said, “could be related to 9/11; it could be related to a variety of things.”
Whether religion has been more prevalent in recent years or not, it is clear that each student group has its own way of expressing faith. BU’s religious organizations present students with places to regularly practice those faiths in the company of their co-religionists, whether it’s by holding services on or off campus, allowing for social get-togethers or providing religious instruction.
The Chabad House, a group that focuses on the social, cultural and religious aspects of being Jewish at BU, for example, holds services on Shabbat — the day, according to Jewish tradition, that is to be devoted to rest — every Friday night as well as prayer services on weekday mornings.
Several groups also provide students with religious instruction. The Muslim Student Association, for one, an organization whose goal is to promote an awareness of Islamic culture, offers both Quran study and Arabic classes.
In addition to regular services, many clubs host a wide variety of social and cultural activities such as weekend retreats, fundraisers and parties. These events — fashion shows, co-rec sports teams and speed-dating parties — give participants an opportunity to connect with both the religion and the culture and fellow group members.
For many students, religion serves not only as a form of guidance, but as a way to help cope with the pressures of school.
“We’re here to support each other both spiritually and academically,” said Jason Kim, president of the Korean Christian Fellowship.
Sophomore Caleb Zwikelmaier, a member of the Campus Bible Fellowship, said that prayer is one way in which he deals with the demands of college life. “It helps reduce stress,” he said.
Other students turn to the religious clubs at BU as a way to reconnect with their cultural heritage. The Hindu Student Council, a national organization that was founded in 1990, counts more than 250 students as members of its Binghamton chapter, most of whom identify as Indian and/or Hindu. Seema Madhavan, a past president of the group, said that the organization plays an essential role in the lives of its members, helping them to “regain those ties to Hinduism that [they] might have lost here, growing up in America.”