The President comes to my alma mater, by Jeffrey Veen

The President comes to my alma mater

I graduated from Calvin College in Grand Rapids, MI. It's a small, liberal arts school operated by the church my parents belonged to back then. It's a safe bet that you haven't heard of it, unless you're really into Division III basketball. We had a good team.

Anyway, you can imagine my surprise when I found out earlier this month that President Bush would be speaking my little alma mater's commencement ceremony this year. I was immediately conflicted. "The President of the United States will be at Calvin! Wow! ...and... ew!" I mean, leader of the free world and all that -- it's a huge deal. But I haven't hesitated in making feelings known about this administration.

I wasn't alone. Mr. Bush was at Calvin today, and was greeted by a full-page add in the local paper placed by a large group of faculty, students, and alumni. It included the following:

As Christians, we are called to be peacemakers and to initiate war only as a last resort. We believe your administration has launched an unjust and unjustified war in Iraq.

and then:

In our view, the policies and actions of your administration, both domestically and internationally over the past four years, violate many deeply held principles of Calvin College

Three dozen protesters picketed outside the venue, and students wore buttons and armbands saying, “God is not a Republican or Democrat.”

Most of the media outlets led with the controversy -- and it's not surprising. Karl Rove had approached Calvin with the offer to bring the President, showing a strategic need to bolster support in a state they barely lost to John Kerry in the last election. This would be a perfect opportunity for a warm reception from an evangelical Christian college just before the mid-term elections. But it didn't quite play out that well. And that's big news.

There is coverage in the New York Times, CNN, MSNBC -- but the best report is in Christianity Today.

This entry was written by Jeffrey Veen and posted 21 May 2005 at 7:44 PM. It was filed under Personal.

Comments

1. On 21 May 2005 at 10:27 PM Harry wrote:

"As Christians, we are called to be peacemakers and to initiate war only as a last resort. We believe your administration has launched an unjust and unjustified war in Iraq."

"God is not a Republican or Democrat."

Amen and amen.

2. On 22 May 2005 at 5:36 AM James Stewart wrote:

As well as those picketing, there were a number of members of the community, including retired faculty marching on the East Beltline. The whole affair has certainly livened Grand Rapids of late, and I think all those involved in the letters and protests are feeling quite satisfied with the profile they managed to attain.

It'll be interesting to see what fallout there is within the college in the coming weeks. There are already reports of parents asking for their children to be withdrawn from the list of potential admits, saying those faculty who protested should "grow up," and of donors withdrawing financial support. Hopefully that'll all blow over, but there could be some turbulence yet to come.

3. On 22 May 2005 at 8:25 AM AJP wrote:

As a fellow Calvin grad ('03), and Bush supporter, I was conflicted as well. At first my reaction was just like yours, "Holy crap, the President, at Calvin, at my sister's commencent, and I'll be there!" But then, having the President go anywhere, especially to a small Christian liberal arts school in Michigan, is a political move no matter how you look at it.

Most of the articles have tried to paint a picture that the mixed reception was somehow equal on both sides. That a mixed reception means that Bush was not received well. An interview on the local news had Professor Randall Jelks, who said it well, "... that we can dissent without being disrespectful." Jelks was one of the many people who signed the GR Press ad that spoke out against Bush's visit.

The part that cracks me up, is that the people who were protesting that Bush's visit was a political visit, are the only people that were being political. Bush's speech was surprisingly void any political themes. He spoke about students getting up and making a difference in a country where you have the freedom to do so. Bush said it well, "This isn't a Democrat idea. This isn't a Republican idea. This is an American Idea."

Professor Jelks summed up his point of view (and mine) rather well. In the Washington Times, he said, "We are not right wing; we're not left wing. We think our faith trumps political ideology."

4. On 22 May 2005 at 10:05 AM Luke wrote:

Calvin has a great Division III basketball team! The men's varsity team took 3rd place at the 2005 NCAA III Final Four. Pics and coverage at: http://www.calvin.edu/thegame/2005/tourney/0319men/

And, here's a direct link to Calvin's Commencement website: http://www.calvin.edu/commencement/

5. On 23 May 2005 at 6:23 AM Brian Graves wrote:

Wow, what year did you graduate?

6. On 23 May 2005 at 1:51 PM Jeff Hartman wrote:

Small world. My sister (Kim Hartman), brother-in-law (Jason Stoub) and quite a few good friends (Andy Padjen, Eric Coffman, Jeff Winkle, and several more) went to Calvin (graduated in and around '95).

Other that this site, SXSW and Adapative Path, I knew you had an uncanny familiarity. I thought it might have been the cycling. :)

7. On 27 May 2005 at 10:33 AM Torr wrote:

Well since Bush admits to not reading newspapers, I guess this protest just flew right by him.

8. On 28 May 2005 at 5:54 PM D. Goodmanson wrote:

I think the Bush team forget to find out that there is a big difference between his dispensational pre-trib agenda and the Covenant-steeped Reformed tradition.

9. On 5 June 2005 at 12:09 AM Ryan Oswald wrote:

cool. Pres. Bush spoke a few months ago at my undergrad alma mater (Centenary college) too. Also a small liberal arts college with a good basketball team (sometimes. Robert Parrish played there, long time ago).
link: http://www.centenary.edu/news/2005/March/0007.html