A crowd gathered in front of the Student Center on Monday afternoon to protest a religious man proclaiming the falsehoods of science.
The man, Stanly John, had students crowded around while holding a double-sided poster with one side reading, “Those who reject the Lord Jesus do so because of sin, not true science or evidence,” and on the other side, “Macroevolution and abiogenesis are fake science. Why reject God as creator?”
One student took the protest into his own hands. Illustration animation major Rayne Eloy Trujillo took his shirt off and wrote, “Change now,” across his body and laid in front of John, saying he would not get back up until John had left.
John also handed out small brochures to students that asked the question, “Does truth matter?” The brochure included an outline of why John was there and various quotes from the Bible.
Most students took the brochures and ripped them apart. A few students, such as senior French translation major with a linguistics minor Kelly Drislane took the brochure and walked away.
“Even if I don’t agree with him and what he stands for, I still think he has the right to speak his mind on a public campus,” Drislane said. “By talking to him and taking one of his pamphlets, I can learn from him and why he is wrong instead of just sitting there and yelling at him.”
Some students gather around Stanly John, who came to campus to preach about the Bible, and protest him being on campus.
Anthony Gabbianelli | The Montclarion
Montclair State University is a public campus, meaning outside organizations, like the Bible Believers last semester, have to register to come on to campus.
The registration goes through several people, including the dean of students, before they are allowed to preach on campus property.
Many of the students at the protest felt John and the Bible Believers were in connection with one another. However, John says he was not linked to any prior protesters.
Rayne Eloy Trujillo protests Stanly John, who came to campus to preach about the Bible.
Rebecca Serviss | The Montclarion Photo credit: Rebecca Serviss
“I came to campus to let the students know that there is a God, and this God came in the person of Jesus Christ to pay for our sins,” John said. “Otherwise, there would be a judgement after our death.”
