University seeks religious diversity
Different faith organizations spring up on campus giving students choices

By Bethany McCormack
Staff Reporter

The university wants the school to be as diverse as possible, said University Minister John Butler.He said University Ministries encourages the practice of religious diversity even though the majority of students at TCU identify themselves as Christian.

Tahira Hussain, a sophomore political science and economics major, said although she is Muslim, she was not worried religion would be an issue when she chose to come to TCU. She said she was surprised to find how little most students knew about her religion when she first started here.

“The population at TCU really doesn’t know what Islam is,” she said. “I say ‘I’m Muslim’ and they say, ‘Oh, what religion is that?’”

Hussain said she has gotten mixed reactions from students about her religion.

“To a great degree, people have been accepting, but I have been uncomfortable many times,” she said. “Going through a tradition that is not yours is difficult sometimes.”

Butler said more than 5,300 students at TCU identify themselves as Christian. He said 20 students say they are Jewish, 10 Muslim, 10 Hindu and six Buddhist. Butler said when students register they have the option of indicating their religion, but since not all do, these figures don’t represent all students.

Hussain said the small number of Muslim students at TCU is not representative of the general population.

“The fastest growing religion is Islam,” she said. “Soon, around the world, the number of Muslims will outnumber the Christians.”

Butler said University Ministries does several things to enable the practice of religious diversity at TCU.

“Two times a semester in (Robert Carr) Chapel we celebrate a faith other than Christian in worship, making it as authentic as we can,” he said. “We invite people of that (faith) to participate.”

Butler said University Ministries offers support of any religious organization that would like to form on campus, such as the Hillel Jewish Student Organization and the Muslim Student Association.

Awais Mazhar, a senior computer science major, said he was expecting TCU to be more strict about religion.

Mazhar said he was surprised the school was so helpful with the start of MSA, which he is the president of. The organization began in September and now has 15 to 20 members.

“Professors are very tolerant and encouraging when it comes to organizations,” he said. “It took me by surprise.”

Richard Allen, associate professor of radio-TV-film, said as a Conservative Jew he walks on Saturdays and follows a Kosher diet.

“My department has always bent over backwards to include me,” he said. “At a state university it might be more of an issue because of the separation of church and state.”

The founders of TCU were Disciples of Christ, and originally the majority of the Board of Trustees had to be of the Disciples of Christ faith, but Butler said that is no longer the case.

“Important elements in Disciple heritage are expressed in much of what the institution is about, like in the mission statement,” Butler said.

Allen said the Disciples of Christ philosophy is a very inclusive one, and Butler makes an effort to include all faiths.

“(University Ministries is) open to any campus activity,” he said. “They were very helpful with Hillel.”

Allen said although there is only a small number of Jewish students on campus, a lot of factors make TCU seem welcoming to Jewish students. He said the development of a Jewish studies program, a yearly scholarship available for Jewish students and the start of a Hillel organization on campus are appealing aspects of TCU for Jewish students.

“Hillel is very nationally recognized,” Allen said. “It puts us in a different category if someone is looking at the school.”

Ashraf Muncherjee, a junior economics major, who is Zoroastrian, said he thinks most students are indifferent to religion.

“There’s never been any discrimination on the basis of religion,” he said. “I don’t think religion plays a big part at TCU at all.”

Hussain said religion classes at TCU should encourage students to experience religions different than their own by visiting a mosque or going to a synagogue.

“Just to live in this world you have to know about others,” she said. “You get insight into your own self when you learn about others.”

Bethany McCormack
b.s.mccormack@student.tcu.edu