Two points of pride for Tufts have always been our liberality and the diversity of our student body. As students of Tufts, we are thankful for the communities around us that challenge us to grow. Tufts has always been a place where we have felt the freedom to express ourselves, the freedom to agree and disagree with others and the freedom to live out our religion on campus without being discriminated against for our beliefs.
We are open to challenges against our beliefs; they would not be strong beliefs if they could not withstand scrutiny. Thus, we take seriously the need to address recent complaints against Tufts Christian Fellowship (TCF) for discriminatory practices. We are not debating the conclusion of last Thursday's editorial, "If allegations are true, TCF should be de−recognized." We support the right of the Tufts student body to de−recognizeTCF should our practices indeed be found discriminatory. The complainants certainly have a right to their voice and a right to this investigation. However, we feel it imperative to redress the way our fellowship's intentions and interests have been framed. An issue as complex as discrimination can only be confronted when our student body has a comprehensive understanding of key underlying subtleties — an understanding we do not believe can be gained from the information presented in the editorial.
We want the student body to understand that the way we choose to address and solve this issue will have significant ramifications on the values we choose to uphold and affirm on this campus. It is precisely because so much is at stake here that we fully support the complainants in bringing this matter forward.
At our school, in our state and in our country, we espouse many important freedoms. However, those freedoms sometimes collide with each other. Currently, two basic freedoms are present: one is the freedom for religion, and the other is the freedom from discrimination. Discrimination includes discrimination against religion, but religious beliefs themselves can sometimes also be viewed as discriminatory. What's at stake is how we strike a balance between these two freedoms so that students neither feel that their religion is being discriminated against nor do they feel that a specific religion is discriminating against certain individuals on campus.
Tufts Christian Fellowship has both the freedom to our religion and the freedom from discrimination for our religion. As a religious group, we hold certain religious beliefs. And it is true that as an evangelical Christian group, we desire that our leaders "adhere to evangelical Christian tenets of behavior" based on our interpretation of and belief in the Bible as the word and will of God. We are not asking that students at Tufts ascribe to our beliefs. Doing so would be characteristic of dogmatism and religious intolerance. However, we are asking that students at Tufts tolerate and allow us the right to these beliefs. And we are asking for the right to select leaders who are willing to live by and commit to our beliefs.
TCF is not just an organization; it is a family welcoming of any individual from any background regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation, or any other divisive criteria present in modern society. But the complainants make a fair point in expressing concerns about the discrepancy between TCF's criteria for membership versus leadership. This brings us back to the heart of the matter: given that TCF is an open community accepting of anyone and everyone, but also given that TCF is a religious group that does proclaim a set of religious beliefs, is it in the spirit of non−discrimination to allow TCF to select leaders who are committed to those beliefs? It is not an answer easily concluded in a few words.
To fight discrimination and promote diversity as Tufts students, we have to consider all the subtleties in which discrimination occurs. As members of the Tufts Christian Fellowship, we stand by our right to select leaders who share our beliefs, but recognize the underlying complexities. It is important that we all withhold premature judgment and engage critically in more dialogue and consideration as we move forward together on this issue.
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NunuLuo is a senior majoring in political science and a member of the Tufts Christian Fellowship. Menghan Liu is a sophomore majoring in political science and economics. She is currently a Freshman Small Group Leader and a Treasurer for Tufts Christian Fellowship.
