By Matt Patrick, Columnist
I’m a United Methodist. I wear this as a badge of honor because I am proud to be one. I plan on working in the United Methodist Church and pursuing ordination as a minister. This being said, it should be understood I have a certain bias toward the belief systems of my denomination.
There has been a lot of discussion recently surrounding the opening of Rehearsals, the new restaurant at 23rd Street and Virginia Avenue. Initially, the restaurant was planning on serving alcoholic beverages because the restaurant was technically “off campus.”
To say that the restaurant is off campus may be true, but it’s disingenuous. It is within short walking distance of the heavily-freshmen dorm Draper Hall and an easy walk from the rest of campus.
The university has a dry campus policy due to its partnership with the United Methodist Church. The Book Of Discipline reads, “We affirm our long-standing support of abstinence from alcohol as a faithful witness to God’s liberating and redeeming love for persons.”
Some will argue that they are not United Methodist or even people of faith, so they should not be prohibited from having alcohol on campus if they are older than 21. While I have no fundamental disagreement with responsible consumption of alcohol, the United Methodist Church provides more than $1 million annually to OCU, and more money to students in the form of scholarships funded by prominent local Methodists and affiliated organizations.
Bishop Robert E. Hayes, Jr., the bishop of the Oklahoma Conference of the United Methodist Church, said the school had much more to lose than to gain by serving alcohol at Rehearsals. OCU and the Oklahoma Conference of the United Methodist Church have a great partnership that has benefited both institutions for a long time.
So, is it worth being able to buy a beer on campus when it could sabotage or damage the great relationship and tradition between the school and the church? I agree with the bishop – there is so much more to lose than there is to gain.
At the core of this issue is fundamental respect. The United Methodist Church respects and funds the many different religions, cultures, beliefs and diversity of people at OCU without discriminating. They do not have to do this, but they choose to, because the United Methodist Church believes in the education of all people as a fundamental human right from birth. They understand that education could be the silver bullet to ending poverty, hunger, disease, hate and oppression.
In short, they deserve the respect of students. Maintaining the relationship between the school and the church, which benefits all of us, is more important than being able to get a drink on campus.
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