The cross that was removed by the president of William and Mary College from the Wren Chapel (which really should be renamed since it isn't considered a chapel any longer but a room that can be used by anyone who wants to mediate), is back in the news. Some of the alumni are taking the next step in their attempt to get the cross back into the chapel by going to the governing board and requesting that they force the president into returning the cross to the chapel full time:
The school's governing Board of Visitors meets this coming Thursday and Friday, and Haley and his supporters - including some alumni who have threatened to withhold donations until the cross is permanently restored - want the panel to overrule Nichol. The board's agenda will not be available until midweek, a school spokesman said.The students have already voted to keep it out of the chapel:
The student assembly defeated a resolution to return the cross, and Nichols' decision was endorsed by faculty and by Campus Ministers United, Jewish and Christian clergy who advise campus religious organizations.Some view it as religious bigotry:
Oscar Blayton, a Williamsburg lawyer who in the early 1960s was the first black person to attend William and Mary as an undergraduate, sees having the cross on display all the time as religious bigotry.(via)
"Some of these people that are upset about the cross issue have a notion that it is a predominantly Christian community and Christians have more rights than other people," Blayton said.
This is typical of our society today, remove the cross from it's place because it offends me. It's a chapel, so you can expect there to be a cross. It was created for the worship of Jesus for the students of the college. If there are no students who want to worship Jesus in the chapel, then by all means get rid of it and allow people to worship whatever they want there. But if there are still Christians at the college then maybe they should designate another place for those who want to worship their god. Why does it have to be the chapel? Is it a statement? Pluralism has replaced Christianity at the college and we have vanquished Christ to the storage closet.
Related post:
Cross Removed from Chapel at William and Mary College
What? A Plaque Over a Cross?
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