Acappella music and Bible studies are second nature for junior Jax Burgess.
The junior integrated marketing communication major said he always feels comfortable on campus due to his Church of Christ background. But he realizes that that is not the case for all students at Pepperdine.
“Being surrounded by a Christian culture could be very unfamiliar for some people,” Burgess said. “For me being here it’s just super normal.”
Pepperdine’s Church of Christ background raises questions about whether Christians get advantages over non-Christians and how to ensure all students feel welcome regardless of religious background.
The Church of Christ affiliation
George Pepperdine founded Pepperdine as a Church of Christ university. The Churches of Christ a branch of Protestant Christianity that leans nondenominational.
A Pepp Post poll of 54 students found that the majority of students believed Christians received benefits at Pepperdine, from enjoying closer community with fellow Christians (87 percent) to fitting into the Pepperdine mold better (74 percent).
Associate Chaplain Eric Wilson said Pepperdine students do not need to be Christian or even religious in order to feel they fit in at the school.
“I think anyone can fit into the mold,” Wilson said. “Pepperdine wants to produce a student with spiritual depth or maturity, which doesn’t always indicate that they’re religious, sometimes there is a sense of fitting in more if you are Church of Christ due to Pepperdine’s roots but it is never a perfect fit.”
Wilson said he thinks the original foundation of Pepperdine as Church of Christ is a positive characteristic that benefits students experience.
“I think that the Church of Christ roots of Pepperdine actually lend itself well to the spiritual growth of everybody, even if you weren’t a Christian,” Wilson said.
The poll found that only 15 percent of students surveyed were confident they understand what differentiates the Churches of Christ from other Christian denominations.
“Churches of Christ are part of the Restoration Movement, which was a movement about restoring or going back to the Bible,” Wilson said.
Distinguishing characteristics include acappella music, baptism by immersion, weekly Communion and independent congregations, Mary Cate Long wrote in a Winter 2019 Currents article.
All Pepperdine students are required to enroll in three religion classes due to Pepperdine’s academic requirements in order to graduate.
“All Pepperdine students are required to take the GE sequence program where students are introduced to the world of the Bible,” said Daniel Rodriguez, divisional dean of Religion and Philosophy.
Students also must attend 14 religious education services known as Convocation each semester.
Pepperdine is more diverse than sister Church of Christ schools in terms of faculty and the student body, said Jeff Walling, director of the Youth Leadership Initiative in Pepperdine’s Church Relations office. Church of Christ schools typically are much smaller and less academically rigorous in comparison to Pepperdine.
“Pepperdine is the only Church of Christ school with the kind of academic rankings that we have with also the student body,” Walling said.
Only 378 of 3,479 undergraduate students are declared Church of Christ, according to the Office of Institutional Effectiveness.
Walling said Pepperdine offers a completely different experience than other Church of Christ founded schools because it has students of all religious worldviews.
“It’s not going to be a bubbled environment,” Walling said. “You will need to dig into your faith.”
Recruiting Christians
University officials actively recruit Church of Christ students to attend the university. The Church Relations office sponsors annual Bible Lectures, musical performances, Christian leadership camps, and even a Next Gen preacher search to promote the link between the university and the Churches of Christ. Pepperdine’s acapella group, Won by One, tours around the U.S. giving performances at churches and high schools.
Rachel Higgins, a sophomore communication major in the group, said they struggle to promote both Pepperdine’s Church of Christ roots and it’s academic excellence as a liberal arts university.
“It’s kind of hard to do both, being both ambassadors for Pepperdine and for Christ,” Higgins said. “But we try to not only do one side because we are there for both reasons.”
Being a member of Won by One requires great commitment to the Church Relations team.
“A typical week is about four hours of rehearsal, twice monthly we go to churches in the area, then we do our tour over the summer,” Higgins said.
Won by One brings a powerful message to high school students though song, Higgins said.
“I really think Won by One can have a big affect on people,” Higgins said. “I have seen the kind of impact it can have and how it can touch people’s lives.”
The Church Relations office offers lectures at high schools around the country emphasizing what Pepperdine has to offer.
“It is the hope of the university that as I tell the story about Pepperdine, and as I introduce students to programs they can be a part of on the Pepperdine campus, there will be some bright young Christian students who will come to be blessed at Pepperdine, and be a blessing at Pepperdine,” Walling said
Walling said that much of his work includes reaching out to students who are a part of the Restoration Movement.
Walling said he thought it was important “to keep recruiting Christian students” in order to influence others.
“Absolutely, we need Christian students on this campus both to get a great Pepperdine education but also to be an influence as the salt and light on this campus,” Walling said.
Faith-based admissions and scholarships
Pepperdine considers faith as part of the admissions process but accepts students of all backgrounds.
“There is no quota for the number of Church of Christ students that must be recruited each year,” said Ashley Nguyen, associate director of Admission. “The majority of applicants declare Christian or Catholic as their religion.”
Pepperdine does help some Christian students financially.
