6/1/05 New study shows students are commonly spiritual
New study shows students are commonly spiritual
Posted: 06.01.2005
Tanner Kroeger
A recent study conducted by the Higher Education Research Institute at the UCLA suggested that spiritual development is a high priority among college students.
The study, which surveyed 112,232 freshmen students in the class of 2008 at 236 different universities, examined religious and political preferences, as well as spiritual and faith-based activities.
Highlighted results of the study said 80 percent of the students are interested in spirituality, 81 percent attend religious services, while 79 percent believe in God.
The study also revealed that only 69 percent of students surveyed pray on a regular basis.
According to Shadi Sadi, a senior in business management, religion plays an important role in many N.C. State students' lives.
Sadi, a former member of NCSU's Diversity Committee, is a practicing Muslim.
"I just grew up into it," Sadi said. "In high school, I got stronger in [Islam] because I just wanted to learn more about it."
Sadi said no single event made him go out and search for a religion. Instead, unanswered questions about the human existence that sparked the then high school junior's interest.
"I was looking for a reason for life," Sadi said. "There was just a curiosity. There is that unending question 'What is the meaning of life?' and 'Why are we here?' That's not something you usually think about until you get older, and I didn't think about it until the 12th, or maybe 11th grade."
Like many young people, Sadi found difficulty in taking every word his parents taught him as truth. As the UCLA study suggests, his religious faith is a product of his interest in spirituality.
"You grow up, and your parents always say 'Islam says this, and Islam says that,'" Sadi said. "Like, you can't eat pork in Islam. I grew up all the way into high school not eating pork, but not knowing why. Eventually, there is a time when a person wants to know answers to questions about life and to figure out why he is here."
Today, Islam plays a major role in Sadi's life.
"It's something to turn to," Sadi said. "Whether it's your daily life, your homework or even driving, anything that you go through during your day, Islam encompasses all of that. You're always remembering God through everything you're doing."
Being a Muslim in post-September 11 America, Sadi says non-Muslims always have questions about how Islam influenced the attacks in Pennsylvania, New York and Washington D.C.
"You meet people that are always questioning September 11," Sadi said. "It then becomes a matter of telling them what your religion is, and what those people did on that day. You have to distinguish what our religion is, and what those people did."
No matter what faith young people choose, Sadi said young people want a God in their lives to fill a specific, non-tangible void.
"Everyone is searching for the meaning of life," Sadi said. "We all live our lives, and eventually we grow up and say, 'What am I here for?' There has to be a reason, there has to be a purpose."
The largest sect of students surveyed by UCLA was Roman Catholics.
The study said young Catholics, representing 28 percent of the surveyed population, had the most religious skepticism, but wanted a more unified, ecumenical Christian church.
Fr. Mark G. Reamer, the pastor at St. Francis of Assisi's Catholic Church in Raleigh, said the Catholic faith should be looked at in its entire population, not just the youth.
"As far as young people trying to figure out the world," Reamer said. "You have to look at the young and old both. [As Catholics,] we just try to teach how to build relationships in accordance to scripture."
Not everyone, however, investigates his or her spirituality through one of the world's mainstream religions.
Liani Zabala, a sophomore in zoology, became a casual Wiccan after exploring Christianity and other popular religions.
"In high school, I started looking for something that fit what I was feeling," Zabala said. "I found Wicca to be what I believed in because I've always felt more at ease around nature and around animals. I found Wicca to be an equilibrium in myself."
Zabala said Wicca was a balance in her beliefs, as well. A nature-based faith, it has strong ties to Christianity, with many Celtic traditions.
"Wicca is a belief that God is in nature and in all of us," Zabala said. "It's a way of morals and ethics. We don't do things that harm others."
She added that her experiences as a Wiccan satisfy the same spiritual questions as any mainstream religion.
"People need purpose," Zabala said. "Nobody just wants to be on a piece of rock without a reason to be there."
