roose’s time at liberty university

 Kevin Roose recently published a book called The Unlikely Disciple: A Sinner’s Semester at America’s Holiest University, in which he describes how he transferred for one semester from Brown University to Liberty University — the college in Virginia that Jerry Falwell founded in 1971.  

I read an article from the Associated Press about how Roose decided that in order to be a better well-rounded student, he needed to study all perspectives, including the Conservative Evangelical one.  So, he decided to become a student and “infiltrate” one of the most conservative Evangelical schools in the country.  

You can read the entire article here.   I much appreciated this last portion of the article:  “Roose said his Liberty experience transformed him in surprising ways…Once ambivalent about faith, Roose now prays to God regularly – for his own well-being and on behalf of others. He said he owns several translations of the Bible and has recently been rereading meditations from the letters of John on using love and compassion to solve cultural conflicts.  He’s even considering joining a church.”

I’m grateful for students like Kevin who go into settings like this with a willingness to learn and be challenged.  I wonder if we might be able to learn something about ourselves and others from this situation.

I think I’m going to get Kevin’s book and read it.