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Belmont University’s new hire signals ramped-up support for Jewish students. Other Christian universities are also increasingly embracing students of other faiths. Belmont University in Tennessee, which proudly describes itself as a “Christ-centered” institution, has diligently been building bridges with Nashville’s small Jewish community. In a further attempt to strengthen those ties, the university just hired a rabbi.

Publicly funded Christian colleges and universities across the U. S. have long exploited a legal loophole to control and discriminate against LGBTQ+ students with impunity— inflicting financial pain and emotional trauma in the process. Now there’s a new battle brewing over this warped version of religious freedom.

The university ended a requirement that all students sign faith statements. Other Christian campuses are also taking measures to broaden their reach. Multnomah University, a Christian institution in Oregon, announced it will no longer require incoming students to sign a faith statement starting this fall. The university’s leaders hope the move inspires prospective students who aren’t Christian but are perhaps curious about the faith to attend.

Houghton University is the latest example of a small religious institution struggling to acknowledge LGBTQ+ students’ presence on campus while also hewing to church doctrine.

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