mental_floss magazine
SUBSCRIBE >
GIFT SUBSCRIPTIONS >
DIGITAL SUBSCRIPTIONS >
subscriber services >
We’re so excited to have author, journalist, and Brown University senior (he’s still a senior!) Kevin Roose blogging with us this week. His new book, The Unlikely Disciple: A Sinner’s Semester at America’s Holiest University is about the semester he spent at Liberty University, the late Jerry Falwell’s college for young evangelicals. Kevin’s book is engaging, thoughtful and just a delight to read. If you like what you see, be sure to order a copy. We’ll let Kevin take it from here:
BY KEVIN ROOSE
For starters, I thought I’d list the five strangest rules I encountered at Liberty. Per the unofficial school nickname (”Bible Boot Camp”), Liberty is a very strict place. It has a 46-page code of conduct, called “The Liberty Way,” that outlines punishments and monetary fines for specific behaviors. And coming from Brown, where – by Falwellian standards – the social scene is a notch or two above Sodom and Gomorrah, I had a lot of adjusting to do.
1) No Sex, Kissing or… Extended Hugging!
Liberty is one of the few universities where the football players have exactly as much sex as the engineers. By University code, all romantic contact beyond hand-holding is prohibited. Hugs are allowed, but only for a three-second maximum. (There used to be a Facebook group poking fun at this rule called, “I Hug for 3 Seconds, Sometimes 4.”) And some students are actually saving their first kiss for their wedding night. It’s no wonder that Liberty charges any student who spends the night with a person of the opposite sex with 30-reprimands.
But I learned that in terms of rules against inter-gender socializing, Liberty isn’t even close to the strictest school in America. At Pensacola Christian College, for example, all physical contact between members of the opposite sex – even hand-shaking – is forbidden. According to one website run by ex-PCC students, “even couples who are not talking or touching can be reprimanded for what is known on the campus as ‘optical intercourse’ – staring too intently into the eyes of a member of the opposite sex. This is also referred to as ‘making eye babies.’”
2) No Cursing (or How I Learned to Tame my Tongue)
This was probably the hardest part of my first month at Liberty. Like most secular students, I used to curse mindlessly and liberally, almost as a way of life. But “The Liberty Way” makes it clear that “obscene, profane or abusive language” gets you “12-18 Reprimands + Corresponding Fine.” So I had to be proactive about cleaning up my language. I even bought a Christian self-help book called “30 Days to Taming Your Tongue,” which tells you to replace your basic four-letter words with words like “Glory!”
While the book helped me avoid reprimands, sounding like Beaver Cleaver didn’t exactly help me fit in. Although its true that most Liberty students don’t curse, they don’t walk around saying “Good Heavens!” Instead, they use Nerf curses like “Darn”, “Friggin’” and “Crap.”
3) No R-rated movies
This rule, too, proved difficult to follow. I like a raunchy Judd Apatow comedy as much as the next guy, but at Liberty, anyone found watching an R-rated movie is given 12 reprimands and a $50 fine. (For perspective, students can be expelled for accumulating as few as 30 reprimands.) On one ill-fated night, the RA on my hall walked in on a roomful of guys huddled around a TV, watching “300,” the R-rated war flick about the Spartan army. The seven guys racked up 84 reprimands, they were fined a combined $350, and the DVD was confiscated. Luckily, like a good Christian, I was at a Bible study group when the bust went down.
4) No Demonstrations
According to “The Liberty Way,” any student found guilty of “participation in an unauthorized petition or demonstration” earns 12 reprimands and a $50 fine. Which begs the question: If you think a rule against protesting is unfair, how are you supposed to show it?
5) No Dancing
Baptists are notoriously opposed to bumpin’ and grindin’. (Hence the old joke: “Why don’t Baptists have sex standing up? Because it might lead to dancing.”) At Liberty, 6 reprimands and a $25 fine awaits anyone found to have attended a dance. Or awaited, anyway. I’ve heard from friends that in the two years since I attended Liberty, the official dancing policy has been loosened. Organized dancing (salsa lessons, ballroom competitions, etc.) is now allowed, while “social dancing” remains off-limits. I’m not sure, but I’m guessing that the “Crank Dat Soulja Boy” dance is still a no-go.
Kevin Roose’s excellent book The Unlikely Disciple: A Sinner’s Semester at America’s Holiest University goes on sale nationally next week, but that shouldn’t stop you from pre-ordering it today! Be sure to come back tomorrow to read more from Kevin.
