Stillpoint Spring 2004 by Gordon College

New Conversations Changing Assumptions

Up Front

Where Deep Gladness and the World’s Deep Hunger Meet ordon College students are exploring what it means to be called by God to live with coherence and purpose, integrity, zest, courage and meaning. Stimulated by a major grant from the Lilly Endowment, Christian vocation is on everyone’s mind. Even our annual spring student symposium, sponsored by the Center for Christian Studies, is framed by the theme “Vocation: Called to Make a Life—Called to Make a Difference.” Author and lecturer Frederick Buechner observes that vocation is “the place where deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.” When understood in this context, vocation is not purely a personal relationship between God and an individual student, as important as that is. Vocation is given full meaning only as it becomes a response to the deep needs of the world in which Christians are called to live. At Gordon we are reflecting on how to create a “place where deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.” The answers are not always what we expect. Calling from the world of marketing, some urge us to find answers by conducting high school student focus groups, consulting with prospective parents and listening to our culture. Depending on what we hear, they tell us to shape our message to attract the greatest number of applicants. While this may work when selling cars or vacation cruises, it won’t help us determine the vocation of Gordon College anymore than it will be a successful strategy for helping students make vocational choices. Gordon must center its vision on our calling to be a place where truth is explored, tough questions are asked and honest dialogue takes place. Only then will we be true to our vision. But this can be dangerous. It’s all too easy to give in to the pressures from extremes on the left or right in our culture, where it doesn’t seem to matter how you live as much as how loudly—and sometimes rudely—you protest. Our vision may lead us into uncharted territory as we talk about systemic poverty, the insights gained from the postmodern critique, or the role of the church in addressing the spiritual needs of the homosexual community and the physical needs of African children orphaned by HIV/AIDS. As you will see as you read this edition of Stillpoint, Gordon College will not be a “safe” place if these ideas and problems are dealt with honestly. We may be made uncomfortable by what we read. We may be challenged to tackle issues when it is easier to look the other way. We may even be criticized by our own evangelical subculture for failing to fall in line with their definition of the politically correct status quo. But if we are to be true to our vocation, we cannot shirk this calling to teach the tools that will give our young Christian men and women the ability to shape other minds and hearts for Christ and His vision of the world.

President

T.S. Eliot, in his poem Four Quartets, refers to God as the “still point of the turning world.”

Editor Patricia C. McKay ’65 Media Relations Manager Chris Underation Publication Design Lora E. Maggiacomo ’92 Printer DS Graphics Lowell, Massachusetts

Stillpoint, the magazine for alumni and friends of the united college of Gordon and Barrington, is published three times a year and has a circulation of 23,000. Send address changes to: Development Ofﬁce jhokanson@hope.gordon.edu Send other correspondence to: Editor, Stillpoint Gordon College 255 Grapevine Road Wenham, Massachusetts 01984 mckay@hope.gordon.edu Visit our website at: www.gordon.edu Reproduction of Stillpoint in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. Gordon College is an equal opportunity institution and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, age, sex, or national or ethnic origin.

Volume 19, Number 2 Spring 2004

IFC

Up Front by R. Judson Carlberg Where Deep Gladness and the World’s Deep Hunger Meet

On & Off Campus by Cyndi McMahon

A New Campus Conversation by R. Judson Carlberg

President Carlberg challenges us to listen to global voices and perspectives, and consider changing our assumptions.

Ken Olsen Science Center Plans Underway by Robert E. Grinnell ’81

Gordon is more than ever committed to scientiﬁc inquiry within a framework of faith.

Profs & Programs Green Chemists? by Irvin J. Levy

NEWCONVERSATIONS CHANGINGASSUMPTIONS

Professor Irv Levy introduces a new “benign by design” approach to chemistry.

A Jewel for Student Research by Dorothy Boorse ’87 Biology professor Dorothy Boorse points out the rare advantages of outdoor classrooms at Gordon.

Athlete Proﬁles Meet Gordon Student-Athletes by Stephen Leonard ’94

Seniors Naomi Chapman, ﬁeld hockey, and Ryan Smith, basketball, both feel their years at Gordon have prepared them for transitions to life after college.

Aristocracy and Obligation: The Medieval Lists of Almsdeeds by Eleonore Stump

God’s Interesting Math by Chris Underation

Point of View A Persuasive Experience by Bridget (Quirk) Aureli ’93

Philosopher and theologian Eleonore Stump relates medieval almsgiving to our Christian responsibilities today.

Mother and teacher Bridget Aureli rethinks her Reason and Rhetoric speech on mixing families with careers.

Faculty Proﬁles Meet Gordon Faculty by Elizabeth Ross White

Along with a love of scholarly pursuits, philosophy professor Malcolm Reid enjoys cooking and comics, while history professor Dong Wang likes bringing East and West together.

Alums at Large Whose Kingdom Come? by Nicholas Giordano ’79 Alumnus Nick Giordano achieved great professional success but realized he must choose whose kingdom would rule his life.

Several unusual factors add up to a kidney donation from staff member Sue Hakes to faculty member Peter Stine.

Gifts & Giving Charitable Gift Annuities . . . the Rest of the Story by Rick Klein ’93

As Paul ’43 and Madelyn (Curtis) ’47 discovered, one of the best ways to receive income while exercising stewardship is through charitable gift annuities.

IBC BC

PHOTOS BY ARTHUR DURITY: COVER; TABLE OF CONTENTS; PAGES 4, 6, 7, 10, 13 (LOWER RIGHT), 17 (PHOTO ON LEFT), 20; BACK COVER (PHOTO ON LOWER LEFT).

Raves & Rebuffs Events Calendar Ever Wonder What Guides Them?

On & Off Campus

CYNDI MCMAHON

New Director of Athletic Development Jeffrey Rourke ’92 was appointed director of athletic development, a position created to assist in fundraising for athletics. He will encourage alumni involvement in the Highlander Club as well as partner with coaches in student-athlete recruitment. Jeff played hockey, baseball and tennis while at Gordon. Jeff worked in the ﬁnancial services industry for more than a decade and was executive director of senior sales management in the Marketing and Distribution Ofﬁce for Van Kampen Investments/Morgan Stanley. He and his wife, Kari (Swenson) ’91 feel blessed to serve at Gordon along with their four children.

Memorable Collegium at Faneuil Hall Collegium 2003: Conversations on International Public Policy was held on campus and at Boston’s Faneuil Hall in the fall. It was sponsored by the Center for Christian Studies (CCS) and 11 other organizations including Evangelicals for Middle East Understanding, The Henry Institute for the Study of Christianity and Politics at Calvin College, The National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America and the Wilberforce Forum/Prison Fellowship Ministries. It attracted students and faculty from Gordon, Harvard, Brandeis and many Boston colleges and universities. The biannual symposium dealt with international politics and justice, tensions in the Middle East, reparations for slaver y in America, global environmental policy and global warming. Panelists were from Baylor University, the Israeli Consulate in Boston, the Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center, National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations, U.S. Naval War College, and the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. Challenging issues were discussed and confronted academically to inspire change. Tapes of the event are available through the CCS, 978.867.4365 or drost@faith.gordon.edu. For information visit http://www.gordon.edu/ccs/Collegium2003.htm.

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All-American Honors for Gordon Athlete Sophomore soccer player Matt Smith of Altamonte Springs, Florida, was named to the National Soccer Coaches Association’s Second Team American status as well as the NSCAA Adidas First Team All-New England. Smith was also named the 2003 Player of the Year by the Commonwealth Coast Conference, and named to the All-Conference First Team. The striker scored 20 goals and 15 assists during the season for 55 points. His offensive output for points-per-game ranked 13th nationally, his assists 17th nationally, and his goals 24th nationally. Gordon’s men’s soccer coach, Marc Whitehouse, said, “Matt is very deserving of this award. He’s a great leader and motivator on our team.” Three out of every four goals scored in each of the ﬁnal seven games were scored or assisted by Smith.

On the Move— Gordon Goes West Several Gordon ofﬁces made the three-mile move to a corporate complex at 50 Dunham Road in Beverly and will be called Gordon College–West Campus. Nestled between North Shore Music Theatre and the Salem News, Gordon West will be the new home for the Ofﬁces of Development, Communications and Marketing, College Planning, Business, Human Resources, Informational Systems, the Center for Christian Studies, and the Vice President for Finance and Administration. Gordon West will also feature a conference center with two conference rooms, project areas for faculty and visiting scholars, and will host additional Christian organizations headquartered at Gordon.

Thank You, Eastern Bank Eastern Bank Charitable Foundation donated $25,000 to the Gordon College science building project in January. The Olsen Science Center will cost an estimated $25 million. (See story on page 8.) We thank Eastern Bank for their continued support of education and Gordon College.

Let It Shine Gordon College has joined the National Essex Heritage Commission as a partner in the Commission’s application to manage the Baker’s Island Lighthouse on an island in Salem Sound, about a 10-minute boat ride from Manchester-by-the-Sea. If the application to the National Parks Foundation is successful, Gordon will use the island and lighthouse for its summer Marine Biology Institute. Students would have the opportunity to monitor the ecology of Salem Sound through research projects.

Student-Initiated Gordon Symposium For the past seven years, one Thursday in April has been dedicated to a campus-wide symposium sponsored by the Center for Christian Studies. This year the studentinitiated symposium is titled Vocation: Called to Make a Life—Called to Make a Difference. It will be held April 22, with pre- and post-symposium events spread throughout the week.

