Apr 20, 2012
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Vanderbilt University has informed a small Christian student organization that it will no longer be recognized as a student group because it requires its members to have a personal commitment to Jesus Christ, according to email correspondence provided to Fox News.
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“It just shows how radical the Vanderbilt administration has become in enforcing a policy that is nonsense,” said Kim Colby, senior counsel for the Christian Legal Society’s Center for Law and Religious Freedom. “A lot of jaws dropped when we saw how far the Vanderbilt administration was taking this.”
Colby told Fox News the Christian group did not want to be identified because “they just don’t want to be caught in the crossfire of the culture wars.”
The group reached out to the Vandy chapter of the Christian Legal Society so others would know what had happened, Colby said.
“They are a small group of students who want to gather together and worship God,” she said. “That’s basically all they want to do.”
According to email correspondence from the university, the group’s constitution was not approved because the university took issue with a requirement that leaders have a “personal commitment to Jesus Christ.”
“Please change the following statement in your constitution,” a university official wrote to the group.
The original statement read: “Criteria for officer selection will include level and quality of past involvement, personal commitment to Jesus Christ, commitment to the organization, and demonstrated leadership ability.”
The university directed the group to change the statement to read: “Criteria for officer selection will include level and quality of past involvement, commitment to the organization, and demonstrated leadership ability.”
Ironically, Vanderbilt University was founded as a Methodist institution established for the purpose of practicing – among other things – theology.
University Provost Richard McCarty told The Tennessean that their policy “is about rejecting discrimination and not about restricting religious freedom.”
But isn’t that exactly what they’ve done to the small Christian group by telling them they can’t have leaders who have a commitment to Jesus Christ? Or for that matter, how is the university’s email not an intrusion into the freedom to practice religion?
The university released the following statement to Fox News in connection with the unnamed Christian club:
“We respect our students’ rights to hold and practice their religious beliefs. Our nondiscrimination policy does nothing to restrict those rights, nor does it limit these religious organizations’ ability to choose their own leaders. We require only that the groups be open to all Vanderbilt students and all members in good standing must be allowed to offer themselves for leadership. The groups themselves select their leaders. The policy allows leadership requirements such as length of membership, attendance, level of active participation and certain performance-based criteria, such as GPA for honor societies. Any groups whose leadership requirements don’t comply with our nondiscrimination policy are given the opportunity to revise and resubmit their application.”
Colby said the student group has decided not to comply with the university’s demands.
“They’re going to leave campus rather than take those five words out of their constitution,” Colby told Fox News.
Colby said it’s becoming clear that Vanderbilt University is specifically targeting Christian organizations.
“Any students have to be concerned about what an administration that’s being as radical as the Vanderbilt administration has been might do,” she said. “There’s a lot at stake for students when they stand up against their administration.”
This is just the latest in a string of controversies over Vanderbilt’s newly revised non-discrimination policy. At least 13 Christian groups have decided to defy the ban. Two groups, including Vanderbilt Catholic, have already announced plans to leave campus rather than conform to the university’s new policies.
The Tennessee Legislature is also jumping into the controversy. State Rep. Bill Dunn told Fox News it’s clear that Vanderbilt “has a policy that attacks religious organizations on campus.”
He drafted legislation threatening to block the policy because even though Vanderbilt is a private institution, it receives some public money.
“Some people have book sense and other people have common sense,” he said. “I think Vandy has gone with what the liberal elite would like to see and they aren’t using the common sense God has given them.”
Dunn’s drafted amendment would allow Vanderbilt to have an ‘all-comers’ policy, but it would have to be applied evenly to every student group – including fraternities and sororities.
The Tennessean reported that fraternities and sororities are exempted because of federal Title IX regulations that apply to gender issues.
“It shows the hypocrisy of Vanderbilt University,” Dunn said. “They know they can pick on Christian groups and it won’t affect their donors. But if they go after fraternities and sororities they realize it might hit them in the pocket book.”
Colby said it’s a very difficult time for Christians on campus.
“It makes me very sad,” she said. “We used to have religious liberty — where people understand that religious groups having their leaders agree with their faith was not only permissible and protected, it was common sense. And we’ve lost a lot of common sense in this country.”
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Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religeon, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…As clearly stated in the First Amendment is generally held to be the Freedom of Religeon. Now, specifically what religeon would be worth it's salt if it's leaders did not follow their leader? Obviously the administration of Vanderbuilt places itself in the dubious position to prohibit this Christian group from exercising their beliefs. Shame, shame, administration, reclaim your seats, for you do not know what you are doing!
