LIKE A PRAYER
Yes, there were students praying at the Rock this week, but they weren't trying to convert prospies. Their evangelism wasn't meant to be "creepy," as one student put it. Instead, they were offering the laziest way to make all your wishes come true.
The InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, an interdenominational organization, set up a prayer station and a confessional tent as part of a weeklong initiative to start discussion about various issues. Only they were the ones doing all the work: If you told them what you wanted, they would ask God for you - belief not required. "We're offering prayer," says Communication junior Marcus Mason, who goes by the title "President of House on The Rock, Black Campus Ministry Chapter" within the organization. "If people wanted to pray, they could."
The events are intended to somewhat make up for the Church's wrongdoings for the past thousand years or so and maybe even make some progress. "We've messed up," Mason says. "We've gotten so good at telling other people they've messed up, we wanted to acknowledge that we messed up."
In the confessional, they weren't even asking for your sins (there wasn't even a priest), they were confessing to anyone who would listen-especially "people who might not identify as Christians," Mason says. Inside and outside the tent, members of the organization were apologizing for things like the ways they have "elevated ourselves as superior people," and their attitudes towards homosexuals.
But the real fun was across the plaza at the prayer booth. You could ask God for anything (and people did), either by writing your requests on paper and posting them on a bulletin board, or allowing the InterVarsity students to put their hands together and pray for you right then and there. "They're not trying to convert people or make them pray in a Christian way," Mason says.
They group promised they weren't even judging selfish wishes, praying for those coveting a lime green bike and for "intelligent beautiful women to actually go after guys that matter." Lord God, we hope that's all it takes.
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Free Prayer at the Rock
posted 4/27/08 @ 7:39 PM CST
I'd make the argument that if you love someone, you want to know what they want, you want to give them what they want and what's best for them. What's more, you're happy when they receive it. (Continued…)
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