Asian New Year Celebration The 10th annual Asian New Year Celebration was held in February, sponsored by the East-West Institute under

Faculty Focus Thomas Askew , East-West Institute, and Richard Pierard, scholar-in-residence: Recently published The

American Church Experience: A Concise History. Tanja Butler, art: Reviewed proposals for National

Endowment for the Arts; on “Challenge America: Access/Heritage and Preservation” panel in Washington, D.C. Drawings used in congressional debates on abortion and was invited to signing of partial-birth abortion ban. Mia Chung, music: Performed all 10 Beethoven piano

and violin sonatas with violinist Catherine Cho at Hoam Art Center, major venue in Seoul. Kaye Cook, psychology: Published essay “Moral Voices of

Women and Men in the Christian Liberal Arts College” in Journal of Moral Education. Damon DiMauro, French: Reviewed new critical edition of 16-century tragedy Cornelie for Swiss journal Bibliotheque d’Humanisme et Renaissance. Valerie Gin, recreation and leisure studies: Published Focus

on Sport in Ministry, coauthored with Lowrie McCown ’74. Book released at 2003 ACE Arena Conference in Athens, where Gin presented and served as panelist. Jennifer Hevelone-Harper, history: Book Letters to the Great Old Man: Monks, Laity and Spiritual Authority in Sixth-Century Gaza accepted for publication by Johns Hopkins University Press. Bruce Herman, art: Work featured in American Art Quarterly with Christian contributions to study of beauty. Guest on National Public Radio’s Studio 360 to discuss absence of evangelicals in the world of art. Thomas Howard, history, and Agnes Howard, history

and English: Both published articles in Books & Culture—

the direction of Professor Dong Wang and Shirley Houston. The event featured an Asian chapel service and a festive evening celebration with an Asian buffet. The Chapel Dining Room was ﬁlled with bright-colored booths offering origami, Chinese cooking, ink arts, paper carving and Chinese calligraphy. Chinese selections were performed by student Bai Yun ’04, opera vocalist, and Michael Zheng, 13-year-old violinist and son of biology professor Ming Zheng.

A sampling of faculty accomplishments and activities outside the classroom Agnes’, “Where Babies Come From”; and Tal’s, “Learning to Be Modern: Notes on the German University.” David Mathewson, biblical studies: Published several articles on Revelation (Trinity Journal and Evangelical Quarterly) and the book A New Heaven and New Earth: The Meaning and Function of the Old Testament in Revelation. Stanley Pelkey, music: Collection of essays coedited

with Jeff Jackson, Music and History: Bridging the Disciplines, accepted for publication by the University of Mississippi Press. Mark Stevick, English: Won 2003 Charlotte Short

Play Award for Someplace Called Fred’s, which also won PACT One-Act Play Competition and will be ﬁlmed for broadcast in New York City. Poetry appeared in 16 literary journals in past year. Peter Stine, English: Reviews of both Warwick Slinn’s

Victorian Poetry as Cultural Critique and Simon Joyce’s Capital Offenses: Geographies of Class and Crime in Victorian London published in Choice magazine. Gregor Thuswaldner, German: Chaired session and presented on apocalyptic tendencies in contemporary literature at conference in Vienna on “The Unifying Aspects of Culture.” Hosted at Gordon the Massachusetts Chapter of American Association of Teachers of German. William Walldorf, political studies: Published review essay “America in the World: An Annotated Bibliography” in Hedgehog Review. James Zingarelli, art: “Suites and Stanzas,” paintings, drawings and sculptures, exhibited at Houghton College.

A NEW CAMPUS

In a rapidly changing world, President Carlberg lays down the challenge to listen to global voices and perspectives, and consider changing our assumptions about reality.

GORDON COLLEGE STILLPOINT

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CONVERSATION BY

The vision of A. J. Gordon in the 19th century was to take the gospel to Africa through what was then known as the Congo Mission. In 1889 he gathered a small group of men and women, including African-Americans, who were prepared to follow God’s lead to the mission field. Their message focused on Christ, the cross, hope and love—a vision they learned at the fledgling Boston Missionary Institute, the forerunner to Gordon College. Over a century ago A. J. Gordon began sending missionaries to Africa to change the spiritual climate. Today Christian Africans, Asians and Hispanics are coming to us, and they are changing our spiritual climate. They are engaging us in a conversation where new voices are heard—where the other point of view is considered, and grace flourishes. Several years ago when I was Gordon’s dean of the faculty, I went on a cultural immersion trip to Latin America that changed my perspective on the world. Traveling with Christian college deans and faculty members, I encountered people living in poverty and misery in Haiti. But in the midst of their difficult situation, Haitian Christians, helped by World Vision, were launching small, economic development initiatives to improve rural life. Their hope encouraged me. In Nicaragua, where the Sandinista government controlled the country, we were surprised to find so many evangelical believers who felt Christianity and economic principles of Marxism could work together in building a better society. Talk about acquiring knowledge from dissonance and developing a different point of view! My learning curve shot up dramatically, and I realized it was time I discovered why many people abroad had a far different view than I did of the United States and its role in the world.

While study abroad and shortterm mission experiences continue to impact Gordon students, the growing presence of internationals—especially from the Southern Hemisphere—brings us face-toface with new ways of living and learning right here at the College. International students are involved in changing the worldwide Church, and they are changing our campus conversation about the world.

SHIFTS IN THE WORLDWIDE CHURCH Philip Jenkins’ recent book The Next Christendom documents a shift in balance within the worldwide Church. The unprecedented expansion of Christianity in Latin America, Africa and parts of Asia has vastly exceeded the rate of growth in the West. Drawing on his research, Jenkins says, “The era of Western Christianity has passed within our lifetimes, and the day of Southern Christianity is dawning.” As more immigration occurs from the Southern Hemisphere to the

Photo at left: President Carlberg with several of Gordon’s 47 international students (from 29 countries) and a few of our international faculty and administrators.

R. JUDSON CARLBERG

United States, Southern Christianity continues to grow and inﬂuence the traditional American expressions of the faith. Jenkins even shines a light in our own backyard: “To take an East Coast example, around half the congregations active today in the Boston-Cambridge area worship in languages other than English.” Just look at our own campus. Last fall at a welcome dinner party for the entering class of New City Scholars and some of our Gordon international students, guests shared their stories. In a group of 30, more than 26 languages and 20 nations were represented. And we discovered that several Gordon international students were in the United States because their parents were sent here as missionaries. In many cases the New City Scholars are members of Boston urban churches made up predominantly of new Christian immigrants from Asia, Latin America or Africa. Our experience that evening was just a microcosm of what is happening within Christianity in urban centers throughout the world. Change is under way, especially in the Western Church and, by extension, at Gordon College.

IMPLICATIONS FOR GORDON’S FUTURE As international voices become more numerous, they will lead us to question some of our assumptions about reality. In fact, this is already happening. In an address to our students last spring just after the bombs fell on Baghdad, Dr. David Young, managing director of Oxford Analytica in the United Kingdom—and a Gordon trustee—cautioned us to be 5

By listening to many voices throughout the globe, we become aware of the claims of others who challenge our dominant point of view. wary of becoming blind to the peril of being the dominant culture. In his work Dr. Young is paid to listen to and interpret the other voices. [See Dr. Young’s article “The Peril of the Dominant Culture and the Idea of America” in Stillpoint, Fall 2003.] A former White House staff member in the Nixon administration, Dr. Young is hardly a liberal voice. He asserted that the United States “is now arguably the most dominant of dominant powers in modern history.” But there is peril in being a dominant culture. Says Dr. Young, “Such cultures, sooner or later, become so preoccupied with their own power that they fail to see themselves from outside.” He further concludes, “In short, the world does not see us the way we see ourselves.” Ongoing events in the Middle East—and the many worldwide responses to them—underscore his warnings. Of course, seeing the world from the perspectives of others may lead to questions that many of us struggle to answer. Whose way is the right way? What truth is the truth? When should we change our minds—and perhaps our actions—because others will be harmed if we don’t? What do we do when we ﬁnd that our sisters and brothers in Christ from the developing world, view our “absolutes,” especially on systemic social issues, far differently? 6

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Will we retreat into dogmatism, or will we be people of grace and compassion, looking for ways to continue the conversation? After all, isn’t this precisely what Christ calls us to in the Sermon on the Mount when he says, “Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy,” or “Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called children of God”? We need not shy away from engaging these difﬁcult questions. By listening to many voices throughout the globe, we become aware of the claims of others who challenge our dominant point of view. By modeling engagement in this conversation, we strengthen the Gordon educational experience for our students and ourselves.

CHANGING ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT REALITY What else will be required of us? Our Western-oriented curriculum will have to change. As important as it is for well-educated Christians to understand the dominant culture, the curriculum of the future must introduce students to the interaction of Western culture with the history and customs of the developing world. Students will need to learn basic tools for understanding other cultures, languages and ways of grasping reality. This is not an easy task. Assumptions about reality differ dramatically from culture to culture. Those SPRING 2004

of us in the traditional Western evangelical tradition find a rational approach to Christianity seems to align nicely with conducting worship, building a worldview and creating community. But all of that is now being changed by the influence of Southern Christianity. Southern Christianity is “enthusiastic and spontaneous, fundamentalist and supernatural-oriented,” and, as Philip Jenkins goes on to say, will likely “become the Christian norm.” Far less emphasis will be on rational comprehension and far more on relationships and responses of the heart. There’s the challenge. We do not want to accommodate so much to Southern Christianity that we negate our rich Christian intellectual tradition. Nor, on the other hand, do we want to reject the “mysticism of the heart” or, as some evangelicals say, “the work of the Holy Spirit.” How do we speak most effectively to both heart and mind? Students from abroad are changing more in our subculture than just worship. Their influence, coupled with what is happening in our larger society, has something to do with the way students learn and how they relate to each other and to their faculty in the classroom. Gone are the days when didactic lectures were the norm. Today’s students expect collaborative learning in small groups and problem solving through team building. Our campus conversation is also different. When it comes to social concerns, U.S. students are aware of the hot personal concerns that dominate discussions: abortion, the gay agenda and pornography. As important as these are in our current

NEWCONVERSATIONSCHANGINGASSUMPTIONS

cultural debates, students from the developing world raise more systemic concerns. They introduce topics to the campus conversation that are remote to many of our traditional students: the AIDS crisis in Africa, the need for social justice, or concern about rampant materialism in America. They see these issues starkly against the backdrop of debilitating poverty, which many of them have experienced ﬁrsthand in the Third World.

