OneWheaton

OneWheaton is a group of Wheaton College alumni that formed in 2011 to provide support for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning students at the evangelical Christian college.[1]

History

OneWheaton first organized in response to Wheaton College's chapel series titled "Sexuality and Wholeness"[2]—which included a message stating that following Jesus and living in a same-sex relationship are incompatible goals[3]—and the seminar "Same-Sex Marriage Affects Everyone"—which hypothesized that allowing same-sex marriage would lead to families abandoning their children, men having test tube babies for the purpose of molesting them, and ultimately, the end of "what was once a great civilization."[4] On April 29, 2011, members of the group distributed a letter to students on campus sharing their opinion that "sexual identity is not a tragic sign of the sinful nature of the world" and affirming "the full humanity and dignity of every human being regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity."[5]

The group and its members became the subject of documentary, "Queers In The Kingdom" by filmmaker and Wheaton College alumnus, Markie Hancock.[6] The documentary was released in 2015 and screened nationally at film festivals and college campuses.

Purpose

OneWheaton claims that its purpose is to provide support to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning students and alumni at Wheaton and other colleges. Its goal is not to change Wheaton College's policies prohibiting homosexual acts or to stand against those people who choose lifelong celibacy as their personal path of reconciling their faith and sexuality. The group does not propose any theological grounds or defense of its position as it is a diverse group consisting of people who hold many different perspectives. However, the group is unified by their shared belief that the classification of homosexuality as "sinful" is not only incorrect, but damaging.[7] OneWheaton notes on its website that the group is not "affiliated or condoned by Wheaton College."[5]

Response from Wheaton College

On April 29, 2011, the day that the letter was distributed, Wheaton College President Philip Ryken responded to the letter by sending an internal email to the students, faculty, and staff of the college. The email indicated that the administrations sees "each member of the human family as created in the image of God himself" but that "scripture condemns...homosexual behavior and all other sexual relations outside the bounds of marriage between a man and woman.".[8] Ryken's response references the Community Covenant, which stipulates that homosexual behavior is not allowed at the school.[9]

Members

OneWheaton has over 700 members, including alumni who are allies in support of their mission as well as alumni who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer. Supporters range from those who graduated in 1954 to the present.[5]

The founding board members of OneWheaton were: Hank Chen, Jessica Friesen, Adam Hibma, Sue Nordlof, Catherine Latimer, Frances Motiwalla, Susan Schmalzbauer, Costa Tsiatsos, José Vilanova, Ruth Wardschenk, Hillary Waters, Lora Wiens, and Kristin Winn.

Positive response

According to OneWheaton spokesperson Kristin Winn, the group was "floored by the [positive] response", with their website crashing on the second day of its launch .[10] Mike Clawson, Christian contributor for the website "The Friendly Atheist" and an alumnus of Wheaton College, voiced his support for the group's efforts, noting that the group "has already succeeded in letting current LGBTQ students there know that they are not alone."[11] The blog Queerty expressed its support for the students, equating President Ryken's emailed letter to students as supporting the tormenting or bullying of human beings.[12]

References
  1. "Wheaton's (Unofficial) Homecoming for Gay Evangelicals". Time. time.com. 2011-10-07. Retrieved 2011-10-07.
  2. "Print News - Wheaton College Alumni Group Says Being Gay Is Not a Sin". Christianpost.com. Retrieved 2012-10-18.
  4. "Ruth Institute Podcast". Ruthinstitute.libsyn.com. Retrieved 2012-10-18.
  5. "A Community of LGBTQs and Allies of Wheaton College, Illinois". OneWheaton. Retrieved 2012-10-18.
  6. "Film maker Markie Hancock explores the role of 'Queers in the Kingdom,' on college campuses".
  7. http://www.onewheaton.com/img/OneWheaton_MediaRelease_042911_Expanded.pdf
  8. https://web.archive.org/web/20110515082135/http://www.wheaton.edu/news/releases/10-11_releases/04.29.11_OneWheatonResponse.html. Archived from the original on May 15, 2011. Retrieved May 12, 2011. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  9. –President Philip Ryken. "Community Covenant | Wheaton". Wheaton.edu. Archived from the original on 2011-06-06. Retrieved 2012-10-18.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  10. Eriksen, Charlotte (2011-05-13). "Alumni Organization Supporting Gay Students Receives Support - Wheaton, IL Patch". Wheaton.patch.com. Retrieved 2012-10-18.
  11. "Support (Finally!) for Gays at the "Harvard" of Christian Colleges". 2011-04-29. Retrieved 2012-10-18.
  12. "Gay Alums Forced to Beg Evangelical College to Treat Gay Students with Dignity, Respect and Equality / Queerty". Queerty.com. 2011-05-11. Retrieved 2012-10-18.
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