Letters: July 2, 1997
Gay Ceremony in the Chapel
I was shocked and saddened to read in the May 7 On the Campus about the same-sex "marriage" performed on April 26 by the Reverend Sue Ann Steffey Morrow, the associate dean of religious life and of the Chapel.
As far as I know, such a marriage is not recognized or approved by any major religion or by law in any state. One newspaper reported that the two gay men are atheists, yet Morrow celebrated their union in a Christian ceremony in the Chapel, after clearing her decision with senior members of the administration. Joseph C. Williamson, the dean of religious life and of the Chapel, said that Morrow performed the ceremony in her private capacity, but she herself was quoted saying, "Because I officiated, we believe they are married and their marriage is recognized by the community, the Chapel, the church, and God. They are registered in the Chapel's marriage registry."
Arch Fletcher '38
Duarte, Calif.
Sue Anne Steffey Morrow's decision to "marry" two males is foolish and arrogant, and she should be called to account by both the administration and alumni.
Americans overwhelmingly reject the idea of homosexual marriage. Marriage is the fundamental institution to hold civilized society together. It's good for children to have a father and a mother who love each other and who will love and protect them and teach them what it means to be a man and a woman.
Ms. Morrow sneers at the religious beliefs that the Chapel was built to support and accommodate. She sneers at countless students and alumni who consider the Chapel to be a spiritual home. She sneers at those who support the university with their hard-earned dollars. She ought to resign, and the university should apologize to its students and alumni for allowing the Chapel to be abused in this manner.
Elizabeth Stevenson Green '84
Lebanon, N.H.
Two individuals in opposition to the tenets of any religion were married in the university's primary house of worship by one of the university's Christian chaplains, who declared the act to have religious significance.
Did this act mock Christianity? No major Christian religion has sanctioned homosexual marriages or Christian marriages between atheists, and certainly not Christian marriages between homosexual atheists.
In particular, did it mock the authority and order of the Methodist faith, in which Sue Anne Steffey Morrow has been ordained? Methodists disapprove of homosexual unions.
Did it demean other denominations that worship there? In the same Chapel resides the Roman Catholic blessed sacrament. For reverent Catholics, a marriage of homosexual atheists near the sacrament is a sacrilege.
Did it result in the university's participation in an immense hypocrisy? Why should two atheistic homosexuals wish for their union to be "blessed" by a God they do not believe in, and by an ordained minister of that God, in a sacred house of that God, imbued with all God's symbols of faith and doctrine?
Did it betray the trust and faith of those who have contributed to the Chapel and support it as a house of worship?
Did it manipulate the reputation and prestige of the university to the service of an activist segment of the community seeking to legitimize its controversial behavior in the eyes of society?
Did it place the university as an institution far apart from the larger university community and society?
One newspaper quoted Morrow saying she expected to conduct similar ceremonies in the future. Did the act foretell a campaign to subvert or denigrate the beliefs and traditions of the religiously minded on campus?
Most members of the university community would understand, and some would even support, the marriage of two homosexual atheists in a solemn secular setting such as Prospect House or the Faculty Room of Nassau Hall by a chaplain who had undertaken their pastoral care. But a marriage by a Christian minister of two men opposed to any religion, in the most symbolically religious place on campus, trivializes the sacred.
Princeton's goal of inclusiveness is laudable, but the university exercises a double standard. A marriage of homosexual atheists in its house of worship offends the sensitivities of many religiously faithful and negates the spirit of inclusiveness. Most troubling is an apparent institutional compulsion to force the acceptance of behaviors and lifestyles onto those who oppose them for legitimate religious reasons. Princeton is in the midst of a campaign to raise $750 million, but what philosophy is it asking us to support?
Thomas A. Pyle '76
Princeton, N.J.
Sue Anne Steffey Morrow has soiled the sacred work of Princeton's Christian founders and its long line of faithful Chapel deans. I give thanks that my friend, Robert Russell Wicks, the first dean of the Chapel (1928-47), is not here to suffer this hurt.
When the Light no longer is given first place, we are assured that God will remove the lampstand (Rev. 2:4), to the great misfortune of those who then must stumble in darkness.