OUR TASK AS CHRISTIANS Postmodern thinking endows those from outside the Western mainstream with a stronger voice in the conflict of worldviews. As N. T. Wright, leading New Testament scholar and Bishop of Durham in England, told our students last spring, don’t give up—forge a balanced perspective that draws on the strengths of conflicting worldviews. Bishop Wright told us that “our task as Christians is to be in the front row of constructing the postmodern world. . . . The radical hermeneutic of suspicion that characterizes all of postmodernity is essentially nihilistic, denying the very possibility of creative or healing love. In the cross and resurrection of Jesus we find the answer.” How can we effectively communicate this essential teaching of our faith? When faced by dissidence, our response should not be “to run back cheerfully into the arms of modernism,” says Dr. Wright in his book The Challenge of Jesus. “It is to hear in postmodernity God’s judgment on the follies and failings, the sheer selfish arrogance of modernity, and to look and pray and work for the resurrection into God’s new world out beyond.”

In this task we will surely find support from our Christian friends from the developing world. They have little quarrel with conservative theology. Where they may differ with the dominant Western view is on the application of biblical teaching. At Gordon we try to resist allowing our historical or cultural differences to define us as Christians. Will this be a place where a conversation about complex, real-world problems is not off limits, even when the answers don’t seem to fit into a neat Bible reference? We must commit to carry on our conversation with respect, grace and hope; a conversation surrounded by prayer. By this response, our impact for Christ in the world will be consistent with the vision of our founder.

Carlberg holds a doctorate in higher education administration from Michigan State University and a Master of Divinity from Denver Seminary. He has served on the boards of a number of distinguished higher education institutions and organizations. He is past chair of the American Association of Presidents of Independent Colleges and Universities, the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities, and the Northeast Consortium of Colleges and Universities in Massachusetts. He currently serves on the boards of Denver Seminary and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. In 1999 Carlberg was honored by the John Templeton Foundation for leadership in character development.

Dr. Carlberg, the seventh president of Gordon, came to the College in 1976 as dean of the faculty and won national recognition for his leadership of the faculty development program. He became senior vice president for development in 1990 and president in 1992. During his tenure many new academic programs have been initiated including communication arts, biotechnology, neuroscience, finance, graduate programs in education and music, as well as off-campus programs in Italy and Boston. In addition, a growing number of campus facilities have been constructed including the A. J. Gordon Memorial Chapel, the Bennett Athletic and Recreation Center and premier ﬁne arts facilities. 7

Ken Olsen Science Center Plans Underway BY

ROBERT E. GRINNELL ’81

ordon College is moving forward with its plans to launch the Ken Olsen Science Center, named in honor of trustee emeritus Ken Olsen, founder of Digital Equipment Corporation. A generous gift commitment by Olsen has initiated this state-of-theart complex, which will offer the environment Gordon’s bright science faculty and students need for teaching and learning. The announcement of plans for a new science center in the Fall 2002 issue of Stillpoint elicited an enthusiastic response from the Gordon community near and far. The timing is critical as science faculty and students have been laboring in the sub-par conditions of antiquated buildings. According to President R. Judson Carlberg, “The Ken Olsen Science Center is crucial to meeting the needs we have right now. Our current classrooms and labs, built in 1955 and 1979, have become deleterious to the College’s reputed science program. We are more than ever committed to preparing Christian leaders in the sciences,” Carlberg states. “We owe it to our faculty and students, our alumni and friends, and to people worldwide who will beneﬁt from the work of Gordon-trained scientists, to provide quality educational facilities.”

trally located at the heart of Gordon’s campus alongside what’s affectionately known as the quad, where Wood and Byington Halls currently stand. In addition to its ideal position on campus, Gordon’s science center will offer students and faculty the geographical advantage of being located near Route 128’s renowned biotech industry and Boston’s world-class teaching hospitals and medical facilities. These major research, computer, and medical ﬁrms afford internship and job opportunities for students and desirable collaborative connections for faculty. In turn, Gordon will be recognized by these institutions for attracting top students and faculty and for further strengthening research, dialogue and debate with key scientiﬁc thinkers and policy makers. What’s more, Gordon is situated in a marine-rich environment, with freshwater ponds located throughout its 500-acre campus and surrounding areas, and with the Atlantic Ocean just two miles down the road. “Gordon’s science program offers tremendous research opportunities not available elsewhere,” Carlberg says, “but we need adequate facilities to continue the exemplary endeavors initiated by our faculty in the 1970s.

Location, Location, Location

Why is Gordon College so serious about science? The answer can be found in the early chapters of the Book of Genesis. “God created the heavens and earth as revealed in Genesis 1–3, which is foundational to the scientiﬁc enterprise of discovering God’s creation and celebrating it as we discover it,” Carlberg emphasizes. “Christians have an obligation to study science as a means of understanding God’s revelation to us in the natural world as well as in Scripture.” It is this very passion for discovery and a respect for others who share it that drew Ken Olsen to Gordon College more than four decades ago.

Currently major donors are being solicited to raise the $25 million needed to build the science center in two phases. With a targeted construction start date of fall 2005, Phase One will accommodate the Biology and Chemistry Departments, while the adjoining Phase Two, scheduled to begin in summer 2007, will provide space for the Physics, Computer Science, Math, Psychology and Movement Science Departments. The convenient proximity of departments will allow for richer cross-collaboration. The 75,000-square-foot facility will be cen8

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Serious about Science

Gordon is more than ever committed to scientiﬁc inquiry within a framework of faith—preparing Christian leaders for serious ethical and theological engagement with the challenges facing our world.

Olsen says he is impressed by the openness with which science has been taught at Gordon and with the critical thinking and empirical approaches faculty have taken. Olsen, who joined Gordon’s Board of Trustees in 1961, notes that Gordon’s goal has always been to integrate Christian beliefs with scientific scholarship. “Science is more than a study of molecules and calculations; it is the love of knowledge and the continued search for truth,” Olsen says. “The study of the sciences promotes humility, leaving us with a clear sense that we will never understand all there is to know. At the same time, science provides a defense for truth, authenticates Christianity and stems from the nature of God.” Gordon College is especially honored that the Ken Olsen Science Center marks the first time Olsen has agreed to have his name associated with a building. “It has been evident that Gordon strives to graduate students who feel at ease with science, economics, and the humanities while holding onto their faith,” he states. “Even though I have been an entrepreneur, I have always been a scientist first and foremost. My dream for this new science center is that it would be a place where the College passes on a love of nature and an enthusiasm for the fun and excitement of using computers. Ideally, the science center would be a place where students carry on the tradition of being critical of ideas, and where students feel relaxed in an atmosphere of scientific thinking.”

A Commitment to Critical Inquiry and Compassion At the pulse of Gordon’s program is a desire to cultivate both the hearts and minds of students; to inspire lives of critical exploration, problem solving, service to God and stewardship of His creation. Gordon’s goal is to help students envision how compassionate service to others RENDERING ABOVE BY HEIJIN (ESTHER) KIM ’06, TIM FERGUSON SAUDER—RETURN DESIGN

coheres with a commitment to discovery. “Compassionate action increasingly requires knowledge of the truth of God’s world,” says President Carlberg. In the past 25 years there has been a steady stream of Gordon graduates serving in medical and research fields, often to peoples and in places long neglected by society. “Our tradition of scientific inquiry within a framework of faith prompts serious ethical and theological engagement with the challenges facing our world,” Carlberg says. “At Gordon we are bringing to bear the biblical witness on issues that are of prominent concern in the scientific community, including the AIDS pandemic, hunger relief and sustainable agriculture. Our mission is to graduate Christians who are prepared to identify and impact the major issues that will affect us and our neighbors worldwide in the coming decades.” For more information on how you can make a difference in the hearts and minds of Gordon’s scientists, contact Robert Grinnell at 978.867.4005 or at grinnell@hope.gordon.edu. Bob Grinnell is vice president for development at Gordon. Following graduation from the College, he joined the Admissions Office, where he was director of admissions 1985–87. Following three years as head of admissions at The Stony Brook School on Long Island, he returned to Gordon as a member of the development staff. Since 1993 he has overseen all advancement efforts including the SALT and LIGHT CAMPAIGN, which exceeded its original dollar goal by raising more than $43 million in gifts and pledges. Bob and his staff are currently in the final stages of raising support for the Brigham Athletic Fields Complex as well as planning a major fundraising drive for construction of the Olsen Science Center.

