Boston College for Jewish Students (2010-present)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you done a tour and info session? We are also reform. We visited and thought the school was great in almost every respect, but we just could not get past the religion piece. Asked our tour guide how non-Catholic students fit in and her response was to say that she was not Catholic but has really enjoyed going to Catholic masses. Not the answer we were looking for…. Another friend had the exact same experience on her tour.

I would call Hillel and speak with current Jewish students. The school really seems wonderful in so many respects, but our DC was pretty turned off by the religion aspect.

It is a Catholic school, after all. I mean, how would you react if someone showed up at your synagogue and said "Yeah, I'd love to hang out here with you guys, but it would be nice if you toned down the Jewish-ness of your events?"

No, the correct answer for our comfort level would have been: It doesn’t matter if you aren’t Catholic. People of all religions can get involved in lots of activities that have no religious component. Not - it’s fine, you’ll get used to mass. We had no issues with it being a Catholic school and like the community service emphasis of Jesuits, but if the majority of kids are regularly going to mass on Sundays, that’s something my kid would not be comfortable with. OP, you may be comfortable with this and it’s not a dig on the school at all. It just wasn’t something we were comfortable with.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you done a tour and info session? We are also reform. We visited and thought the school was great in almost every respect, but we just could not get past the religion piece. Asked our tour guide how non-Catholic students fit in and her response was to say that she was not Catholic but has really enjoyed going to Catholic masses. Not the answer we were looking for…. Another friend had the exact same experience on her tour.

I would call Hillel and speak with current Jewish students. The school really seems wonderful in so many respects, but our DC was pretty turned off by the religion aspect.

It is a Catholic school, after all. I mean, how would you react if someone showed up at your synagogue and said "Yeah, I'd love to hang out here with you guys, but it would be nice if you toned down the Jewish-ness of your events?"

No, the correct answer for our comfort level would have been: It doesn’t matter if you aren’t Catholic. People of all religions can get involved in lots of activities that have no religious component. Not - it’s fine, you’ll get used to mass. We had no issues with it being a Catholic school and like the community service emphasis of Jesuits, but if the majority of kids are regularly going to mass on Sundays, that’s something my kid would not be comfortable with. OP, you may be comfortable with this and it’s not a dig on the school at all. It just wasn’t something we were comfortable with.

This could be worded a lot less offensively. It seems pretty bold to visit another religion's institution and claim they don't answer questions "correct." Again I ask, how would you feel if someone visited your place of worship and told you and your fellow congregants that the amount of Judaism exhibited there was turning them off?
I'd support you if you told them to piss off.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you done a tour and info session? We are also reform. We visited and thought the school was great in almost every respect, but we just could not get past the religion piece. Asked our tour guide how non-Catholic students fit in and her response was to say that she was not Catholic but has really enjoyed going to Catholic masses. Not the answer we were looking for…. Another friend had the exact same experience on her tour.

I would call Hillel and speak with current Jewish students. The school really seems wonderful in so many respects, but our DC was pretty turned off by the religion aspect.

It is a Catholic school, after all. I mean, how would you react if someone showed up at your synagogue and said "Yeah, I'd love to hang out here with you guys, but it would be nice if you toned down the Jewish-ness of your events?"

No, the correct answer for our comfort level would have been: It doesn’t matter if you aren’t Catholic. People of all religions can get involved in lots of activities that have no religious component. Not - it’s fine, you’ll get used to mass. We had no issues with it being a Catholic school and like the community service emphasis of Jesuits, but if the majority of kids are regularly going to mass on Sundays, that’s something my kid would not be comfortable with. OP, you may be comfortable with this and it’s not a dig on the school at all. It just wasn’t something we were comfortable with.

NP. I find the tour guide's answer odd. To clarify, there are small groups of regular attendees, but the vast majority of Catholic students rarely, if ever, attend mass over their four years at BC. And virtually all non-Catholic students never attend.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you done a tour and info session? We are also reform. We visited and thought the school was great in almost every respect, but we just could not get past the religion piece. Asked our tour guide how non-Catholic students fit in and her response was to say that she was not Catholic but has really enjoyed going to Catholic masses. Not the answer we were looking for…. Another friend had the exact same experience on her tour.