It's time to drop Vanderbilt as a college that a Christian should attend. If the college doesn't respect the rights of the Christians on campus then the college doesn't deserve their money either. I personally don't feel that Vanderbilt ever lived up to its hype. Since the new administration these universities have become a cesspool when it comes to free speech. I say we begin here and then move on to the rest of the colleges that have the same attitude.
Beam me up, Scotty. There's no intelligent life down here!
Sounds kinda like giving a test on a book and not asking any questions about the book!
They need to stop reading THAT book too…you know, the Bible. They should stop reading that.
This liberal spin makes me sick. I support the Christian groups criteria, and I'm not even Christian. It makes no sense to me to expect a non-devout Christian to lead the group. I hope people are paying attention that rights and liberties are going away.
Jimmy Cline is just not getting the depth of hate these people have towards our Lord. As a Christian Catholic, I would not pay 1 penny for my kids to attend such a university and all Christian parents can elect to do the same.
Talk about a flock not being allowed to have its shepard. This is ridiculous and interferes with religious liberties. I think its appropriate for a Christian club to be lead by people of faith, and not otherwise. Id be curious to know what muslim students feel about this if any.
In the case of the powers that be at Vanderbilt, I would say that they don't have to be smart to make stupid decisions.
How can you have a commitment to a religious group without having a commitment to that religion? However, it would seem fairly easy to circumvent the school's edict — don't vote for anyone who does not measure up to your standards.
On the other hand, if the Muslim and Atheist groups on campus allow Jewish and Christian leaders, then can't this club show a little tolerance as well? What? They don't? Oh, well, never mind.
How can you have a commitment to a religious group without having a commitment to that religion? However, it would seem fairly easy to circumvent the school's edict — don't vote for anyone who does not measure up to your standards.
On the other hand, if the Muslim and Atheist groups on campus allow Jewish and Christian leaders, then can't this club show a little tolerance as well? What? They don't? Oh, well, never mind.
This seems the first step to providing radicals the ability to take over any group, religious or not, simply by flooding an organization with "their people" and then voting in "their" leader. I would be worried for all groups, religious or not, as this could become an endless OWS scenario, where those with literally nothing better to do wreak havoc on all manner of groups. This kind of policy could lead to the opposite of what I think many of us want, which is to be accepted for who we are and what we believe, whether we agree or not.
I didn't think it was possible. we're actually getting dumber. and weirder. in any case, things have been working out so well since we took the judeo-christian pillars of america out from under us and replaced that with foot baths. november, pleeeeeez hurry.
Perhaps Michael Vick could lead the Humane Society?
I'm wondering what a Muslim group will do?
Since this anti discrimination rule is universal for all recognized organizations at Vanderbilt, I assume there are neither all male fraternities nor all female sororities as the prohibition of membership by the "opposite" sex would be discriminatory.
So, can a Christian be the leader of an atheist group?
What's next Vandy? a NAMBLA fraternity?
The Golden rule has changed from "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you" "To, Do unto others before they do unto you" The Liberals must be so proud.
I think a lot of male students should start applying to sororities and female should start applying to fratenities….. If either decline membership, then by school policy, they would all no longer be official student groups at Vanderbilt.
I think a lot of male students should start applying to sororities and female should start applying to fratenities….. If either decline membership, then by school policy, they would all no longer be official student groups at Vanderbilt.
Send your kids to some other university. This school doesn't deserve your money.
Send your kids to some other university. This school doesn't deserve your money.
I wonder if they would force a non-Muslim to be in leadership of a Muslim organization ?
I wonder if they would force a non-Muslim to be in leadership of a Muslim organization ?
What about the organizations Masala/SACE (South Asian cultural exhange) , or gospel choir Voices of Praise ( looks like only black people are part of this ), why not ban these for only having selected types of people in these groups? You cant take one group away based on belief and not look at others..its only because its JESUS…that's all, atheist bitter, sad, group of people that did this…I would fight this all the way to the supreme court.
What about the organizations Masala/SACE (South Asian cultural exhange) , or gospel choir Voices of Praise ( looks like only black people are part of this ), why not ban these for only having selected types of people in these groups? You cant take one group away based on belief and not look at others..its only because its JESUS…that's all, atheist bitter, sad, group of people that did this…I would fight this all the way to the supreme court.
It's a club … This is ridiculous… It's all about Christianity – Christians are now the Negroes in our early history.
It's a club … This is ridiculous… It's all about Christianity – Christians are now the Negroes in our early history.