Comments (47)
Comment
- Follow mental_floss
Making eye babies made me crack up.
posted by netres on 3-17-2009 at 12:01 pm
Well, did you learn anything about your personal relationship with Jesus Christ while you were there? I was a freshman at LU when it was still Liberty Baptist College. Most of the people who attended at that time were like me – from Baptist/Christian homes and were used to the strict rules. Some people even found more leniency than they had in their homes. Believe me. Can I get an amen?
posted by Karen on 3-17-2009 at 12:03 pm
The book covers a lot of Kevin’s personal experience with examining and trying to embrace religion and using the experience to become a better person. It also talks quite a bit about the freedom students feel at Liberty, just like you’re mentioning. He’s blogging for a full week, so I’m sure we’ll get into quite a bit of that!
posted by Mangesh Hattikudur on 3-17-2009 at 12:31 pm
That is not what “begs the question” means.
posted by Bucko on 3-17-2009 at 12:31 pm
That’s it. “Making eye babies” is now in my lexicon and I *will* use it some time at the appropriate moment.
HILARIOUS!
posted by Troy H. on 3-17-2009 at 12:33 pm
What does a reprimand consist of?
posted by Paul on 3-17-2009 at 12:35 pm
My grandmother grew up in a very strict mostly Nazarene town with similar strict social rules- no dancing, no cards, no popular music, etc. There was also a high teenage pregnancy rate because, as she put it, what else was there to do on Friday nights?
posted by gibson8or on 3-17-2009 at 12:37 pm
“Making Eye Babies” At a *cough* “University”? I . . . um . . . wow. My snark gland has been overwhelmed.
posted by EMStoveken on 3-17-2009 at 12:39 pm
Mangesh – I am glad to hear that Kevin wasn’t just attending Liberty to expose standards that the “world” sees as ridiculous. I did laugh reading about the “eye babies”. The best Nerf curse I picked up while at Liberty was “shilt”. Still use it today! (24 years later)
As to the religious aspect, I hope that Kevin learned and grew as a result of his “time” at Liberty. Even if he didn’t embrace the Baptist theology, I’m sure he came to understand us a little better.
posted by Karen on 3-17-2009 at 1:04 pm
Weirdly enough, “making eye babies” isn’t really a newly-coined term for the benefit of insanely strict schools. “Babies in the eyes” in reference to amorous staring is an old term indeed, and variations like “look babies in her eyes” can be found in Elizabethan poetry. See, if you look intently enough in someone’s eyes you’ll see a tiny reflection of your own face in the other’s pupils…
posted by VM on 3-17-2009 at 1:06 pm
…and I thought living in uber-catholic Italy was bad.
posted by Kate on 3-17-2009 at 1:11 pm
Are men allowed to grow beards at LU? They’re not at Brigham Young University. Even though Brigham himself has a pretty huge beard.
posted by Jesse on 3-17-2009 at 1:12 pm
How exactly can they fine students for activites in their own living area, and how can they confiscate private property?
Methinks Liberty is only getting away with this because people aren’t standing up to the administration.
posted by dan1101 on 3-17-2009 at 1:14 pm
Sounds like an Orwellian nightmare. I’m sure that’s what god would want.
posted by Jason on 3-17-2009 at 1:18 pm
Wow. I went to a Christian college which I thought was pretty conservative, but my campus was flat-out liberal compared to Liberty. The only similar rule we had was no R-rated movies on campus, but there were certain movies that were excused, and it was fine if we went off-campus to watch them (to the theater, for example).
I have a friend who went to Liberty, and I’ll have to ask him about some of those rules. I think he probably fit in well there. He’s still not entirely certain that my tattoo won’t make me go to hell.
posted by Kessie on 3-17-2009 at 1:19 pm
The Christian college I attended had similar rules, as it was also a Baptist school. But not nearly as strict with the whole inter-gender relations. For a long time, there was a poorly-lit but well-known make out spot in a gazebo nicknamed the Sugar Shack. Even faculty called it that.
And we joked about “making purple” and that one official rule of having a boy in your room was that you must wear socks, and feet must never leave the floor. As long as your feet were on the floor, no one would get pregnant!
