Stanford Vox Clara | SORROW & HOPE | Spring 2021

VOX CLARA STANFORD’S JOURNAL OF CHRISTIAN THOUGHT

Spring 2021

SORROW & HOPE THROUGH IT ALL , 6 HOPE IS MORE THAN BAPTIZED OPTIMISM, 20 BACK TO SCHOOL AMIDST THE PANDEMIC, 26

ABOUT VOX CLARA OUR MISSION Vox Clara is a journal of Christian thought at Stanford, dedicated to cultural inquiry in the light of faith and reason. We seek to provide a forum for Christians and non-Christians at Stanford to engage in dialogue related to Christianity, culture, and life’s biggest questions. We believe it is important to address issues of faith in the university community. As Jane Stanford’s words on the wall of Memorial Church attest: “There is no narrowing so deadly as the narrowing of man’s horizon of spiritual things. No worse evil could befall him in his course on earth than to lose sight of Heaven. And it is not civilization that can prevent this; it is not civilization that can compensate for it. No widening of science, no possession of abstract truth, can indemnify for an enfeebled hold on the highest and central truths of humanity. ‘What shall a man give in exchange for his soul?’”

T H E AU G U ST I NE CO L L ECT I V E Vox Clara is part of the Augustine Collective, a network of student-led Christian journals on college campuses throughout the United States amd the UK. There are over thirty journals to date, all committed to the premise that faith and reason belong together. For more information, see augustinecollective.org.

T H E NI CE NE CR E E D We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen. We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one being with the Father; through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven: was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and became truly human. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end. We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets. We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.

D I S CL A I M E R The opinions expressed in the articles contained in this publication are those of the authors. They do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of Vox Clara or its staff members.

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ABOUT VOX CLARA

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STAFF H A DA S SA H B E TA P U D I Editor-in-Chief

T R I STA N WA NG Managing Editor, Designer

GEO RGE LAU ST E N Outreach Coordinator, Content Editor

J ACK M c K I NNO N Content Editor

A B I GA I L S CH W E I Z E R Content Editor

STAFF

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TABLE OF CONTENTS 6

THROUGH IT ALL George Lausten

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SORROW & HOPE Hadassah Betapudi

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A RESTORED VOICE Tristan Wang

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AGAINST CRITICAL RACE THEORY Jack McKinnon

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

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HOPE IS MORE THAN BAP TIZ ED OP TIMISM Glen Davis

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THE HOPE OF B ECOMING LIKE JESUS Rinchu Mathew

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BACK TO SCHO OL A MIDST THE PANDEMIC A Reflection on Justice Mercy, and Humility Kristel Tjandra

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EDITOR’S NOTE Dear Reader, The theme for this year’s issue of Vox Clara is Sorrow and Hope. The reason for this choice may be self-evident given the global context in which this issue was published, or the fact that you are reading this letter online.

Suffering is inevitable. It harbors no favorites, there are none it eludes. Like fire, suffering leaves nothing it touches unchanged. The response to suffering defines every individual and every worldview.

Christianity allows its followers the dignity of sorrow. Entire books of the Bible are devoted to grief, as the prophets in Micah and Isaiah lament the injustice and death that prevail in God’s absence. The Son of God pronounces a blessing on those who mourn, paradoxically affirming that we are doomed to suffer before a loving God. Yet, this message is tinged with a profound hope predicated on faith: the sorrow is temporary, this world is not our home. With faith, we Christians acknowledge the overwhelming burden of suffering and the mystery of God’s reluctance to intervene while expecting that which is to come. In sorrow and hope, we labor towards God’s kingdom where death is defeated and suffering is no more.

The essays contained in this issue address various aspects of sorrow and hope.

I trust you will find them gracious guides in your own search for truth.

With Love,

Hadassah Betapudi Editor-in-Chief

EDITOR’S NOTE

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THROUGH IT ALL GEORGE LAUSTEN

“So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.” — 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 “The Christian hope is a humble hope; and their joy, even when it is unspeakable and full of glory, is a humble broken-hearted joy, and leaves the Christian poorer in spirit, and more like a little child, and more disposed to a universal lowliness of behavior.” — Jonathan Edwards THE HEIGHT 3 am — the height of my productivity and self-confidence. With time to spare, I produced several thesis ideas, recruited for my new company, and sent long-winded

emails communicating my ambitions. I even made a Facebook page. Physically, I was energized; socially, I had no inhibitions. I could suddenly do more pushups and make more friends than ever before. Even so, my roommate was concerned, my friend was looking for professional help, and folks from home wondered if I was possessed by a demon. To me, I simply thought my hard work was paying off. I knew God, but I believed in myself.

We all have our stories. I didn’t earn everything I have, but sometimes I pretend as if I did. I grew up working in the service industry, but my parents owned the business. My rural county was the poorest in Minnesota, but I never went hungry. My parents didn’t go to college, but I attend an elite institution. I have all the privilege of a white complexion, but I have Native roots. I’ve seen the death of friends and family, but I have a life of joy. Despite — or perhaps because of — all this, I worked hard to excel in academic endeavors, and I did. This gave me a reason to

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believe, as my mom mockingly says, “I’m all that and a bag of chips.”

The transition to college lends itself to self-discovery and deciding what you believe in. For me, freshman year held extra weight and the idea that other people are smarter, better looking, and more athletic than me. Trying to find my niche and test my Christain faith, I joined a residential philosophy program that exposed me to new worldviews.

No longer was I the valedictorian, student body president, and football captain. I felt like I couldn’t trust in my abilities anymore. Now, I was just a guy with a shaken and degraded identity.

Then things changed. As if overnight, there was an underlying certainty that I would change the world — and that I have to act now. Things like trees and lamps held profound meaning; phrases and numbers were never more inspiring. Ideas came rushing to mind, projects demanded attention, and my endeavors all seemed God-inspired.

In one conversation, I told someone I had just met that we ought to live like we’re dying because we are and that life is a disease with a 100% mortality rate. In another conversation, I debated with my roommate about the problem of evil and acted like I had an answer to why bad things happen to good people.

Those that cared for me expressed concern, and I dis-

They didn't have a title for me at first: maybe bipolar, maybe schizoaffective, definitely broken.

missed what they had to say. I used eyedrops so that people wouldn’t be able to tell that I hadn’t slept. Soon after, I packed a bag of important belongings and spent the night on the street to clear my mind. I bought a homeless man coffee and sat to talk to him. I gave the barista a tip, but she returned the money to my card. I’m not sure if she felt pity for me or if she thought I was incapable of making financial decisions. When I returned, people treated me strangely, and some recommended therapy. Feeling misunderstood, I decided that there was nothing wrong with me and that anyone who disagreed had the real issues.

On campus, a man I never met before found me and said that we needed to talk. Soon after, I was in a psychiatrist's office with the doors locked behind. The doctor would not let me see what he was writing down, and he disagreed that everything was fine. Starting to panic, I attempted to leave the room. Police officers arrived when I started to yell, and I resisted with every ounce of my strength. Despite my appeals, they drove me to an inpatient psychiatric unit in handcuffs. Months later, I read the words “gravely disabled” on the doctor’s record of events. He called my affliction mania. And I thought things were starting to go right.

THE DEPTH The doctors wanted my blood. But I wouldn’t give it to them. They wanted me to take a pill. But I wouldn’t swallow. God didn’t break me out of that psychiatric unit, so I tried to escape. From literally ramming into doors to inciting a rebellion, I deservedly got tranquilized twice.

When I was placed in a guarded room apart from other patients, I tried to befriend the guards so they would let me go. I wonder if I was as charming as I thought I was.

One day, someone informed me that I could leave earlier if I cooperated by taking medication and by swallowing my pride. Pumped full of several medications, including a 5x dosage of a neuron-arresting antipsychotic, my descent to the depth began.