R. H. Van Fossen, Jr. '63
Decorah, Iowa
Tolerance is a two-way street. I subscribe to the theory that my beliefs are not necessarily right and should not be imposed on others, and I am entitled to the same respect that I give. In this particular case, my association with Princeton as an alumnus forces me to support and condone an act that is illegal and contrary to community standards. The trustees and administrators who approved this act of intolerance should give long and prayerful thought to their actions and the effect that it will have on the future of Princeton.
Carson C. Peck, Jr. '46
Deerfield, Ill.
The use of the Chapel for a same-sex "marriage" shows contempt for God's word, Princeton's honor, and the law of the land. The sanctioning of this mockery of marriage is in direct opposition to God, who in both the Old and New Testaments condemns the practice of homosexuality.
I urge President Shapiro to repudiate Dean Morrow's action and to remove her from authority. He should use his leadership to restrain such immoral and illegal activity.
William R. MacIlvaine '52
Naples, Fla.
I fault PAW for publicizing this regrettable event, and Sue Anne Steffey Morrow for aiding and abetting in a Christian chapel a circumstance the Bible labels an abomination.
John D. Swan '37
Phoenix, Ariz.
Although I have been proud of much of the trend-setting to which Princeton can lay claim, this event and PAW's in-your-face reporting of it are shameful and embarrassing.
George Griggs '59
West Yellowstone, Mont.
The good Reverend John Witherspoon must be doing 350 r.p.m in his grave.
T. James Binder '77
Woodbridge, Va.
This marriage of two homosexuals betrays the sanctity of the Chapel, the views of James Madison 1771 on religious freedom, and the deaths of sailors commemorated by the battle flag of the U.S.S. Princeton, which hangs in the Chapel.
Henry R. Whitehouse '54
New York, N.Y.
Regarding the predictable anger of alumni over the wedding ceremony of two homosexuals: Shouldn't we practice some of the Christian charity we profess? Perhaps the decision of these atheists to marry in the Chapel wasn't meant to insult religion or marriage, but expressed their need for spiritual as well as temporal support. Isn't imitation the sincerest form of flattery? What if this ritual that beautiful sanctuary were to inspire them, in time, to find religion?
Paul D. Spagnoli, Jr. '46
Plainsboro, N.J.
I wonder why the report on the marriage of Michael Beer *95 and Jason Rudy '97 wasn't an article unto itself instead of a lead-in to a lengthier story on the prankish elopement of two undergraduates.
The same-sex wedding was traditional and out in the open, the capstone of a long-term relationship-a parent's dream; the heterosexual wedding was a whim, a secret, even camp (their honeymoon at a mall?)-a parent's nightmare. But PAW didn't address this irony. Why devote most of the article to a wedding that may have been just a stunt and only part of the article to an event that challenges our assumptions about the institutions of marriage, the Chapel, and Princeton?
Princeton has always been a closeted place, where gay life thrives in basements. The Princeton Alumni Weekly reflects that tradition with its scarcity of articles related to gay issues; an in-depth story would have been a golden opportunity for PAW to come out of the closet.
Bill Oliver '90
New York, N.Y.
Congratulations to Michael Beer and Jason Rudy for getting married. Congratulations also to the Chapel office for allowing the ceremony and to PAW for reporting on it with dignity.
Edward C. Rybka '75
Los Angeles, Calif.
I am writing in my capacity as dean of religious life and of the Chapel to clarify some misleading news coverage and to reply to some of the questions alumni have been asking about the ceremony in the Chapel in which two gay men (a graduating senior and an alumnus) expressed their commitment to a life-long partnership with each other.
The university is committed to a nondiscriminatory policy of equal access to its facilities. This commitment includes the gay and lesbian community on campus, and it includes the Chapel as well as other university facilities.
Strictly speaking, no weddings or services of commitment in the Chapel are official university events. They are private and personal in character, in some cases deriving sanction from the denominational affiliation of the officiating clergy. In this case, the associate dean of the Chapel participated, but in a personal capacity, not as a representative of the university.
It is clear that while this ceremony held deep meaning for those who participated, it was not sanctioned by the State of New Jersey or by any ecclesiastical organization. Since it was not a marriage sanctioned by law or any church, we have appended a note to this effect in the Chapel's register of marriages, and we will only record sanctioned marriages in the register in the future.
Some have asked why a ceremony without religious sanction would take place in the Chapel. The two men who requested the use of the Chapel for this service wanted to exchange their solemn vows to each other in a solemn place. We intend for the Chapel to be an inclusive and transcendent environment, open to all who respond to its majesty. Just a few weeks before this ceremony, there took place in the Chapel a memorial service for a distinguished professor in which there were no clergy, no prayers, and no reading of sacred texts. It was not a religious service. That service attracted some 600 people. The service of commitment for the two young men involved roughly 100 family members and friends.