Green Chemists? “Benign by design” encourages industries to ﬁnd alternative ways to produce materials without using hazardous substances. Chemistry professor Irv Levy introduces this exciting new approach to chemistry being used in our own campus labs.

design”—one of the mantras of this new approach. In the 1960s Rachel Carson’s book Silent Spring served as a catalyst for environmental activism; however, while the use of chemicals changed dramatically with this awareness, the preparation of chemicals in industry and academia has been relatively unaffected. In fact, it was widely believed that many important processes could not be performed in environmentally friendly ways. But creative chemists are ﬁnding this long-held belief is not necessarily true. For example, more than 100 million prescriptions have been written for the antidepressant Zoloft.® Using green chemistry principles, Pfizer Inc. has developed a new synthesis of this drug which uses less hazardous starting materials and produces about 1,000 tons less waste each year. JUNIOR BIOLOGY MAJOR LAURA HAMEL BY IRVIN

HEIGHTENED MY INTEREST IN GREEN

J. LEVY

fter sifting through preliminary data sent via the Deep Space Network by NASA’s Mars Exploration Rover, scientists have concluded there is no evidence of little green chemists on Mars. Nonetheless, faculty, staff and students of Gordon College have been hearing about green chemists on campus lately. So what is a green chemist? A few years ago a typical chemist would 10

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probably have given you a blank stare or plea of ignorance if you posed that question. Recently, however, we’re becoming increasingly familiar with the idea of a green chemist as one whose practice of chemistry is intentionally environmentally benign. IN

A NUTSHELL , GREEN CHEMISTRY

IS A MINDSET RATHER THAN A METHODOLOGY . Green chemists follow a number of guiding principles to work in a manner that is “benign by

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CHEMISTRY through a paper she wrote

while studying organic chemistry in spring 2003. Intrigued by her efforts, I chose to attend a half-day symposium at a national meeting of the American Chemical Society, followed by a week-long workshop at the University of Oregon; both focused on green chemistry. Using ideas gleaned from those experiences, this year we modiﬁed several of our labs, added new labs and initiated research projects to

Photo above: Professor Levy introduced an alkene bromination lab using a less hazardous starting material and an environmentally benign solvent.

Profs & Programs

develop future labs in order to introduce green chemistry principles into our practice of organic chemistry at Gordon. One of our new labs exempliﬁes splendidly the power of the green approach. Every organic chemistry textbook describes a process called alkene bromination. The standard procedure for this reaction requires the use of a very hazardous material dissolved in a solvent which is a suspected carcinogen. To avoid the hazards associated with these two chemicals, we have not included this otherwise useful process in our teaching labs during the past 20 years. However, last semester we introduced an alkene bromination lab based on an alternate procedure I learned about at the Oregon workshop. It uses not only a less hazardous starting material but also an environmentally benign solvent.

GREEN CHEMISTRY HAS QUICKLY CAPof students and faculty at Gordon College, encouraging all of us to think about how we can practice chemistry in ways that make us more effective stewards of the natural environment God has given us. Green chemistry isn’t a fad that’s going to fade away. As Dr. John Warner—one of the founding fathers of the green chemistry movement— commented to an enthusiastic audience at Gordon last fall, “We won’t be looking back and saying, ‘Hey, remember when we used to care about the environment?’” The principles of green chemistry are here to stay. TURED THE IMAGINATION

For further information online go to http://www.chemistry.org/greenchemistryinstitute.

DOROTHY BOORSE ’87

N A COLD DAY IN LATE MARCH, while the average college student is curled up with a cup of hot chocolate and a fascinating textbook, Gordon’s hardy biology students are wading in a vernal pool collecting data on swimming beetles and dragonfly larvae. That’s because at Gordon we have more than your average classrooms; ours are bigger and come naturally equipped—dry and wet—on our 500-acre campus. Here we experience aquatic creatures, forest plant species and protected wetlands, observing them firsthand as they change dramatically with the seasons. Freshman biology majors take their first lab outdoors. Initiates to Coy Pond respond with surprise that at first they can’t see anything in the water, but when they watch long enough they see all kinds of tiny organisms. Students also trek through the woods to check out soil, trees and the underlying layer of vegetation, and begin to think like scientists—asking questions like “How is this habitat different from that one?” Best of all, students don’t need to drive a distance for a field trip; right outside Emery Hall is the greatest classroom of all—God’s creation.

Professor Irv Levy has been teaching chemistry and computer science at Gordon since 1985. He holds master’s degrees from Wesleyan University (chemistry) and Boston University (computer science). Levy is interested in projects involving chemistry, computer science or topics bridging the two. He initiated the Green Organic Literacy forum (GOLum) to develop green chemistry at Gordon and communicate its value. Twenty-ﬁve students are currently participating in GOLum projects. Laura Hamel ’05, the ﬁrst Gordon student to pursue a green chemistry project, is a biology major (environmental concentration) with chemistry and French minors. She is studying French at Aixen-Provence in France this semester. “Foreign language is very useful for research in chemistry, and I really like French!” she says. Laura will continue green chemistry research under Professor Levy during the summer and/or fall.

A Jewel for Student Research Biology professor Dorothy Boorse points out some of the rare advantages of the Gordon campus and its location two miles from the Atlantic Coast.

NON-BIOLOGY MAJORS CAN DISCOVER and appreciate nature through the Core Curriculum’s Environmental Science course. They can also investigate our obligation as stewards of the natural resources around us. One of the students’ favorite projects each year in this course is the Restore Creation event sponsored by Physical Plant. On that day the class lecture is cancelled and students form a sense of place and ownership as they wander the woods around Gordon collecting litter (some of the prize trash has included a tent, car parts and an air conditioner). In non-course activities students examine levels of various waste—for instance, in the cafeteria or residence halls—and educate the campus by making films and giving presentations to suggest changes. A GOOD EXAMPLE OF ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP is the restoration of the marsh behind Frost Hall. Alumni from the earliest days of the campus will recall the wetland that persistently reclaimed the parking lot over the years. With the help of a grant, two summers ago the eroding blacktop was removed, the road was raised, and a lovely park area was constructed. That restored marsh is a fascinating wetland that provides students with valuable research projects. Installation of water collection and cleaning tanks, and the planting of thousands of wetland plants have given classes the unusual opportunity to follow the progress of restored vegetation. In one study prior to the restoration, two students put fluorescent dye into the water there to see where and how fast the water flowed. They climbed into a kayak repeatedly throughout the night to collect and test water samples for fluorescence. Students in field courses often comment that doing the field project was the best part; they enjoy being involved in real science. GORDON’S CAMPUS IS AN ECOLOGIST’S DREAM. Last year one class collected data on 18 vernal pools—habitats that dry annually and make a safe

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Professor Boorse (left) with students in one of Gordon’s many outdoor classrooms.

environment for species that cannot survive predation by aquatic creatures like ﬁsh and bullfrogs. Students gained experience in the broader scientiﬁc world when the student-professor collaborative research on wood frogs and spotted salamanders was presented at two conferences—the Ecological Society of America in Savannah, Georgia, and an undergraduate research symposium in Bridgewater, Massachusetts. Another area of study involves invasive plant species. Annually it costs the United States an estimated $138 billion to deal with invasive species of plants, insects and others. In fall 2002 students surveyed Gordon property for selected invasive plant species. While purple loosestrife was found along many wetland edges on campus, the highly invasive, bamboo-like plant called Japanese knotweed was established in only one location. By identifying this problem early, Gordon students helped prevent a larger, costly problem and were part of the stewardship of Gordon’s distinctive property. GORDON’S MARINE PROGRAM BENEFITS from our superb location on the North Shore. For the past two years students have done ecological research under marine scientist Dr. David Shull. In collaboration with Dr. Shull and Dr. Robert Buchsbaum of the Massachusetts

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Audubon Society as well as with Woods Hole Marine Biology Lab, Gordon students John Ludlam ’04 and Aislinn Agnew ’05 have done research in local salt marshes. Several other students did research in nearby harbors on harmful algal blooms and on mercury in sediments. GORDON’S

PROPERTY IS A JEWEL FOR

STUDENT RESEARCH in environmental

sciences, marine science and ecology. Forests, ponds, vernal pools, as well as access to estuaries, salt marshes and tide pools are only some of the advantages of Gordon’s campus and location just two miles from the Atlantic coastline. Not only can we use the myriad habitats all around us for the education of our students, but also in the goal of modeling good stewardship for the larger community as we honor God and His creation. Dr. Dorothy Boorse returned to Gordon to teach biology in 1999. She holds a master’s from Cornell University (entomology) and a doctorate from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (oceanography and limnology). Boorse has studied entomology and aquatic ecology for over 14 years. Her current research interests are wetland ecology, invasive species ecology, environmental education, and environmental ethics, particularly regarding natural resource use. She has a passion for God’s creation and educates students about that creation and our responsibility for its care.

Athlete Proﬁles

Meet Gordon Student-Athletes Seniors Naomi Chapman and Ryan Smith both feel their years at Gordon have prepared them for transitions to life after college.

NaomiChapman Naomi Chapman knows a bit about transitions. As a midfield force in field hockey, she is often the catalyst for transition from a defensive posture to an offensive attack. And coming from a strong athletic background in public school, entering Gordon’s Christian community represented a big life transition. After four years in classrooms, on the playing field and around campus, the Gardiner, Maine, native understands the value in her college experience. Two things particularly stand out. First, the community. Whether in the incredible closeness and success she experienced with the field hockey teams or with her peers and professors, she says, “Gordon has been an environment I have been able to grow and learn in.” The influence of Dr. Valerie Gin is strongest in Chapman’s mind. “She has challenged me in and out of the classroom. She pushes students to not only learn material but to interact with it as an athlete, as a student and as a Christian,” Chapman says. Chapman’s career shows the Fighting Scots are losing one of their finest athletes ever. After three excellent years at midfield for Gordon—All-Conference Second Team 2000–2001 and First Team 2002—she switched to center back position as a senior to balance the team’s strength. Her defensive play won her the CCC Player of the Year award. That’s not surprising for this recreation and leisure studies major whose teammates honored her with the team’s award for “dedication, passion and love of the game.” Transition next? Chapman already has a job lined up in Augusta, Maine, as manager of a wellness spa called Advanced Health, a division of Light of Life Ministries. —Stephen Leonard ’94

RyanSmith “The thing I love about Gordon is being able to incorporate my faith into everything I do,” says Ryan Smith. Smith came to Gordon after a road trip from Hamilton to Wenham—almost as short as a full-length pass on the basketball court. A Christian school was first on his list of priorities when looking at colleges, and, having been home-schooled, staying local was important as well. He also wanted to know faculty and staff by more than just name. In the intense work of his double-major—business and accounting—Smith finds “professors who not only teach me how to balance the books but who also help me search for answers to ethical and moral problems. Honesty and integrity aren’t overwhelmingly apparent in the world, particularly in the pursuit of money. The Christian values we’re taught here will set us apart in our vocations,” Smith says. Smith credits playing basketball as equally life-shaping—particularly the last two years with Coach Mike Schauer. “I can see the changes in me,” Smith says. “He’s helped me develop my game, from the mental to the physical; and he challenges us to succeed and excel in everything we do, from studies to relationships, and, of course, in basketball.” In his final year Smith received a chance to shine on the basketball court. As a starting-point guard his 16.2 points per game earned him a place on the Honorable Mention Team in the Commonwealth Coast Conference. It all comes back to faith and simplicity for Smith. “Being able to pray in class, before practices, and out in the open is a tremendous privilege, and, unfortunately, something I probably take for granted.” —Stephen Leonard ’94

Stephen Leonard has coached men’s and women’s cross-country and track and ﬁeld at Gordon since 1998 and has been sports information director since 1999.