Foggy days and a bed-ridden existence followed medication. The realization that I can’t trust even my own brain sunk in. They didn’t have a title for me at first: maybe bipolar, maybe schizoaffective, definitely broken. By this time I was falling behind in school, so I tried to keep up

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with classes from inside the hospital. Whatever cognitive capacity or physical ability I once had was diminished.

Depression hit hard, and I never contemplated death to an equal extent until this season of life. I could hardly put a sentence together, social shame was magnified, and I couldn’t feel God in my life. I couldn’t feel anything at all.

Maybe it had to do with the concoction of pills or the chemical balance of my norepinephrine and serotonin.

Maybe it had to do with the realization of how off base socially I was, knowing I had to face the world again. What seemed most probable to me, though, is that God had forsaken me and taken away all of my abilities as a form of punishment. I wanted to yell; I wanted to cry. But I just sat there. Unable to function at the required level for school, I went home. Around this same time, my father endured a life-threatening crash, and a friend from high school died.

When someone asked what happened to me, I told them I went home because of these events.

At home, I paced around and threw away all of the projects that I was working on in the trash. I tried reading my Bible but couldn’t concentrate. I tried praying but felt no emotion. It’s hard to hear from God when your soul has weak reception. Moments before being hospitalized I had a conversation about James 1:2-3. “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.” How am I supposed to take joy in this when I can hardly feel anything except pain and shame? I thought to myself that my friend was unsympathetic and unaware of the realities of life for quoting that verse before all the lousy things that were happening to me.

Before my affliction, I was smart, I was capable, people liked me. I believed in myself and what I could control.

This was taken away. Today, I know that I can’t even trust my own thoughts or emotions all the time. Inner dialogue and awareness of my highs and lows are necessary for me to function in reality. I’ve felt like God during mania and utterly rejected by Him during depression. How am I supposed to have joy no matter what’s happening around me?

Eventually, it sank in that finding joy in the trials is not the same as finding happiness. Joy allows room for sorrow, for laying my broken pieces before God — who I believe to be the master builder — so that He can repair me.

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When He breaks down our flesh, when there is sorrow, it is in order that our soul might be built up.

This is not the part of the story where I pretend like everything in my life is perfect now. I take Lithium every day to keep me out of the “looney-bin,” a term I like to use when I describe my institutionalization so that the discussion has some humor to it. However, I can say that, through the highs and lows, the reality of God in my life never changed. All that changed was my perception of Him. It’s been over a year without any manic or depressive episodes, and I hope that it stays this way. I know that it might not and that my life is fragile and ever-changing.

Still, I believe in a God that is solid rock, and He is an anchor for my soul no matter the season. He gives me the hope to endure whatever trial comes and a joy that transcends the situation.

THE INBETWEEN So why do I have this hope? Our understanding of good is not God’s understanding of good. We often think of good as painless, something that leads to happiness. God is good through any circumstance because He’s not focused on our fleeting happiness; He’s worried about our eternal status and joy that endures. When He breaks down our flesh, when there is sorrow, it is in order that our soul might be built up.

You may not believe in God — or you may feel far from Him — and that’s okay. Come as you are. Life has many seasons, but my God stays the same through them all. But consider this: a creation ought not to hope in itself because it doesn’t know its intended purpose or the instruction manual apart from its creator.

Jon Bloom theorizes that “the human psyche is designed to operate on hope: where the more hopeful we are, the more mentally healthy we are.” This postulates that every human has some sort of hope — in themselves, in their circumstances, in their God. In a recent study, researchers found a negative correlation between psychiatric conditions and levels of hope. Naturally, the substance of what is hoped for is crucial.

There is hope that we can see: the kind where we trust in ourselves, our environment; there is hope that is unseen: the kind that hopes in the future and says, “even if it’s not alright, it will be alright.” The Christain hope has the advantage that it is not wishful thinking. It is the confident expectation that there is a life after this, and that in the end, we will get what we desire — to spend eternity with God. Put another way, seen hope trusts in God’s creation whereas unseen hope trusts in God. The Christian God

makes promises to His people, and God is Love. If God’s promises and His Love never end as He tells us, then we have a lot to be joyful about.

We are unable to control the weather, how people treat us, or the trials we may endure. Right now, I have a happy life, but I know that ups and downs will come, and that’s okay.

The book of Proverbs puts it this way: “The horse is prepared for the day of battle, But deliverance and victory belong to the Lord” (Proverbs 21:31, AMP). In other words, though we may prepare for what is ahead, the outcome is in the hands of God. v “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” — Psalms 73:26 George Lausten is a senior at Stanford in pursuit of a bachelor of honors in psychology. He has spent time in both the social psychology and psychophysiology labs conducting mood and sleep diagnostics, while researching topics like police violence, ways different cultures approach helping others, and emotional regulation strategies to mitigate teeth-grinding at night. He manages bipolar disorder with the help of Christian community, and aspires to become a psychiatrist so he can “help crazy people like himself.”

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SORROW & HOPE HADASSAH BETAPUDI “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from my cries of anguish? My God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer, by night, but I find no rest.” — Psalm 22:1-2, NIV

and divine joy and peace after prayer. Such testimonies play an important role in witnessing, but the spiritual bliss and miracles alone are not a holistic representation of the Christian walk.

“God had one son on earth without sin, but never one without suffering.” — Augustine

The Bible itself proves a trove of stories of those in profound pain. Strikingly, those considered God’s chosen are most often the ones who reside in suffering. The Lord’s anointed, David, vacillates between poetry of thankfulness and grief. For every psalm where David lavishes praise on God for his unfailing love and devotion to humanity, we can find another where he lashes out in anger and disappointment and pain at his present circumstances.

P

ain is an inevitable part of the human experience and is no stranger to the average Stanford student.

For an experience so common to humanity, it remains a topic that evades the pulpit, banal Christian conversation, and communal settings. Perhaps this is because the question of pain rarely promotes a compelling theodicy. The testimonies we are eager to share with unbelievers are usually ones of spiritual triumph, miraculous healing,

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Moses and Elijah express similar sentiments. Moses, exhausted by the constant complaint of God’s people, prayed

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in anguish, “I cannot carry all these people by myself; the burden is too heavy for me. If this is how you are going to treat me, please go ahead and kill me.”[1] Elijah, even after witnessing firsthand God’s awesome power at Mount Carmel, prayed later during persecution, “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.”[2] Finally, God’s own beloved son stands as the most poignant example of earthly pain and suffering. Jesus tells his apostles before his crucifixion, “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.”[3] The prophet Isaiah summarizes Jesus’ time on Earth, “He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.”[4] These examples reveal that we Christians who suffer are not alone in our pain. We are in the company of God’s beloved people: his kings and prophets and the son of God himself. Furthermore, these characters who experienced the deepest pains were the ones closest to God. God de-

Instead, our call is to dwell in this beautiful, suffering world and still hope.

scribes David as “a man after my own heart”,[5] Moses and Elijah joined Jesus at the Mount of Transfiguration, and after Jesus’ death, God declared, “This is my son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”[6] These characters do not see an end to their suffering in their time on Earth. David grieved his innocent son, who died for the sins of his father. After decades of leading a stubborn and ungrateful people through the wilderness, Moses died without entering his promised land. In the world Jesus died to save, hate and death still prevail. For them and for us, the command is not to ignore the sorrow. Instead, our call is to dwell in this beautiful, suffering world and still hope.

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 says, “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”

To be a Christian is to forever live believing that what we see is not the full story. “Blessed are those who mourn,” means blessed are those who willingly linger in the sorrow.[7] Blessed are those who see the world of suffering as it is and still labor towards what the world should be in hope.

In my own life, I can think of no instance where I have been miraculously delivered from pain. More reliable than divine relief has been grief, unanswered prayer, and a deepening sense that this world is not what it should be.

