A number of booths lined the inside of Schine Student Center this week just like any other. But unlike other weeks, a banner declaring this week as Jesus Week has stood out among the rest.

The week, sponsored by Campus Crusade for Christ and Baptist Campus Ministries, is aimed at promoting awareness of Jesus and his place in students’ lives, said Meredith Wilson, a senior speech pathology major and member of Campus Crusade for Christ.

“It’s inspired by the fact that there’s all these other weeks celebrating other types of diversity but none that are based on different foundations of our lives like our faith,” she said.

Students who visited the booth could take a number of pamphlets about Jesus, Christianity and faith, as well as “survival kits” containing the Bible, a video and book about Jesus and his influence on people’s lives and a CD of contemporary Christian music. In addition to hosting the booth, the group also sponsored a showing of “The Jesus Movie” in several languages throughout the week. Lectures by Christians and performances by Christian hip-hop performers were also offered.

Josh Morrissey, a freshman information studies and technology major who has been working at the booth, said interested students have stopped to question what Jesus Week is all about. The majority of the booth’s visitors have had a positive outlook, he said.

“Most people seem to be fine with it,” Morrissey said, noting that “one professor said we were commercializing Jesus.”

Morrissey denied the claim, saying neither of the groups were making money from talking about Jesus.

Baptist Campus Ministries Intern Heather McIver, a student from Dallas Baptist University in Texas who is spending a semester at SU, said she is happy people are talking about Jesus, even if they aren’t completely serious.

“If nothing else we’ve excited people to talk about Jesus. Even if they’re just joking, they’re still talking about him,” she said.

The group has not been trying to spread their message on campus and have not been pressuring students to accept their beliefs, McIver said.

“We want people to become Christians but we’re not forcing them at all,” McIver said. “We just question why people think what they do about Jesus when they do joke around about it.”

Matt Leavitt, a graduate instructional design, development and evaluation student, said he did not mind the booth in Schine, but wondered about the seriousness of it.

“It just sounds a little irreverent but I have no problem with it,” he said. The booth is a “good way for clubs and Christians to promote their beliefs,” he added.

Senior information studies and technology major Steven Gaglione said that although he grew up learning about the Catholic religion from his parents, he expressed doubt that Jesus Week is the right way to get students interested in their faith.

“I don’t think that people are going to care all that much,” he said. “The time that I spend on campus is short and to the point and I don’t think people are going to stop in at a table and say ‘Hey, I think I should start believing in Christ and talk to some Born Again Christian in Schine.’ ”

Despite Gaglione’s reservations, Wilson said those working during Jesus Week are hopeful they will be able to give students a chance to learn more about their faith and its role in their lives.

”We wanted to give students the opportunity to hear the messages,” she said. “I think I’d be interested in it even if I weren’t Christian. It’s a lot of cool stuff.”

Published on February 27, 2002 at 12:00 pm