I sincerely hope that the Chapel will continue to be a welcoming place to all members of our community. Our God is a universal God, and all persons are included in God's care.
Joseph C. Williamson
Dean of Religious Life and of the Chapel
Princeton, N.J.
David Duchovny '82
I was doubly dismayed by the article about David Duchovny '82 (paw, May 7).
First, the article was built around recollections about Mr. Duchovny from people who clearly have had no contact with him in years. Second, we are told that Mr. Duchovny did not wish to be interviewed, thereby implying that he did not wish there to be an article at all. I would have thought that PAW could be expected to honor the privacy of alumni. Now Mr. Duchovny has been put at a disadvantage, for there will be those who will criticize him for not cooperating with you.
Incidentally, I note with amusement that Maria DiBattista now has at least two advisees who have gone on to Yale for Ph.D.s in English, only to find fortune on television. In addition to Duchovny, Professor DiBattista also advised Ed Schiffer '80, who was later a five-time champion on Jeopardy.
Terry Vance '77
Westport, Conn.
David Duchovny did not agree to an interview with PAW, so for nostalgic anecdotes and worthless speculation, the writer relied on a former roommate of Duchovny's who hasn't had contact with him for years, a dinner partner from more than 15 years ago, and Duchovny's thesis adviser. For direct quotes from Duchovny himself, we see references from Playboy and TV Guide. What drivel.
Casey Maphet '83
Stowe, Vt.
Fred Fox '39
What a marvelous piece by Scott Berg '71 on Fred Fox '39 in your May 7 issue! Everyone who knew him has a Fred Fox story. Mine begins in 1939, when Nick Katzenbach '43 and I, having just graduated from Exeter, headed for France on a bicycle trip to spend the money we'd made running the school newspaper. On the Cunard liner was Fred and some Triangle pals who had just graduated from Princeton. We thought they were terrific guys, and they confirmed our view that Princeton was going to be a great experience. I didn't really see Fred again until 1980, when I became an alumni trustee. Fred remembered all the details of that ocean voyage 40 years earlier and the next day presented me with the menu for the third-class gala dinner on board that ship. All his life he collected, in memory and in fact, the minutiae and stories that make life fun and adventurous, and he gave that to all who knew him.
Ward Chamberlin '43
Westport, Mass.
Palmer Concrete
Charles W. McCutcheon '50 asks how Palmer Stadium was condemned after 88 years of use, while the Pantheon-made from the same material, concrete-still stands after 1,870 years (Letters, May 7). The answer lies in the way the concrete is put to work in each structure. In constructing the Pantheon, Roman engineers stacked the concrete like building blocks upon itself. As long as no lateral force such an earthquake shakes the blocks, the structure will endure indefinitely. In the case of Palmer Stadium, the designers used concrete to span voids, bridging them with concrete beams. Concrete alone is good for stacking but poor for bridging, unless it is reinforced with steel. But steel rusts, and in doing so it expands with a subtle but enormous force. There is no reinforcing steel in the Pantheon but lots of it in Palmer Stadium, and over time it destroyed the concrete. Ironically, in the course of rusting, Palmer's reinforcing steel undermined the very structural stability it was meant to provide.
Rocky Semmes '79
Alexandria, Va.
A Modest Proposal
Hail to another fine season for the men's basketball team! This year, as in some previous seasons, we were just one shot away from victory in the first-round NCAA game. Perhaps an edge is missing due to the team's having been idle for 10 days before the tournament, while our opponents-having just won a league title or at-large bid-are physically and emotionally at their peak.
The exception was 1996's first-round win over UCLA, which occurred after the Tigers' overtime playoff win against Penn the week before. Maybe that's why they could pull off that winning backdoor play. I'm not suggesting a pre-NCAA Ivy tournament, which would trvialize the season. But why not suspend league play for a week in midseason to allow more intersectional play, thus pushing forward the final week of the Ivy season and avoiding the 10-day layoff? That's what the Pac 10 and Big 10 do.
Hamilton W. Meserve '59
Amenia, N.Y.
Legacy Admits
With respect to your May 7 Notebook article on this year's admissions, please advise what percentage of the applications of alumni children the dean of admission accepted.