With bitterness and resignation, I return to Simon Peter’s words in John 6: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the

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words of eternal life.”[8] Christianity promises that the pain will not last. Perhaps it lingers in this life, but the pain will not follow in the life to come. Revelations states, “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”[9] Pain and faith collide in Christ’s words in John 16: “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”[10] The overwhelming burden of suffering has given me little evidence to support God’s existence, his love for me, or the idea that pain is undone in the end. But I am still captivated by this religion of hope, by the idea that kindness, courage, forgiveness, and mercy endure. I want to believe that the stories so cruelly cut short find their ever after, death is defeated, and love conquers all.

So despite this world of sorrow, pain, and injustice, I follow Christ. Christianity sanctifies pain, lending perspective and redemption to otherwise hopeless suffering. God assures us that this broken world was not his intention for us, nor will he remain hidden from his creation forever. By faith, I can say the best is only yet to come. v “I’ll not fear when I pass through the valley, Though encompassed by shadows of night, For I know that beyond it is shining An eternal and glorious light.”

— Charles Naylor, Beyond the Shadows [1] Numbers 11:14-15.

[2] 1 Kings 19:4.

[3] Mark 14:34.

[4] Isaiah 53:3.

[5] Acts 13:22.

[6] Matthew 3:17.

[7] Matthew 5:4.

[8] John 6:68.

[9] Revelation 21:4.

[10] John 16:33.

Hadassah Betapudi is a junior majoring in Political Science.

Her academic interests include poverty and health inequality, and her non-academic interests include watercolor painting and listening to NPR. She serves as the Editor-in-Chief of Vox Clara.

A RESTORED VOICE TRISTAN WANG And he said to him, “Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well.” — Luke 17:19, ESV

A

s a Christian, I have been a member of three church congregations. When I was twelve, I dedicated my life to Christ on the Easter Sunday of 2012 at Neihu Grace Lutheran Church, where I was baptized. This was my first church, some five minutes’ walk from my family apartment in Taipei, Taiwan. Beginning in high school, I worshipped at Chinese Church in Christ in Mountain View, CA, where I first became immersed in a church fellowship. Yet I remain uncertain whether I would have truly found belonging in the body of Christ, had it not been for the third church I attended, River of Life Christian Church in Santa Clara, CA, where God healed me of an ailment of shame and timidness that had encumbered me for a large portion of my childhood years.

Before the age of nine, I could aptly be described as a very outgoing child. For not only did I frequently concoct embarrassing gimmicks both at home and in public places, I would not have hesitated to engage anyone, young or old, stranger or relative, in a conversation on whatever I pleased. And, blessed as I was, most returned my curiosity with encouragement, especially my parents. Such was my disposition when I entered elementary school in Taipei.

By the time I graduated, it would no longer be the same.

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For it was as if their voices had stolen my own.

Initially, as the recipient of change, the change was obscure. It would remain obscure to me for quite a while after that. Not so to my parents, though, and they eventually uncovered the reason. At school, I had been regularly subjected to shaming and abuse by a clique of students as well as one of the teachers. And while the bullying never proceeded beyond the verbal, there was no denying the adverse effects it bore. Academically speaking, I was just as driven as before. Yet, I began to withdraw from social interaction, becoming alarmingly reclusive. I averted my gaze when I spoke to people, muttered when prompted by adults, and exhibited what could only be an acute lack of confidence. My parents were appalled. Upon discovery, my father was furious, at the students but particularly at the teacher. For it was as if their voices had stolen my own.

Much had happened between my elementary school years and my sophomore year of high school. But despite the many changes that had occurred, my shameful timidness persisted as a burden in my heart. In fact, the passage of time only divulged how much my temperament had changed, and not for the better. But now I was a believer in Christ, as was my entire family. Yet, when we first began attending Chinese Church in Christ in Mountain View, CA, I strongly opposed my parents’ suggestion to attend

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their youth group. I had many excuses, but the truth was at that point in time, I had little desire to become acquainted with so many strangers.

In the summer of 2016, my family attended Sunday service at River of Life Christian Church in Santa Clara, CA, at a friend’s invitation. After the sermon concluded, amidst the ambience of worship music, the pastor invited all who wanted healing to move to the base of the stage, where church fellows would pray with them personally.

Having had bow legs since birth, my brother had already gone up, and I was content to wait at my seat for his return so we could leave. Then my father turned to me and said, “Tristan, will you go up?” And I answered back, almost too quickly, “I’m not sick.”

I had my voice taken from me, and after years of silence, God gave me my voice back.

So he repeated, “Will you go up to the front?”

This time I was indignant, “But I’m not sick.”

Yet, because I knew this to be a falsehood, I felt horrible.

Perhaps what immediately followed this statement was equal parts accepting God’s healing grace and losing the will to justify my brokenness. Either way, my reluctant walk up to the stage was one of the strangest and most transformative events of my life. My curt request to the attendant for prayer would be the first time I openly admitted that I was hurt. “I need healing. I need courage.

Could you pray for me?”

And He did. When I walked out of church that day, I did not feel too different. I did not perceive joyous thoughts hurriedly flooding into my mind; nor was there a sudden spring to my step. In fact, as far as I could tell, I was much the same person. Yet, though the change was obscure at first, I was already the recipient of change. For that was the day that God began to lift my burden.

As before, others noticed that I had changed before I did. “Do you realize that you smile more now?” My father asked me one day. This was three years ago, in my senior year of high school. Yet to my relatives, in a sense, I had begun to resemble my younger, confident self more and more. Just a year before that, I began attending youth group at Chinese Church in Christ regularly, and became close friends with many of the strangers I had dreaded to

meet just years before. I was once more an enthusiastic instigator of conversations. Social gatherings became a joyous thing, so much so I became known as the guy who planned outings for the other youth at church. But to me it was not such an abrupt thing. Like a shadow inching across a courtyard, so my fears receded from my heart.

And as the familiar doubts and shame became more and more foreign, so the foreign joys and freedom became more and more familiar again.

I had my voice taken from me, and after years of silence, God gave me my voice back. But the healing only came to pass after I surrendered my burden to Him. This is my testimony and I am glad to share it. If you are not yet a believer, I encourage you to ask the Christians you know for their testimonies as well. They will likely be happy to share them. Regardless, if you ask God for help in humility and sincerity, He will show you grace and mercy in abundance.

May He restore and deliver you as He did for me. v Tristan Wang is a third-year undergraduate studying Computer Science. In his free time, he enjoys reading, watching anime, philosophical conversations, and chilling with friends at board game cafés. At Stanford, he regularly attends Chi Alpha Christian Fellowship.

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AGAINST CRITICAL RACE THEORY JACK McKINNON

I

write this piece against the main tenets of Critical Race Theory (hereafter CRT) because I see our culture and western academia being enthralled by this ideology.

Although I am no doubt deficient to defend the orthodox, catholic faith from this competing knowledge my hope is that this brief defense shall call attention to this rising ideology in our time and specifically why it is incumbent on the elect to not be ensnared by CRT as a worldview.

My outline for this rejection of CRT is such that I shall cover the main points of CRT and its philosophical origins and then contrast the mutually exclusive claims against orthodox Christianity.[1] I shall attempt to show where the principles of CRT, and its philosophical predecessors, contradict the Christian faith and so ought to be rejected by the body of Christ. Lastly, I will address a final note on the value of appropriation of CRT into the Church.

SIN According to CRT the evil and suffering we universally recognize is not a result of individual sinners but because society corrupts an otherwise good human being; it is institutions that make individuals corrupt. Indeed it is social estrangement in all its diverse forms (economic, sexual, gendered,

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ableness, and racial) that is the source of evil. In line with a traditional Marxist anthropology, of which CRT inherits, man is a material being whose alienation is ultimately societal and institutional, not spiritual. Thus what we Christians call “sin” is better conceived of as instiutional alienation.

For Marx, the developlment and systemization of capitalism was the catalyst for man’s social alienation whereby we became oppressive toward one another and exploited the labor of the proletariat. In similar vein, CRT broadens the scope of instiutional oppression to apply to far more categories than original Marxism. Indeed, there are forms of racial, economic, sexual, gendered, and abledness systems of oppression.

