Authentic authenticity

Posted by admin on Apr 12, 2006 in Issues & Ideas | 0 comments

Once again summer is right around the corner. Just a few shorts weeks, a few more papers, and a few more final exams to go. Amazing how fast these years fly by. We leave the bubble and return to the world at a very interesting moment in Trinity’s history. International awareness of our campus is growing as those from the outside slowly begin to realize that something different is going on here. With articles published in Maclean’s and with our inclusion into the Globe and Mail University Report, the spotlight on TWU and its students has never been greater.

However, as that spotlight grows brighter there is an even greater responsibility on us, its representatives, to show how great an institution Trinity really is. Harvard didn’t become a great university because it spent a lot of money (though, of course, that never hurts). Rather, Harvard became a great university because its students and graduates were doing amazing things.

As you interact with the world, remember that you go as an emissary. As people get to know you, they in turn, get to know a little bit about Trinity Western. Now, this isn’t a reminder to practice your “Christianese” or to brush up on what Paul was really saying to the Galatians—it’s just a reminder to be real.

As you recount your TWU experience, don’t ignore all the good times, but at the same time, don’t ignore the bad ones either. If we as Christians want to change our reputation, the world needs to see us for what we really are: mostly regular people pursuing truth and knowledge, much like everyone else.

No longer do we want to be seen as a removed place of refuge from the scary world beyond, but an institution where everyone is welcome, and all ideas heard. Whether it be business, chemistry, politics, or religion, Trinity can be known as a place where true learning is earnestly pursued—a place where excellence is always expected, and leaders are formed. This is what Trinity stands for and this is who we are.

But the only way people will know is if you tell them.