I would call Hillel and speak with current Jewish students. The school really seems wonderful in so many respects, but our DC was pretty turned off by the religion aspect.

It is a Catholic school, after all. I mean, how would you react if someone showed up at your synagogue and said "Yeah, I'd love to hang out here with you guys, but it would be nice if you toned down the Jewish-ness of your events?"

No, the correct answer for our comfort level would have been: It doesn’t matter if you aren’t Catholic. People of all religions can get involved in lots of activities that have no religious component. Not - it’s fine, you’ll get used to mass. We had no issues with it being a Catholic school and like the community service emphasis of Jesuits, but if the majority of kids are regularly going to mass on Sundays, that’s something my kid would not be comfortable with. OP, you may be comfortable with this and it’s not a dig on the school at all. It just wasn’t something we were comfortable with.

This could be worded a lot less offensively. It seems pretty bold to visit another religion's institution and claim they don't answer questions "correct." Again I ask, how would you feel if someone visited your place of worship and told you and your fellow congregants that the amount of Judaism exhibited there was turning them off?
I'd support you if you told them to piss off.

Your comparison is off. It’s not a church, it’s a university. And I said it was not the correct answer for our comfort level, not the correct answer for any prospective student. We wouldn’t have visited at all if we weren’t ok with it being Catholic. It’s bit obtuse for you to think a prospective Jewish student would not to be put off by a tour guide answering a question about what it’s like if you are not Catholic by saying mass is more enjoyable than you think.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you done a tour and info session? We are also reform. We visited and thought the school was great in almost every respect, but we just could not get past the religion piece. Asked our tour guide how non-Catholic students fit in and her response was to say that she was not Catholic but has really enjoyed going to Catholic masses. Not the answer we were looking for…. Another friend had the exact same experience on her tour.

I would call Hillel and speak with current Jewish students. The school really seems wonderful in so many respects, but our DC was pretty turned off by the religion aspect.

It is a Catholic school, after all. I mean, how would you react if someone showed up at your synagogue and said "Yeah, I'd love to hang out here with you guys, but it would be nice if you toned down the Jewish-ness of your events?"

No, the correct answer for our comfort level would have been: It doesn’t matter if you aren’t Catholic. People of all religions can get involved in lots of activities that have no religious component. Not - it’s fine, you’ll get used to mass. We had no issues with it being a Catholic school and like the community service emphasis of Jesuits, but if the majority of kids are regularly going to mass on Sundays, that’s something my kid would not be comfortable with. OP, you may be comfortable with this and it’s not a dig on the school at all. It just wasn’t something we were comfortable with.

This could be worded a lot less offensively. It seems pretty bold to visit another religion's institution and claim they don't answer questions "correct." Again I ask, how would you feel if someone visited your place of worship and told you and your fellow congregants that the amount of Judaism exhibited there was turning them off?
I'd support you if you told them to piss off.

Your comparison is off. It’s not a church, it’s a university. And I said it was not the correct answer for our comfort level, not the correct answer for any prospective student. We wouldn’t have visited at all if we weren’t ok with it being Catholic. It’s bit obtuse for you to think a prospective Jewish student would not to be put off by a tour guide answering a question about what it’s like if you are not Catholic by saying mass is more enjoyable than you think.

And that is the correct answer for that tour guide. You asked her a question about her feelings, she answered. And now you are saying that her feelings were not "correct [i]for your comfort level." As if only answers that are in your "comfort level" are "correct."

And my comparison is on. It's a religious institution.

Again, how would you feel if someone entered your religious institution and said your religion was a "turn off?"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you done a tour and info session? We are also reform. We visited and thought the school was great in almost every respect, but we just could not get past the religion piece. Asked our tour guide how non-Catholic students fit in and her response was to say that she was not Catholic but has really enjoyed going to Catholic masses. Not the answer we were looking for…. Another friend had the exact same experience on her tour.

