It sure is New, but it ain't no Haven

As we walked up the hill approaching Sterling Divinity Quadrangle we fretted about what we were about to experience. It was the first day of orientation. Fortunately, spouses were encouraged to attend so Whitney didn't have to drop me off with my backpack and lunch box (a block away of course... so that I wouldn't be embarrassed in front of the other kids).

Still, our stomachs were aflutter...."Will there be liberals there? Will they still like us? Will they hurt us? What do we do during denominational small groups? Will we understand any of their fancy Yale-speak?" Our minds raced to call to mind the fanciest words we knew. "Churlish. Yeah, let's be sure and use that one..."

Boy were we surprised. Godless liberals? Instead we found that most people we encountered take their Christianity very seriously. Prayer, praise and worship played a key role throughout our week-long orientation. We especially enjoyed the rich diversity of worship styles we got to participate in at chapel. We sang in Spanish, we sang Christian songs from other parts of the world, we sang beautiful hymns fresh from the imagination of contemporary composers. The content? God through Christ redeeming a world broken from the Fall.

Intimidating people? From the beginning we were told that Yale Divinity School is a community and we were exhorted to invest in it. We were put in a small group and got to know several other couples. In a group of 12 people, we had the whole range of Christian tradition. Don't believe me? Represented were Calvary Chapel, non-denominational evangelicalism (us), Congregational, Lutheran, Episcopal, Orthodox, Roman Catholic. And they all greeted us warmly and we've since really enjoyed getting to know them. All were immediately drawn to welcoming one another and meeting practical needs in the transition to our new setting.

Intellectual Superiority? There's nothing quite as low-brow as karaoke. The first night of orientation we were invited to GPSCY. (graduate professional school club at yale). There we watched two of Sameer's future classmates belting out an impassioned version of "Total Eclipse of the Heart". It was breathtaking. really.

Sophistry with Words? While walking around campus Whitney spotted a flier that read: "Nice, homely, experienced babysitter available..." We're pretty sure that's not what she intended to say. . .

We could really tell that we were at the second wealthiest university in the country -- everything was catered all week -- every meal was taken care of, complete with hors d'oeurves and wine. We also learned this week that we are living in the fourth poorest city in the country. An ivory tower in a poverty-stricken area. In our first impressions we were so worried about crime that we didn't really stop to think why there might be so much violence perpetrated against Yale students and affiliates. Yale seems to be viewed as somewhat of a plantation here. A place that has all of the resources but uses them mostly for self interest and not clearly for the betterment of the local community. They own practically every establishment in the downtown area -- all of the shopping district and many of the houses surrounding the campus. It's like a feudal city -- nobles in the middle inside the walls, and all others on the margins. It seems like a microcosm of what is wrong in so much of the world, and even our role in it as Americans.

This removal of shelter has been good for us. The width of Christ's body, the brokenness of our world -- they have become real to us in a way we haven't known well before.