Ah, good times…
posted by Tracie on 3-17-2009 at 1:19 pm
As I read Kevin’s article I was reminded of the two years I spent at Bob Jones University. Believe it or not, BJU is more strict than Liberty. I could give several examples, but to focus on the social aspect…its dating rules are more like the ones Kevin describes for PCC…and the students regularly poke fun at them. When I was there no one used the phrase “making eye babies,” but we did tease serious couples for their “cow-eyed stares.” At Christmas we put up mistletoe with “Out of Order” signs next to it…and we substituted the words “shake hands” for “kiss” in songs like “Let it Snow.” I understand why schools like Liberty, PCC, and BJU have such strict dating codes, but I also believe you can’t legislate morality. If a guy and girl aren’t personally committed to chastity, they’ll find a way around the rules…even if they have to wait until semester break!
posted by rakayin on 3-17-2009 at 1:21 pm
I spent some time in Lynchburg as an intern with M/A Com Wireless, off of Jefferson Ridge Parkway. I lived in an apartment next to an LU student who’s boyfriend would stay the night occasionally (they were probably dancing the night away). Being non-denominational and opposed to strict religiousness I did not call LU to report them.
Also, the $1.50 movie theater showed rated R films at it, even though it was less than a mile from the LU campus. There was always an RA or church official there to make sure students were not buying tickets to those movies. Or maybe it was a university official. I don’t know.
These policies are non-sensical. To start, Jesus was likely a dancer, and Jesus also drank wine, two incredibly common activities at weddings. So those rules are exceptionally dumb. Most of the disciples were drunks. That’s why Jesus had to turn water into wine– the disciples and wedding guests drank the initial supply. There are some redeeming values to watching R rated movies, like how about “The Passion of the Christ”? A rule like that denies those students the redeeming value of knowing why they shouldn’t commit sins like adultery or murder, often the message of more tasteful rated R movies (though I can’t say that about 300). For instance, “The 40-Year Old Virgin,” where the protagonist discovers that waiting until marriage was the right answer for him, and the beauty of monogamous sex.
Jesus’ point was for you to choose him as your savior. The operative word there is choose, and defining religiousness or salvation by how closely a set of rules are followed sort of defeats the ideas behind Protestantism. It’s Catholics that believe in sets of rules. Also, Jesus made it abundantly clear that the only real commandment was to love God, and aside from that, your neighbor. These rules imply that Jesus was wrong, and serve as an additional set of criteria for how to live “holy” lives. Moreover, the rules that LU follows were set by Jerry Falwell, not Jesus. I’ll be damned before I follow Falwell’s ideas for my life.
I look forwards to reading your book.
posted by Joel on 3-17-2009 at 1:29 pm
Well, you have to understand that students who don’t want to subject themselves to the rules will simply go to school somewhere else.
posted by Miss Cellania on 3-17-2009 at 1:31 pm
My BF in high school went to Faulkner University in Montgomery Alabama. She seemed pretty happy there and met her husband there – they have been married for 15 years now and are building their family. I can’t say anything bad except I don’t agree with folks who’ll listen to country music but won’t sing a hymn set to an organ or any other instrument. I know the reasons why but it don’t seem logical
posted by Sarah Christensen on 3-17-2009 at 1:58 pm
Do they have any rules against waterboarding at Liberty?
LGBNAF
posted by Antichrist on 3-17-2009 at 1:59 pm
I’m always interested in reading about crazy Christian-college rules! I went to Geneva College in western Pennsylvania; it’s a Reforned Presbyterian school. We had our share of regulations, too.
We had “open dorm nights” a few times a week where people of the opposite gender were allowed in our rooms. However, the door had to be open the entire way and at least 2 lights had to be turned on. A lot of people tried to bend that last rule by using lava lamps. :^P I had a boyfriend from another college, so I didn’t worry too much about these rules, but it was a pain when you wanted to study with your opposite-sex friends.
The strangest rule was that we were not allowed to run the vacuum cleaner or do laundry on Sundays!
posted by ruby sunbeam on 3-17-2009 at 2:57 pm
I agree that “making eye-babies” is a hilarious phrase that will now be in my vocabulary.
I have done it so much in my life. I wander what all my eye-baby mamas are up to now.
@Bucko: Really? That is the same context I have always used.
@rakayin: You attended someplace called “BJ U” and they had a strict dating policies? Am I the only one who sees the lewd irony there?
posted by Dwayne on 3-17-2009 at 3:02 pm
“It’s Catholics that believe in sets of rules.”
–Joel
Let me make it abundantly clear that Catholics have nothing against dancing or drinking, or doing anything short of sex before marriage. We like to have a good time.
From my experience in 28 year of being Catholic, not every rule must be followed. I once had a priest tell me that the things he doesn’t agree with the Vatican on, he ignores (in terms of who is welcome in his church).