I would call Hillel and speak with current Jewish students. The school really seems wonderful in so many respects, but our DC was pretty turned off by the religion aspect.

It is a Catholic school, after all. I mean, how would you react if someone showed up at your synagogue and said "Yeah, I'd love to hang out here with you guys, but it would be nice if you toned down the Jewish-ness of your events?"

No, the correct answer for our comfort level would have been: It doesn’t matter if you aren’t Catholic. People of all religions can get involved in lots of activities that have no religious component. Not - it’s fine, you’ll get used to mass. We had no issues with it being a Catholic school and like the community service emphasis of Jesuits, but if the majority of kids are regularly going to mass on Sundays, that’s something my kid would not be comfortable with. OP, you may be comfortable with this and it’s not a dig on the school at all. It just wasn’t something we were comfortable with.

This could be worded a lot less offensively. It seems pretty bold to visit another religion's institution and claim they don't answer questions "correct." Again I ask, how would you feel if someone visited your place of worship and told you and your fellow congregants that the amount of Judaism exhibited there was turning them off?
I'd support you if you told them to piss off.

DP. As an insitution that takes federal money, BC actually is not supposed to discriminate based on religion. And if BC is willing to enroll & take a student’s money, it’s perfectly appropriate to ask questions about the environment and culture.

[Anonymous]

DS is a junior at BC. A majority of students are from Catholic schools, but there plenty of students from other religions as well. Most do not focus on religion at all and do not advertise their beliefs. My son has a good mix of friends from all sorts of backgrounds. I will say that I agree with the PP. The majority of students do not attend mass on a weekly basis.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you done a tour and info session? We are also reform. We visited and thought the school was great in almost every respect, but we just could not get past the religion piece. Asked our tour guide how non-Catholic students fit in and her response was to say that she was not Catholic but has really enjoyed going to Catholic masses. Not the answer we were looking for…. Another friend had the exact same experience on her tour.

I would call Hillel and speak with current Jewish students. The school really seems wonderful in so many respects, but our DC was pretty turned off by the religion aspect.

It is a Catholic school, after all. I mean, how would you react if someone showed up at your synagogue and said "Yeah, I'd love to hang out here with you guys, but it would be nice if you toned down the Jewish-ness of your events?"

No, the correct answer for our comfort level would have been: It doesn’t matter if you aren’t Catholic. People of all religions can get involved in lots of activities that have no religious component. Not - it’s fine, you’ll get used to mass. We had no issues with it being a Catholic school and like the community service emphasis of Jesuits, but if the majority of kids are regularly going to mass on Sundays, that’s something my kid would not be comfortable with. OP, you may be comfortable with this and it’s not a dig on the school at all. It just wasn’t something we were comfortable with.

This could be worded a lot less offensively. It seems pretty bold to visit another religion's institution and claim they don't answer questions "correct." Again I ask, how would you feel if someone visited your place of worship and told you and your fellow congregants that the amount of Judaism exhibited there was turning them off?
I'd support you if you told them to piss off.

DP. As an insitution that takes federal money, BC actually is not supposed to discriminate based on religion. And if BC is willing to enroll & take a student’s money, it’s perfectly appropriate to ask questions about the environment and culture.

Of course. What I'm talking about is the audacity to say a student didn't give the "correct" answer when asked about her experience.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Have you done a tour and info session? We are also reform. We visited and thought the school was great in almost every respect, but we just could not get past the religion piece. Asked our tour guide how non-Catholic students fit in and her response was to say that she was not Catholic but has really enjoyed going to Catholic masses. Not the answer we were looking for…. Another friend had the exact same experience on her tour.

I would call Hillel and speak with current Jewish students. The school really seems wonderful in so many respects, but our DC was pretty turned off by the religion aspect.

It is a Catholic school, after all. I mean, how would you react if someone showed up at your synagogue and said "Yeah, I'd love to hang out here with you guys, but it would be nice if you toned down the Jewish-ness of your events?"

