In the Spirit

By Kathleen Holder

Senior Nathan Bennett is a religious studies major but isn’t affiliated with any particular religion. Still, he said he follows his own moral compass. “I feel like I have something that helps me make life decisions based on my own personal understanding of the universe.”

When it comes to identifying religious preferences, more students check “none” than any other box on surveys—30 percent of incoming freshmen in 2001, up from 26 percent in 1976. The proportion of Protestants dropped over the same period from 39 percent to 23 percent, while Catholics remained a steady 24 percent, and other major religions—including Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam—doubled to 22 percent.

Allison Coudert, religious studies professor, said that, even among students who identify with a religion, many have little knowledge of their religion’s tenets. “I think what we’re getting now is a religion that is focused on spirituality,” Coudert said. “Students have a tendency to think of religion as a personal belief system.”

In interviews, some students said faith and prayer guide their daily life. Noon prayer circles are a common sight on the Quad. Others said they identify more with paganism or nature. “I think it is important to give something back and try to be kind to the people around you,” said comparative literature senior Rebecca Miller.

American studies major Daniel Perez, who founded a campus Buddhist organization that in two years has grown to an e-mail list of 250, wrote his senior thesis on the rise of “nonreligious spirituality.”

“I think in high school and college we are really seeking light. It depends on our initial experiences with religion. A lot of people get turned off,” Perez said. “I’m seeing a spiritual thirst in youth, but they don’t follow religion. It’s more spiritual.”

Making a difference

Paying the way

Plays well with others

Helicopter parents

Stressed and depressed

A shift to the left

Beyond black and white

Born to be wired

Where’s my job?

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Kathleen Holder is associate editor of UC Davis Magazine. David Owen and Joanna
Robinson contributed to these stories. Photos by Debbie Aldridge and Rachel Van Blankenship.