Daniel J. Libenson '92, a former chair ofHillel, also mentions the problems that Harvard'sProtestant roots can cause. He complains ofconflicts between scheduled events and variousJewish holidays.
"Once it's pointed out, they're usually verygood about it, but they don't really think muchabout it in advance," he says. "It sort of givesone the feeling of not being a part of Harvard."
Libenson believes that Harvard needs to focuson including all religions, rather than trying tobe wholly secular while maintaining suchinstitutions as Memorial Church. "[It's bad] ifHarvard institutionalizes one religion or religionin general," he says.
Officially, Memorial Church isnondenominational--nondenominationally Christian,that is. Although it is open to ceremonies of allreligious faiths, it is nonetheless a church withChristian symbols and objects.
Some view this merely as a formal tie toHarvard's past, while others, such as Libenson,regard such symbolism as dangerous.
Religious Multiculturalism
However, some students are not particularlyconcerned by the question. Samah Jafari '93, whoheads the Islamic Student Society, says of hercommunity, "At this point, we see ourselves asMuslims in a Christian community."
She estimates that about 100 Muslims areenrolled in Harvard's graduate and under-graduateprograms. "Christians here have been around longerand there are more of them. [The administration]has actually been quite helpful as far as holidaysper se," she says.
Still, Jafari says she enjoys being a Muslim atHarvard. "Everyone's just curious about it in afriendly way. Also, because I practice with acommunity, I feel a certain deep closeness tothem," she says.
Like Jafari, Monica Manandhar '94 is notparticularly worried about the influence, or lackthereof, of Christianity at Harvard. However, heropinions spring more from relative religiousindifference. Raised as a Buddhist in Nepal,Manandhar says that her participation in herreligion has lessened greatly since coming toHarvard.
"At home, we had ceremonies and festivals," shesays. "It was always around me...but here I'm notdoing much. I do believe in God, but I haven'tfound the need to find a temple to go to everyweek."
Some students take advantage of the multiplereligions at Harvard to explore faith more freelyon their own. Although Harvard is not seen as areligious campus, the tolerance and adaptationthat a multicultural environment fosters canprovide students with new religious opportunities.
Badsah Mukhopadhyay '94 is one of these. Raisedin the Hindu and Buddhist traditions, he nowconsiders himself non-denominational. However, hehas tried to gain more understanding of variousreligions by studying and attending services.
"I went through a phase where I was away fromreligion, and returned in a different way," hesays. "I pray and meditate when I want peace ofmind. I have no qualms about praying to any God,and deity--I'm not rigid about it," he says.
Thomas H. Hughes '92, a Mormon, also says thatHarvard has provided him with new experiences inrelation to religion. "Like most other orthodoxreligions, Mormonism has a general stance againsthomosexuality," he says.
"I had never had gay friends before. I've hadnothing but good experiences with the gay peopleI've come in contact with," he says.
Hughes believes that Harvard offers many suchchallenges to one's religious beliefs and that byno means do these ultimately have to hurt one'sfaith.
He says that he has never been pressured tojustify his religions' position on alcohol, amongother things.
"It seems to me that there are more people atHarvard than I might guess who consider themselvesstrongly religious," says Hughes. "If you comehere a believer, there's no reason to think youhave to leave here a non-believer.