Renowned philospher and theologian Eleonore Stump brings medieval obligations for almsgiving into the present— especially for educated Christians in all vocations.

ARISTOCRACY AND OBLIGATION:

he edieval ists of lmsdeeds 14

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ELEONORE STUMP

rom the time Augustine bested his opponents in the Pelagian controversy over grace and works, orthodox Christian theologians and philosophers have agreed we are saved only by faith. While I want to talk about works, no one should suppose I am talking about winning salvation; rather, I am talking about our responsibilities as educated Christians. First we need to see that because of the education we have received, we are among the aristocrats of the earth. I don’t mean to say we are better than other people in virtue of being educated; anybody who thinks aristocrats are better than other people hasn’t thought enough about aristocrats. What makes aristocrats different from other people is only this: an enormous amount of the good things of this earth has been lavished on them. How many people in how many places and times have had the possibility of our sort of education—even to dream about? Imagine how many people at the margins of society could be supported on what it takes to put one American student through college for a year? This is the sense in which our education has made aristocrats of us.

The only excuse anyone has ever given to justify aristocracy is service—and the same thought is in the Gospels: a person to whom much has been given is a person from whom much will be required. So each of us has a serious responsibility to serve others with those very good things that have been given to us.

MEDIEVAL ALMSDEEDS Sometimes when we think about our responsibility as Christians, we think about the poor. The medieval period thought there were seven acts of help owed to those in need—seven acts of corporal almsgiving or charity, an instructive list for us. They are: • feeding the hungry • giving drink to the thirsty • providing shelter to the homeless • preparing clothing for those without it • visiting the prisoners • ransoming the captives • burying the dead Whatever our special obligations as educated Christians, they do not absolve us from the ordinary obligations attendant on all Christians to care for those in some bodily need. But I mention this list of seven acts of almsgiving only to set it to one side, because I want to talk about the medieval period’s second list of seven—acts of spiritual almsgiving or charity, also obligatory. This list is especially important for us because some of these things we are more able to do well in virtue of the education we have: • bearing with those who trouble us • forgiving injuries done to us • speaking up for those victimized by injustice

• instructing the ignorant • counseling those troubled in faith • consoling the sorrowful • praying for everybody

JUSTICE AND MERCY It only makes things better that the acts on the list are obligatory for us. Consider the person who always blows his nose loudly at the dinner table. If you manage somehow to avoid giving him a sharp rebuke or a disgusted glance, if you manage even to avoid being irritated with him in your heart, in the medieval view you have achieved only what bare justice requires. The poor of the earth, including those who are poor in the sense of being a pain in the butt to their fellow human beings, have a right in justice to expect love and care from us. Bearing with those who trouble us is an act justice requires of us. In an even more paradoxical way, acts of mercy are obligatory on us. We are obligated to forgive those who are unjust to us; and we are unjust to them if we do not. Consider the parable of the prodigal son and imagine a different ending to the story. Imagine the prodigal son came home and said to his father, “Father, forgive me! I have sinned against heaven and against you and am no more worthy to be called your son.” And imagine the father replied, “I’ve considered being merciful and forgiving you, but I’ve decided against it. You’re right; you’re not worthy to be my son. So off with you! Go someplace else!” Surely we would think ill of that father and blame him for hardheartedness. None of us would approve of him, would we? There’s something morally wrong with the father if he doesn’t forgive his son. The father

must forgive him if he wants to retain our moral approval. Speaking up against injustice done to others is also obligatory. We might understand the sort of self-protectiveness or cowardice that makes a person silent when he should step forward to protect those victimized by injustice, but we certainly think less of people who give in to that sort of cowardice. When we learn that a Catholic bishop knew about the sexual abuse being perpetrated by a priest in his diocese but protected the priest rather than the victims of that priest, we feel moral scorn for the bishop, don’t we? In order to avoid moral scorn, there are times when we must speak up, even if it is at cost to ourselves.

INSTRUCTING AND COUNSELING The medieval spiritual almsdeeds are obligatory for all Christians, but clearly some of them are especially obligatory for educated Christians: those acts of instructing the ignorant and counseling those doubtful in faith. Our gift of education gives us an added responsibility to others in these particular almsdeeds. Furthermore, the medievals thought the spiritual almsdeeds more important than the corporal or bodily almsdeeds. They believed the unfed hunger of the soul for faith, for understanding, for company and consolation in afﬂiction is more pain and peril for a person than when only the body is hungry and left unfed. Whether or not they were right in their rank ordering, it is clear there are terrible hungers of mind and spirit as well as hungers of the body, and that those with some education

Our job is to give everything we’ve got—to strive hard for all the excellence we can in whatever work God gives us to do— AND LET GOD DETERMINE WHAT TO MAKE OF IT. 15

have a special responsibility to do what they can to meet those psychic needs. We are called to pass on our education by sharing what we ourselves have been given. It isn’t possible to give a oneﬁts-all set of formulations about our obligations with regard to learning. But here is one thing which applies to all of us: We do no one any good with mediocrity. Sometimes we get tired. Sometimes we get lazy. Sometimes we feel defeated. Sometimes we get mixed up and think there is some virtue in selling ourselves short, and so we excuse our failure even to try for mastery and excellence by telling ourselves we don’t have much talent. But none of this is acceptable, is it?

EVALUATING SUCCESS Our God is a consuming fire. If we let ourselves get close to that fire in the love of the life of faith, we will blaze too, won’t we? Mother Teresa’s nuns are all over the world now. She built an incredibly powerful and influential organization. And she started as one small, obscure, powerless woman; she started by picking up a broom and sweeping the floor for a poor family in Calcutta. Augustine’s mother thought he would never convert to Christianity. Aquinas’ classmates thought he was dumb. Milton wrote virtually all his great poetry when he had lost his sight, his property, his job and his community. Our job is not to try to determine how much talent or opportunity we have been given so we can avoid having to go too far or try too much. Our job is to give everything we’ve got—to strive hard for all the excellence we can in whatever work God gives us to do—and let God determine what to make of it. I want to finish by reflecting briefly on how we are to evaluate success in our efforts to fulfill obligations when we have struggled for excellence. What is most instructive for us is the story of Cyril and Methodius. Brothers born in the ninth century 16

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A.D. in the Greek-speaking part of the Christian world, they took it as their lives’ work to convert the Slavs, the people of Russia and other territories where Slavonic was spoken. But there was no written language, so Cyril invented an alphabet, and Cyril and Methodius translated the Scriptures into Slavonic. They gave their lives to evangelizing with their Slavonic Bibles, but they made very few converts before they died. Their work and their Slavonic Bible were largely forgotten. Much later, when there was a new move to evangelize Slavic peoples, missionaries took the Bibles made by Cyril and Methodius and began a wave of conversion which brought one nation after another to Christianity, until in the 10th century all of Russia had been reached. Cyril and Methodius might have thought they had spent their labor in vain—had been entirely unsuccessful in what they set out to do. But they were faithful. They gave all they had to their vocation as educated Christians in the service of the Lord. And so success for us has to be deﬁned differently than in the secular world. For us success is being faithful in all we do to the best of our ability, to give back all that has been bestowed on us as educated Christians, to understand what our calling obligates us to. What happens with our efforts is in God’s hand—His business, not ours. SPRING 2004

Dr. Eleonore Stump was a speaker for the Lilly Endowment Vocation Series at Gordon last September. The series, entitled Faith Seeking Understanding, brings to campus accomplished and reﬂective people to stimulate thinking on a range of issues that relate to the theological idea of vocation. Stump is The Robert J. Henle Professor of Philosophy at Saint Louis University and previously taught at Oberlin College, Virginia Tech and the University of Notre Dame. She holds a B.A. in classical languages from Grinnell College, a master’s degree from Harvard University and a Ph.D. in medieval studies and medieval philosophy from Cornell University. Stump is editor-in-chief of the Yale Library of Medieval Philosophy and was section editor for the philosophy of religion for the new Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy. She has held grants from a number of prestigious organizations and presented the 2003 Gifford Lectures in Aberdeen, Scotland. She is the author or editor of 15 books and anthologies, and of more than 90 articles dealing with her research interests—medieval philosophy, the philosophy of religion, and metaphysics.

Faculty Proﬁles

MEET GORDON FACULTY Dong Wang and Malcolm Reid both exude infectious enthusiasm for life, scholarly pursuits, travel and fun. Dong is involved with the exciting international emphasis on campus. Malcolm has participated in Gordon’s growth and progress for 35 years.

