by Mark Waters
“Will I get shot if I come to Texas?” The prospective Chinese student’s query was neither melodramatic nor overstated.
Learning to See Again: Respect in a Volatile Age
Interfaith Collaboration in India Inspires Texas Collegians
by Mark Waters
I was touched when, across the language barrier, he asked for a photo with our group. Our McMurry University team was working on a Habitat for Humanity project in India. Our job was to help paint two mostly completed houses. The professional painter – who asked for the photo – was Muslim.
Unpacking Pluralism
“Remember that words have usage, not meaning.” This off-the-cuff remark from Dr. Frank Stagg in a seminary classroom more than thirty years ago has repeatedly helped to clarify my thinking. I might modify the statement, saying that “words have usage, not inherent meaning” or “the meaning of a word is shaped by usage and context.” But the point is, nonetheless, well-taken. Words have usage, not meaning.
Shedding Religious Exclusivism in the College Classroom
Dakota grew up in a Baptist church in Lawn, Texas. Her first trip to India with McMurry University precipitated a crisis of faith. Though friendly, accepting, and open to others, Dakota’s religious upbringing taught her that non-Christians “go to hell.” She never questioned this teaching until she went to India. There she met, served alongside and was served by Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, and Christians. The dissonance between the faith of her childhood and the new people she met kept her awake at night talking to peers, other leaders on the trip, and me.