Harvard appoints atheist as head chaplain The Threefold Advocate – Three fold Online

Harvard Universitys newly appointed chaplain, Greg Epstein, claims humanism (looking to individuals rather than a divine figure for moral ideals) to be his guiding doctrine.

According to Emma Goldberg, author of the New York Times article The New Chief Chaplain at Harvard? An Atheist, Epstein became a humanist rabbi around the same time he was hired as Harvards humanism chaplain. He later authored the book Good without God, a humanist guide to living a compassionate life without divine influence.

Harvards transition from its original motto, Truth for Christ and the Church, pains many Christians. Some Christians worry that the new chaplain will be actively leading people away from faith in God.

The main counterargument to this fear is that Epstein is not leading faith services.

Pete Williamson, a member of Harvards chaplain committee, wrote Christianity Todays article Why I Voted for the Atheist President of Harvards Chaplain Group. The article states that Epsteins new position is only to lead chaplain meetings and occasionally represent the Harvard chaplains at conventions. Williamson also tries to assure those worried about Epsteins election by stating that the committees decision to welcome Epstein to the group was unanimous.

However, the fact that Epstein is a chaplain at all causes more worry than his election. In Robert Barrons article for the New York Post Catholic Bishop: Harvard Jumped the Shark with Atheist Chaplain, he writes, If a professed atheist counts as a chaplain which is to say, a leader of religious services in a chapel then religion has quite obviously come to mean nothing at all.

From Barrons statement, then, Harvard has elected someone who believes in no god to a position that is all about leading people closer to God.

Harvard did not respond to Barrons jabs. Had the university responded, it probably would have cited The Harvard Crimsons Religiosity infographic (found in Chhokra Shubhanker and Pradeep Niroulas article Beliefs and Lifestyle). The infographic states that roughly 35% of the incoming class of 2020 claimed to not be religious at all.

Because of this demographic, Epstein serves an atypical purpose as a chaplain. He seeks ways to give a religiously uncertain student body a safe place to question.

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Harvard appoints atheist as head chaplain The Threefold Advocate - Three fold Online