Secularism is a growing trend on college campuses. According to Adam Kirtley, the Stuart Coordinator of Religious and Spiritual Life at Whitman, students tend to “abandon either temporarily or permanently their religious lifestyles.” They become involved in school, friends, extracurricular activities and begin rethinking their cultural influences. But even as students become increasingly secular, religious awareness and a spiritual community is emerging on the Whitman campus.

Much of this awareness is due to Kirtley’s efforts to make Whitman a more spiritually sensitive environment. Kirtley inherited the role of Religious Counselor from the illustrious Dr. Ball, but decided to take a more “programmatic” approach. In his three years as Religious Counselor at Whitman, Kirtley has worked to strengthen spiritual awareness on campus. He focuses especially on establishing spiritual groups, claiming that his biggest concern is “someone not being able to maintain their faith at Whitman.”

One of Kirtley’s largest spiritual achievements on campus is the Spirituality Room located in the Prentiss basement. Students and faculty members use the room for Bible studies, meditation, the Shabat, individual reflection and Spirituali-tea. Jill Laney, a senior who also works as Kirtley’s intern, leads Spirituali-tea every Tuesday at 4. The tea highlights a different topic each week, ranging from meditiation to religious pluralism to the complicated melding of faith and academics.

Raised Universal Unitarian, Laney says she’s grateful for the religious diversity on campus.

“Even though I can’t attend church every week, being at Whitman means I’ve been exposed to other religions and that’s a very powerful experience,” Laney said. “Part of religion is exploring other faiths and learning other religions.”

For students looking to become spiritually involved on campus, there exists a growing wealth of options to explore. Along with the best known groups, the WCF (Whitman Christian Fellowship) and Hillel Shalom, the Jewish club, there exists The Canterbury Club, Muslim Students Associations, The Society of Friends, Whitman Unitarian Universalists and Nembutsu Dojo, an association of Buddhists.

While the majority of spiritual organizations on campus are nascent, the WCF and Hillel Shalom have served significant spiritual roles at Whitman for years. Both organizations exist to create a community of like-minded or curious individuals searching for comfort or well-being.

The WCF strongly emphasizes a strong understanding of the Christian faith during their gatherings, which consist of “Large Group Worship,” bible study, and occasionally “something fun.”

According to Rand Biersdorff, senior member of the organization, the WCF strives “to provide Whitman students a community where they can intellectually and spiritually pursue understanding of the God that Jesus spoke of.”

Hillel Shalom focuses less on the conceptualization of Judaism and more on striving to provide a cultural enclave at Whitman.

“Hillel-Shalom is as much a cultural group as it is a religious group. We meet weekly, every Friday at 5 p.m. to celebrate Shabbat with traditional challah (sweet bread), candles, and wine,” said Shayna Tivona, an active member of the organization. “Usually our meetings take less than fifteen minutes, but sometimes that is all you need to remind yourself of the community support and love at Whitman, at home, and around the world. We also celebrate Jewish holidays including Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Passover and Hanukah.”

While most students who regularly attend spiritual gatherings on campus had a religious background before coming to Whitman, multiple groups cited new attendees who had a fledgling interest or were simply curious. And opposed to national trends, individuals seem to garner more faith in their chosen path at Whitman.

Biersdorff claims that while Christian conversion is not wildly popular, she has noticed a considerable “paradigm shift” in Christian thought. She claims that WCF students seem to move away from simply labeling themselves as a “Christian” to an “identity centered on submission to the divine, empowerment/self-love, being an agent for justice/reconciliation, and radical mercy in everyday affairs.”

Tivona reflects on a similar trend with Jewish students. She believes that many members of Hillel Shalom have grown to appreciate their faith more now living away from home.

“When it is your own choice to attend services, or to bake challah every Friday morning, these cultural and religious observances become more meaningful,” said Tivona.

Even students practicing under-represented religions on campus have experienced a recent rebirth in their faith. Senior Tyler Calkin, a practicing Mahayanna Buddhist, found it difficult to keep meditating his freshman year because of the absence of community. When Kirtley became Religious Counselor in 2006, he immediately hosted a Buddhist Spirituali-tea. There, Calkin met “loads of Buddhists” and even found a “Mahayanna Buddhist-Buddy.” Currently, Calkin meditates with the same fervor he always had at home, claiming he feels “more confidant and more open” about his faith.

The growing spiritual awareness on campus has not overshadowed the prevailing secular sentiments at Whitman.

“Religious groups are very small presence on campus. It’s a very secular campus. Unless someone tells me otherwise, I assume they’re not religious,” said Rosie Brownlow.

“The WCF sometimes goes a little too far in promoting Christianity. It should not try to promote religion on campus,” Emily McKinstry, a self-proclaimed atheist, echoed Brownlow’s reaction. “It should be a place where Christians can practice their faith. But it’s important to have groups for all religions.”