With historic and present-day connections to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the College of Wooster is home to diverse students, faculty, and staff representing more than 25+ different religious, secular, and spiritual identities. Diversity and inclusion have been woven into the fabric of Wooster’s being since it was founded in 1866, and Religious & Spiritual Life (RSL) carries forward that history in distinct ways. With the help of campus partners and spiritual leaders in the community, we seek to support all who wish to invest in their spiritual health and well-being.
RSL Mission Statement
Religious & Spiritual Life (RSL) promotes the nurturing and flourishing of religious, secular, and spiritual communities at the College of Wooster. We support students, staff, and faculty in their individual and collective journeys, no matter their faith identities or backgrounds, by providing opportunities for education, reflection, celebration, and community.
RSL Vision & Values
–Anti-racist Praxis: Anti-racism is the active commitment to deconstruct, disrupt, and abolish systemic patterns of racism… In ourselves, our communities of belonging, our institutions, our cultures, and our world. We are committed to unlearning patterns of harm and re-learning practices aimed at equity and liberation for all.
–Brave(r) Spaces: Creating brave(r) spaces allows those within them to be more honest, authentic, hopeful, and compassionate, while understanding that being in community always involves risk. Brave(r) spaces allow us to acknowledge our contexts, gaps in understanding, and reflect on our imperfect nature. We all have a right to start somewhere and we are committed to helping each other grow together.
–Multi-faith & Positively Pluralistic: We emphasize and appreciate the important differences between traditions and perspectives in our community. We also know not every religious and spiritual tradition is given protections and equitable recognition or respect. We commit ourselves to embodying a positively pluralistic attitude toward all religious, secular, and spiritual traditions, as a manifestation of the College’s graduate qualities for being more informed, engaged, and active global citizens.
–Trauma-informed: We recognize not everyone has had positive experiences with organized religious communities, especially sexual and gender minorities, immigrants and refugees, people living with disabilities, addicts and those in recovery, and the poor and homeless. We cannot know what another person is carrying from their past. Therefore, we commit to speaking less and listening more to our neighbors and community members, honoring their journeys and paths traveled–Not matter what they are.
–Healing-centered: As we offer compassionate responses to others who may have experienced religious trauma, we commit to cultivating spaces of spiritual curiosity, authenticity, and hospitality. We cannot promise healing, but we can create opportunities for others to express themselves, explore new language and ideas, and fins space to claim their story on their own terms.
–Restorative Justice: Rather than seek punitive punishments for wrong-doing in the community, we value practices and principles aimed at restoring broken relationships and trust. We are not the sum of our worst mistakes. We are all learning and navigating the boundaries of human experience. Justice is a complicated project, but we are committed to working on it side by side.