The subgroup who align with the standards of these categories for a given culture constitute the ‘culutral hegemony’. The detrimental actions of groups outside of this hegemony are environmentally determined to be less condusive to success and more prone to vice.

Yet this is counter to Scripture which is replete with moral imperatives for humans to freely choose God and to repent of their sins. Despite environments that promote vice, we who know the Truth in Christ, are still accountable for our sins. Adam could not blame Eve in partaking of the forbidden fruit, for Adam sinned in full knowledge.[2] Despite his

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environmental situation with Eve, Adam still chose to sin.[3] If we acknowledge three loci of sin, in the individual heart, in Satan, and in the world, CRT focuses exclusively on the world. Man is surely estranged, but it is estrangement ultimately from God, not from societal systems of power.

SALVATION Because CRT places man’s predicament in institutions, so too will the relief of this problem be through systems. Yet CRT is again deficient in its solution to man’s fundamental estrangement. That is to say, any doctrine of man is deficient that does not mention sin, and any doctrine of salvation is deficient without Christ. It seems that this is a worldly philosophy depending on the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ that Paul warned us about.

According to the common threads of critical race theorists, the grand problem of humanity as briefly sketched out above is to be solved by the tearing down of institutions that are replete with systemic bias against those who are not of or allied with the cultural hegemony. No mention nor passing glance is given toward individual righteousness nor their spirit, for this is an implicitly materialistic worldview, and so there is no inclination toward Christ.[4] For as the diagnosis is different, so will be the treatment. We may agree with CRT on some of the symptoms by which the human race is afflicted, but it is paramount for preserving the integrity of the Gospel to notice where the diagnosis of CRT and its prescription fail; for if we were to adopt it wholesale, it would profit Man nothing.

The prescription for ridding ourselves of guilt, if we are of the oppressor, and for attaining liberation if we are of the op-

CRT, therefore, ignores the most important imperative of the Gospel which is “Repent! And be saved.”

pressed is power. It is the proper distribution of power that will make men “righteous”. Yet for the Christian it is markedly different. It is grace that takes us all from condemnation to justification and sanctification unto God. CRT, therefore, ignores the most important imperative of the Gospel which is “Repent! And be saved.”

ONE, HOLY, CATHOLIC, APOSTOLIC CHURCH In step with the neo-Marxist Frankfurt school, CRT argues that individual identity and truth is reducible to but not limited to race, gender, and class. These categories determine the individual and constitute the truth for that person. According to CRT, it is “lived experience” that one has a sort of privileged knowledge about power dynamics and inequality in society. This is something special and exclusive to the oppressed and not to the oppressor. This extends even using objective tools of epistemic justification such as reason, empirical evidence, logical consistency, and even Scripture.

These can and are seen as the reasoning of the powerful to shield themselves from the powerless.

This type of ethnic gnosticism, denies the transcendence of our constitution as bearers of the imago Dei, but also denies the transcendence of Christ over His Church as well as the universal and objective authority of Scipture. There is no God of the white man and God of the black man or God of the woman, poor, able, disabled, etc.. Rather the one and same God is Lord over all of the race of man and over all Creation.

Indeed, we believe that Christ’s body is not divided by race, gender, or class, but we believe in the one, holy, catholic, apostolic Church.[5] In the magnificent and inspiring corpus of the Church Fathers, it is never their contention to make the Church dependent on the societal standings of its members.

In fact, their contention was against any heresy that might divide the Church. Yea, it was this sin of division away from orthodoxy that rallied Christians from the whole world in the early Church to defend the Catholic Church as catholic.

For the Fathers themselves were of widely different ethnic, racial, cultural, economic, and linguistic backgrounds that spanned over centuries and places, such as the variety of Fathers in Judaha from Antioch to Jerusalem to Alexandria in Egypt, of North Africa from Carthage to Hippo to Spain, of Europe from Rome to Lyons and Gaul, of Greece from Anatolia to Corinth and Athens. Orthodoxy was never conceived as dependent upon the region, ethnicity, or class of those who argued for certain doctrine, rather it was the adherence

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to the Word of God and in alliance with the Holy Spirit. Nor is our identity horizontal with respect to other peoples but vertically with God. CHURCH MILITANT CRT teaches that history may be reduced to struggle between the dichotomy between the oppressor and the oppressed. In traditional Marxism, the dichotomy evolved in the modern era into the bourgeoise against the proletariat. Since the Frankfurt school, there have been many more categories such that the oppressor is constituted of an intersection of these categories to make a cultural hegemony. This hegemony then naturally alienates all those outside of itself. The reported hegemony of the West is a white, Christian, able-bodied, heterosexual male.

Yet we know from our Lord and His apostles that our struggle is not reducible to flesh and blood but ours is of spirit.

The Church Militant, contra CRT, is not dependent upon the world for “Heaven and earth will pass away” but the words of Christ shall never.[6] We know that our struggle and indeed the struggle of the whole world is not against flesh and blood, but of the Kingdom of God and His elect against the Prince of Darkness and his demons.

CRT makes our chief moral imperative being the liberation of the oppressed peoples from cultural hegemonic power.

That is to say, CRT explicitly makes our struggle against flesh and blood because it acknowledges nothing more universal than the society which groups share in which an inevitable dichotomy of hegemonic and non-hegemonic will unfold. It is social justice that is the supreme virtue and our chief duty is to revolutionize the institutions that perpetuate inequality in intersectional categories.

Christianity, however, asserts that the Church is to win individual souls of all peoples in all times, for the salvation of one’s soul is the supreme objective. Taken wholesale, CRT and New Jerusalem are two different visions and narratives for humanity.

CRITICAL APPROPRIATION But what of those who say that, in line with the approach of the Church Fathers toward some of the philosophy of antiquity, we ought to and can appropriate what is said rightly wherever it is found because it belongs to Christ and His Church? Indeed. We ought to celebrate and guard wherever

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Taken wholesale, CRT and New Jerusalem are two different visions and narratives for humanity. our Lord’s truth is found, yet the Fathers placed great emphasis on discernment; that is, our criteria for what may be appropriated from culture to the service of theology and to the Church is orthodoxy from Scripture and tradition. In light of this, I do not think that there are mutually exclusive claims from CRT, nor much of its philosophical heritage, that ought to be or can be appropriated as briefly detailed above.

What of its motivation for the marginalized and oppressed?

Certainly we may assent to this virtue, for charity is the supreme virtue. Yet, this virtue is not in abstraction from its doctrine. Love has its clear object. Love is guided by truth to its proper end. Not a few heresies in the early Church also seemingly sprung from moral imperatives. For example, Pelagius was concerned with the purported moral laxity of Christians in Rome and tried to awaken them to sanctification and to godly living, yet his doctrine of works and denial of the need and efficiency of the grace of Christ to initiate salvation and be present at every step of salvation earned him just condemnation. For, if as Pelagius taught, “righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!"[7] But to say that man does injustice to his fellow man by various means of oppression is not new. In the Old Testament this would be tantamount to a tautology; for a man to sin against his neighbor is for a man to be a man in his destitute state after the Fall. So whilst ideologies that are irreconcilable with Christianity, like Marxism, can point to moral imperatives, this is by no means sufficient for us to appropriate their doctrine.[8] Instead, with the Light and with the Truth that are hidden in Christ to be revealed through the strength of the Holy Spirit we ought to instruct those in error whose zeal for God, and for the Good which is God, is not based on knowledge.[9]

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This denouncement does not preclude societal reform or pursuing due process for everyone regardless of something as trivial as skin color. Our Lord did not preclude salvation to any group, and so we should not every withhold proper dues to any person. Thus said a Christian is a champion for the poor and downtrodden and for justice, yet this does not make her a Marxist or an adherent to CRT. Rather it makes her godly. So being a purported champion for the marginalized is not exclusive to this ideology or its forbearers.

