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Michelle Robertson, a third-year human development and family studies student at Kent State, never called herself a religious person. During her freshman year, she went to the Late Night Christian Fellowship. She didn’t like the scene. But after experiencing a series of obstacles involving drugs and alcohol, she rediscovered God and was hooked. While many college students tend to shy away from religion, some, like Robertson, are rediscovering it. Numerous religious groups in Kent report an increase in student participation. Students are joining religious groups, experts say, because they want to feel a sense of belonging and realize religion may be the way. The tragic events of Sept. 11 also may have prompted more to practice. “Student groups — any group — provide students with some social support,” says David Odell-Scott, associate professor of philosophy and coordinator of religion studies. “Religious student groups, in some instances, provide students with the opportunity to associate with persons who share the religious culture they are familiar with or associated with while growing up.” Shelby Black, director of Late Night Christian Fellowship, says she has seen a 40 percent increase in Late Night attendance over the past four years, now averaging 95 people a week. And Rick McKee, of The Dive, a branch of Campus Crusade for Christ, says he has seen a “three-fold growth over the last year.”
“College students are looking at the emptiness of atheism through a perspective of ‘been there, done that, and found it lacking,’” McKee says. “Many students are searching for real meaning, significance and purpose. These things don’t come from beauty, wealth or power — the unholy trinity of our aspirations.” |
