Religion, Justice, and Inclusion
Christian student org at Iowa forges its own path
When Marcus Miller (right) began his education at Iowa, he sought to join a student organization that aligned with his Christian beliefs and dedicated itself to helping the community. As he quickly discovered, there are many religious student organizations at the University of Iowa. Announcements for groups affiliated with Islam, Judaism, Christianity, and several other religions can be found across campus.
Marcus struggled to find his place among these organizations. A few groups believed he could not properly represent their values because of how he identifies. Marcus wanted to take a leadership role at the University, combining his faith and his passion for social justice to drive change. Unfortunately, two different groups were not willing to follow him because of his sexual orientation.
Breaking New Ground
Marcus discovered the need for a non-denominational, all-inclusive Christian organization on campus. In the face of discrimination, Marcus saw an opportunity. In late 2016, he founded Love Works, an organization at the intersection of religion, justice, and inclusion. Marcus explains:
I founded Love Works because I saw a gap between non-denominational Christian groups and LGBTQ friendly spaces within those. My experience of coming out and feeling misunderstood helped me realize that there are probably many other folks who feel similarly in more theologically conservative faith communities. And it isn’t just LGBTQ folks — it could be folks who feel like religion has become too anti-science, or folks who are frustrated with the patriarchal undertones present in many faith communities. Whatever the reason may be, I wanted to create a place where people could embrace their identities and their questions rather than feel ashamed.
Marcus describes Love Works as “an inclusive campus ministry dedicated [to] providing a safe place for everyone to talk about social justice, faith, and other topics going on in the world around us.” Love Works is open to all students and community members, regardless of how they identify. The group even has some non-religious members, a very uncommon characteristic for the average religious student group.
Love Works in Iowa City
For Love Works, “justice” is more than just a word in their mission statement. Each month, Love Works members volunteer in the Iowa City community to uphold justice through serving others. Last November, they collected over 500 pounds of donations for the Food Pantry at Iowa. They also frequently volunteer at the local Ronald McDonald House on Sunday afternoons. At the Ronald McDonald House, Love Works members organize food pantry items, mop, dust, vacuum, and bake desserts for families staying at the house.
As they continue serving the Iowa City community, Love Works hopes to prove that faith and social justice can and should go hand in hand. They also want to provide a space for people to wrestle with the challenges of their faith and develop their personal philosophies without fear of judgement.
Love Works meets every Sunday at 7 pm in the Old Capitol Room (formerly the Minnesota Room) in the Iowa Memorial Union. For more information on upcoming meetings and volunteer opportunities, follow Love Works on ActWorthy!
Are you an activist doing amazing work in Iowa? We want to show it off! Email me at alexandria@actworthy.org if you’d like to be profiled on ActWorthy’s social media. #WorthyWednesday