So my contention against CRT is this: what it asserts rightly, it does in part and from principles not wholly sufficient to justify those assertions; furthermore, if CRT was to be adopted into Christianity it would be near if not outright heresy, for the essence of one compromises the other.[10] If I have written aright, may God be praised for all truth is one in Him and “every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”[11] If I have fallen short of the truth, may the reader extend to me patience and instruct me. To the glory of God our Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit, amen. v [1] By orthodox Christianity I am referring to the creedal and confessional consensuses among Christian denominations, namely Roman Catholics, Orthodox, and Protestants. A popular substitute is C.S. Lewis’s “Mere Christianity”.

[2] Genesis 3:12-14.

[3] This is not to say that there are culture and environment play little part in our sinning; they do greatly. The Church should strive to trasnform cultures so that it is condusive to virtue and righteousness, but the contention here is that environmental pressures are not sufficient to bear the sole responsibility for our trespasses.

[4] Indeed the morality of CRT is itself dependent on which groups one is a part of.

[5] Burn, A. E. 1909. The Nicene Creed. London: Rivingtons.

[6] Matthew 24:35.

[7] Galatians 2:21.

[8] King, Martin Luther. “Can A Christian Be a Communist?” Sermon delivered at Ebenezer Baptist Church, September 30, 1962.

[9] Romans 10:2.

[10] By this I mean that CRT emphasizes the oppressed yet CRT as a worldview cannot justify this sentiment.

[11] 1 Chronicles 16:11-12.

Jack McKinnon is a sophomore majoring in Philosophy and Minoring in Classics. Jack hopes to study theology in a professional setting after Stanford. He enjoys playing golf and building lego dioramas in his spare time.

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HOPE IS MORE THAN BAPTIZED OPTIMISM GLEN DAVIS

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he words love, faith, hope, and charity are inscribed upon the front columns of MemChu. These virtues are taken from 1 Corinthians 13:13, “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love” (NIV). Love and charity are, of course, the same virtue: as we see in the classic rendering “And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity” (KJV). Love was presumably duplicated with a synonym to demonstrate its primacy (and also because there were four columns which required adorning). But that is not the only possible duplicate on the list: faith and hope seem very similar. What is the difference?

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Faith is heartfelt trust. True religious faith is more than confidence in God’s existence; it is confidence in God’s character. When you have faith, you act as though God’s Word is true even when circumstances make your choices seem disadvantageous. Hebrews 11:16 tells us that without faith it is impossible to please God. Hope, on the other hand, is confident expectation. It’s not just optimism. It’s confidence that what awaits us far outweighs what we endure here and now. When you have hope, you are resilient in the face of opposition and persecution. Hebrews 6:19 calls hope an anchor for souls. Hope

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keeps us from being blown off course.

One of the key differences between faith and hope is their focus. For a Christian, faith is rooted in the past — what Christ has done. Hope is focused on the future — what Christ will do (love, incidentally, is focused on the present — what Christ is doing through us now). Because we have faith in the way God is now, we are compelled to have hope in the future because Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Since he has already delivered us from the power of sin, he will undoubtedly deliver us from the bondage of death. Faith is a necessary foundation for hope.

He said, “The optimists. Yes. They were the ones who always said, ‘We’re going to be out by Christmas.’ Christmas would come and it would go. And there would be another Christmas. And they died of a broken heart.” Then he grabbed me by the shoulders and he said, “This is what I learned from those years in the prison camp, where all those constraints just were oppressive. You must never ever ever confuse, on the one hand, the need for absolute, unwavering faith that you can prevail despite those constraints with, on the other hand, the need for the discipline to begin by confronting the brutal facts, whatever they are. We’re not getting out of here

by Christmas.”[1]

And so we can see that hope is not merely baptized optimism. Optimism is a personality trait that emphasizes the probability of a desired outcome, but hope is a conviction that, regardless of the outcome, things will work out in the end.

Some years ago a Stanford professor named Jim Collins interviewed Hoover Fellow James Stockdale, the highest-ranking American officer captured in the Vietnam War. He was held for eight years and tortured over twenty times. He nonetheless led his troops effectively in the prison camp and was eventually awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor.

In the interview, Collins asked Stockdale if there were any attributes common to those who didn’t survive the prison camp.

He said, “Oh, it’s easy. I can tell you who didn’t make it out.

It was the optimists.”

And I said, “I’m really confused, Admiral Stockdale.”

For a Christian, faith is rooted in the past — what Christ has done.

Hope is focused on the future — what Christ will do.

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Optimism will help you run a sprint, but life is a marathon and for that you need hope.

Admiral Stockdale saw firsthand that too often optimism is merely putting a pretty face on a bad situation. Optimism is sustainable as long as the odds keep working out, but eventually a bad outcome will arise. Hope runs much deeper than optimism. Hope says: “Something better is coming — and I know this because I have faith in the way reality is.” Hope emerges from faith.

Another way of getting at it is that optimism is willing to pretend reality is not what it is. Hope acknowledges the facts as they are, while also acknowledging that current reality is not ultimate reality. Consider the pandemic: optimists think they won’t get sick and act recklessly. They are ignoring reality. But all too many others are in despair because all that they see is the current reality. The proper attitude is hope: the current reality is bad but it will not endure forever; indeed, we can see the beginning of the end with the near simultaneous rollout of several effective vaccines. Hope always keeps the destination in mind even as it grapples with the detours along the way.

What difference does this make?

First, hope is a virtue rather than a feeling or a quirk of personality. A virtue is an acquired character quality which produces good. Virtues such as faithfulness or diligence

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give rise to goods such as a healthy family or success. Virtues must be cultivated, and it is hard to cultivate a virtue when we have a mistaken concept of it. What goods does hope give rise to? Hope leads to goods such as persistence in the face of adversity, to seizing opportunities more than fearing consequences, and to stability despite our erratic emotions. Such goods will not flow from a temporary state of mind — they will emerge from a well-formed character.

Second, hope requires a firm foundation. Hope, as we have seen, is rooted in faith. Stanford students often root their hope in themselves, and this is why they sometimes crumble so hard when they fail at something. Their hope for their future is rooted in their faith in themselves, which means that realizing that they are broken might break their future.

Third, the nature of dating is hopeful, and this may be one reason Stanford students are reluctant to date. Hookups reward opportunistic optimism. Relationships require something more. The future we hope for is a covenant love called marriage and the family we hope will result from it.

Too many Stanford students lack that hope, suppress it, or only have it weakly.

In conclusion, we should all cultivate hope as best we can.

Optimism will help you run a sprint, but life is a marathon and for that you need hope. Since hope is rooted in a conviction about reality, religious students will find hope easier to cultivate than nonreligious students. Christians will find the surest grounding of all, for we serve a God who conquered the grave. Hope in merely temporal matters is good; hope in eternal matters is even better.

Regardless of your convictions, cultivate the virtue of hope to the extent that your view of reality is able to sustain it.

Much good will flow from it. v [1] https://www.jimcollins.com/media_topics/TheStockdaleParadox. html (Collins, incidentally has since left Stanford and Stockdale died in 2005).

Glen Davis, an ordained Assemblies of God minister, has been the advisor of Chi Alpha Christian Fellowship at Stanford since 2002. He blogs at theglendavis.com and is on Twitter @theglendavis.

THE HOPE OF BECOMING LIKE JESUS RINCHU MATHEW

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he COVID-19 pandemic has upended all of our lives, throwing nearly all of our plans into ruin.

And that can bring a lot of sorrow. For me, the past year was supposed to be a year of family celebrations. I was looking forward to my thesis defense and marrying the woman of my dreams in the span of a couple of weeks. My family is spread worldwide and had plans to fly to the US to be a part of both events.

The past few years had been difficult for all of us after my Dad passed away from cancer in 2016. And after three difficult years, 2020 was to be a year of celebration.