Posted: 06.01.2005
Tanner Kroeger
A recent study conducted by the Higher Education Research Institute at the UCLA suggested that spiritual development is a high priority among college students.
The study, which surveyed 112,232 freshmen students in the class of 2008 at 236 different universities, examined religious and political preferences, as well as spiritual and faith-based activities.
Highlighted results of the study said 80 percent of the students are interested in spirituality, 81 percent attend religious services, while 79 percent believe in God.
The study also revealed that only 69 percent of students surveyed pray on a regular basis.
According to Shadi Sadi, a senior in business management, religion plays an important role in many N.C. State students' lives.
Sadi, a former member of NCSU's Diversity Committee, is a practicing Muslim.
"I just grew up into it," Sadi said. "In high school, I got stronger in [Islam] because I just wanted to learn more about it."
Sadi said no single event made him go out and search for a religion. Instead, unanswered questions about the human existence that sparked the then high school junior's interest.
"I was looking for a reason for life," Sadi said. "There was just a curiosity. There is that unending question 'What is the meaning of life?' and 'Why are we here?' That's not something you usually think about until you get older, and I didn't think about it until the 12th, or maybe 11th grade."
Like many young people, Sadi found difficulty in taking every word his parents taught him as truth. As the UCLA study suggests, his religious faith is a product of his interest in spirituality.
"You grow up, and your parents always say 'Islam says this, and Islam says that,'" Sadi said. "Like, you can't eat pork in Islam. I grew up all the way into high school not eating pork, but not knowing why. Eventually, there is a time when a person wants to know answers to questions about life and to figure out why he is here."
Today, Islam plays a major role in Sadi's life.
"It's something to turn to," Sadi said. "Whether it's your daily life, your homework or even driving, anything that you go through during your day, Islam encompasses all of that. You're always remembering God through everything you're doing."
Being a Muslim in post-September 11 America, Sadi says non-Muslims always have questions about how Islam influenced the attacks in Pennsylvania, New York and Washington D.C.
"You meet people that are always questioning September 11," Sadi said. "It then becomes a matter of telling them what your religion is, and what those people did on that day. You have to distinguish what our religion is, and what those people did."
No matter what faith young people choose, Sadi said young people want a God in their lives to fill a specific, non-tangible void.
"Everyone is searching for the meaning of life," Sadi said. "We all live our lives, and eventually we grow up and say, 'What am I here for?' There has to be a reason, there has to be a purpose."
The largest sect of students surveyed by UCLA was Roman Catholics.
The study said young Catholics, representing 28 percent of the surveyed population, had the most religious skepticism, but wanted a more unified, ecumenical Christian church.
Fr. Mark G. Reamer, the pastor at St. Francis of Assisi's Catholic Church in Raleigh, said the Catholic faith should be looked at in its entire population, not just the youth.
"As far as young people trying to figure out the world," Reamer said. "You have to look at the young and old both. [As Catholics,] we just try to teach how to build relationships in accordance to scripture."
Not everyone, however, investigates his or her spirituality through one of the world's mainstream religions.
Liani Zabala, a sophomore in zoology, became a casual Wiccan after exploring Christianity and other popular religions.
"In high school, I started looking for something that fit what I was feeling," Zabala said. "I found Wicca to be what I believed in because I've always felt more at ease around nature and around animals. I found Wicca to be an equilibrium in myself."
Zabala said Wicca was a balance in her beliefs, as well. A nature-based faith, it has strong ties to Christianity, with many Celtic traditions.
"Wicca is a belief that God is in nature and in all of us," Zabala said. "It's a way of morals and ethics. We don't do things that harm others."
She added that her experiences as a Wiccan satisfy the same spiritual questions as any mainstream religion.
"People need purpose," Zabala said. "Nobody just wants to be on a piece of rock without a reason to be there."
posted by Aestrea Raven at Wednesday, June 01, 2005
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