DONG WANG Dong Wang enjoys an elevated perspective from her ofﬁce on the third ﬂoor of A. J. Gordon Memorial Chapel. There the history professor keeps a steady eye on her goal to “contribute to the mutual understanding between the East and the West,” she says. Wang, who grew up in China, is in her second year of teaching history courses on China, Japan and the world, and is associate director of Gordon’s East/West Institute. She holds two doctorates and is currently serving as associate in research for the Fairbank Center for East Asian Research at Harvard University. Having taught at universities in Hong Kong and in different areas of the United States, the professor enjoys Gordon’s scholarly atmosphere as well as the close community of a small Christian liberal arts school. Currently she’s working on two books. One of them (accepted by M. E. Sharpe for publication) is titled Reinventing Chineseness: The Discourse of Unequal Treaties in Modern China; it takes a look at the form of Chinese nationalism through the lens of unequal treaties. A second book examines the story of Lingnan University in China (formerly Canton Christian College) and its place in world Christianity and Sino-U.S. cultural relations. Wang enjoys spending time with her 5-year-old daughter, Rose. An animal lover, Rose likes to take her mother to the Boston Aquarium and other animalfriendly sites in the area. The professor also enjoys swimming, reading, cooking, watching comedies and traveling. “I greatly enjoyed seeing Plymouth Rock and learning about the history of our nation,” she says. —Elizabeth Ross White

MALCOLM REID Philosophy professor Malcolm Reid enjoys life. The chairman of the Humanities Division, who came to Gordon in 1968, talks enthusiastically about his work, family, favorite comic strip and cooking creations. His latest project is a book about people of exemplary moral character, based on research on Christian virtues in a pluralistic society. Due to be published this spring, Good Lives: Journeys of Faith and Character in American Churches Today was coauthored with Dr. Paul Kennedy of George Fox University. While on sabbatical this semester, Dr. Reid is teaching undergraduate and graduate courses in ethics and moral philosophy at Uganda University in Mukono, Uganda. Laughter adds sparkle to Reid’s work and play. “Some people think my sense of humor is quite odd,” he says with a twinkle and his delightful New Zealand accent. He frequently shares with students his collection of all-time favorite comic strip Calvin and Hobbes. Reid enjoys cooking when his wife, Dolly (Erickson) ’72, allows him in the kitchen. His specialties are pasta dishes, Christmas cookies, marmalade, and “a good leg of lamb with homemade mint sauce.” Other interests include gardening and sailing on his favorite vessel, a 26-foot sloop called Thistle. The Reids also love to collect art—Dolly is herself an artist. Reid has volunteered on several committees for his church and has also been an active board member of a private school in Beverly, Massachusetts. The Reids have two grown sons, Jonathan and Michael, and three grandchildren. —Elizabeth Ross White

Elizabeth Ross White is a freelancer with 17 years of newspaper writing and editing, including as staff writer for The Christian Science Monitor.

Alums at Large

Whose Kingdom Come?

NICHOLAS GIORDANO ’79

HAVE MET WITH AMERICAN PRESIDENTS—TRAVELED ON AIR FORCE ONE. I am on a ﬁrst-name basis with a number of former and current Cabinet members and members of Congress. I lunch with foreign diplomats and ambassadors to the United States. Judged by the world’s standards, I have achieved great success. At one point in my life I would have been impressed; I am not now—and I hope you are not. Although I had once had a great passion for serving others and was professionally equipped as an advocate, a few years ago I realized I was not using my gifts and skills to further the Kingdom. Success means absolutely nothing if it does not bear eternal fruit. My upward climb followed a master’s degree in international development at American University, Washington, D.C., a law degree from George Washington University, also in D.C., and serving as an economic consultant in international trade litigation. For several years in private practice I represented both foreign and domestic clients in international trade cases. And in 1995 I took my current position as international trade counsel for the National Pork Producers Council. My job is to advance the international trade policy interests of United States hog farmers, opening foreign markets to U.S. pork exports. It’s a great mix of working closely with the administration; educating and lobbying the Congress; working with foreign governments and industries; working within coalitions of U.S. agriculture and business organizations; and working with the media.

International trade litigator Nick Giordano achieved great success—and found it lacking. He began to explore whose kingdom, his or God’s, would preoccupy his time and talents.

BUT ABOUT 10 YEARS AGO I HIT A WALL. It became clear I had to decide whether I would continue to make life and career choices that were affirmed by the world, or determine to put God first in every area of my life. The sinking feeling that I was falling short of what God wanted for me was precipitated by fatherhood and a confluence of other events. I knew I could not continue to work all hours, use my house as a hotel and leave my wife, Anne, to shoulder most of the responsibility in raising our children. Meeting the needs of others, both locally and globally—which had been such a priority for me at Gordon and while I was a 20-something—had become services I could conveniently pay other people to do, whether it was missionaries, clergy or individuals involved in outreach ministries. Personally I was preoccupied with building the kingdom of Nick, going through the motions at church, and getting all sorts of positive feedback from the culture for doing so. As I pondered major decisions I needed to make, I recalled my days at Gordon. When I arrived I had an embryonic faith that was nurtured, challenged and solidified over the course of four years—and I learned that faith means action. So, along with other students, I gladly visited nursing homes and volunteered at a homeless shelter in Boston. I even acquired the nickname “hunger boy” because I helped generate campus exposure to global poverty. Though I had a lot of passion and enthusiasm, my diplomatic skills were in short supply, and my level of crusading intensity was likely excessive on more than one occasion. I now understand that the process of sanctification is the province of the Holy Spirit. My four years at Gordon as a political science major provided an excellent foundation for a life of commitment to the Lord that could be expressed in a number of ways, including a career in public policy and advocacy. 18

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Alums at Large

BUT IN THE MIDST OF THE HEAD-TURNING ARENA of career success in the years that followed, my quest for deeper meaning led me to get into God’s Word seriously every morning. Going to church on Sundays and having periodic devotional times—sometimes even mountaintop experiences—was not producing the fruit so clearly described in the Bible. I needed a new strategy toward discharging my job responsibilities to allow me more family time. I thought that might mean a new job, and ultimately I did move to my current position. But even before that came about, God changed my innermost attitude and helped me see how I could be a blessing in my employment without moonlighting in the ofﬁce. I knew God wanted me to be there for my kids. Insisting that they likewise spend time each day reading the Bible was not enough; I had to spend time with them and walk the talk. At the same time I started thinking about the needs in our neighborhood and community. God put us in our neighborhood for a reason, and we needed to reach out and show God’s love to others. There are many different ways to serve, but all Christians are required to be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks about the faith. Our family resolved to become better equipped to share the gospel. I started discipling someone at work, and we initiated a seekers Bible study in our home. As a family we support a number of children abroad through various ministries. We take our children with us to volunteer for the homeless and encourage the kids to get involved in other types of outreach ministries. I have taught second-grade Sunday school with Anne for the past four years, stressing to the kids that the Bible is the instruction book for our lives. When we obey the Lord and follow his counsel in the Scriptures, we function as God intended. When we ignore God’s Word, we might have great resumes, nice houses and notoriety, but we miss God’s plan for our lives. If it sounds like the Giordano family has it all together, I assure you we do not. But we are no longer on the sideline; we have gotten into the game. There are so many distractions, so many things that vie for our time and money. But we cannot be content to leave the struggles to someone else while we dawdle on the sideline with the things of this world. It is easy to criticize and withdraw when the culture at large goes in a direction we do not like. That, however, is not a biblical response. We must engage by loving and serving. It’s not easy, but it is our calling.

Nick is married to Anne [Noble] ’80, and they have three children: Natalie, 13; Nate, 10; and David, 8. They live in Arlington, Virginia, and attend Falls Church Episcopal, “a bastion of light in a denomination which, unfortunately, has let the authority of Scripture erode,” Nick says. Anne works part-time as a human resources manager for the federal government. She feels blessed to be in a job-share situation with a ﬁne Christian woman.

Maintaining the

Gordon Connection Has it ever occurred to you that you are still a member of the Gordon community? You may not have visited the campus in a long time—may not even have supported the College in any way financially since you made your last tuition payment. None of these factors, however, diminishes your opportunity to regain a close tie to the Gordon community. Why? Because Gordon is not simply the place where we attended college and received a diploma. As an institution whose mission remains to advance the cause of Christ, Gordon is an integral part of the Church—the eternal Body of Christ. Our past close personal ties establish our enduring status as members of the Gordon College family. We remain colaborers with the College, its faculty, staff and students in furthering Gordon’s mission. It was in recognition of this fact that the Capitol Group was founded in early 2003 by a group of Gordon alumni currently living and working in the Washington, D.C., area, with critical assistance and support from Bob Grinnell, vice president for development, and Jon Tymann, director of alumni, parent and church relations. Our principal mission is service: providing local connection for Gordon alumni who have relocated to the area, and assisting graduates with professional mentoring, career development, and even such matters as finding a new church in the area. The Capitol Group provides a terrific way of serving Gordon graduates in the D.C. area. The biggest challenge may be getting the word out that we are here and anxious to be of help. For information about the Capitol Group, email Jon Tymann at jtymann@hope.gordon.edu or call 978.867.4039. —Coleaders of the Capitol Group, Scott Harrison ’81 and Steve Lane ’79 19

HOW INTERESTING IS GOD’S MATH SOMETIMES? CONSIDER THIS: WHAT DO YOU GET WHEN YOU ADD UP TWO SCHOLARS IN THE ENGINE BLOCK,

