Guest Column by Dillon Weber | Why the Penn Secular Society banner does ruin a Christian’s day

Though this issue has already received way too much attention on Penn’s campus, I feel there have been some serious points left out of the discussion regarding Penn Secular Society’s banner on Locust Walk. While I will echo much of what has been said already — that defacement is not a proper means of debate or confrontation — I do still take issue with the banner and its posts.

Seth Koren made a valid point that if questioning your beliefs ruins your day, you probably could use a little more questioning to ensure you are not simply going with the flow. What Seth misses with this argument however, is that the Penn Secular Society is not questioning the beliefs of informed Christians — it is simply misrepresenting them.

It is entirely acceptable for me to be upset when someone associates my Catholic Faith with quotes from the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Old Testament, including the oft-cited Leviticus), because it shows they have not even taken the time to educate themselves in their questioning. If PSS knew anything about the Catholic faith (or the Christian faith in general), it should know of a parable from the Gospels: “No one patches an old cloak with a piece of unshrunken cloth, for its fullness pulls away from the cloak and the tear gets worse. People do not put new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise the skins burst, the wine spills out, and the skins are ruined.” Matthew 9:16-17.

What does this mean? The old wineskins and the torn cloak are the Hebrew Bible — the Old Testament representing the Old Law and the old covenant. The new wineskins and the new patch are the New Testament, representing the teachings of Jesus. The point is that the arrival of Jesus established a new covenant with all peoples, and clinging to the old one while attempting to integrate the new could only end in disaster. Furthermore, in Acts it is clearly established that the Gentiles (i.e. nearly every Christian on Penn’s campus) are not subject to Mosaic Law, as God chose to accept them without the “yoke” of the law which even God’s chosen people could not carry. They are subject to the Commandments and the Golden Rule, as well as the other teachings of Christ found in the Gospels and the three points of Mosaic Law deemed necessary by God, the laws upholding the sanctity of original marriage, and the laws against the worship of idols and the drinking of the blood of animals (See Acts Chapter 15 of any Catholic Bible).

So what’s the point? To tell Seth Koren, the Penn Secular Society and the rest of those who would persecute Christians, that if they wish to make accusations or “frame thought-provoking questions,” then they had better be sure what they are asking about actually represents the canon of the faith they are questioning. As it stands, putting up some verses from the Pentateuch to criticize Christian Faith is like criticizing today’s government by citing the Articles of Confederation.

So yes, PSS, your banner frequently ruins my day because it demonstrates the willful ignorance of atheists and others who characterize and demonize a faith based on less- than-surface understanding of the beliefs of that faith. Just as Muslims rightfully get upset with a characterization of Islam as the bastardization preached by extremists like Osama bin Laden, Christians like me are upset by the characterization of Christianity as it is preached by fools at Westboro. So I want to use this as a call to the entire faith community to let the PSS know that we will not tamely tolerate mischaracterizations and demonization. Let PSS know that if they wish to engage someone in thoughtful discussion, they need to bring accurate information and valid critiques, not overly broad generalizations formed from ignorance.

Dillon Weber is an Engineering sophomore. His email address is dillonw@seas.upenn.edu.

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