The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ Institute of Religion is an underrated campus resource.
The Institute of Religion at the University of Utah Building (Courtesy of the Institute of Religion at the University of Utah)
Many University of Utah students go about their days not knowing about the incredible resource that is the Institute of Religion.
The Institute is an undervalued resource that more students must check out.
What is the Institute?
The Institute is both a building and a program.
It’s important that U students understand that distinction. The Institute of Religion on campus is a multipurpose student hub, study hall, gym and religious education center affiliated with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Besides hosting Sunday services, the Institute offers a variety of services designed to help students succeed at home and school.
At the Institute, students can take a range of classes to deepen their religious and historical knowledge, grow closer with God or improve their health.
Course subjects cover topics as diverse as they are many, from “Adulting 101” to “The Divine Gift of Forgiveness,” and can be registered for online.
Another important activity the Institute facilitates is genealogical research.
The Church of Jesus Christ hosts one of the world’s largest genealogical libraries in downtown Salt Lake City. This vast genealogical resource is freely offered for public use with no stipulations of church involvement, and students at the U can start creating their family tree using FamilySearch.com.
Eliza Stewart, executive secretary of the Latter-day Saint Student Association, said of family history work at the Institute that “there are a lot of resources. If there were ever questions of interest in family history, there is a connection here … there would immediately be people who would want to help and join you in family history efforts.”
The Institute is also a center for student engagement. Activities are all student-run.
“We have several committees made up of students. Students lead them,” Stewart said.
The Institute Orchestra and Choir doesn’t require auditions and often performs on campus or at the Tabernacle downtown.
A private meditation room gives students a chance to unpack their collegiate mental load.
Large ping pong and billiard tables are provided for unwinding and The Hub Café offers affordable snacks of consistent quality.
The many large, private study halls go unused in the Institute, probably because not enough students know they exist. It should not be this way.
The Benefits of Attending
Religious classes are not just for members of the Church of Jesus Christ.
The subject matter is diverse, there is little to no coursework and parking is offered as a free bonus in return for 75% attendance.
The Institute is a safe space to unwind, as well as a peaceful place to lock in and get your work done.
This sets it apart from the hustle and bustle of the vast Marriott Library or Gardner Commons.
Corny though it may sound, the best part of Institute is the relationships you form along the way.
College can be lonely, especially the first few semesters. The Institute offers essentially an instant group of friends, as all you have to do is walk in and say hi.
Being a Church-run building, it would be reasonable to fear that involvement at the Institute would be transactional, meaning that you receive good treatment in exchange for religious observance.
This, thankfully, is not the case.
Besides being voluntary, Institute activities exist simply to bring people together.
The greatest example of this is the intramural SUMMIT club, which every Thursday organizes a large social mixer that can be as normal as speed dating or as out-of-the-ordinary as Mr. Beast Games.
Stewart said enrollment is increasing for the first time in semesters in part because of a change in student perception regarding the Institute.
“We want people to know that it’s a safe place, that everybody’s welcome, that this is a place that you can come and grow and belong no matter where you’re at in your life,” she said.
The Institute is many things, as enumerated above and elsewhere.
But at the same time, it’s more than that. It’s a safe space.
When asked what the biggest misconception about the Institute among U students was, Stewart said it’s “that you have to know what the Institute is or be enrolled in a class or [be] a member for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to walk in the building. Everybody is welcome. You can join any class at any point in the semester. You can go once and if you don’t like it, you can go to another one. You can always join our activities. There’s no dress code, [and] you’re not questioned about what you believe or who you are or where you come from. The second you walk in the door, you’re welcomed.”
In other words, you don’t have to even be interested in joining the LDS Church in order to benefit from the rich instruction the Institute has to offer.
Many Institute courses even incorporate a rich weave of centuries of Christian theology into their coursework beyond standard Church of Jesus Christ theology, such as in the course Ancient Christianity and the Restoration.
Now is as good a time as ever to give an Institute course like this one a try.
How to Get Involved
Besides just walking inside the Institute, you could also stop the missionaries on campus and ask them any and all questions you may have. They will be ready to help you.
Negativity towards the Church of Jesus Christ in Salt Lake City can come from choosing not to examine it too closely. Former U Executive Vice President Neal A. Maxwell put it best when he adroitly observed that “they will not come inside the chapel, but neither do they leave its porch.”
Rather than voluntarily isolate themselves from the many wonderful benefits of Institute attendance, U students must make full and frequent use of everything the Institute has provided to them.
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