No, the correct answer for our comfort level would have been: It doesn’t matter if you aren’t Catholic. People of all religions can get involved in lots of activities that have no religious component. Not - it’s fine, you’ll get used to mass. We had no issues with it being a Catholic school and like the community service emphasis of Jesuits, but if the majority of kids are regularly going to mass on Sundays, that’s something my kid would not be comfortable with. OP, you may be comfortable with this and it’s not a dig on the school at all. It just wasn’t something we were comfortable with.

This could be worded a lot less offensively. It seems pretty bold to visit another religion's institution and claim they don't answer questions "correct." Again I ask, how would you feel if someone visited your place of worship and told you and your fellow congregants that the amount of Judaism exhibited there was turning them off?
I'd support you if you told them to piss off.

Your comparison is off. It’s not a church, it’s a university. And I said it was not the correct answer for our comfort level, not the correct answer for any prospective student. We wouldn’t have visited at all if we weren’t ok with it being Catholic. It’s bit obtuse for you to think a prospective Jewish student would not to be put off by a tour guide answering a question about what it’s like if you are not Catholic by saying mass is more enjoyable than you think.

And that is the correct answer for that tour guide. You asked her a question about her feelings, she answered. And now you are saying that her feelings were not "correct [i]for your comfort level." As if only answers that are in your "comfort level" are "correct."

And my comparison is on. It's a religious institution.

Again, how would you feel if someone entered your religious institution and said your religion was a "turn off?"

It’s a school not a church

[Anonymous]

When we toured BC the admissions director started off his presentation saying something like..."BC is a Catholic school and roughly 70% of our students were raised Catholic so if you aren't comfortable with that then this might not be the best school for you"

It isn't about whether or not the students attend Mass. It's about this shared background. IF a student of another religion accepts this then I would think they would fit in fine. But if you go to BC and think it isn't a Catholic school that would be a mistake.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:When we toured BC the admissions director started off his presentation saying something like..."BC is a Catholic school and roughly 70% of our students were raised Catholic so if you aren't comfortable with that then this might not be the best school for you"

It isn't about whether or not the students attend Mass. It's about this shared background. IF a student of another religion accepts this then I would think they would fit in fine. But if you go to BC and think it isn't a Catholic school that would be a mistake.

I don't believe this happened.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:On our recent info session, one of the 4 student speakers was Jewish. He was delightful and spoke just as you do here of shared values. Data point of 1 but there you go.

This was our experience recently too. At a second tour (with a second DS), the tour guy was not Catholic and not religious (and from Sweden, fwiw) and he was terrific all around. So 2 data points.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When we toured BC the admissions director started off his presentation saying something like..."BC is a Catholic school and roughly 70% of our students were raised Catholic so if you aren't comfortable with that then this might not be the best school for you"

It isn't about whether or not the students attend Mass. It's about this shared background. IF a student of another religion accepts this then I would think they would fit in fine. But if you go to BC and think it isn't a Catholic school that would be a mistake.

I don't believe this happened.

+2. Wouldn't even have happened 30 yrs ago.

[Anonymous]

I went to BU (not BC) and there were a ton of Jewish students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Have you done a tour and info session? We are also reform. We visited and thought the school was great in almost every respect, but we just could not get past the religion piece. Asked our tour guide how non-Catholic students fit in and her response was to say that she was not Catholic but has really enjoyed going to Catholic masses. Not the answer we were looking for…. Another friend had the exact same experience on her tour.

I would call Hillel and speak with current Jewish students. The school really seems wonderful in so many respects, but our DC was pretty turned off by the religion aspect.

This is sort of weird. I'm not religious (at all) and went to BC and there was no religious pressure at all. My theology courses were more akin to history, not even about Christianity. The only time I went to a mass was a memorial for kids killed in the Lockerbee terrorist crash - that could have just as easily been in a theatre somewhere on campus - being at a church didn't feel religious. I had some friends who went to mass - it had no impact on my life.

It's one thing to have your DC turned off by not having opportunities for their own faith (which I have no idea what the landscape is now) but it doesn't sound like that was the issue.

Religion is not pushed at BC in the least.