Larry Lin mentioned in an email that Barnes Hall was originally built as a Christian ministry center under the leadership of John Mott ’88 (1888 that is). So I decided to do a little digging in Cornell archives. Here is something interesting that I found:
John R. Mott (’1888), later world leader of the YMCA and Nobel prize winner, was the driving force behind the Cornell University Christian Association (CUCA). Barnes Hall was intended to eradicate Cornell’s reputation as an un-Christian seat of corruption and was the first building in the country built for a college Christian Association. Barnes was the university’s first student union. It lost that function with the erection of Willard Straight Hall (1925). The religious function passed on to Anabel Taylor Hall (1952). The CUCA evolved into the ecumenical Cornell United Religious Work in 1929.
Alfred S. Barnes, in 1888, built Barnes Hall, “For the Welfare of God Among Men,” and this became the home of the Y. M. C. A. The Y. W. C. A. was organized several years ago and occupies the Eastern part of Barnes Hall, on the first floor.
Cornell has ever been proud of John R. Mott, ’88, who is now a world’s leader in Y. M. C. A. work, among colleges.
As encouraging as this is I’m honestly disappointed and grieved that time and foolhardy ecumenism led to the degradation of the CUCA into the modern day CURW which presents Christ as only one among many options for truth (and the YMCA to a sports club and song by the village people). I appreciate the heart and labor of the chaplains over at the CURW but in my opinion they are only sowing to the wind. Overcoming nonessential divisions in the Christian body is important to getting the gospel out to the folks here at Cornell, but we ought to guard the truth, clarity and centrality of the Gospel with all our might. In a few generations COAH, Cru, CBS and any other fellowship may also be just another carcass of a ministry with no real gospel to share because they thought that unity was more important that truth.
I’m thankful for the Grace of God that has allowed us to come back to Barnes more than a hundred years later and have an extended prayer vigil for our school and God’s work here. To sign up see here.
You can find out more about the life and work of John Mott at the website for the Nobel Peace Prize, which he won in 1946 for his work in establishing and strengthening international Protestant Christian student organizations that worked to promote peace.
your new site is very cute. i dunno if cute was what you were going for but i think it is.
anyway this was interesting to read!
I find that one of my greatest weaknesses is the fear of fighting for the truth knowing that I will have to fight against the opinions of other people