This past Sunday, we celebrated the inauguration of the College's 18th president, Anthony Marx. The service was held at 11 a.m. on the steps of our beloved Frost Library. This also happens to be the most common hour for Christian worship at Amherst, which I don't think was a coincidence.

Eating breakfast in Valentine an hour before the scheduled ceremony, I was asked by a number of friends (who also happened to be dressed quite nicely), "Are you going to the President's Inauguration?" "No," I responded, "I'm going to church." Awkward silence followed my response. Many of my fellow Christians faced the same quandary: given the moment, which one was more important?

I don't mean to criticize the College for its decision-it is free to run the administration however it sees fit. But as a Christian student, this puts me in a very precarious position: where do my allegiances lie? Are they first and foremost as a student of the College or as a follower of Christ? I felt like I was intentionally being called on to make a choice.

I'm not the first one caught in this decision. Consider Olympic gold-medalist Eric Liddell (of "Chariots of Fire" fame), Sandy Koufax of the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers or, more recently, outfielder Shawn Green of the Los Angeles Dodgers. All three had to choose between their personal religious convictions and the obligations imposed on them by the schedules of their particular secular sports. In the case of Green in 2001, he was the team's MVP in the middle of a September pennant race and had played every game of the season until that point. But he chose not to play baseball in observance of Yom Kippur because he felt it was more important to be an example to the young men and women of his faith who considered him to be a role model.

The motto of Amherst College is "Terras Irradient" or "Let them illuminate the lands." The school was founded as a Christian institution to raise up young men to serve their country both as clergy and in secular ministries. You could say the founders had a "lighthouse" vision of the role of Amherst amidst its community.

This scheduling decision of the College is only the latest of a series of decisions aimed at gradually eliminating the Christian hegemony of the College's founding. I don't mean this as a protest. The administration is free to make policy decisions that they think best serve our students, faculty and alumni. But certainly, I don't think this decision was an accident.

David Wright '04

Theme houses are not the problem

Last week's editorial regarding theme houses was both ridiculous and short-sighted in its premise, calling for theme houses be disbanded on the grounds that they foster segregation. Theme houses serve as an outlet for views and events which are not otherwise present in the context of normal college life. They provide the necessary infrastructure and resources to attract speakers, musicians and authors. In addition to this feature, many theme houses provide facilities which are unparalleled and, in fact, nonexistent, elsewhere at the College.

The claim that such houses are tools of self-segregation in which like-minded individuals get together to block out the world around them is entirely erroneous. These houses, their events and their resources are open to anyone who would like to use them. Secondly, this statement is based on the premise that all house members are alike. This claim is absolutely ridiculous and without basis, in fact. Many houses expose students to ideas which they would otherwise not have encountered at college. Theme houses, rather than being pockets of self-segregation, are a godsend to this campus of consensus, allowing the dissemination of alternative views which are sorely lacking around here.

Specifically, Marsh House is an outlet for such views. Without it, many students would have no way of exhibiting their talents to the student body. There would be no Coffee House, no dance studio and no public band room, as there are no other suitable spaces open to the public on campus for these things. If the theme house was made public again, the basement would degrade into just another location for drunken parties and would eventually be closed, just like all the other house basements. Without the projects provided by Marsh funds and resources, the College would be an even duller place than it already is.

By attacking the theme houses as bastions of segregation, we are ignoring the broader issue here-one of campus-wide intolerance. Disbanding the houses would be an easy way to say progress has been made, but I guarantee that in the long run, the problem will not go away unless it is attacked at its root. Furthermore, changing the theme house system would serve to bulldoze the nearly featureless intellectual landscape of this college, destroying diversity and thereby, doing more to champion the cause of marginalization and intolerance than any series of offensive Internet posts could ever do.

Graham Dumas '04

Marsh House President

Blame students, not housing

I may not look like the "typical" Drew House member, but living there was one of the best experiences I had at Amherst. Not only did I learn academically, I learned a lot about the diverse social realities of individuals who are similar to, yet very different from me. Ideally, this is what theme housing is supposed to do-expose students to different cultures, different people and different ways of thinking. For those who are willing to break down the walls that prevent us from stepping outside of our "comfort zone"-mentally, physically or socially-it can be a meaningful experience.

Yet, there are many who have never lived in a theme house and bemoan its encouragement of segregation of all sorts. Many believe that these houses are exclusive in their activities and purpose. This misconception is unfair to those who live or have lived in theme houses. Theme houses provide a physical venue for students of all backgrounds to come together and truly learn about each other. During Homecoming weekend, all the theme houses threw open their doors for Themes of Amherst. But it is not just during this particular weekend that theme houses hold events open to the entire Amherst community. Throughout the year, theme houses welcome people who want to partake in discussions in French or German, watch Asian films or play ludo. The only thing stopping Amherst students from experiencing the diversity and culture that theme housing has to offer is Amherst students.

Joanne Joo '04