The 15-foot-tall clown was not there for the sermon. Nevertheless, on May 2, he became a part of the message, just like everyone else on Library Walk.
Freak chance saw both Campus Crusade for Christ and members of the nonreligious Emerging Leaders Program on Library Walk wearing yellow shirts and trying to grab attention. On any other day the mass of red, yellow and blue balloons, the flashy flyers and of course, the clown in red pants, green vest and black top hat who towered over students would draw all attention toward the ELP’s promotion of “”Spectaculaire Spectaculaire.”” However, this was not any other day.
Wednesday was the highlight of CCC’s week and the culmination of their “”Who do you think I am?”” campaign, an effort to get students engaged and talking about Jesus. Jaeson Ma, a visiting pastor from UCLA, was invited by CCC to bear witness along Library Walk, and, as he said, “”spread the good news”” among students.
Justice House, the zealous group of God’s witnesses – who stand almost daily on the corner of Library Walk shouting fervently about love, Jesus and Nazis - watched quietly while Ma took center stage. The members of CCC and InterVarsity Christian Fellowship stood out in their yellow shirts and chatted exitedly while spreading out across the walk, adding the illusion of a much larger audience.
Students bow their heads in prayer during the evangelical “”Who do you think I am?”” event, hosted by Campus Crusade for Christ on May 2. Posters with that question were placed at Library Walk and Price Center, encouraging students to write their own answers.
Preaching through a small Peavey amp to a crowd of perhaps 40 listeners, Ma shared more than the gospel; he shared his personal story of redemption with the students gathered as well as anyone and everyone passing by.
“”It’s always good to share the gospel,”” Ma said. “”It’s worth it to reach even one person.””
Some students passed with smiles and giggles, laughing at the congregation, while some smiled because of Ma’s words. Still others barreled through the crowd without seeming to notice anything out of the ordinary, and a few stopped to listen intently. The lofty clown passed once, carrying three bowling pins, and Ma’s listeners, enthralled by his message, hardly batted an eye.
“”I got my life back,”” Ma said, after recounting the experiences that led him to follow the Bible fiercely. “”The only thing that matters is that you know you are loved by God. … Being a Christian doesn’t make you better than anyone. Being a Christian doesn’t give you a right to judge. … I want to apologize right now if a Christian has ever judged you. … Only God can judge.””
Yards away a giant rainbow of balloons hung over Library Walk, and just beneath it the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Queer Intersex Alliance, a group of people often judged for their lifestyles by popular evangelists, dispersed information and promoted tolerance.
Some evangelists visiting campus are less progressive than Ma, and conflicts have arisen. Eleanor Roosevelt College sophomore Kathryn Tanner recalled an incident involving one man aggressively harassing two girls holding hands. This same evangelist was seen screaming that college students “”need to be spanked with the Scripture.””
Incidents like this raise concerns that increasing evangelism is counterproductive to promoting diversity.
Juan Coronado, a Groundwork Books employee, has also noticed that evangelistic groups have clashed with organizations looking to promote gay or abortion rights.
“”We have a lot of activism on campus involving issues that conflict with their beliefs,”” Coronodo said. “”We have a right to not be discriminated against, but what can you say to them – freedom of speech.””
Many evangelists on campus share Coronodo’s desire for tolerance and understanding.
“”Open-mindedness is essential in any spiritual discourse,”” said Sixth College junior Aubrey Bachman, a women’s Bible study leader for CCC. “”I don’t think that this means that one should have to compromise their beliefs, but rather that one should be able to listen, respect and respond to the diverse opinions of others.””
Ma preached to the UCSD campus, but the yellow board reading “”Who do you think I am?”” at his side stood as a “”testament”” to the dialogue present on campus. Over the previous few days students had scrawled various beliefs on the board and answered the question Jesus originally posed to his disciples.
Among the varied responses were “”My Savior,”” “”Son of God”” and “”One and Only,”” as well as “”A Lunatic,”” “”Liar”” and “”A person who started one of the most controversial and one of the most influential religions of all time.””
Morgan Greer, a Thurgood Marshall College alumnus and freshmen-men’s Bible study leader for CCC, said it’s not about expanding the clubs. “”It is vital to have open dialogue with all people on conflicting issues whether they are Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Atheist and any other faith,”” he said in an e-mail. “”We cannot move forward and live more lovingly together if we don’t understand other people and other belief systems.””
Revelle College sophomore Saif Amath, a member of the Muslim Student Association manning the “”Ask About Islam”” booth adjacent to the event, shared Greer’s sentiments about dialogue.
“”To put out information helps spread peace and tolerance,”” he said.
Amath also discussed the growing presence of campus religion.
“”I’m glad so many groups are here; it shows UCSD is changing,”” he said. “”Before everything was secular; now there is more spirituality and that change is good. It shows the diversity on campus.””
As the sermon went on the student members of CCC stood huddled near the “”Ask About Islam”” booth and listened to Ma. Nearby, a group of Buddhists handed out information to curious students.
Ma later expressed similar enthusiasm about the rise of spirituality in college life.
“”Students are hungry for more than the earthly; people are hungry for the spiritual,”” he said.
As Ma stood at the microphone and asked for a moment to pray, members of the crowd bowed their heads.
“”Bless everyone, whether they believe in a God or in no God,”” he said to the campus, praying for UCSD and San Diego as students of all faiths and no faith went about their daily routines.
“”It is great that Library Walk has been a place of free speech, which at times is difficult for some people and for myself,”” Greer said. “”However, it does allow for people to see many different beliefs and it raises the level of spiritual awareness. Spirituality will always have a place and a good future on campus because of its importance in people’s daily lives.””