“Religion has affected my experience because the faith-based scholarships that I received allowed me to attend this school,”said Logan Nix, a nondenominational Christian and junior business administration major.
Although Pepperdine has more nondenominational Christian students than Church of Christ, they offer two Church of Christ scholarships that are available to only Church of Christ students.
“There are two $5,000 scholarships that Church of Christ students are eligible for,” Senior Admissions Counselor Joy Brown said. “In addition to the Christian Leadership Award, students can apply for the Helen Young Scholarship, which is awarded to a select number of students through the Pepperdine Legacy Partners.”
In Fall 2018, there were 86 students incoming students who received the Christian Leadership Award, Brown said.
The poll found that 88 percent of students surveyed do not have a faith-based scholarship but 55 percent believe that’s a benefit Christians can get.
Religious outsiders
The poll found that 66 percent of students surveyed believe that Christian students have an easier time succeeding in the required religion GEs and 61 percent said it was easier for Christians to be enthusiastic about Convo.
The poll also found that over 70 percent never go to Bible study, which points to the dissonance some students feel when they have to attend religious convocation sessions to increase their GPA.
“A lot of times I get uncomfortable because I don’t have a religious background,” said Grace Barton, a nonreligious sophomore art major. “I get uncomfortable being forced to go to things like Convo because I don’t believe in God and the things they’re preaching.”
Convo is a common grievance for students who feel uncomfortable in a forced religious setting.
“Religious students have much more drive to get convocation credits but it is tortuous for me to go and feel like people are forcibly trying to convert me,” said Slader Bark, a nonreligious junior media production major.
The poll found a high degree of religiosity at Pepperdine, which can make nonreligious students feel excluded or judged.
Bark said he feels his Christian peers judge him when at religious gatherings on campus.
“I feel judged for not agreeing with their world views,” Bark said.
Barton said she has befriended fellow students who do not use religion.
“I have found friends who don’t judge based on religion but I definitely think there are people who judge me for it,” Barton said.
Academic advantages and disadvantages
Barton also felt that she was at a disadvantage academically at times in required religion classes.
“I feel like I am always playing catch up or the teacher assumes I know something already that I don’t, especially in religion classes,” Barton said.
Rodriguez said all instructors teach as if the students had never opened a Bible before.
“Some students feel they’re at a distinct disadvantage because they’re surrounded by people who have been studying the Bible for years,” said Rodriguez. “The courses are designed for people who are coming in with no knowledge. My colleagues try really hard to not assume that students bring in background knowledge with them.”
Rodriguez said he even sees some Christian students as being at a disadvantage when coming into the required religion courses at Pepperdine
“Christian students sometimes feel overly confident coming into the class because they have a lot of previous experience,” Rodriquez said. “It helps in terms of confidence level but can also hurt when the class isn’t what they were expecting.”
Rodriguez reassured students who are worried about how they will get through a religion class without any background knowledge.
“Don’t be afraid, the teacher will approach class as if every student knows nothing,” Rodriguez said. “The professor would be thrilled if you came in and asked for help, many students in Success Center are ready to tutor you, if you do the work you will do well.”
Inclusiveness on campus
Because the Churches of Christ come out of a broader American Christian heritage, most nondenominational or evangelical students said they fit easily into the campus culture.
“My religious background made it a lot easier to jump into the Pepperdine scene because it was more familiar to me,” Nix said.
Nix said he thinks that students who don’t have a Christian background may not be able to “fit into” Pepperdine quite as seamlessly.
Other students also said the religious aspect of Pepperdine helps them feel safe and familiar while away in a college setting.
“I think of faith as a mother away from home,” said Parker Bembry, a Southern Baptist and sophomore international business major. “It helps me feel comfortable.”
It’s a common trend for students to use their faith as a safety blanket on college campuses around the nation, according to a Association of American Colleges and Universities article.
Many students are Roman Catholic. Noah Santos, a Roman Catholic and sophomore advertising major, said his Christian heritage let him fit right in at Pepperdine.
“It is easier for me to adapt to a Church of Christ experience,” Santos said.
Involvement based on religious background
Although the Church of Christ foundation is deeply rooted in Pepperdine’s teachings and opportunities on campus, Nguyen believes that all students who want to be involved can be.
“What I love about Pepperdine is the supportive community we have to offer, and students who want to be invested can do so, regardless of their faith background,” Nguyen said.
Brown agreed with the fact that students of all spiritual backgrounds are encouraged to participate within the community.
“I believe our faculty, staff, and student body are willing and ready to walk alongside students as they navigate all aspects of college life, and I think many prospective students desire to be a part of that type of community,” Brown said.
Wilson connects Pepperdine’s balancing act between a Christian and a highly ranked academic university best.
“If Church of Christ started off with a unity movement then that’s what I want to be about now,” Wilson said.
Caroline Busch completed the reporting for this story in Jour 241 in Fall 2021 under the supervision of Dr. Christina Littlefield and Dr. Theresa de los Santos. Dr. Littlefield supervised the web version of the story.