To be clear, this blog talks about a certain group of hardcore Baptists and does not typecast all people of faith.
posted by Lindsey on 3-17-2009 at 3:04 pm
Bob Jones University. BJU. Man, I would totally love to go to BJ University
posted by McCobb on 3-17-2009 at 3:12 pm
@ Lindsey: Thank you! It is unfortunate that a person thinks making broad (very incorrect) statements about a faith is appropriate for what is supposed to be a fun board.
posted by BH on 3-17-2009 at 3:34 pm
i think gibson8or and my mom grew up in the same town. i had to live there, too, for my sophomore and junior year — blech. glad those days are gone.
posted by heather on 3-17-2009 at 3:35 pm
Quote: It is unfortunate that a person thinks making broad (very incorrect) statements about a faith is appropriate for what is supposed to be a fun board.
As opposed to this entire post (and the comments that follow)? I’d like to see this as a positive post that really embraces becomming a better person and a writer that is truly trying to understand a religion, but I suspect it will only incite further ridicule of a group of people who choose to live by their faith.
posted by Karen on 3-17-2009 at 3:44 pm
@Miss Cellania: Unless your parents tell you that the only college they will pay for is an ultra-conservative Christian college, they wouldn’t allow you to get a job to save for college, they won’t help you apply for loans, and finally they threaten to disown you if you don’t go.
Of course at that point, you have greater problems than your choice of institution. Sadly, I am about to graduate from one of these institutions (name withheld to keep me out of trouble), and this is the story of too many people I’ve come to know here.
They don’t want to nor need to be here, and they are only ruining the environment for those of us who are genuinely interested in the atmosphere, but their parents did everything to keep them under their heel.
It’s quite sad, actually. The whole lot probably needs a good deal more professional counseling than they let on.
BTW, Captcha: serenity 300. Mildly appropriate for the above discussion of movies.
posted by Drew on 3-17-2009 at 3:57 pm
Ruby sunbeam – I went to Eastern University in Pennsylvania (a Baptist school but compared to Liberty, very liberal) and we had the same rule about open dorm nights, which we just called visitation. My freshman year, Valentine’s Day fell on a Wednesday, the one night we didn’t have visitation. There was some rule-breaking that night.
Those who wonder why Kevin Roose made the decision to go to Liberty, I encourage you to read the first portion of his book (which I have; you can find it on some bookseller websites). He wanted to better understand his Christian peers.
posted by Jenn on 3-17-2009 at 4:09 pm
Ironic that it’s called LIBERTY University.
posted by Holly on 3-17-2009 at 4:12 pm
@ Sarah Christensen:
were did you get the idea that poeple in alabama dont sing hymns set to an organ or any other instrument….??
In most church settings down here a piano at minimum is used…and if the church has an organ and someone who can play it then they do in fact use it….and for Christ sakes we do listen to more than just country…
posted by Jennifer on 3-17-2009 at 4:17 pm
The demonstration is complete BS. Liberty students, headed by fawell, came to my school when we put on a play about a couple of gay guys and protested outside the theatre doors.
Ugly school, ugly founder, ugly town
posted by Andy on 3-17-2009 at 4:33 pm
rakayin – my sister went to Bob Jones in the late 70s/early 80s. Is it still unacceptable for women to wear make-up (though perfectly fine for the administrators to wear toupees)?
My favorite BJU story deals with the admission process. After my sister applied, letters started arriving at the house warning her that if anyone was trying to talk her out of her decision to attend (friends, parents, teachers), that was Satan talking. That’s right, God wanted my sister to go to BJU and any suggestions to the contrary was devil-talk.
She loved it, but it would have been a little much for me.
posted by Chelsea on 3-17-2009 at 5:29 pm
Since R-rated movies are banned, would they get in trouble for watching The Passion of the Christ?
posted by eroe777 on 3-17-2009 at 7:03 pm
Awesome Kevin! Looking forward to reading the book. I made it through four long years at LU, quite the exposure to messed up fundamentalist culture. Not only did I graduate, but I infiltrated the holy of holies and toured around with the poster children of Liberty’s dogma, the Sounds of Liberty. Spent plenty of time with Falwell and lots of his cronies. He was, despite being raving made, hilarious and a ton of fun. It was mostly the weird people that looked to Falwell for nuggets of revelation that scared the hell out of me.
As to people getting upset about their religiosity being criticized: get over it. You kind of deserve it actually. And besides, ‘Jesus’ said you should count the persecutions with joy – so grow up, at least in your faith. Bashing people on comment boards is a sin, duh.
I’m a thinking, rational, intelligent human – I represent less than one percent of the student population hehahe. I’ve mostly counted my time at Liberty as one f0cked-up crash course in the perils of fundamentalism of any kind. And the differences between the Taliban-brand and the Falwell-brand are so strikingly similar I can only thank the Loord that Falwell is gone and no longer promoting the kind of hate- and judgment-filled dogma that breeds intolerance disguised as piety.
posted by SoundsOfLiberty on 3-17-2009 at 7:17 pm
Thanks for the article Kevin, I’m looking forward to reading more of your posts this week.