MIDWEST, A CRACKED

38 YEARS, A MARRIAGE, AND A NEW JOB AT GORDON? GOD’S ANSWER: A NEW KIDNEY— OBVIOUSLY.

BY CHRIS UNDERATION

UST BEFORE CHRISTMAS, longtime English profes-

sor Peter Stine received a new kidney from Sue Hakes, who works in the Ofﬁce of Alumni, Parent and Church Relations. This kidney is allowing Stine to live a full life again. “What can I say?” Stine remarks. “It is a great example of the type of community and camaraderie we have here at Gordon. This kind of thing doesn’t happen everywhere.” The groundwork for Hakes’ gift actually goes back to 1965, the year a young Peter Stine bought himself a new Mustang, just introduced by Ford. He sold his old car to Ed Hakes, a friend and fellow academic who, along with Stine, was teaching at Wheaton College in Illinois. But in short order the used car developed a cracked engine block. Stine helped pay for a new engine and became part of the Hakes family lore as the man who sold them a lemon. A short while later Stine moved east to Gordon. Thirty-two years after that, Ed Hakes’ son, Joe, and his wife, Sue, took jobs at Gordon—he as director of athletics and she in the Alumni Ofﬁce. They bought a house not far from the man who sold Joe’s dad the lemon, and before long a strong friendship was established. SINCE THE STINE AND HAKES FAMILIES RECONNECTED in 2000, they have relived memories and made some new ones. Gordon’s Monday Night Football gatherings provided opportunities for such—and one Monday night Joe recalled the car Stine had sold to his father. In addition, Sue and Joe’s daughter Samantha was in one of Stine’s English classes. “Sam liked him a lot,” Sue Hakes says. “He reminded her of Grandpa Hakes.” In January of 2002 Stine’s wife, Betsy, became ill with Lou Gehrig’s Disease and found it necessary to move to Shaughnessy-Kaplan Rehabilitation Hospital in Salem,

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Massachusetts. The Hakes family made Stine a weekly guest at their table. SUFFERED CONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE during the summer of 2002. It was at that time he also learned diabetes and renal failure had damaged his kidneys. Unless a donor could be found, he was told, he would need dialysis three times a week for the rest of his life. Each session lasted four hours. In December of that year Stine sat next to Sue Hakes at a Gordon men’s basketball game and told her about his health problems—that he needed to ﬁnd a donor kidney because of the impositions of dialysis on his life. “At the very early stages I felt like giving the kidney— or at least being tested to see if I would be a match for Peter—but as time went on, and the longer I talked with my family and thought about it, the more I felt compelled to do this,” Hakes says. For his part, Stine was surprised by the offer. “When we talked at the game, she never said anything about donating a kidney, and I wasn’t even thinking about anyone at Gordon donating,” Stine says. “Several weeks later she knocked on my ofﬁce door and told me she felt led to do this. She had a blessed assurance about everything.”

STINE

BECOMING A KIDNEY DONOR takes a great amount of commitment and perseverance. Often a donor can be matched with a recipient after one visit, but there is more to the process than just being a match. Hospitals do extensive mental and emotional evaluations to be sure a donor can handle the demands of a voluntary surgery that carries the risk of death. The person receiving the kidney also undergoes tests to be sure he can handle the stress of the operation. “During the time Sue was having her blood tests I was having an angiogram,” Stine says. “While I was still on the gurney I got another bit of news: I needed a triple bypass. Given everything else that’s happened with my health, that seemed only natural. But I was at peace, and the Lord ministered to me.” The tests for kidney donation started in March 2003. Stine’s bypass took place shortly after that in the spring. By June he had recovered, and the kidney donor and recipient tests took place regularly from then until September. “I knew if it were my time to go, I would be going to a better place. That didn’t scare me,” Hakes says. The doctors gave the go-ahead. Everything was ready.

THE TRANSPLANT TOOK PLACE in November and went off with-

out a hitch. As the doctors promised, Stine recovered quickly and was soon up and about. Hakes, on the other hand, had a longer recovery, which is typical of kidney donors. “I was really tired after it was over—it seemed like my body had to make an adjustment to having only one kidney,” Hakes says. “But by mid-December I felt like I had turned the corner. Physically there is no change to my life, and I can do everything I did before. But it did take about a month to recover.” Hakes says the aftermath was a lot like being sick except that she volunteered to be sick. “It wasn’t fun, but I wasn’t thinking ‘poor me’ either.” SO HOW DOES ONE SAY THANK YOU for a gift that allows one to resume life and continue the work God has given? “This obviously goes beyond the normal deﬁnition of friendship,” Stine says. “It’s difﬁcult to know how to thank her.” One way Stine is showing his gratitude is by providing piano lessons for Hakes. Hakes sees this event a little differently. The donation of the kidney is not so much a gift as it is a tangible manifestation of love and service to others. “If I pray every day that all I do will be pleasing and honoring to God, how could I say ‘no’?” she asks. “If during communion I pray that I will be more God-like and ask for help to walk the path of righteousness, how could I not do it? After all Jesus has done for me—and God’s allowing that to happen—how could I say ‘no’?”

Dr. Peter Stine has been a professor of English at Gordon since 1968. He hopes his new kidney and renewed heart will allow him to return to his worldwide expeditions, on which he often performs monologues of historical Christians such as missionary Adoniram Judson. Peter and Betsy have four grown children, three of whom graduated from Gordon: Jennie-Rebecca Falcetta ’92; Sarah ’94; and Nathaniel ’95 (father of grandson Caleb). Sue Hakes has been administrative secretary in the Alumni, Parent and Church Relations Ofﬁce since 2000. She and Joe are the parents of two daughters, Samantha Allen ’02 and Heidi ’07. Sue enjoys being with her family and attending Gordon functions with Joe. She also likes woodworking, sewing crafts and gardening.

TERESTING MA H Add it all up and it becomes clear that God’s way of bringing people together and meeting needs can be very unusual.

persuasive Alumna Bridget Aureli—mother and teacher— rethinks her college-days arguments for mixing families with careers. BY BRIDGET (QUIRK) AURELI ’93

s a freshman at Gordon, the course Reason and Rhetoric with T. Grady Spires intrigued me. It got particularly interesting when we had to present a persuasive speech. I had no problem ﬁnding a source for my topic; my years in high school debate were nothing compared with the forum of Drew Hall (a.k.a., the international student haven) with students from Greece, Mexico, Brazil, Korea and several American states. I merely had to transform one of our 2 A.M. debates into a monologue and do a bit of research to solidify my argument. One hot topic was the responsibility of a Christian woman in marriage and motherhood. At the end of the ’80s, women were still ﬁshing around for the right balance between having a career, being a Christian wife, and raising a family. How much submission was really meant by “Wives submit yourselves to your husbands”? If we went to work while our children were young, who was going to cover all the bases at home? Some of us, I dare say, are still grappling with these issues. During my childhood my mother was never employed outside the home. She did everything that per22

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tained to keeping our home, taking care of us, and cooking and serving every meal. When she attended a women’s retreat, we ate peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and pizza for three days, and she came home to a lot of dirty laundry. I was going to be a career woman—a teacher. But when it came to whether or not to work while my children were young, I argued that ideally a woman should be home with children under 5 years of age—a good compromise between never working and never staying home. I felt Christians had a responsibility to provide a base of biblical training before their children headed to school. I did research on what effects working mothers had on families—research rare at the time. Several of my female classmates strongly disagreed with my conclusions. They argued that fathers could also stay at home—a point I conceded on paper but thought unlikely. The only fathers I knew who stayed home with their kids were ﬁctional characters in farcical comedies that often ended with Mom coming to the rescue. My colleagues argued that quality day care was a perfectly valid way to raise a child, but I had my doubts.

Point of View

experience The years ticked by and I forgot being pulled in two directions; my about Reason and Rhetoric, though I kids still needed so much from me, still held fond memories of Professor and my job required me to teach three Spires trekking to school on his crosssubjects plus publish the yearbook. The country skis. I taught school, married worst days were the ones when it was a and started a family, and loved being struggle to wear both hats, like the day at home with my two little boys. By my son was in a Thanksgiving program the time they were 5 and 3, I began while I was teaching a class. As soon to miss my teaching career. Yet I did as I could I sprinted through the halls my best to live up to the model my and caught the last song, holding back mother set of caring for her children’s a torrent of tears. every need and being there for each I also dealt with knowing the milestone. Lord’s will as I never had before. As our elder son approached The circumstances of my being hired kindergarten age, we discovered he clearly showed God’s hand—but would be attending one of the worst why, then, was it so difficult? Why elementary schools in the area, and did I feel I couldn’t be the mother I the pressure was on to provide him used to be nor the teacher I had been with private instruction. Homebefore having children, even though I schooling didn’t seem a good fit for felt time after time I was doing what reasons, I suppose, related to my I should? training as a professional teacher. So I Eventually I remembered that began looking for a position in a Chrisspeech about women staying home tian school where our son could attend until their children reach kinderas well. I found a wonderful Christian garten. What a know-it-all I’d been day care for our 3-year-old, but I still without a lick of experience. I thought had to come to terms with my convicabout the possibility of my son riding tions about being at home. In the end I a bus 50 minutes to an undesirdecided to put him able school; on in the Lord’s hands the other hand, The challenges and their and try one year of I thought about teaching. how much my solutions are different It was a signif3-year-old has icant educational learned and for each family. Someyear—more for that he loves his me than for any friends and teachtimes we are called to of my students ers at day care. or either of my I thought about travel a road we could children. I expemy responsibility rienced the joys to God for doing of seeing our sons His will. not have imagined for excel and watchMy own paring my students ents had sacrificed reasons we might not at grow. But I also an ideal situation struggled with to do what they first see clearly.

believed God wanted them to do. My father left a very lucrative ﬁeld when God called him to travel for the U.S. Army, and we moved all over the United States while I was growing up. Did I receive the best education possible going to 12 different schools? No. But sometimes one has to obey instead of doing what might be optimal in the world’s eyes. I gave up time at home to minister to 80 children at a Christian school; and my older son learned Bible verses at a Christian school instead of curse words at a public school. My views have changed through experiences I never could have predicted as a 19-year-old. I did not take the road of prevailing trend, nor did I take the road I once held as the model. The challenges and their solutions are different for each family. Sometimes we are called to travel a road we could not have imagined for reasons we might not at ﬁrst see clearly. Bridget teaches English, grades 8 and 10, and supervises debating and the yearbook at Smithtown Christian School, Long Island, New York. Her sons are Brendan, 7, and Sergio, 5. Her husband, Sam, is an architect.

