manifesto

This whole year, apathy has possessed the student body at Alma Heights, like a virus. The hardworking, dedicated student council has turned into an ineffective conglomerate of useless peons.

It's been a problem since the beginning. The faculty has told us repeatedly that we must keep our spirits up, and we must motivate and rally our fellow peers. It's a theme that has pervaded every event, every student council meeting, and every chapel message this year. I remember with fondness the few times that a speaker failed to instruct us on how we needed to become "serious" in our relationship with God, or to "release the inner fire", or to "give your WHOLE life to God", or something equally ambiguous that can lead to false conclusions. What is the root of the problem? The faculty.

Yes, the faculty. I'll start with banquet. Our banquet this year was ruined by the faculty. I support the event, because the committee has put long hours into planning and figuring out details and trying to work with the tyrants that dominate their every decision. I want people to go, because it is not fair to all the hardworking students who have put so much effort into the event if a small population shows up (which, I'm afraid, is likely to be the case).

So here's our banquet, in short:
1. Junior/Senior splitoff - unless circumstances have changed without my knowledge, Juniors and Seniors are not even allowed to invite underclassmen as dates. This has decreased the potential population by half. The approximate attendance number this year is 40--and this tally was taken before people began to find out it would be held in the gym. The sophomores and freshmen were forced to have their formal event at the Elephant Bar this year, which is the equivalent of going to Chili's with gowns and tuxedos for a "fancy dining experience." Most of the sophomores refused to go, and instead planned an anti-formal party, of which I know nothing.

2. Gym - because there is such a small attendance, we cannot afford to rent a nice place for our event. Theoretically, we could, but attendees would have to pay a ridiculous price to compensate (over 100 dollars per person, most likely). There is no way we could have held this event somewhere else without the cost per person inflating to a ridiculous amount. Can we really expect to get away with this next year?

Why must we split up the classes? The answer is simple. It's NOT because we, the students, wanted it that way. On the contrary, the entire banquet committee has desperately pleaded for things to return to normal. But the faculty was obstinate and resistant. Last year, the faculty was unable to monitor every couple, and therefore decided to lessen the problem by splitting us up.

Why is the faculty so sensitive about our sexuality? I really have no idea. They might care about us, and they might not want us to make mistakes, but at the end of the day, it's none of their business. The teachers are paid, not to monitor our heterosexual relationships, but to teach us and fill us with the academic knowledge we need to survive in today's intellectual society, perhaps, in this case, with a Christian slant. But our parents are the ones responsible for our personal lives. The faculty at Alma Heights needs to realize their responsibility, and to stop crossing the limits of their authority.

Countless times this year--countless times--the student council has come up with ideas to brighten the school atmosphere, to make an event more exciting, or to simply change things up a bit. But the faculty will have their way, and most often they are extremely, if not totally, inflexible. The teachers are making all the decisions for us, which leaves us with nothing but grunt work. We have meetings, we come up with ideas every now and then, but ultimately what the teachers want will rule the day, and we are simply their specialized police force.

It is maddening and utterly ridiculous that our faculty persists in its prohibition of dancing at Banquet. Their argument against rhythmic movement holds absolutely no water, because they are basing it on speculation, fear, and prejudice. There is no logical reason why we should not be allowed to dance. Dancing is fun, dancing is not, by definition, sexual, and dancing is not only mentioned but encouraged and described in the Bible itself. And yes, this includes TEENAGERS. The Bible didn't say "Dance and praise the Lord--as long as you're married, are faithful, don't have a problem with sexual thoughts, and stay 2 inches away from all females." Dance is a form of worship, and it's also a form of enjoyment and harmless entertainment. Adults may see teens dancing at public schools and interpret their motions as sexually-charged barbarism. But as a teenager, and as one who has danced at formal and nonformal events, I can say with absolute confidence that we pursue no such thing. We want to dance because dancing is fun. We don't want to dance so that we can "get it on" and see how many vulgar displays of sexuality we can express.

Dancing among teenagers and unmarried couples is NOT a sin, nor is it an open gateway to sin. The fear that dancing will somehow trigger sexual intercourse is pretentious and deceitful. Any contact with the opposite sex will trigger sexual responses in some way, shape, or form. Dancing is NOT an enhancement of any kind, and the fact that the teachers use this argument against us is a blatant display of their ignorance toward us. As Christians, we cannot argue on the basis of what might be, or of what has not yet come to pass, because the reality is that we simply don't know. We do know, however, that God has enabled us to enjoy activities (like dancing) in order to enjoy them, and to further increase our delight in the blessings he has given us. Certainly, some activities are only appropriate during specific circumstances (sexual intercourse, for example, is to be reserved for the sacrament of marriage). But dancing does not fall into that category.

Now, my main purpose here is not to criticize the teachers for their lack of competence or ability to see clearly. Rather, I want to let them know the frustration that many of us are feeling. If they want us to care about anything, they have to give us something to care about. We will continue in our apathy as long as we are forced to wear the mask of complacency. We're teenagers! We're stupid, we do stupid things, and we stupidly have fun doing them. The more the teachers try to suppress this inner-stupidity, the more likely students will simply gratify themselves in unhealthy ways outside of the clutches of school authority. And this isn't just my own philosophical rambling--this is what actually happens. In light of this, what could be more beneficial than to encourage dancing and enjoyment? Why can't we show people that we can have normal social activities and glorify our God in the process?

Everyone hates going to school. It's a universal principle. But Alma Heights is hated not just because the subjects are dull, or because the homework isn't fun, but because the teachers try to do more than just teach. It comes from a genuine concern and passion for the spirituality of students that I can understand and appreciate. But doing more than what they are paid to do is far more destructive than protective. This is my cry; my Manifesto; my plea; that the teachers would be teachers, and that the students would be allowed to be students. I mean no disrespect to the teachers at our school, as they work tirelessly for our well-being, and try very hard to make wise, beneficial decisions. The teachers at our school need prayer, insight, and understanding as to what is going on in their student body. I can only hope that my sprawled rambling will somehow make a difference.