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Philosphy instructor attempts balance with beliefs, religion
The Advocate
When philosophy and religion instructor Andy Gurevich was told he’d won the MHCC Outstanding Part-Time Faculty Award this past summer, he didn’t even have time to change his clothes.
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“I’d actually left for the day,” Gurevich recalled. “I had been working outside when they called me and told me to come back for the board meeting to get presented my award. So I came to the meeting looking like a homeless person, and spent most of the time whispering under my breath to board members and President Ski (John Sygielski) that this wasn’t how I normally dressed.”
Taking a seat in the social sciences hall – and wearing more appropriate dress – Gurevich said only one thing to the question, “Why philosophy and religion?”
“Whew,” Gurevich breathed. “That’s a loaded one.”
Gurevich was hired at Mt. Hood Community College six years ago to teach writing.
“A job opened to teach world religion and I jumped on the opportunity because that’s my background,” said Gurevich. “When I was younger I had studied to become a pastor. I came from a rather bizarre family – or perhaps not much more bizarre than anyone else’s — but still I felt that I didn’t have a sense of closeness or anyone to really rely on.
“In my early 20s, I became devoutly religious, perhaps to put a stop to the pain of my childhood,” he said. “I felt like I wanted to give my life some sense of purpose, and the church was a place where I could get everything I’d been lacking. I was right-wing, conservative, very Christian; almost immediately after I became so religious, though, I found myself interested in transcendence and other things that aren’t necessarily ‘accepted’ in Christianity.”
Gurevich said he learned early in his Christian experience that it wasn’t going to work out.
“I’d spent years of my life doing this, and then I started looking at things that I personally believed, and looked at things the church believed, and started to realize we didn’t have anything in common,” said Gurevich. “It was like a relationship that starts to die. I started to realize that I would never champion any one religion, because it would be more difficult to keep my mind open to other things, and I didn’t want to close myself off.”
A multi-labeled and open-minded course, such as philosophy and world religion, was the answer, Gurevich said.
“I had all this religious background, but never wanted to ‘do’ just one religion,” said Gurevich.
“At the base of philosophy, we want to figure out how things work. Not just some things, but all things. A lot of people are here at MHCC to do vocational things, like engineering or teaching or business, but I like to think we all want to think more deeply and clearly.”
After years of a Christian life, Gurevich no longer considers himself “religious.”
“I would consider myself spiritual,” said Gurevich. “I don’t mean it in the cliché sense that a lot of people use these days. I just don’t practice any one religion. I’m filled with awe and wonder at the cosmos on a regular basis. I’m filled with awe at my fellow man, and fellow organisms. I look at teaching as a very spiritual act in itself. I participate in helping people bring their goals to life, so I’m religious in that sense.”
Gurevich mentioned Richard Dawkins, the famous atheist writer, who said the universe has created organisms capable of studying the universe. And in that sense, Gurevich said, “The universe itself is becoming self aware.”
“I pull from religious texts as I see fit, thematically,” said Gurevich. “So there are still several aspects of Christianity that I like, even though I’ve denounced my faith.”
On a nearly daily basis, Gurevich follows a trio of ideas he adopted from The Buddha, he said.
“People need a teacher, something to be taught or believe in, and a community from which to grow,” said Gurevich. “This is why I love my job here; being a teacher allows me to participate in all of those things. I see myself seeking out sacred activities and continuing to be around people that challenge me.”
So, is there no turning back? To any other religions?
“I’ll probably end up in some sort of Zen meditation group somewhere along the line, something formalized like that,” said Gurevich. “But I seriously doubt I’ll ever become a Mormon or a Catholic or anything like that.”
For now, Gurevich says he’ll have to stick with his reputation as a person who will, on occasion, say things that might insult people — or at the very least, be very controversial.
“I’ve developed this reputation,” said Gurevich. “I don’t want to make students feel attacked or marginalized, that’s not what I’m trying to do. What I’m trying to do is jar the conscience. I want to put students in a position where they want to learn, and I find the best way to do that is to get people going.”
For instance, to kick off Wednesday’s “Infinity” discussion forum, Gurevich told the audience a tale from last spring’s philosophy and world religion class. He said a student came into his final exam looking beat, and Gurevich asked him why he was so tired. The student said he’d been studying all night for two other finals he was taking the same day, including calculus. Gurevich asked which he studied the least for, and the student confessed – it was philosophy and world religion.
Gurevich said the student chuckled and told him it was funny that he’d study the most for just one subject – math – and hardly study for a vague subject having to do with literally everything, like philosophy and religion.
“I know why,” Gurevich said. “It’s because calculus actually exists; God doesn’t.”
Gurevich said when he told that story to the “Infinity” crowd, he got the usual reaction of several students being taken aback, and probably insulted.
“But,” said Gurevich, “I’ve always been able to explain myself in a way where students know what I’m trying to do. I want to engage them.”
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