Columnist Lorraine V. Murray’s recent books include a spiritual biography of Flannery O’Connor titled “The Abbess of Andalusia,” plus two cozy mysteries, “Death in the Choir” and “Death of a Liturgist.” She lives in Decatur with her husband, Jef, a Tolkien illustrator, and a hamster named Ignatius. Her email is lorrainevmurray@yahoo.com
One of the big pitfalls of sending a child to college is the kid may decide to ditch all the values the parents so carefully instilled. In my own case, by my junior year I had thrown out church-going, belief in Christ and many standards of moral behavior that had come down to me from generations back.
Looking back, I clearly see where the dangers were, and I’ve come up with some pointers I hope will help students today.
Above all, don’t assume your professors know everything and your parents know nothing. A young student walking into a college classroom where hot-button topics like religion, politics and social mores are being discussed may be shocked to encounter professors whose beliefs veer sharply from those of his parents.
There can be a temptation then to think: “Well, this professor has a doctorate in her field, so she must know what she’s talking about in other fields. And if the professor doesn’t believe in God and the religion I grew up with, well, maybe I should stop believing too.”
Beware, because once that sly seed of doubt has been planted, it can grow into a poisonous weed that disrupts your moral grounding.
Still, the spiritual pitfalls confronting Christian students are certainly nothing new. In 1955 Southern author Flannery O’Connor said flatly, “If you live today, you breathe in nihilism.”
A few years later, she received a letter from an Emory student worried that he was losing his Christian faith as a result of his studies. She commiserated with him and reminded him of a Gospel passage: “Lord, I do believe. Help my unbelief!”
A simple little notebook titled “A Prayer Journal” and filled with O’Connor’s reflections on faith, prayer and grace will be published in November. Writing at age 20 about her own experiences in college, she notes, “At every point in this educational process, we are told that [faith] is ridiculous.”
She was reeling from the effects of professors who claimed believers created God in their own image. And so she beseeched the Lord to send her a spiritual weapon to “defend us from ourselves after they have got through with us.”
Since she remained steadfastly true to her Catholic faith until her death at age 39, it seems this heartfelt plea was answered.
What is the secret weapon that will save today’s students from the machinations of secularists who scoff at values they hold dear? Of course, it helps to continue praying and reading the Bible, as O’Connor did, but in my case, I turned my back on those powerful practices early on.
In truth, I trod a very precipitous path, heeding every voice but God’s own. And in the end, it was God’s grace alone that became a powerful weapon – but only because there was a corner of my heart still open to it.
For college students there is another poignant scriptural passage that may help: “If today you hear his voice harden not your hearts.”
This passage reveals that God never stops pouring out his wondrous love and grace upon us. Grace is mysterious though. It can come gently like a whisper in the wind or more dramatically, almost knocking the wind out of us.
Always remember that the Lord stands outside tapping ever so persistently on the door of every heart, even the most hardened.
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