Know Where You Stand

Religion at Milton Hershey School
An Editorial by Laura L. Gamari


“Last year, I told some girls in my student home what I believed in. They forced me into the living room and were trying to explain to me why I should believe what they believe (Christianity). They literally called my religion “stupid” and turned my serious beliefs into a joke.”
– S, Wiccan

“The school doesn’t really seem to care about other people’s faith. The school will not provide transportation to Jewish students for Temple so that they can expand their religious faith. The school only serves to the Christian community. I feel that, for our student body, diversity of faith is important.” –J, Christian

“My old Houseparents made me place a Bible on my headboard, so I placed a copy of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. I received 10 days of detention. They made me take down song lyrics I had on my tack-board (Don McLean’s “American Pie”, where the lyrics went: “No angel born in Hell/could break that Satan’s spell”). So I put up a lyric from Slayer's "Jesus Saves" (" For all respect you cannot lust/in an invisible man you place your trust"). I received 20 days of detention. I received 3 hours of chores for objecting to Pastor Mike’s explanation of Euthanasia as “killing someone you don’t think should live anymore.” Most recently, I confronted the school about starting a Gay/Straight Alliance – which is common in schools across America – but was denied even consideration based on the Judeo-Christian values of the school. So, do I feel there is religious intolerance at MHS? Yeah, you could say that.”
- Anonymous, Atheist
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Is Milton Hershey School intolerant, and even oppressive, when it comes to matters of religion? Whenever the topic of faith is allowed to be broached, the situation can easily transform from a discussion into a riot. The purpose of this editorial is to explore, from the perspective of various members of the MHS community, the issue of religion for Senior Hall students.

While Christianity is, by far, the most common standing on religion at Milton Hershey School, it is not the only one. Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Jainists, Wiccans, and Atheists walk the halls and vacuum the service porch along with everybody else. Yet at MHS, any inquiry about recognizing beliefs, other than Christianity, is usually answered by Houseparents and Administration alike with: “Milton and Catherine Hershey were Christians, and so our school is established on their faith.”

While students may cringe about this: the adults are right. (Kind of.)

The Hershey Archives (www.hersheyarchives.org) explains, “Both the Hershey and Snavely families were originally Mennonite.” However, “though Milton's mother was a staunch member of the Reformed Mennonite Church…formal religion was never a part of Milton Hershey's life. When he was asked once what his religion was, he is said to have replied, "The Golden Rule." The Golden Rule, of course, is “Do unto others, as you would have them do unto you.” So important was this rule to Milton Hershey, that is hangs in every student home on campus. Religious Tolerance.org (www.religioustolerance.org) lists 21 world religions that have a version of The Golden Rule in their faith.

With that in mind, did Milton Hershey want his school to teach one religion, or the tolerance of other’s choices? An answer may be found, written in Hershey’s own words, in the very document that established MHS - the Deed of Trust. Article 17 of the Deed of Trust, which is on the MHS Intranet (http://intranet.apps.mhs-pa.org), states:

“The School shall be non-sectarian, but the moral and religious training of the scholars shall be properly looked after and cared for by the Managers. No favoritism shall be shown; by the Managers to any particular sect or creed. Each scholar shall be taught to speak the truth at all times, and each and every scholar shall be thoroughly trained to habits of economy, and industry.”

But, what is non-sectarian? A literal definition from Merriam Webster Dictionary defines non-sectarian as: “Not affiliated with or restricted to a particular religious group.” So, shouldn’t that mean that students are free to practice or believe anything they are inclined to? According to the “Statement of Religion,” policy 5.04, (this can be found by searching the word “Religion” on the MHS Intranet) the answer is “No”. The Policy states that:

“It is our interpretation that "nonsectarian", within the context of 1909 and the writing of the Trust and, in keeping with our heritage, we will not permit exclusion of students of other denominations, sects, or creeds. It is a right in the United States to hold to a particular belief system, according to the U.S. Constitution. The same is true at Deed of Trust, means to be "non-denominational" within the Judeo-Christian heritage.”

The school has, indeed, made attempts to accommodate more worldly views in our community. Students are not screened for their religious affiliation upon enrollment and there have not been any reported cases of a student being terminated based on their religious affiliation. Judeo-Christian does not mean “Christianity”, but actually having historical roots in both Judaism and Christianity. In fact, Policy 5.04 continues to declare:

“We also believe that it is essential to demonstrate respect for others' beliefs and traditions as stated in the Deed Milton Hershey School, as long as that belief system does not cause physical or emotional harm to the student or others. Therefore, to the extent that we are reasonably able, we will continue to be supportive of the religious needs of all students.”

The issue is not truly that Milton Hershey School is intolerant of non-Christian beliefs, but that there is little follow-through or support for more open-minded and tolerant action. Under the L- Administration, the school attempted to be more ecumenical. Chaplin S would quote from the Torah and Koran along with the Bible in Chapel, as well as touch on Hindu prayers and Buddhist rituals (In 2003, Chaplin S left and was replaced by Pastor W). The effort to have the Torah and the Koran next to the Bible in student homes has been made, though seldom enforced by Houseparents.

 A World Religions class is available for the 10th and 12th grades. Yet, students have reviewed this class as “highly biased” and “a class where you’ll learn the name of a religion, why it’s wrong, and how to convert its followers to Christianity.” C expressed, “Even though my religion, Jehovah’s Witness, is under the Christian umbrella – my beliefs were still discriminated against and joked about in the class.” S said, “I have not yet attended World Religions class, but I’ve been informed that it is a stereotypical representation of each religion and is extremely demeaning to other religions except Christianity.”

As the opening statements to this editorial suggest, discrete, scarring and tragically unnecessary forms of intolerance and “intervention” occur behind closed doors. An anonymous student recalled, “I’ve been in student homes where the Houseparents encouraged the others to talk to me about God. I kind of believed in God at the time, but Christianity just seemed twisted to me. Well, they would start reading Bible passages out loud whenever I was in the room, or tell me they would pray for me, or that I was going to hell. I felt pressured to conform and the Houseparents demanded that I bow my head and close my eyes whenever we prayed. I tried very hard to appease them and at least be respectful, but I never received that respect back from them. It’s a mind game, really, but no one really understands or cares until it happens to them. The worst of it is - this was only 5th grade. Why is that okay?”

Whether the school is right or wrong about their stance on religion, it’s not up to us to decide. All we, as students, can do is stick to our own personal beliefs and practice tolerance with everybody else. “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” – The Golden Rule – it is at the heart of tolerance.



Luke 6:37 Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven

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DEED OF TRUST