But God had other plans. In His kindness, He still opened up a way to defend my thesis and get married. But my fiancée was the only person I could celebrate the defense with in-person. My family had to join our 9-person wedding

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virtually — a significantly different event than the originally planned wedding. Clearly things didn’t go the way I had planned. Don’t get me wrong, compared with most people in the world, the pandemic hasn’t hit me hard at all.

I know only a few people that have been infected by the virus, and all of them have recovered. Most of my friends and loved ones have held onto their jobs and haven’t been hit hard economically. There is plenty to give thanks for.

Even so, it’s easy to grow sorrowful when I think of how I wasn’t able to celebrate life defining moments with my family — the people I hold most dear.

The hope that I have in moments like this is rooted in Romans 8:28. “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” And in Jeremiah 29:11, which says, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

How I react when it becomes clear that God’s plans are different from my own is a good test of how much I trust God. Christians believe God is a loving God who controls all things. My belief in this truth is tested whenever my plans are upended. Let’s walk through how I think about this. How can God’s plan that my family not be at my thesis defense benefit me? How can my mother not celebrating my wedding in-person be a plan for my prosperity?

Can it really be true that God’s plans for me are better than my own?

Let’s start at Romans 8:29 to see what God is working towards. “For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.” Paul, the writer of Romans, says God is calling me to be conformed to the image of His Son, Jesus. The Bible does not say that God promises Christians a prosperous or comfortable life. Rather, it teaches that “through many hardships, we must enter the kingdom of God.” (Acts 14:22). If I can believe that truth, I start looking at my dashed plans differently. Being a finite human, I can only plan for the short term and so my plans are for my shortterm good. For example, I want to celebrate moments of joy with my family. But God’s plans for me have a much

VOX CLARA

wider scope than that. His plans are for my eternal good.

The Bible teaches that all have fallen short of the perfect standard that God has. If I’ve lied once, gotten angry once, or even lusted after a woman once, I’ve sinned. Because God is a just God, I deserve to be punished for every single one of my sins. But instead of me paying the price for my sin, God sent His son, Jesus, to pay the price for my sin (Romans 3:22-26). If I repent of my sins and believe in Jesus Christ and the sacrifice that He made for me, I am saved from paying the penalty of my sin. (Acts 2:38, 1 John 1:9). God prepared this solution for my sin even before the foundation of the earth (Ephesians 1:4). That is how much He loves me. Even before He created the earth, God thought of my eternal good.

The same God who loved me enough to solve my unsolvable problem of sin dashed some of my plans. Why is that?

Because His goal is not only to forgive my sins so I can join Him in heaven after death. With my eternal good in mind, He wants me to be conformed to the image of Jesus. What was Jesus like? Jesus was so selfless and cared so much for the needs of others that He humbled Himself to come down from Heaven to live on the earth and die for my sins. He looked for the good of others and did not seek His own in anything. God wants me to grow to have the meekness of Jesus. God desires that I be more selfless and use my life to glorify Him and bless others. The growth God has in store for me might be why He lets some of my plans get crushed. He uses circumstances like this to humble me. Through dashed plans, He teaches me to not seek for my own, but instead to focus on growing in love for others.

What about the rest of my family who wanted to be there and celebrate these joyful moments? Just as He does with me, God works their loss for their eternal good, to make them more like Jesus. Something that has brought me much joy this past year is seeing how much my family has grown closer to God through the trials they’ve had to go through - including not being able to celebrate some precious moments together in person.

Through dashed plans, He teaches me not to seek for my own, but to instead focus on growing in love for others.

Romans 8:37-39 says: “But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Nothing can separate us from the Love of God, not even dashed plans due to a pandemic.

Everything that happens to me will be used by God to fulfill His plan to make me like Jesus. And this hope guides me through my sorrow. v Rinchu Mathew is a disciple of Jesus, who seeks to live each day pleasing his Heavenly Father. He graduated from Stanford in 2020 with a PhD in Chemical Engineering and is currently working as a scientist at a pharmaceutical company in the Bay Area. He is a member of New Covenant Christian Fellowship (nccf.church).

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BACK TO SCHOOL AMIDST THE PANDEMIC A REFLECTION ON JUSTICE MERCY, AND HUMILITY

BY KRISTEL TJANDRA

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he coronavirus outbreak left many of us feeling out of place. Restricted movements put a halt on our plans and estranged us from our usual routines.

As scholars, educators, and recent graduates, the heavy cloud of the pandemic signals for the coming storm — be it a lost prospect of a productive year or an uncertain and difficult transition to the workforce. Indeed, we’ve heard many warnings that returning to “normalcy” isn’t really an option. The post-pandemic world will look different and considerable adjustments will be required. As we wait in anticipation for the gradual reset of the society, we must begin asking ourselves how our approaches should change.

In a world that continues to evolve, the Bible offers principles that are unchanging. In these words, from the prophet Micah we are commanded to practice justice, mercy, and humility; the three virtues that come together in a unifying message. Micah spoke of these words when he learned about the Israelites’ nearing exile. At that time, God’s chosen nation, Israel, was about to face the unprecedented, a national crisis. While they were on a slippery slope of immorality, materialism, and religious formalism, these words served as a reminder of the qualities that they ought to uphold and seek to do: He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.

And what does the Lord require of you?

To act justly and to love mercy And to walk humbly with your God. — Micah 6:8 Centuries later Christians still return to these lines of exhortations that bear incredible weight of responsibility.

How do these words continue to speak to us today as we, like the Israelites, face a period of unknown?

At the time of writing this article, many events have unraveled in America and the topic of conversation has moved beyond eradicating the COVID-19 disease or finding a vaccine. This pandemic has shed light onto various social issues that were silently crawling beneath the society’s foundation. We began to see the disproportionate impacts that COVID-19 has had on certain demographics. The luxury of a comfortable living and the possibility

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to work from home wasn’t something that everyone could enjoy during the shelter-in-place order.[1] To capture the breadth and depth of all the issues that arise during this time would be beyond what this article could deliver. The purpose here is to provide a starting point and a possible framework for further discussions on how we, as students, scholars, and educators at the University, can practice justice, mercy and humility during this pandemic and thereafter.

One obvious example of disparity seen during the pandemic was witnessed in the communities of colors.[2] Evidently, attributing the higher propensity of black Americans to COVID-19 solely to their pre-existing health conditions, is to ignore a deeper problem.[3] As epidemiologist Dr. Camara Phyllis Jones explained,[4] this was indeed a culmination of a deeper issue of injustice, a “burden of chronic disinvestment (and) active neglect of the community,” which she said is the product of “structural racism, which puts us in the forward-facing jobs so that we are exposed and less valued and don’t have the protection that we need.”[5] In one sense this pandemic acts as a megaphone for the unheard voices of our community.

The reality is that there is no space in the world untouched by injustice and inequality. An invisible divide that fences people according to their race, background, socioeconom-

We fail to acknowledge the dignity of people as those created after the image of God.

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ic levels, and education have long been established. Sadly, we continue to see this issue substantiate into pervasive social stigma and discrimination, even at the University.

While we are fixated on our own work or studies, we may fail to perceive the injustice that is in our surroundings.

As Christians, this is a loud call to repentance and action.

Both injustice and inequality stems from our failure to value others. At the University, we are constantly assessed based on the metrics that scrutinize our outputs (such as our grades, honors, awards, grants, or number of publications) rather than our value-adding qualities (such as educational contributions, social engagements, or knowledge disseminations). We thrive to be noticed and to be called “excellent” and we derive our identities from these evaluations.

