“I loved every second of it,” says Sam Kulp of his recent experience in the Nashville music program sponsored by the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities. Kulp spent the entirety of last semester honing his singing and songwriting skills in the “music capital of the world,” as this hub of musical activity is often titled. According to Kulp, the program felt like a mini version of being a real life rock star, from writing songs, to performing with a band, and getting work criticized every week by the head director during what students in the program called “hammer-time.” In the end, that criticism was helpful: “It was really rough, but I wouldn’t have written decent songs without it because your ideas aren’t as good as what could be.”

Since returning from Nashville, Kulp has been hard at work getting his music out for the world to hear. His EP, “Bright Eyes,” is currently available on Bandcamp, iTunes, and Spotify. There’s something there for every kind of music lover, from the sweet, mellow harmonies of “Bright Eyes” to the old school bluesy-rock of “Witness.”

The response has been good so far. On top of support from family and friends, Kulp says, “I have had some people that I don’t know who have messaged me on Facebook from California or Oklahoma or something, like, ‘Hey, I found your stuff, this is really cool,’…It’s a really good feeling.”

When it comes to musical taste, Kulp is all over the map: “I’ll listen to heavy metal or hymns…If I ever made an album, it wouldn’t all be the same; it would be all over the place.” His primary interest, though, leans towards “old school blues,” especially classic artists like Joe Cocker, Led Zeppelin, and Janis Joplin. Those influences started early on. Kulp says, “When I was really young, like six probably, my dad got me my first couple CDs, and it was Pink Floyd and Zeppelin…that’s all I really knew for a while.” By elementary school, Kulp had branched out into choral music, which he stayed involved with all through middle and high school. Some might be surprised to hear “choir” in combination with Pink Floyd, but it’s not a strange combination for Kulp. He says, “I love

the harmonies and everything that choral music brings to the table.”

Kulp’s interest in the blues, rock, and acoustic performance scene was sparked back in junior high, when he and a couple friends started a band. They stuck with it all through high school, packing out coffee shops and other local gigs with their performances.

As for the future, Kulp is eager to make his way back to Nashville, where he hopes to move in with friends he met there last year, and simply enjoy opportunities to play music in the place that’s famous for the thing he loves most. In Nashville, Kulp describes, “You’re surrounded by [music] at all times. It doesn’t matter if you go into a bar or a snow globe shop—there’s live music; it’s weird, but it’s awesome.” And while Nashville is definitely a prime place for a young artist to get gain recognition, Kulp says it’s ultimately not about that: “I would be perfectly fine with being a bartender or a waiter, and playing music when I can in clubs and stuff for the rest of my life. I don’t need to make a lot of money. I just want to play, that’s really all.”

If you’ve ever wished to take a Russian literature course at Eastern, or perhaps even Greek literature, your chance is coming soon, thanks to the newly established Center for Orthodox Thought and Culture. Spearheaded by Dr. Gary Jenkins and a wide support base of Orthodox clergy and academics, the Center will “serve as an intellectual and spiritual home for Orthodox students and scholars.”

For those to whom it may be unfamiliar, the Orthodox faith is a rich, long-standing Christian tradition that traces it roots back to the apostles, beginning with bishops in Antioch, Corinth, and Alexandria. “We think of ourselves as those people who worship as they did; we are centered around the Eucharist and around the bishop,” says Dr. Jenkins. “The Orthodox Church is first and foremost a church at worship, which therefore means a church at prayer…ultimately it is a church that seeks to have its life centered on union with God, union with Christ…We participate by life in him. Where is that life? To us, it’s in the Church, his body.”

The Center was born out of a three-year process initiated by a group of Orthodox academics, which was aimed at the development of an Orthodox college. As the process moved forward, various ideas floated around regarding where the college would be located and what it would look like. Those

ideas solidified into the Center for Orthodox Thought and Culture which now exists as part of the Agora Institute. Through the College of Arts and Sciences, the Center will offer a minor in Orthodox thought, which it hopes to base around a Great Books curriculum. Classes are set to begin next semester, starting with Russian History, Byzantine History, and the Theology and Piety of the Desert Fathers. Orthodox professors will teach all of the classes, which will be open to any Eastern student. Outside of classes there will be several on-campus lectures, one of which will be on the Shroud of Turin.

Dr. Jenkins plans to design a fellowship which would offer students stipends along with duties and responsibilities within the organization. Additionally, the Center hopes to host Vespers and other weekly prayer services on campus on a weekly basis. All services will be open to the public. Finally, the Center hopes to provide study abroad opportunities for Eastern students while simultaneously hosting international Orthodox students on Eastern’s campus.

