Controversy Over BJU Fashion Show

[illinoisguy]

The latest brouhaha with regard to Bob Jones University is over a fashion show in the BJU Fine Arts department that was regarded by some, including BJU President Steve Pettit, as "sacrilegious and blasphemous." Others have described it as "tasteless and frivolous," but not blasphemous. Lou Martuneac, who has clearly had an "axe to grind" against BJU for many years, is raising a big fuss about the fashion show and about the performance of Shakespearean plays at BJU. I am posting this material for informational purposes only, for those who would like to know what fundamentalists are saying about BJU - I don't necessarily endorse Martuneac's crusade against "Lordship Salvation" or all of his criticisms against BJU. Some may remember one of the commenters on these links, Greg Easton, used to operate the Hidalgo Grain Company web site with its extensive comments on BJU - he has taken the site down.

In Defense of the Gospel: BJU Fashion Design Runway Show

In Defense of the Gospel: Dr. Steve Pettit Issues a Statement: Is There Nothing More to See Here?

In Defense of the Gospel: Bob Jones University: Compromised Spiritual Sanctification for Secular Pragmatism

 

[Ransom]

Lou Martuneac, who has clearly had an "axe to grind" against BJU for many years, is raising a big fuss about the fashion show and about the performance of Shakespearean plays at BJU.

Shakespeare'?

*gasp*

Oh, no!

Anyway, as you were.

 

[illinoisguy]

Some heated and vigorous discussion of the big BJU Fashion Show controversy, on the Sharper Iron forum:

[Link]: Sacrilege and Blasphemy | SHARPER IRON

Some of the comments:
"If BJU is going to have a fashion major ... expect weirdness."

"The faculty member(s) that allowed this should be the ones getting the heat — not the student(s). I hope Dr. Petit isn't too old to remember that if the faculty allow the inmates (a.k.a., students) to run the asylum, this is what you get."

"Doesn't sound to me like something BJU should continue to produce."

"BJU did not 'produce' it. The young man, a fashion artist, produced it."

"IMO, if BJU has done anything wrong here, it was accepting money from someone and in return giving him a degree in 'fashion.'"

"I had no idea what was going on until I did a little digging. Setting aside the unfortunate reality that BJU is still somewhat in the clutches of 'hard-core' fundamentalists and, hence, the school needs to continue to look over their shoulder to gauge the fury of those 'hard-core' fundamentalists who are increasingly further and further behind them, the phrase tempest in a teapot comes to mind."

"So even though this person left BJU and later decided to release his project afterwards on his own initiative and after leaving the school, we...still get to take swings at BJU because he went there for an education. Are we prepared to blame Bob Jones for every bad person that left there, like Peter Ruckman?"

"If BJU is on the decline or the slippery slope of compromise and apostacy or whatever your charge is, then who do you recommend in their place? What is the decision you want your readers to make? You attacked Northland for compromise and now you're attacking BJU for compromise. Is the only safe place left the church you run? Is there a place that you approve of?"

 

[ALAYMAN]

I had a real beef with Shakespeare in college! Okay, there's a little tongue and cheek there.

The university I attended had just gained University status in the late '80s and was still in the process of getting all of their ducks in a row in order to award appropriate baccalaureate degrees. I was in that first year of students for the awarding of B.S. degrees. As a result, they did not have enough 300 and 400 level science courses for me to finish my degree on time, so I chose to take some plastics engineering courses to get my hours. These courses unfortunately I found out later insufficient to satisfy upper level requirements. Their solution was to disallow me from taking courses that would help me enter the workforce, but required me to take any 300 level course in place of what should have been 300 or 400 level science courses. I chose Shakespeare. Now that is the Paul Harvey of my college controversy with Shakespeare.

As far as BJU, within fundamentalism it is well known, haters gonna hate.

 

[illinoisguy]

Looks like this controversy is not going away any time soon. More commentary on the Fashion Show fracas, from a web site that describes itself as "ecumenical Baptist" - definitely not fundamentalist;

How a student’s fashion design project upset the created order at Bob Jones University – Baptist News Global

"Trustees and administrators at Bob Jones University recently grew so alarmed over a wrap coat designed by a student for a class project that they publicly called the student’s work sacrilegious, blasphemous, dishonoring to Jesus, offensive, and egregious. . . .

"And so the board members and church leaders BJU had shaped for decades began to speak. Joe Shakour, pastor of Tabernacle Baptist Church in Wilson, N.C., tweeted, 'It’s straight up blasphemous,' 'This "guy" is picturing our Savior,' and 'It’s gross' with a vomit emoji, which sounds very similar to Jones’ 'It makes me sick' statement about segregation years earlier. David Green, pastor of Lakeshore Baptist Church in Gary, Ind., said, 'The whole thing seems quite worldly.' Ed Sweitzer, pastor of Trinity Baptist Church in Secane, Pa., tweeted, 'This is what happens when Christians "model" their college programs after those of sodomites.' Another person chimed in saying, 'He looked like a gay man and was wearing a crown of thorns. What is so hard to understand about that? It is blasphemous.' . . .

"After the closing of Tennessee Temple University, Pillsbury Baptist College, Northland Baptist College and Clearwater Christian College — after they loosened fundamental distinctions — many of BJU’s older supporters are concerned that BJU may be following a similar path toward closing.”