As a result, we become so quick to assess and categorize others using the same unit of measurements. And because our identity is so entangled in our performance, we also fail to see others the way God sees them. We fail to acknowledge the dignity of people as those created after the image of God. The Scripture itself is not silent on this issue. The story of Cain and Abel depicted a sibling relationship that went horribly wrong because of an inability to look past oneself and to celebrate the excellence of another. It is important to acknowledge that there is a long history of such brokenness, which seeps into the motives of our endeavors. The Bible’s solution for us to break the chain of injustice and inequality is to “love our neighbors as ourselves’’ (Mark 12:31) and to “open one’s mouths, judge righteously and plead the cause for the poor and needy” (Proverbs 31:9, Isaiah 1:17). How can we be intentional about actively pursuing these values?

For justice to flourish, we need to cultivate empathy, and empathy often calls for selflessness. Oftentimes, we instead take a bystander position and even use our busyness as an excuse to not act or stand up for what we know is right. When injustice is being perpetrated, it is our duty to defend and speak up (Acts 4:29). Given only a small proportion of the injustices around us gain coverage and attention, we ought to always be on the watch. A public

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For justice to flourish, we need to cultivate empathy, and empathy often calls for selflessness. response may at times be the most appropriate response, but a simple and timely rebuke in-person can be no less powerful. Cultivating a sense of empathy requires a daily discipline of taking notice of the people around us in every circumstance. We ought not to sit comfortably in the sideline while watching injustice infiltrate the various platforms of our society.

As a practical step, this might mean to begin by stepping outside our comfort zone and approach those who are different from us; exposing ourselves to different communities to learn and appreciate diverse cultures. This may mean to look for opportunities to be more hospitable towards the least, the last, and the lost in our circles. As Christians, to live within a community is to live out our true identity as part of the body. As the lockdown detaches peoples’ learning and working from the façade of a physical space, it encourages more intentional interactions.

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Are we actively trying to reach out for those who may be struggling with loneliness, the challenges of working from home or financial constraints during this period? Perhaps we could be the one to step in and help fulfill their needs.

How can we be more intentional about including others into our circles? Perhaps it requires a simple interruption during a meeting to hear from those often left-out of the conversations. Ultimately, how can we share God’s indiscriminate care for people with candor and sensitivity?

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f justice is often portrayed as a moral obligation that bears a legal expectation, mercy is more often portrayed as an act of generous kindness or forgiveness that stems out of genuine care and love towards another. Mercy extends beyond our integrity. The word ‘mercy’ is often used to describe the Christian God whom in His greatest act of love sent His only Son to die for our sins. When Jesus died on the Cross, both mercy and justice were on display. In this perfect demonstration of love, He showed how mercy that in no way waters down the injustice of our sins. Forgiveness does not mean that the wrongdoing is simply forgotten; a price is paid. In fact, mercy came with a great cost. Mercy can only be offered out of generosity; it offers freely a chance to flourish and it does not question the receiver’s worthiness. At its foundation, mercy is motivated by a deep sense of security, which fosters courage to take risks for others’ sake. Jesus’ grounded confidence in His Heavenly Father was evident until His dying breath; and Christians are those who have received this overflowing love that comes from the Father to the Son. Hence, with the same love we are empowered to act generously and mercifully.

As Christians, we are not only recipients of God’s loving compassion, but also receivers of His divine revelation.

The burden of a scripture-bearer is to live according to the written mandate of God’s Word (such as one commanded in Galatians 6). The Bible gives us many examples of how God Himself relates to humans, it tells us that ‘the LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit’ (Psalm 34:18). Therefore, as we model God’s character, we ought to also show compassion towards others. One way to cultivate such compassion and mercy is by being generous and investing in those around us. We can think of our time at the University as a time where we can really learn not only about our respective disciplines but also learn to relate to a diverse group of people. This can be our classmates, educators, university administration or staff workers. Universities today are amongst the most internationally populated places in any city or country. They are melting pots of rich diversity and therefore also a place where genuine inclusivity is needed.

If we want to use our training at the University to make significant impact to the people around the world, this is a good place to start. We cannot impact those whom we do not care to devote our time and energy.

The rare unifying moment of this pandemic testifies that we can all be ministers of healing towards others around us if we are willing to invest on others. The collective effort of ‘flattening the curve’ is a great reminder that what we do and how we behave do impact others around us. In our often-segregated society, we frequently lose sight of who we are as part of a bigger community. We are prone to undervalue the opportunity to learn from one another,

build meaningful relationship, and collaborate as we focus on the short-term rewards of getting a distinction, a recognition, or a promotion. Yet if people are really what truly matters, we need to rethink how we can be more people-oriented in the way we study and work. For students, this may mean to be more engaged with the people in your cohort, to initiate discussions, or to be willing to share knowledge. For workers, this may mean to intentionally make time to get to know your colleagues and be prepared to help others in their work. Beyond this local context, it is also worth thinking about how our areas of expertise could impact the greater society. How would the knowledge or innovations that your discipline strives for solve the important issues in the society or bring benefits to people?

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arious initiatives[6] that were started during this pandemic, whether through social innovations or organized task forces are great examples of how we can cultivate mercy and kindness to further amplify the impact of our skills.[7, 8] The pandemic has seen some of the most groundbreaking and life-changing innovations.

We have seen in real-time the fastest progress in vaccine development. We also witnessed products of creativity in things like hand-sewn masks, 3D printed face-shields,[9] and DIY ventilators.[10, 11] These innovations are portrayal of compassion-driven creativity. Fueled by love and mercy, this mark of collaborative resilience and solidarity is something we should continue to celebrate and encourage even after the pandemic subsides.

Good works in the Bible always point us towards others.

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As we experience career advancement and financial independence through higher education, we need to beware that we do not become self-serving and self-reliant. One way to ensure this is by having accountable people to help us regularly introspect. This in itself requires great humility. Moreover, if our endemic egocentrism and self-glorifying ambitions were to find an antidote, it would be by humbly admitting that all we have received is from God (Job 1:21, Romans 11:36), and so there is no basis for our boasting. Once we understand this, we will be moved to give thanks to God in all circumstances (1 Thessalonians 5:18).

Humility is the key ingredient to good stewardship. It is not only an appropriate posture to have as we relate to God, it is also the proper stance for students and scholars who are searching for knowledge. Humility is a driving force for valuing the resources we have been entrusted as we study and tend the world with what we learn. Humility brings out compassion, sensitivity, and respect for the people around us as we acknowledge their gifts and contributions. In fact, the Bible speaks the clearest when it says “knowledge puffs up, but love builds up” (1 Corinthians 8:1). Without humility, we will not be able to nurture partnerships or be self-less because our knowledge and ability will only be a vessel for pride, not love. Humility is also a starting point for creativity, which springs out of a sober realization that there is an untapped territory yet to be discovered, an acknowledgement that one has not fully known the subject of matter and there is more to be unveiled. Humility is therefore, an essential quality that we all ought to harness.

In a society where the pursuit of happiness seems to be the chief driving force in life, the Bible offers a very distinct perspective. Christians are commanded, to “do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than ourselves” (Philippians 2:3).

In accepting this command, notice that our willingness to do something for our neighbors no longer depends on whether we like it, or whether it will bring happiness to ourselves. This is not to say that it will never bring happiness, but it shows that pursuing justice, mercy and humility requires obedience, and obedience can only be nurtured through discipline. This means that there will be

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moments when pursuing justice, mercy and humility will require discomfort and sacrifices. The great encouragement is that God has not left us alone with this command.

As we saw in Micah 6, He was speaking to His people as a whole.

As we ponder on how we may implement these values in our vocations, doing justice, loving mercy, and walking humbly may seem like a standard too high to attain. Yet, our great comfort and assurance is in the fact that God’s presence and blessings are with us as we strive for these virtues. God has not only given us the church and community of believers to help us in our road to obedience, He also promises to walk with us in this journey. Knowing that it is a collective responsibility, it is therefore essential for us to evaluate not only how we can logistically “do” church amidst this pandemic, but how we can collectively “be” church. We need to ask whether as a church body we have done what we can to support and keep each other accountable during this period. Most importantly, we need to keep reminding each other and ourselves that God is the source of strength and wisdom as we pursue justice, mercy, and humility.

