On February 24 almost every seat available in the chapel was filled with students, staff and faculty for the discussion titled “Conversation on Sexuality: Same-Sex Attraction & LGBTQ+ Questions.” The Conversations series on Wednesday nights has been expanded to include not only discussions about culture and race but also about sexuality and mental health, and they’re attracting quite a crowd.
After seeing the success of the Conversations about Culture and Race series from last semester, faculty and staff wanted to pursue a similar format for discussing mental health and sexuality, giving students an opportunity to ask questions, process and discuss difficult topics.
“It’s important to provide students this opportunity, because when [they] leave here, these are things that [they] are going to talk about anyway,” said Nesha Evans, the coordinator of the Conversations about Culture and Race.
Emily Balint, Coordinator of Student Leadership, and Hannah Bloomquist, Resident Director of Andreas and the Student Apartments, are coordinating the Conversations on Sexuality with Covenant’s Sexuality Committee. This committee, which includes Dr. Hans Madueme, Sarah Erickson ’17, Chaplain Grant Lowe, and a few others, exists in order to discuss how to better engage the student body on topics of sexuality within a biblical framework.
Emily Balint hopes these conversations will encourage a better understanding of God’s design for sexuality. She said, “I just don’t think that the average student can articulate what the Bible actually says about the purpose and design for human sexuality and why God’s design is actually good for us. Or even if a student does hold similar convictions, they may not know how to articulate those convictions to others, or how their beliefs should impact their day-to-day life.”
Balint continued, “I hope students leave these conversations knowing what God’s design and purpose for sexuality is, truly believing that God’s Word about sexuality is good and true, and feeling better able to articulate those beliefs and convictions to others, in a way that is truth-filled and grace-filled.”
To provide a well-rounded perspective throughout the four conversations this semester, the panelists will include men and women at different stages in life with different sexual attractions and struggles but who all, “believe that God's Word on sexuality is good news for them, and who are living in faithfulness,” Balint said.
The Conversations series is also slated to address topics relating to mental health. These conversations are organized by Becca Moore, Coordinator of Student Success. She recognizes that mental health is a common struggle for college students and she wants to address that. “We want to make sure we are cultivating a culture as Christians and at Covenant that cares deeply about understanding and caring for mental health,” Moore said.
The conversations will touch on a variety of topics from identifying problems and navigating emotions concerning body image and codependent relationships. “The goal of the conversations is to help normalize the need to care for our mental health. I hope these conversations can help people invite others into their own stories in the midst of struggling with mental health concerns. I hope it can also help equip students to walk alongside others well and grow in empathy and grace,” Moore said.
So far, these conversations have been helpful to students in many ways. Casen Bailey ’24 has attended every conversation so far and has “absolutely loved them.” He noted that “[t]here is a perspective that the church has not handled issues of sex and race very well recently. These conversations are so proactive and intentional and I think point to a desire for us to care about these issues and go about them rightly.”
Anna Mcdonald ’23 discussed how beneficial the conversations have been for her personal faith. “These discussions provide me with goals I can have about my relationship with God,” she said. “The questions addressed in the conversations help me to analyze my faith and give me pointers about where to look in Scripture to find answers or encouragement for aspects of my faith I need to nurture and call upon the Holy Spirit to mend.”
Kaity Shelley ’22 has also really appreciated the space created by these conversations for topics to be discussed graciously by people who truly love God. The conversations have benefited her and helped her to grow personally, helping her learn about the narratives of others and herself. Shelley said, “It’s interesting how you can find your own voice when listening to other people’s.”
She also noted how humbling it was to know that “you don’t know everything. Your experiences are valid, your narrative is valid, but it’s only one book. There’s so many others. You’re living in a library of stories and you only get to read so many, you only get to experience so many, so be open to the thought that you haven’t read some.”
The conversations have provided a unique opportunity for students, faculty and staff to wrestle with important questions together. Shelley echoed the hopes of those coordinating the event when she said these conversations reminded her that “I don’t have to think about all these things by myself.”
As these conversations continue on Wednesday nights and consistently probe into deep, difficult topics, it’s the hope of the coordinators that they continue to grow, stretch and strengthen the Covenant community.