The Randolph-Macon College community recently worked together on a project inspired by a historical event.

Students, faculty and staff collaborated with Harrison Higgins, a woodcarver and Episcopal Deacon, who transformed ordinary wood into a working door in just three days. The “This I Believe” event was inspired by Martin Luther’s 95 theses, which he nailed to a door five hundred and one years ago.

A Beauty Revealed
Higgins, who has made a lifelong vocation of building furniture, says, “I am guided in my work through the belief that there is a beauty revealed when we treat creation as more than a resource. It is also a sacrament.”

From October 29-31, 2018, Higgins and members of the RMC community created the special door. Together they planed the wood smooth, then sawed and pieced together a frame.
Higgins added an inscription, “This I Believe,” to the door, and community members wrote cards proclaiming what they believe and what they feel needs to be said in today’s world. Participants then nailed their cards to the door.

Intentional and Meaningful
RMC Chaplain Kendra Grimes, who organized the event, says that, just as Martin Luther’s world was changing, many people would argue that today’s world is changing.

“As faculty, staff, and students reflected on the needs and realities of our time in history, they wrote statements of conviction that guide them as they seek to influence the campus, community, and world for good,” she says. “The creation of the door was a slow and intentional process.”

Ashley Harrison ’19, a psychology and religious studies major, says, “It was incredible to be a part of this. I watched the process unfold in front of me, and Harrison let me help build the door. I hope the door inspires much-needed change in the world.”

Reflection
Resources for reflection were provided by community members. RMC History Professor Anne Throckmorton shared a paper she had written that puts Luther’s work into historic context; Catholic Campus Ministries leader Rich Girardin shared his paper, Five Pillars of the Reformation; and Grimes created four pages with readings and reflections from a number of faith and cultural traditions on themes related to the project: Doors, Hammer and Nails, Flaws, and Carpenters.

Changing the World
“Conversation around the event was deep and meaningful,” says Grimes. “Participants tackled challenging topics, including the anti-Semitism of Luther’s later years, and affirmed the urgency of naming and speaking up about such details.”

Grimes says that, in keeping with RMC’s mission to develop the mind and character of each student, this event went a long way in helping the community pause, reflect and commit to being strong leaders. “We reminded everyone that writing words on a paper and nailing it to a door won’t change the world. Living what we believe will change the world,” she says.

Higgins, a deacon at St. James the Less Episcopal Church in Ashland and advisor to RMC’s Student Fellowship group, led the closing gathering for the event with personal words. “Your generation has a lot of work to do,” he told students. “If there’s anything I can do to help, I’m here for you.”

The door is on display in Brock Commons for those who would like to see it or add their own “This I Believe” statement.