my university

I am a student at UC Berkeley. A very proud student, I might add. At the risk of sounding overly prideful and sentimental, I just want to say that I love Cal. Love it. There is no doubt in my heart or mind that this is the school I was meant to be at.

Tonight there was a rally for the Occupy Cal movement, and Robert Reich spoke. It just got me to thinking, and I've realized that though I love Cal, it's been a very selfish sort of love. I love my place in it, and my affinity for the city of Berkeley and the Bay Area, but I'm blissfully unconcerned with the greater happenings of the university/education system. This was brought to my attention last Thursday during my English seminar. Classtime warped into a lively discussion of the police violence against peaceful protesters (Colbert's video about it below), and there were three girls in my seminar who were doing most of the talking, and lucky me, I was sitting in between them all. It was a startling realization, that I'm just so unfussed about issues that I really ought to be fussed about. Plus, my stomach was growling loudly while I was trying to appear like a legitimate, informed university student/citizen.

The Colbert Report

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Then today, when I was happily ensconced in the library, pecking busily away at my laptop, one of the librarians announces that there is a shooting at Haas, which is where my 3:30 is. I went over, but of course the building was locked down and class was canceled. I just kept thinking how I've only brushed up against all the stuff that's happening here at Cal, the protests, march, shooting, etc. etc. Later that night was when I went to the rally, and Robert Reich said, "The days of apathy are over."

Are they? For myself, I'm not so sure, and I'm even less certain when I think of the Christians on campus. It's not just the simple "What is the right Christian response" question, but truly, what would Jesus be doing? Christians have cheapened Jesus' message, and we've ensconced ourselves within a blanket of pseudo-holiness and quasi-righteousness, hidden ourselves in our respective churches and fellowship groups when Jesus would probably be out there protesting, because the Jesus I believe in feels injustice keenly. Really keenly. I don't know what to think or feel towards the Occupy Cal movement. I fear that I, and many of the Christians on campus who elicit so much disdain from the rest of our Cal community, are 99% "Christian" and 1% actual disciples of Christ. 

And I'm sorry if I am a poor reflection of Jesus and who He really is, because He doesn't stand for inequality, injustice, apathy, or any sort of crap like that.