The inherent narrative of the world that permits injustice, self-service, and pride is a bigger source of grief as we lament this terrible outbreak. Indeed, “sin is crouching at your door” (Genesis 4:7), and we’ve seen this playing out even during a pandemic. We need to repent. The world may not look the same after the disease subsides. Whether it will change for the better or for worse will depend on how we go about living our lives. Like previous disruptions in history, this pandemic will expire. Nevertheless, we should not forget the message it brings and remember the legacy of those who have modeled to us the value of justice, mercy and humility. As we rethink our approaches towards education and vocation, let us rely on God lest we fall into the same trap of Israel’s self-reliance as they inquired of God: With what shall I come before the Lord And bow down before the exalted God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, With calves a year old?

Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,

VOX CLARA

Whether the world will change for the better or for worse will depend on how we go about living our lives.

With ten thousand rivers of olive oil?

Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?

It was the contrary: He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.

And what does the Lord require of you?

To act justly and to love mercy And to walk humbly with your God. — Micah 6:6-8 v [1] Order of the Health Officer of the County of Santa Clara - Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) - County of Santa Clara. https://www.sccgov.org/sites/covid19/Pages/order-health-officer-031620.aspx.

[2] Why black Americans are at higher risk for coronavirus - CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/07/us/coronavirus-black-americans-race/index.html.

[3] Wise J. Covid-19: Known risk factors fail to explain the increased risk of death among people from ethnic minorities. BMJ 2020; 369: m1873.

[4] Camara Phyllis Jones, M.D., M.P.H., Ph.D. | Morehouse School of Medicine. https://www.msm.edu/about_us/FacultyDirectory/CommunityHealthPreventiveMedicine/CamaraJones/index.php.

[5] Jones CP. Coronavirus Disease Discriminates. Our Health Care Doesn’t Have To | Opinion. Newsweek Mag 2020. https://www.newsweek.com/2020/04/24/coronavirus-disease-discriminates-our-healthcare-doesnt-have-opinion-1496405.html.

[6] A number of initiatives that have started as a response to COVID-19 at Stanford[12] including, but not limited to: COVID-19 Innovation Response Lab[13]; Stanford Medicine antibody tests[14], in-house diagnosis tests[15], Stanford Medicine virtual concert[16]; fund-raising for Nexus and Peets workers.[17] [7] Coronavirus Is Causing a Huge PPE Shortage in the U.S. | Time. https://time.com/5823983/coronavirus-ppe-shortage.

[8] Creativity in quarantine: The genius inventions sparked by a pandemic - YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=2&v=yRwsHPwz3mA&feature=emb_title.

[9] Face mask shortages have sparked creative solutions. Will they work? | Science News. https://www.sciencenews.org/article/coronavirus-covid-19-ppe-face-mask-shortages-creative-solutions.

[10] UCLA Biodesign Fellow Builds Low-Cost Ventilator Prototype in Less Than a Week Using Components Purchased at Home Depot - UCLA Health - Los Angeles, CA. https://www.uclahealth.org/uclabiodesign-fellow-builds-low-cost-ventilator-prototype-in-less-than-aweek-using-components-purchased-at-home-depot.

[11] Columbia DIY Ventilator Challenge | Columbia Engineering. https://engineering.columbia.edu/diy-ventilator-challenge (accessed June 7, 2020).

[12] Stanford and COVID-19: How You Can Help. https://covidsupport.stanford.edu.

[13] COVID-19 Response Innovation Lab. https://responselab.stanford.edu/index.html.

[14] Test for antibodies against novel coronavirus developed at Stanford Medicine | News Center | Stanford Medicine. https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2020/04/stanford-medicine-develops-antibody-test-for-coronavirus.html.

[15] Stanford provides coronavirus testing to hospitals in Bay Area and beyond | News Center | Stanford Medicine. https://med.stanford.edu/ news/all-news/2020/03/stanford-provides-covid-19-testing-to-bay-area-hospitals.html.

[16] STUCK@HOME, Stanford Medicine Virtual Concert featuring Dr. Richard Kogan and Tarik O’Regan. https://events.stanford.edu/ events/874/87436.

[17] Fundraiser by Mira Moufarrej : Support the staff at Nexus & Peet’s that feed us! https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-the-staff-at-nexus-amp-peets-that-feed-us?viewupdates=1&rcid=r01-1587068882181c4aa83a16ec4c34&utm_medium=email&utm_source=customer&utm_campaign=p_email%2B1137-update-supporters-v5b.

Dr. Kristel Tjandra is a Postdoctoral Scholar in the School of Medicine at Stanford University. She obtained her doctorate degree in Australia, where she focused on the development of targeted cancer therapy using cell-targeting peptide as selective ligands. Her research interests span the field of nanomedicine, drug delivery, medicinal chemistry, and disease diagnostics. Apart from conducting experiments, she enjoys engaging in science communication, community outreach and education. She upholds the integration of faith and science as two complementary faculties.

BACK TO SCHOOL AMIDST THE PANDEMIC

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CREDITS AU T H O RS Hadassah Betapudi Glen Davis George Lausten Rinchu Mathew Jack McKinnon Kristel Tjandra Tristan Wang

U N SPL AS H P H OTO GRA P H E RS Interior of church, by Kirill (https://unsplash.com/@kirillz), on the front cover.

Silhouette of mountains, by Dominik Lückmann (https://unsplash.com/@exdigy), p.6.

Canyon, by Rich Martello (https://unsplash.com/@rmarte), p.9.

Shepherd and flock, by Joseph d’Mello (https://unsplash.com/@josephdmello), p.10.

Grassy hills, by Rahul Patil (https://unsplash.com/@rahulpatl), p.12.

Forest, by Sebastian Unrau (https://unsplash.com/@sebastian_unrau), p.16.

Church spire, by Aubrey Odom (https://unsplash.com/@octoberroses), p.19.

Trees and foggy landscape, by Chris Henry (https://unsplash.com/@chrishenryphoto), p.20.

Mountains and clouds, by Ales Krivec (https://unsplash.com/@aleskrivec), p.23.

Snowy mountain with reflection, by David Kovalenko (https://unsplash.com/@davidkovalenkoo), p.24.

Masked person using laptop, by Engin Akyurt (https://unsplash.com/@enginakyurt), p.26-27.

People on crosswalk, by Ryoji Iwata(https://unsplash.com/@ryoji__iwata), p.29.

Person holding bouquet of flowers, by Clem Onojeghuo (https://unsplash.com/@clemono), p.30-31.

Cathedral, by Michele Bitetto (https://unsplash.com/@michelebit_), on the back cover.

SPECI A L T H A NKS TO Carlos Armenta & Folger Graphics

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CREDITS

VOX CLARA

NEXT STEPS G IVE U S F E E D B ACK voxclarastanford@gmail.com

RE AD O U R PA ST I S S U E S issuu.com/voxclara

VISIT O U R W E B S I T E stanfordvoxclara.com

JOI N O U R STA FF We are always looking to expand our staff, and need people to help with the editorial, design, distribution, and vision-casting processes.

If our vision resonates with you, and you would like to help us engage with the campus on issues of faith and thought, please email us at voxclarastanford@gmail.com for more information.

FO L LOW U S Facebook: @StanfordVoxClara Instagram: @voxclarastanford

NEXT STEPS

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THIS IS FOR YOU Atheist, Christian, agnostic, religious — wherever you are in the journey of seeking truth, this journal you’ve picked up or been handed is meant to be read by you. We from Vox Clara, Stanford’s Journal of Christian Thought want to encourage you to think, ask, and have conversations about life’s big questions.

Life is challenging but we have each experienced God transform the darkest areas of our lives and lift the burdens of our hearts and minds. We do not wish to impose our beliefs, but rather to serve as faithful conduits of our faith to everyone at Stanford who, like us, is searching for meaning, for truth, and for Love.

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