海角视频

The 海角视频 Church sanctuary was filled with students, staff, and faculty for the first Colloquy service of the year, Thursday, September 28. The campus and community family gathered together to hear the inaugural address from the college鈥檚 new president, Dr. Bob Cushman.

Megan Weems, the Student Association (SA) president, began the service by introducing this year鈥檚 SA theme, 鈥淔amily.鈥� It is their goal that every PUC student be intentional about building a family atmosphere. 鈥淲e want to make sure it鈥檚 more than just a word on a t-shirt, or a word on a video 鈥� we want to make sure everyone feels it in their heart of hearts. We want to make sure everyone feels they belong and are loved. At PUC, we鈥檙e all here together,鈥� she encouraged.

A hymn of praise followed, then a reading of Matthew 22:36-40. 鈥淧ie Jesus鈥� by Andrew Lloyd Webber was performed by I Cantori, conducted by Jenelle Westerbeck Anderson, assistant professor of music, featuring solos from Whitney Weems and Christina Allen.

Dr. Aimee Wyrick, chair of the department of biology, introduced Dr. Cushman, and revealed he was her professor at Loma Linda University. She shared fun anecdotes from studies they conducted together; most notably a shoreline vegetation study at Mono Lake during which a bear visited their campsite. She ended her introduction by saying, 鈥淚 hope you will allow Dr. Cushman to teach you as well as he taught me.鈥�

Upon taking the podium, Dr. Cushman individually welcomed groups of people to campus for the first week of classes鈥攏ew students, returning students (with special recognition to those who spent a year abroad through ACA or as a student missionary), graduating seniors, and faculty and staff. 鈥淲e鈥檙e excited about the school year that lies ahead,鈥� he said. He also introduced the college鈥檚 senior administration team, saying, 鈥淲e are thrilled to partner with you on this journey.鈥�

Dr. Cushman鈥檚 address, titled, 鈥淪iblings,鈥� began with striking images from the recent protests in Charlottesville, Va., which left one woman dead and 19 injured. 鈥淲e have come to a time in our country where divisiveness is the norm, instead of the exception,鈥� he said, reporting there are over 900 active hate groups in America, and more than three in four Americans view the country as a divided nation. 鈥淭hat doesn鈥檛 sound like family to me,鈥� he said, asking the congregation, 鈥淗ow do we as a Seventh-day Adventist Christian college respond to the divisiveness that is threatening our sense of community and even our country?鈥�

Dr. Cushman encouraged each student to ponder why they chose to attend PUC. 鈥淚 would hope it鈥檚 because you expect something different from us, that you expect more from us. In return, we expect more from you. We expect that you will help us create a different tomorrow than what we are experiencing today.鈥�

Referencing Galatians 5:22, Dr. Cushman contrasted the Fruits of the Spirit鈥攍ove, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness鈥攚ith words often found on resumes; build, create, produce, discover, achieve. It is a moral logic rather than an economical one. 鈥淢y hope is that as a Seventh-day Adventist Christian college, we exhibit these virtues and we help you develop and nurture them as you go through this journey as well.鈥�

Expanding on the SA theme of 鈥淔amily,鈥� Dr Cushman quoted Galatians 3:26-29, reminding the congregation we are all children of God through faith in Jesus, and through him, we are all siblings. Pointing out how destructive labeling each other can be, rather than getting to know one another, Dr. Cushman shared he hopes PUC can become a place without any labels. 鈥淚 wish for us this year that PUC become a place for family with no labels 鈥� where we can get to know each other at the core of who are are.鈥�

Dr. Cushman asked the congregation what something like this would look like, calling back to the protest images he shared at the beginning of his address. 鈥淚 would like to suggest here at 海角视频 that hate has no home here, regardless of race, color, creed, or language. There is no place for hate in this community.鈥� Continuing on, he said, 鈥淚 have a dream for us, that this will be a place where we are committed to a different tomorrow. A tomorrow where 鈥楥hristian鈥� is also a verb, not just a noun. A tomorrow where hate has no home, a tomorrow where differences are valued and respected, a tomorrow where the marginalized are included in the body of Christ.鈥�

In closing, Dr. Cushman reiterated the service鈥檚 Scripture from Matthew 22:36-40, saying, 鈥淢y dream for PUC this year is that we be a place where when people come onto our campus or see us in the community that we are a people who live by the two greatest commandments: that we are people who love the Lord with all our hearts, soul, and mind, and our neighbor as ourselves.鈥�

The service ended with an energetic performance by the Chorale of 鈥淐ornerstone鈥� composed by Shawn L. Kirchner, conducted by Whitney Weems, with solos from Megan Weems and Alvin Laberinto, after which the historic Healdsburg Bell was rung, as is tradition for the first Colloquy service of the year. Following the benediction, students, faculty, and staff filed out of the sanctuary, ready for another exciting year at 海角视频 filled with God鈥檚 richest blessings.