It boggles the mind how an institution of academia can in the interest of non discrimination, enforce such a policy of blatant discrimination. These are the types of issues that gives all of education a black eye and gives credence to the saying, "a person can be so smart their stupid."
It boggles the mind how an institution of academia can in the interest of non discrimination, enforce such a policy of blatant discrimination. These are the types of issues that gives all of education a black eye and gives credence to the saying, "a person can be so smart their stupid."
That's what " Christian " means idiots, to follow JESUS….I would fight this all the way to supreme court.
My advice to any Christian group that falls victim to this kind of PC garbage is to continue to hold meetings and read long passages of scripture aloud, preferably from the Gospels. Pray extensively in Jesus' name. Liberals and atheists can't stand the name of Jesus Christ. His name burns them to their evil core.
I'm 55 and not very athletic, but now I want to play on the Vandy football team. This pretty much guarantees me a walk on doesn't it? I can't wait for fall!
I'm 55 and not very athletic, but now I want to play on the Vandy football team. This pretty much guarantees me a walk on doesn't it? I can't wait for fall!
The sheer idiocy of this mandate is astounding. When will this PC nonsense stop? I hope before common-sense is completely usurped. Now, on the other hand, just imagine the howl from groups like CAIR if a muslim group was forced the same…
The sheer idiocy of this mandate is astounding. When will this PC nonsense stop? I hope before common-sense is completely usurped. Now, on the other hand, just imagine the howl from groups like CAIR if a muslim group was forced the same…
For the life of me, I will never be able to understand how the best, the brightest minds of the liberals can honestly argue for a free, open to all, nondiscrimination policy and in the very next breathe, state that there are exceptions to their nondiscrimination policy. Look guys, I may not have the benefit of your higher education but I can tell you this… either you support discrimination or you support nondiscrimination… cut and dry… there can not be exceptions! Quit trying to sound smart and stupid all at the same time.
For the life of me, I will never be able to understand how the best, the brightest minds of the liberals can honestly argue for a free, open to all, nondiscrimination policy and in the very next breathe, state that there are exceptions to their nondiscrimination policy. Look guys, I may not have the benefit of your higher education but I can tell you this… either you support discrimination or you support nondiscrimination… cut and dry… there can not be exceptions! Quit trying to sound smart and stupid all at the same time.
That school really sucks.
More lies from Fox News who were told they could legally lie and misinform. Anyone who watches Fox News and believes what they say is fair and balanced is delusional.
I'm a Christian, but I am going to join the Muslim, Hindu, Atheist, and Satanic clubs as a Leader: teaching them the Lord's Prayer, Bible Study, and our Beautiful Christian Hymns. MARANATHA
The Christian group gets to choose the kind of officers they want, Vanderbelt gets to choose the kind of organizations it wants to sanction and the public gets to choose what kind of university to which it will send its students. It's not complicated.
Can a Republican then have a leadership position in the Democratic Party–or vice versa?
OK, so let a 'non-believer run for a leadership position, it doesn't mean he HAS to be elected, now does it..
This crap is reason I left the Methodist Church when I became a Christian. Methodism is now hedonism. The methodist church does not believe in God anymore. Martin Luther must be rolling over in his grave now.
But hell awaits for those who embrace United methodism. They do the work of Satan.
I wonder if the biology and geology clubs have to give born-again Christian young-earth creationists the chance to be their officers. Maybe the atheist/agnostic group would like a Muslim to be their leader. I think we all know those things would never fly. Intolerance in the name of tolerance — so stupid!
How about we just elect a school to replace Vandy in the SEC? Tulane anyone? anyone? Buehler?
Insane!
Headline: Vanderbilt says Faculty can't require professors to be literate.
The group did the right thing. They chose to maintain their ideals and moved off campus. Staying and fighting it out would be fighting against the wrong people. Eph 6:12: "For our struggle is not against [a]flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places." Political means will not win spiritual battles. My prayers go up for the group.
With thinking like that being taught by Vanderbilt, it would make one wonder how you could trust any graduate of that school. Say he is a financial investment adviser, you put up some money for him to invest, and he steals it instead So you ask him why he didn't invest it like it was agreed, but put it in his pocket. He could say that it is not his style, that his style is to take the money and it is discrimination to not accept his right to steal your money. That you do not respect him, just because other investment advisers do their best to invest your money wisely. The point being is that Vanderbilt is mixing the crooks in with the good guys and giving them cover. It the old lowest possible common denominator result of liberal thinking.