Support for the Center for Orthodox Thought and Culture stems from sources in the Eastern community and beyond. Local bishops and clergy, Eastern Catholics, Villanova students and professors, and local Greeks, Russians, Syrians,  and Eastern Europeans are only some of the many who have offer their help and support.

Eastern administration, including Dr. Duffett, have been strongly in favor of the establishment of the Center since the idea was proposed a year and a half ago. Communal support shows no signs of slowing; in fact, at least one future fund-raising dinner is already in the works.

As soon as next year, Eastern’s student body could may increase by as many as 20 students who will choose Eastern primarily because of the Center.  In the years to come that number could rise to 30, 40, or even 50 new students per year. Nick Sooy, an Orthodox Christian and student at Messiah College, notes that there is excitement within Orthodox circles at the prospect of this new organization. Speaking of his own college search process a few years ago, Sooy says, “Had the Institute existed, I would have applied to Eastern, and there is a good chance I would have attended.”

The Center is certainly unique; there is currently no program or organization like it in the nation. For many Orthodox believers, this will be an important way to invest in younger members of the Orthodox church. In light of the fact that about sixty percent of young people do not return to the church after attending college, many Orthodox see the Center as an important way to equip youth within a spiritually and academically sound community.

It will not be long before we all start to see this new endeavor taking root. As the Center becomes more firmly established within our community, it promises to bring a new vibrancy to academic and spiritual life. Orthodox or not, it’s safe to say that there is much to look forward to for all of us.

Sources: Eastern.edu

“This is about human life,” said Pa. Senator Robert Casey at the Panel on Climate Change held at Eastern last Friday afternoon. “It’s about the world, and it’s about how we will live, and therefore, of course, it’s also about how we must react.”  The panel, moderated by Casey, met to discuss the call for climate action in light of Pope Francis’ encyclical “Laudato Si” and the Lausanne Movement for World Evangelism’s Cape Town Commitment. It included several distinguished members: Sister Mary Elizabeth Clark from the Sisters of Saint Joseph Earth Center; Gretchen Dahlkemper, field director of Mom’s Clean Air Force; Rev. Mitchell Hescox, president of the Evangelical Environmental Network; Dr. Daniel Scheid from the McAnulty College Department of Theology at Duquesne University; and Eastern’s own Dr. David Unander, professor of biology.

Senator Casey opened the discussion by quoting from the hymn “All Creatures of Our God and King,” which he highlighted as a song that speaks directly to environmental issues. Amidst the hymn’s many reverent images of nature, there is a call to praise. Casey noted that the title of Pope Francis’ encyclical translates “Be Praised” and remarked that “when we think of the earth, we think of something…about which we should express eternal gratitude, for God created it. And of course with that gratitude comes obligation: the obligation to do all we can to confront the challenge of climate change.”

Casey went on to point out some problems that may result from climate change, such as issues with food production, malnutrition, water scarcity, and childhood stunting, among others. Casey then referred to article I, section 27 of the Pennsylvania Constitution, which states, “The people have a right to clean air, pure water, and to the preservation of the natural, scenic, historic, and esthetic values of the environment,” commenting that “we are all bound by that.” With this in mind, Casey pledged to continue doing his part. “I support and have supported the need for a comprehensive climate change plan–” he began, before he was cut off by a spontaneous burst of applause. After the applause died down, he finished, “–because that is our duty.”

Panel members were quick to demonstrate warm support and gratitude for Senator Casey’s work on climate change issues. Rev. Hescox thanked Casey for his support of President Obama’s Clean Power Plan and for  his openness regarding his faith. The standing ovation that immediately followed made the audience’s support quite evident.

The remainder of the conversation focused on the moral imperative to act in response to climate change. Dr. Scheid mentioned that “Laudato Si” focused on the need to approach nature with awe, wonder, and gratitude, while Sister Clark noted current estimates that there are more climate refugees than war refugees, emphasizing that care for our common home is the “highest human right.”  Gretchen Dalhkepmer highlighted the importance of fighting for change on behalf of our children, declaring, “When I stood before God and agreed to be a wife and a mother, I said ‘yes’ to protecting my family with my whole heart, soul, and body. As part of the sacred vow I made on my wedding day, I am called to act on climate change.”

Rev. Hescox summed up the group sentiment well: “We need to have more than transition; we need to make a clean energy revolution.”

Image courtesy of Creative Commons/The Waltonian