@SoundsOfLiberty – Outstanding comment! It’s refreshing to hear such rational and balanced thoughts from anyone, religious or not.
I have a general question about this nerf cursing though. Even though a word such as “shilt” is spelt with an additional l, it obviously still has the same meaning as the original. If someone doesn’t believe in swearing why use a nerf curse at all? Especially once you’ve graduated and are not necessarily under the same strict rules of a fundamentalist university administration. Just Curious.
posted by Matt on 3-17-2009 at 10:35 pm
hoho.. if that u called bad, then ours would be worse or could be worst.. no wonder our university called the world largest racist university.. MARA University of Technology, Malaysia… no offend malaysian…
posted by moth on 3-18-2009 at 1:52 am
I belong to an evangelical fundamentalist church. And we have very strict rules. But the greatest part about it is that we learn why we follow these rules.
@Lindsey, please explain to me how Catholics can rationalize that its okay to have premarital sex, but condoms are bad?
@SoundsOfLiberty; James 1:2 (Consider it all joy, my brothers, when YOU meet with various trials) was one of the first scriptures I learned, and it prepared me for a lot of trials I faced.
posted by MissS on 3-18-2009 at 10:28 am
Miss8: Read closer…Lindsey said premarital sex was not acceptable in her religion.
posted by Jason on 3-18-2009 at 11:45 am
I went to a Baptist University, loved it there. Donate every year when they call, I am looking forward to reading this book. I was skeptical when I first heard about “The Year of Living Biblically” on Mental_Floss. I read it and loved its balanced approach. I even recommended it to the pastoral staff at my church, a couple of them read it and have it displayed in their office library.
posted by Witty Nickname on 3-18-2009 at 12:30 pm
My experience has been that the majority of Catholics simply ignore vatican decrees that they disagree with. My mother used the pill, engaged in pre-marital sex, and got a divorce all while attending mass weekly.
posted by Amy on 3-18-2009 at 1:19 pm
And MY mother (a Croatian and therefore Catholic-by-culture) once told me, “It doesn’t matter what you believe, you’re still a Catholic.”
posted by VM on 3-18-2009 at 1:41 pm
I’m a senior at Messiah College, and I think its hilarious the extent to which we Messiah-folk are living in wretched sin in comparison to BJU and Liberty. When I was a freshman, our RAs used to print out copied of the rules at BJU to show us how ‘lucky’ we were!
I think I’ll go watch an R rated movie now….
posted by Jen C. on 3-18-2009 at 9:46 pm
when i attended liberty i had my tongue pierced and was sent to see the dean of women several times about it. you can also rack up a pretty big bill for “reprimands” (which were $5 apiece when I went there in 2000)… my bill was over $500 for one semester… and while i was there i never drank, did drugs or had sex once. i did wear pants underneath my skirt and kiss a boy or two on campus. what a sinner!
posted by maria on 3-20-2009 at 8:38 pm
I was raised in a Fundamentalist Baptist household. Grandpa was a minister. Some of the rules were: women did not cut there hair. You kept it pinned up or covered except for your husband. (A woman’s hair is her Crown of Glory) No music, no dancing, no make-up, no pants for women, no dating, no boyfriends, church services every Wed & Sun (no exceptions), vacation Bible School in the summer, no overnight visits with friends who were not in our congregation, no alcohol or cigarettes. Need I continue? Needless to say once I hit college and was on my own for the first time, I went hog-wild. I’ve matured a bit in the intervening years, and I do wonder if we are doing our children any favors by refusing to allow them a glimpse of the seedier side of life. How can we fully prepare them and have them remain ignorant of the facts?
posted by vegasgirl on 3-22-2009 at 10:40 pm
I just ordered the book and looking forward to the read, but wanted to put a little perspective on things for everyone.
I am a proud graduate of LU and from what I can tell through the limited exerpts of the book, my experience at LU was much different than Kevin’s.
Yes, we had parties. Yes, we drank a lot of beer (off campus, of course), even with a few RA’s and yes, we went to R-rated movies. And, guess what? Yes, there are even gay people at LU.
I would say some of the rules Kevin talks about were loosely enforced, but it does make for a better read.
I am a functioning member of corporate America, thanks to LU. I am tolerant of others beliefs and sexual orientation, thanks to LU and most importantly, I am a Christ follower, thanks to LU.
posted by LU Grad on 3-24-2009 at 3:00 pm