Christian unions/student unions dispute

I wrote a couple of days back about the dispute rumbling on between some university Christian Unions and their respective Student Unions. Ekklesia have published a report today that looks carefully at the issues surrounding the alleged "banning" of some Christian Unions by their Student associations. Although it is reported in the press that Christian Unions will be taking court action, the Ekklesia report shows that this is far from inevitable, and suggests some constructive alternatives, which would almost certainly make court action unnecessary - for instance, the use of mediation services, or asking University Chaplains to act in a mediatory role.   The report itself "United we stand" is here.   Ekkelsia's lead-in to the report is here: Legal action not inevitable for university Christian Unions.    

UPDATE: NUS has responded very warmly to the Ekklesia report, and is very keen to find a peaceable solution to the dispute with CU's that has arisen on a handful of University campuses. Their response to the suggestion of mediation, perhaps through Univeristy chaplaincies, is very encouraging. Let us pray for peace and reconciliation.

UPDATE 1/12/06 there is a really encouraging account here of a similar situation between a CU and SU, successfully resolved to the satisfaction of all concerned. Hooray for them. Let's hope other disputes can be resolved peacefully.

Comments

[Mark Bratton]

As a University Chaplain at the University of Warwick, I was about five years ago substantially involved in proceedings which led to the eventual disaffiliation of the Warwick CU from the Student Union. The precipitating issue was a piece of 'pastoral advice' which the then CU President had given a young man expressing fears about his possible homosexual inclinations. Not surprisingly this advice was expressed, albeit gently, in conservative terms. This somehow found its way into the hands of 'Warwick Pride', which then prompted disaffiliation proceedings. My Free Church colleague, Jenny Dyer, and I, wrote all this up in a book Rob Frost has edited called 'Freedom Fighters'.

These recent spats between CU's and SU's raise two interesting questions:

1. How are Universities to balance the demands of 'equality' and 'diversity' (to which Universitiesand SU's are, putatively, equally committed?) Where they conflict, should equality always 'trump' diversity?

2. Why are CU's repeatedly singled out for censure on matters which also apply to other religious societies, e.g. the Muslims and the Bahai are equally conservative on a range of issues relating to personal morality? (This is meant to be more than a rhetorical question).