Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 14, 1972)
chi u if iff 'JmmLiJf y u monday, february 1 4, 1 972 lincoln, nebraska vol. 95, no. 68 f Young clergy challenge tradition counselor Today the Daily Nebraskan begins a series on religion. by Cheryl Westcott Young pastors, priests, nuns-how are they different from older clergy? Several young clergymen in Lincoln expressed much greater interest in social and political affairs than did most older churchmen. Father Brent Boh Ike, 29, chaplain of St. Mark's-on-the-Campus Episcopal Church, noted that there has been great oppostion in some quarters to the national church's policies. A common attitude, he said, is that the church has no place in social affairs; rather it should concern itself with saving men's souls. "But I believe the church should be concerned with the whole man and his whole condition," Bohlke said. Social programs in the United Methodist Church have meant less money for campus ministry, according to the Rev. Mel Luetchens, 32, associate minister-director of the Wesley Foundation Chapel and Student Center. People's giving has been affected by social involvements, he said, but is now rising again. In Nebraska, the United Methodist Church has helped establish a black radio station, credit union and bank in Omaha's Near North Side. Sister Marielle, 27, a Benedictine nun and chairman of the English department at Lincoln Pius X High School, said that "for far too long, the church has not been concerned enough about social issues." For several hundred years, she said, the prevalent idea held was that religion was between "me and God and no one else." As a result, many people say the church has no business in social issues, she stated. 'That isn't what Jesus said. He said to love God above all, and immediately added, 'love other people'." John W. Stieve, 27, assistant pastor at Faith Lutheran Church, said caution is necessary when the church involves itself in social concerns. "You've got to be careful how you do it you can't misuse funds or betray people's trust." Stieve doesn't buy the idea that the pastor must be "the loneliest guy in town." "I think you can make close friends with a family in the congregation and get hurt. You've got to take the risk. You should be able to gripe or rejoice with your friends and know it will go no further." He noted that the older pastor at his church disagreed. Marielle said it is necessary to get to know the community's attitudes. "I'm an individual and in one sense only responsible to myself," she said. "Yet a lot of people judge nuns in general by one in particular." Bohlke, who spent four years in Seward, said limits on his activities were largely self-imposed. "You wonder what people will think they think less about it than you do." The traditional role of the college chaplain is gone, according to Bohlke. It has changed with the university and the college structure, and the chaplain must now look for new ways of ministering. "It would be hard to justify being here if I'm not ministering," he said. A clergyman should not expect to be protected, he said. He has no "invisible shield" from temptation and problems. Luetchens said he has "no special handles on identity. I don't feel greatly secure because of my vocational interest Turn to Page 2 Indian claims victory ' moiMi vow The white man might have claimed most victories, but Charley Archambault says this one belongs to the Indians. Grade point overages released last week showed that the GPA's of the 22 American Indian students at UNL had jumped from last year's 1.1 to 2.3 this semester. Archambault took over as Indian students' counselor Aug. 1. 'This is a great victory for the Indians. I am proud to be your counselor," he told his students. He said the Indian GPA, which at 2.3 is 1.226 points higher than last yeer's average, now compares favorably with the Afro-American GPA (2.4) and Mexican-American GPA (2.1 J. The Indian GPA (the highest ever for the Indians) is less than .5 below the all-University average of 2.8. "Our goal this semester is to beat the all-University average," Archambault said. Why the giant step for the Indians? Archambault attributes "1 ' V-v 6 .lf rw 1 nu 1 .XXXW" Archambault. . ."A great victory for the Indians the GPA rise to a change in the Indian environment at UNL. "Before, Indian students could find nothing on campus to identify with and ended up dropping out," he said. Last year 22 Indians started classes, but 17 had dropped out by the end of the year. So far this year only two of 22 Indians who started the year have left school. Archambault said one problem was that Indian men, who outnumber Indian women two to one on campus, could not identify with last year's woman counselor. 'Traditionally, Indian men do not take their problems to their women," he said. 'Therefore they could not receive help because they had no one they felt they could talk with." To pull Indian students closer together, Archambault is trying to revive cultures and traditions lost to some Indians. One tradition he has re-established is eating together. "White people eat mostly to satisfy hunger," Archambault said. "It's different with Indians. We take great pleasure in eating with one another, and treat the occasion like a social function." The Indian students eat together twice a month. This gives Indians an opportunity to"rub shoulders with other Indians, so they can breathe in an Indian environment," Archambault said. Archambault said the UNL administration has "bent over backwards" to help Indians on campus, and an Indian identity is now emerging. For example, included in the curriculum are five Indian-oriented courses: sections in English 1 and 2, speech, history and philosophy of education, and two anthropology courses. Reading lists of other courses sometimes include books like Little Big Man and Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee. Archambault has started all-Indian meetings, which alternate each week with the Indian dinners. This is mostly a consciousness-raising effort, he said, to remind students of their Indian culture. Here they can bring up any problems, such as financial, that crop up during the school year. The group is now working on Indian culture week, slated for this spring. Also this spring, Archambault hopes to move his office outside. He is trying to obtain an old style, full-sized Indian teepee, which he hopes to pitch somewhere on campus. Archambault, himself a junior majoring in English, is encouraging his students to graduate. One incentive is Archambault's eagle feathers, which hang in rows in his office. When an Indian student completes his first semester at UNL, Archambault gives him an eagle feather, which he says is rare and hard to cone by. When the same student graduates, he receives his secc. ;d feather. Although a few Indians have graduated from UNL, all have been transfer students. In NLTs 102 year history, no Indian has ever started as a freshman and continued through his senior year to graduation.