During the winter of my first year at Andrews University, I had a conversation that changed the course of my college career. A friend and I sat in a small café in South Bend, Indiana, and discussed our beliefs. We both felt strongly about many social issues and believed that God had called us to do what we could for our communities. Although it seemed unrealistic, we wanted to change the systems that create inequality and inequity around the globe. We were also afraid. We were afraid of losing our idealism through our college experiences. I had been told that once I “became more mature” I would no longer be interested in making a difference.
My friend and I agreed to do everything we could to hold onto our ideals, and we decided that the best way to do this would be to actively pursue them. We knew this was not going to be an easy task, and we learned this as we tried to start a student action group the following semester. It flopped. We were determined to continue our efforts; however, my friend spent the next year away from Andrews serving as a student missionary. But, at the beginning of the first semester of this school year, things began to come together.
Campus Ministries Action began as a series of conversations with Pat Murphy, an Andrews University chaplain, and a few others. Action has since grown to become an organization with a membership of 127. It exists to do two things. First, Action aims to create serious discussion and provide information on important social issues, from refugee crises in Uganda to homelessness in Chicago. Second, we work to give students meaningful opportunities to make a difference throughout their communities and the world.
On the educational front, Action held a screening of “Born into Brothels,” a documentary about children born to prostitutes in India, presented an assembly on the genocide in Darfur, Sudan, and aided in the presentation of a Martin Luther King Jr. Day forum to discuss the documentary “Lost Boys of Sudan.”
Action has helped work toward change through the formation of good relationships with Habitat for Humanity and Amnesty International, overseeing the Andrews University chapters of both organizations. Action has also made a letter available for students to sign asking the U.S. government to make creating peace in Darfur, Sudan, a high priority. Two hundred-fifteen students signed this letter, and it will soon be sent to Fred Upton, a congressman representing Michigan's sixth congressional district, and George W. Bush, U.S. president.
Action is more than just a vent for student idealism. It is a realization that Adventist young people want to make a difference in the world the way Jesus did, by aiding people directly and by changing the systems which imprison and impoverish them. It is a movement that I hope will take off among Adventist youth, a movement away from isolationism and toward creating a better world.
Andrew Gerard is a sophomore anthropology major. He has already presented scholarly research at a professional conference. Andrew works part-time at the Institute of Archaeology.
