Respectful Boundaries between Faiths

In November, 1994, I was placed in an uncomfortable position as a member of the Niagara University Faculty Senate, when Senators were expected to join in an opening prayer that could not be uttered in good conscience by a non-Christian. I submitted the following response.

I thank [...name deleted...] for inviting me to compose this addendum to the Minutes of November 21 Senate meeting.

The content of the Opening Prayer is Christian, and could not be uttered in good conscience by one who is not Christian. That's perfectly proper; as one Senator noted, we should expect expressions of Christian prayer at Niagara. My own tradition, which teaches respect for other religious traditions, gives me no conflict of conscience as an OBSERVER of such prayer.

However, the printed Agenda prefaced the Opening Prayer with the words "All Together." It is this preface that caused me a conflict of conscience, because these words seek to include me as a PARTICIPANT, not an observer, in the utterance of a prayer that can have no place in my religious tradition. Had the preface, instead, read "Please Join," my situation would have been different, as I would then respectfully decline to join; by contrast, "All Together" seems to leave no such option. I do not even request that public expressions of prayer be ecumenical; Niagara should proudly demonstrate its Catholicism. Rather, I assert that members of other traditions should not be pressured to participate in violation of their own beliefs.

It is relevant to recall the Book of Numbers XXXII: When the tribes of Reuben and Gad proposed to Moses that they remain East of the Jordan to take advantage of the region's good pasturage, Moses feared these tribes sought to evade participation in the conquest of the Western part of the Promised Land. The Reubenites and Gadites assured Moses that they would do their share in the conquest of the entire Promised Land. Moses responded (v. 20 - 22)

If ye will do this thing ... then ye shall be clear before the Lord, and before Israel ....

From this, we learn that it is not sufficient to do right (to be clear before the Lord); one must also appear to do right (to be clear before Israel). Thus, I did not choose to ignore the preface by merely remaining silent as the Opening Prayer was read. Not to have protested would have given the appearance of acquiescence to being included by the preface in reciting the Prayer.

Finally, some perspective: As Niagara has always been a community of good will, I have no reason to believe that this was a hostile act; rather, it was a mere error. On one hand, recognized errors ought not be repeated; on the other hand, they offer learning opportunities. Let us make the most of this opportunity.

Respectfully submitted,

Dr. Laurence Boxer