Gifts & Giving

CHARITABLEGIFTANNUITIES The Rest of the Story

BY RICK KLEIN ’93 ESTABLISHMENT OF A CHARITABLE GIFT ANNUITY IS ONE OF THE BEST WAYS TO RECEIVE INCOME WHILE EXERCISING

CHRISTIAN STEWARDSHIP.

e all know that, but prominent newspapers, colleges and universities, and nonprofits such as the Salvation Army want to educate us even more about gift annuities. In the Wall Street Journal on December 3, 2003, Jonathan Clements wrote “How to Give Your Nest Egg to Charity and Get a Return.” Such articles do a stellar job of reporting how charitable gift annuities work to benefit you financially—but that’s only part of the story.

Nuts and Bolts A gift annuity is a contract between a nonproﬁt and a donor. In exchange for a sizable donation, the charity promises to make income payments for life. A portion is considered a charitable gift with an immediate tax deduction, and the annuity provides a set income to the annuitant(s), a portion of which is tax-free. Compared to investments such as CDs, money markets and bonds, charitable gift annuities historically pay higher than market returns. As of this writing, a 65-yearold individual would receive a 6 percent payout on a gift annuity from Gordon College, and the tax-free portion of the income makes the effective rate of return closer to 7 percent. A ﬁve-year CD is paying only 3.5 to 4 percent, and money markets are paying about 1 percent. Since

annuity payments never change and are guaranteed for life, it’s easy to see why annuities stand up well when compared to other options—but that’s only part of the story.

The Rest of the Story— Stewardship and Kingdom Investment For the Christian the most compelling reason to opt for a charitable gift annuity is stewardship. Tax deductions and good returns are important, but there’s more to stewardship: investing in the Kingdom. In Matthew 6:25–34 Jesus tells us not to be anxious for our daily needs because our heavenly Father provides for us. In the preceding verses He tells us where to invest—in His Kingdom “where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.” Gift annuities with Gordon enable the College to provide education with high academic and spiritual standards—to equip students to make a difference for the Kingdom. Alumni Paul and Madelyn Klose are helping us do just that—see their story below. We invite you to invest in the Kingdom by establishing a charitable gift annuity. Contact Rick Klein ’93, director of special and planned gifts, at 978.867.4002 or toll-free at 877.304.8667; or email rklein@hope.gordon. edu. Go to www.gordon.edu/plannedgift for information on remembering Gordon in your will and estate plans.

PAUL ’43 AND MADELYN (CURTIS) ’47 KLOSE celebrated Paul’s 60th anniversary at Commencement 2003. They say of their alma mater: Those of us who attended Gordon during the earlier Fenway years continue to have many fond and grateful memories. Though the school was much smaller than today, what a wonderful spiritual, academic and practical training it provided! We can never forget sitting at the feet of outstanding professors such as Drs. Palmer, Gedney and Goddard. Our training enabled us to pursue graduate and postgraduate degrees. We’ve been blessed with 58 fruitful years of Christian service—the privilege of winning people to Christ, and training and mentoring many lay and ordained pastors. To show our love and appreciation to the Lord and to Gordon, we made a generous ﬁnancial gift to our beloved school. In all, our family members have enjoyed 15 years of Gordon training, and we wanted to give something in return for all the College has contributed to our lives. Frequently in our ministries we have thanked God for Gordon. We praise Him for our school’s continued growth and effectiveness in the lives of an increasing number of young people in so many ﬁelds. May God continue to bless our beloved Gordon. 24

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Raves & Rebuffs In this column our readers can respond to articles in STILLPOINT or voice thoughts about Gordon in general. Reserving the right to edit for space, we will attempt to publish a balance of positive and negative comments. We hope to hear from you. Write to Editor, STILLPOINT, Gordon College, 255 Grapevine Road, Wenham, MA 01984, or email: mckay@hope.gordon.edu. Anonymous letters will not be published. IF YOU DO NOT WISH TO HAVE EXCERPTS OF YOUR CORRESPONDENCE PUBLISHED, PLEASE NOTE THAT. Letters written to individuals other than the editor are forwarded to those persons whenever possible.

have just ﬁnished reading the latest issue of Stillpoint [Fall 2003] and am impressed with what appears to be a new attitude at Gordon. It is an attitude that pleases me. It is very different from the attitude of the Gordon from which I graduated. Even the cover title “Thinking OUTSIDE the Box” speaks of an openness that has not always been a characteristic of Gordon. The idea of listening to other cultures—even other cultures within our own culture—shows a movement away from the stolid dogmatism of the past. It was brave of you to publish Professor Cook’s “Justice or Mercy.” Having been a part of—and now apart from—the narrow Evangelicalism of the past, I rejoice that we see something wrong with blind dedication to abstract principles apart from living persons. I retired from teaching communication 10 years before Professor Cobbey graduated from Gordon. Her evaluation of current trends in TV [“Talking Real”] gives me encouragement that Gordon is going to be in dialogue with the culture its students are facing—and incidentally it encourages me to reacquaint myself with the ﬁeld of study I loved for so long.

Finally, to see the name of someone I knew and respected when we were at Gordon together is an added bonus. I was taken back by [“The Freedom of Forgiveness”] Don Klingberg’s mention of the inﬂuence he received from Donald Tweedie—whose dignity has outgrown the nickname “Duck” that we used in our college days. I could not resist the necessity to write a congratulatory letter when I saw the encouraging trend at Gordon. Ash Nickerson ’49 ■

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want to congratulate you on the especially excellent Fall [2003] edition of Stillpoint. I receive the magazine somewhat by accident since my father (a Gordon graduate) is now in a nursing home. I scan all the issues I receive and was especially impressed with three articles in the current issue. David Young’s article [“The Peril of the Dominant Culture and the Idea of America”] should be required reading for all Americans. Even though I realize it was presented to a national Republican group, I wish George Bush would read it and understand it.

Nicholas Rowe’s article [“The Next Christianity”] is another significant challenge—especially to American Christians. And Haddon Klingberg’s is a good reminder of the essence of Christianity. Keep up the good work. Tod Rodger ■

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wanted to drop you a short note of praise for the Fall [2003] edition of Stillpoint. It was most informative and well worth my time to read. So much of my life is spent on family matters and building a business, that big-picture issues escape me. This edition of Stillpoint was a helpful reminder of what is happening and how I ﬁt in the big scheme of things. Dr. Young’s article was particularly interesting to me as corporate strategist. His thesis is very much in keeping with sound corporate planning and aligns beautifully with the shape and direction of the Gordon community. Great stuff! It’s such a delight to see what God has done and continues to do at Gordon. Mark A. Smith ’80

For information, updates and tickets, call 978.867.3400 for music events and 978.867.3200 for theatre productions. Music events are held in Phillips Recital Hall (PRH), located in Phillips Music Center, in A. J. Gordon Memorial Chapel (GC), or in Lane Student Center. Art exhibits and theatre productions are in the Barrington Center for the Arts (BCA). Gallery hours are Monday–Friday, 9 A.M. to 7 P.M.; Saturday, NOON to 4 P.M.

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Events Calendar

MAY

3–May 15 17 18 23–

May 1

23 23

30, May 1

Art Exhibit—Senior Thesis Exhibits Annual Pops Concert; 7 P.M., GC Spring Chamber Music Gala; 3 P.M., PRH Theatre—Short Play Festival featuring the work of the directing class in nine different plays; 4/23, 24, 30, 5/1— 8 P.M.; 4/24, 5/1—4:30 P.M.; 4/26, 27, 28—7:30 P.M.; Jensen Theatre, BCA; call for details Public Dialogue on Art & Faith with artist Wayne Forte; 7 P.M., BCA Gallery Thompson Chamber Music Series— Allison Eldredge, cello; Max Levinson, piano; 8 P.M., PRH Scenes from Operas, featuring voice students; 4/30, 8 P.M.; 5/1, 7 P.M.; PRH

2 3 14 15

Gordon Symphony Orchestra; 3 P.M., GC Jazz Ensemble; 8 P.M., GC Baccalaureate; 5 P.M., GC Commencement; 10 A.M., on the quad

The Gordon College Choir, under the direction of C. Thomas Brooks, is one of the premier choral groups in the eastern half of the United States. The 60-voice choir will embark on a European Tour with performances in Prague, Vienna, Salzburg and Budapest following Commencement.

EVER WONDER WHAT GUIDES THEM?

AT GORDON COLLEGE we help students develop trust in God while exploring new intellectual landscapes. Our students are ■

Equipped with skills to be servant leaders

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Pushed to integrate knowledge and experience

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Outﬁtted with tools to impact a changing world

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Encouraged to explore and interact with other cultures abroad and on campus

Freedom within a framework of faith

Nonproﬁt Org. U.S. POSTAGE PAID Gordon College

255 Grapevine Road Wenham, Massachusetts 01984 978.927.2300 www.gordon.edu CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED