Regarding the Feb. 29 editorial, “Alcohol policy infringes on student rights”

Your editorial on Friday regarding the university’s alcohol policy was troubling, and I would like to share a few thoughts.

Starting with the title and throughout the article, the whole focus is on “me.” The policy denies my rights, invades my privacy, limits my freedom and burdens me with constraints.

You referred to 1 Corinthians 10:23 to capture the “Everything is permissible” phrase, but I think you missed the context. The verse continues – “Everything is permissible, but not everything is constructive. Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.”

There is nothing that inflicts more harm on our society, and other societies around the world, than alcohol. People are killed; spouses and children are abused, etc.

So I would like for us as a Christian university to think about how we can be constructive and benefit others in our behavior. While the notion of responsible alcohol use generally means not getting drunk- and I suppose that was the idea when 76 percent of the students believed that alcohol would be consumed responsibly – let’s move beyond that. What can we do to ensure that others do not lead a life of alcohol abuse? As for me, I will be a total abstainer – not because the Bible makes me – but because I believe this is how I can be of the most benefit to others.

Jesus said to “let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”

Little light shines in establishments having alcoholic beverages as the main business. As a newspaper, you have the privilege of getting your opinions in front of our campus community and beyond. I encourage you to provoke our thinking regarding how we can best be a light to the world. If that is our focus, the university’s policy will become irrelevant.

Dr. Terry Pope
professor of finance and associate dean of College of Business Administration
popet@acu.edu