Thursday, March 15, 2007
Andrew Stangl sits silently at the front of the room, listening intently to the 25 people who have gathered for the bi-weekly meeting of the Society of Open-Minded Atheists and Agnostics (SOMA). Stangl, Wichita senior, is the president of the club. Besides a brief introduction and a review of upcoming events, Stangl rarely speaks. His reserved temperament matches his simple, conservative clothes and haircut. But don’t be fooled.
Andrew Stangl, right, SOMA president, with fellow group members
“He’s a radical in choir boy’s clothing,” says Paul Scott, assistant professor of French and director of the 2005 study abroad program in France that Stangl participated in. Scott describes Stangl as a lighthearted yet serious person who is never afraid to voice his opinion. Scott says he and Stangl disagree on such issues as abortion but that Stangl is extremely respectful of other people’s opinions while standing firmly behind his own.
“His chief weapon is definitely his tongue,” Scott says.
Stangl joined the group his freshman year, when SOMA held its meetings in a small alcove in the Kansas Union. The group outgrew the area and now meets in the International Room in the Union, and at most meetings every seat is taken. The mood tonight is light and the laughs plentiful. The topic is the Ten Commandments, or, as one member calls them, the “Cliffs Notes” of the Bible.
Besides planning events and scheduling lecturers for SOMA, Stangl must make time for school. This time can be hard to come by, considering his three majors: political science, international studies and French; and one minor, history.
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Atheistic Amendments: Soma’s Ten Commandments
1. Think for yourself
2. Don’t bind yourself to one ideology.
3. Do not invoke a god’s name in war.
4. Relax.
5. Honor your community and the Earth.
6. Do no harm. People are not possessions.
7. Find your own sexuality. Do not be afraid to love.
8. Don’t abuse the notion of personal property to rationalize other people’s poverty. Give.
9. Tell the truth to be trusted.
10. Recognize the shades of gray.
“It’s really just my way of saying I don’t know what to do with my life,” Stangl says.
Although he comes from a religious background, Stangl began to lean toward secular beliefs before he arrived at the University. He attended an Episcopalian church until he was 6 years old and began to think critically about his beliefs in high school. His study of Christianity led to an eventual rejection of it and Stangl says he became an atheist during his senior year of high school.
“I got through about 450 pages of the Bible that I had and stopped,” he says. “I discovered what I was doing was basically creating a religion based upon what I wanted to believe.”
SOMA’s name alone intrigued Stangl at first and the group soon provided him with a circle of friends that he remains close with today. He even met his fiancée through the group. He says these close bonds help he and the group remain steadfast in their mission to serve the community of secular students on campus.
According to the University’s Student Organizations Web site, there are 44 registered religious groups on campus. SOMA, however, is the only secular group.
Stangl says his group not only serves as a network for secular students but also as an outreach program that benefits the community.
SOMA’s major fundraiser, “Soul Auction,” benefits the Douglas County AIDS Project. After an audience bids on the “souls” of participants, the participants must perform pre-determined activities for the highest bidders. These activities include anything from manual labor to going out on a date. Half of the profits go to the AIDS Project while the other half goes to SOMA.
Another event, “Ask an Atheist,” is scheduled for early May. A panel of three atheistic students will answer questions from the audience in an attempt to educate people about atheism and agnosticism.
Stangl also worked to bring Michael Newdow, a lawyer who challenged the use of “Under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance in court, to campus. Newdow spoke at the University on March 13.
Efforts such as this show Stangl’s devotion to the group, says Laney Albritten, Cunningham senior and SOMA secretary.
“He’s overall just a really encouraging, motivational, organized leader,” she says. “Since he’s been president, SOMA has only gotten stronger.”
Stangl will step down as president when SOMA holds its officer elections in April. He will return to the University for a fifth year and says he plans to stay involved with the group.
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