Wheaton College has made a lot of headlines this week, and I feel like the media has poorly represented the school I love, so I will try to clarify a few things here.
On December 15th Wheaton College placed Dr. Larycia Hawkins, an associate professor of Political Science at Wheaton, on paid administrative leave.
In a post announcing she would be wearing a hijab in solidarity with “my Muslim neighbor” as a part of her advent worship, Dr. Hawkins stated, “we worship the same God” referring to Christians and Muslims.
(The context of Dr. Hawkins statement regarding Christianity and Islam, can be found in her December 10th Facebook post.)
Many of us at Wheaton could agree with her that, “theoretical solidarity is not solidarity at all” and would respect her decision to wear a hijab in solidarity with our Muslim neighbors, but would have to disagree with her and Pope Francis when they assert that we worship the same god. Almost all evangelicals agree that the triune God we worship is not the same as the god of Islam (see "Do Muslims, Jews, and Christians Worship the Same God?").
This becomes a problem because Wheaton College’s Statement of Faith, that all faculty and staff have committed to, is in conflict with Dr. Hawkins’s statement. This theological disagreement is the reason she was placed on academic leave. By no means did her gender, race, or decision to wear a hijab factor into this.
On December 16th Wheaton released a a statement addressing these concerns. The college expressed:
“The freedom to wear a head scarf as a gesture of care and compassion for individuals in Muslim or other religious communities that may face discrimination or persecution is afforded to Dr. Hawkins as a faculty member of Wheaton College. Yet her recently expressed views, including that Muslims and Christians worship the same God, appear to be in conflict with the College’s Statement of Faith.”
Despite the way the media has negatively spun this story, I have been pleasantly surprised by how lovingly students have responded on both sides of the issue (and on a side-note, The Chicago Tribune was surprised too). Whether students hold that Dr. Hawkins should be reinstated because her views on Christianity and Islam have a valid theological claim in the evangelical worldview, or whether they believe the college has taken the right step by placing her on academic leave, we can agree that we are all incredibly blessed to be at Wheaton and to be able to have these conversations.
I would like commend Wheaton College for sticking to its Statement of Faith. Wheaton’s unwavering commitment to Christian principles since 1860 has preserved the integrity of the institution. One that allows for: “[w]hole person development that enables graduates to maximize their God-given talents and provide exceptional leadership ‘For Christ and His Kingdom’ at home, at church, in the marketplace, and in the wider world.”
I would like to thank Dr. Hawkins for setting the example of what embodied solidarity and loving our neighbors should look like.
And, I would like to thank my fellow students at Wheaton for responding in love, and continuing this theological conversation in a hospitable manner. Wheaties, here is the link to a page where we may show gratitude to the Wheaton College Administration for all they do.
My prayer for the Wheaton community and for those who read this article is that we would seek truth, because in seeking the answers to the questions we have about how best to love our neighbor and about the nature of God, we are seeking God.