William C. McCoy '45
Chagrin Falls, Ohio
Editor's note: The dean did not return our calls requesting this information for 1997. In the years 1993-96, the admission office accepted between 38 percent and 47 percent of legacy applicants, compared to overall admission rates ranging between 12 percent and 15 percent. Over this same period, legacies represented 3 percent of total applicants and 12 percent of matriculants.
Outdoor Action
Since its inception in 1974, more than 20,000 students have participated in Outdoor Action, and more than half of all first-year students take part in the OA freshman trip. Last fall, OA joined with the Princeton Blairstown Center and has expanded its mission to include experiential education programs for urban youths.
As OA approaches its 25th anniversary in 1999, we are seeking interested alumni to serve as members of the Friends of Outdoor Action Alumni Board. Those interested should contact Rick Curtis '79, the director of OA, at 609-258-3552.
John A. Brown '69
Cochair, Friends of Outdoor Action
Princeton, N.J.
It's All Relative
In your May 7 Notebook article about the appointment of Joseph Taylor as dean of the faculty, you mention as one of his credentials "his work with binary pulsars . . . [which] has provided experimental confirmation of Einstein's general theory of relativity." However, in the same issue, your obituary for Professor Robert Dicke '39 notes "his theoretical work challenging Einstein's general theory of relativity." It seems confusing to heap praise on one faculty member for confirming Einstein's theory while in the same issue giving equal praise to another for questioning that theory. Perhaps physics really is a black art and not a science.
K. L. Campbell '46
Hudson, Ohio
From the Archives
The April 2 From the Archives shows one of the skits we put on several times each fall for party weekends at Prospect Club. I am the "bwana" on the left, but I'm not sure who the others are.
Bruce T. Buell '53
Colorado Springs, Colo.
The members of the Class of 1895 pictured in your March 5 From the Archives appear to be recreating in front of the John C. Green School of Science. This substantial structure was located at the corner of Nassau Street and Washington Road until it burned in 1928.
Sean Sawyer '88
New York, N.Y.
Class Notes
Tanya Kazanjian '78 states that she is "horrified to learn that Class Notes is now on PAW's Website and can be widely accessed" (Letters, May 7). I am certain that PAW does not have the readership of a supermarket tabloid, but I am also sure that it is probably read by others who live beyond the shadow of Nassau Hall. With that in mind, pray tell what dark and unspeakable things are confessed to a class secretary which, if put on PAW's Website, would cause tigresses to swoon and their peers to blush and titter at the revelation of such indiscretions? The burdens of a class secretary must be formidable.
After reading Ms. Kazanjian's letter, in all probability, those who have only scanned Class Notes will now read them with more critical eyes to see what juicy morsels they have been missing all these years.
Lewis W. Hicks III '50
Lawrenceville, N.J.
For the Record
With two exceptions, your May 7 Notebook story titled "Poll Ranks Princeton Second Overall" accurately reflects findings in my book, coauthored with Nancy Diamond, The Rise of American Research Universities (Johns Hopkins University Press).
First, there is no poll in the book. As you note in the story, our study relied exclusively on objective measures of research achievement by university scientists and scholars. Unlike most comparisons of colleges and universities, ours excluded all polls and reputational data.
Second, the last sentence in the story, about Yale's being ranked fifth, is incorrect. In the book's final rankings, Yale was tied for third with the University of Chicago and Harvard. I am a 1958 graduate of Yale, and it is bad enough to admit that Princeton outranks it-no need to make matters worse.
Hugh Davis Graham
Professor of history, Vanderbilt University
Nashville, Tenn.
I always enjoy the "vintage" class notes about early Princetonians, but your June 4 item on Robert Field Stockton 1813 contained an error. He was, indeed, the child of Richard and Mary Stockton, but that particular Richard Stockton was not one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. The signer was actually Robert Field Stockton's grandfather, who was born in 1730 and died in Princeton in 1781, after his health had deteriorated during his period of imprisonment by the British.
Virginia Finnie
Princeton, N.J.
I appreciate your June 4 review of my book Helping Your Child Start School, but am concerned that you nearly doubled its price, which for the paperback is $10.95.
Bernard Ryan, Jr. '46
Southbury, Conn.
This is PAW's last issue for the 1996-97 publishing year. We'll be back in September. Have a great summer.
The Editors