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The Etownian
www.etownian.com
Vol. 114. Issue 19
Thursday, April 26, 2018
Annual Ware Lecture emphasizes the importance of compassion by Samantha Seely Staff Writer
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ednesday, April 11, Elizabethtown College welcomed Dr. Karen Armstrong, renowned historian and theologian of world religions and author, to speak on the importance of compassion at the annual Ware Lecture on Peacemaking. In addition, groups of students were invited to meet with Armstrong in smallgroup discussions April 12. Throughout Armstrong’s lecture, she compared different religious philosophers’ views and theologies, focusing in particular on how having compassion for others was a common theme across all major religions. She said she believes that unless we start being compassionate now, the world will not be a viable place. “Compassion is not feeling sorry for others, it’s not pity, but it is being on the same level, to look at another and be equal,” Armstrong said during the lecture. “Look at what gives you pain, and never give that pain to someone else.” Armstrong’s book, "Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life," discusses the steps to be compassionate to others. The first step is to go beyond ego, and to take the “I” out of our thinking. The final step is to love your enemy, which she clarified, was not a term meaning affection, but a term to describe loyalty used in treaties between kings. Armstrong emphasized that being compassionate is neither an easy or pleasant experience, and we must not limit our compassion to members of our own group but expand it to include all people. Part of the process is recognizing existence is suffering, and to allow pain to come into our hearts and use it to build sympathy. “A compassionate city shall be an uncomfortable city,” Armstrong said. “We should be disturbed by poverty and hunger, and we should cultivate that and allow ourselves to feel distressed. That’s the grain of sand in the oyster that creates the pearl.” Armstrong said that she pulls her beliefs on religion from many scriptures and faiths. Although she feels closest to Confucianism and other Asian-culture religions, she does not identify with any of them or identify herself as a person of faith.
Photo courtesy of the Elizabethtown College website
Dr. Karen Armstrong, author and historian and theologian of world religions, was this year's guest speaker at the annual Ware Lecture on Peacemaking. Her lecture focused on the importance of recognizing compassion.
She stressed the importance of not just having tolerance for others, as tolerance suggests the idea of putting up with or only allowing someone to stay. Instead, we should focus on learning from and having acceptance for others. “Having compassion has a lot to do with understanding other people’s religion, and I think that’s something a lot of us lack in today’s culture,” junior Rehana Persaud said. “A lot of people feel that their religion is the best or the only right answer.” The most important piece of advice Armstrong had for
learning to be compassionate is practicing compassion all day, every day. It is not just about feeling, which is “dependent on how much sleep you got the night before.” She suggests starting small by not looking away or ignoring human suffering, but continuing to think about it and carrying that image with you throughout the day. "Compassion is something that every person has SEE LECTURE PAGE 2
Community Fellows program to Campus Rally Day continues begin in ILUs starting this fall dialogue about gun violence by Stephanie Miller Copy Chief
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ommunity Fellows will replace Resident Assistants (RAs) in the Vera Hackman Apartments, Schreiber Quadrangle and Featherton Crossing Apartments starting in the 2018-2019 academic year. The application period to become a Community Fellow closed Friday, April 6. Community Fellows have some of the same duties as RAs, including making door decorations and closing buildings before breaks. However, they cannot let locked-out students into their rooms and cannot mediate conflicts between residents. For those issues, Independent Living Unit (ILU) residents will have to call Campus Security or Residence Life. ILU Area C oordinator Dominick DiLoreto announced the new position in an email Monday, March 26, over a week after ILU housing selection. “ILU residents do want to have a more independent living experience to help them transition into life beyond Etown, so we’ll be making efforts to educate those folks,” he said. That education will come from weekly programs hosted by Community Fellows. The programs focus on “adulting,” developing skills needed to succeed in the post-college world. This series stems from events DiLoreto hosted throughout April. Topics included handling personal finances and developing an adult mindset. “This is a new opportunity to further educate our students in a new way,” DiLoreto said. We’re excited to move forward and to provide the best living and educational experience we can for our students.”
T h e p o s it i on d e ve l op e d f rom a combination of focus groups, surveys and observation. Residence Life staff discussed the idea with different student groups, including various students who live on campus and Student Senate classes. Ju n i or B e c c a C o d e r work s w it h Residence Life as the Honors LLC Coordinator in Schlosser Residence Hall, planning events for Schlosser residents in the Honors program. “I love the flexibility of being an LLC Coordinator,” she said. “I’ve always looked at what RAs do and said, ‘I can’t do that. That’s out of my comfort zone.’” When she first heard about Community Fellows, Coder planned to apply for the position, assuming the duties were similar to those of her current ones. When she heard it was more similar to the RA position and involved mandatory planning of weekly events, she was unsure whether the position and pay were worth the effort. While RAs and Community Fellows share some duties, some logistical differences separate the two positions. Community Fellows receive hourly pay instead of the free room and stipend RAs receive. DiLoreto estimates Community Fellows will work five to ten hours per week. Coder decided not to apply. “I think they took away some things t hat matter [ab out R esidence L ife positions] and kept the things that don’t,” she said. She also did not think upperclassmen would regularly attend the week ly adulting conversations. “Juniors and seniors are usually as involved as they want to get, and when SEE PROGRAM PAGE 3
Photo: Emma Pile | Staff Photographer
Friday, April 20, Noir and Better Together sponsored the ENOUGH: Campus Rally to reopen the conversations in reference to recent national gun violence.
by Elizabeth Gipe Asst. News Editor
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riday, April 20, an all-day campus rally was held at Elizabethtown College as the final installment of a three-part series of events on gun violence organized by junior Bekah Smith. The first event, the ENOUGH: Vigil for victims of the Parkland shooting, represented “remembrance.” The second event, the ENOUGH: Walkout, represented “solidarity.” The third event, the rally, represented “dialogue.” The rally began at 10 a.m. as students and volunteers gathered outside of the Bird Cage in front of the BSC. Afterwards, the students and volunteers marched down to Market Street to Rep. Dave Hickernell’s office, where they would have a meeting with Hickernell to discuss their perspectives as college students on gun violence. Candidates running against Hickernell in the upcoming elections, such as Democratic Party candidate Mary Auker-Enders, were present
outside of Hickernell’s office to answer questions about their stances on gun violence. “I appreciated the time the students took to visit with me last week,” Hickernell said in an email about the meeting. “Each student offered a unique perspective on a number of important issues facing our state and nation.” “I think the meeting with Rep. Hickernell was successful and positive,” senior Allie Vaccaro, who wasone of the students who marched to Hickernell’s office, said. “Each student was able to articulate their stance on the topic of gun violence, and the Representative listened intently and was responsive to our suggestions and various viewpoints.” Once the meeting ended, students marched back to the BSC to participate in the next phase of events. Speakers and a microphone were set up for students to present speeches. Topics covered ranged from experiences a student’s family has had with gun violence, gun violence in communities of color, the need for dialogue with people you disagree with SEE RALLY PAGE 3