Photo by Camille Jovenes
Heather Walker’s majors in intercultural peacebuilding and political science have helped her to develop a hopeful view of politics and learn how to create communities more closely aligned with Christ’s teachings, she said. Similar to Walker, who is a senior from California, two current BYU–Hawaii students and two alumnae who studied political science share how they feel politics has the potential to be used for the common good.
Mari Kojima, a BYUH alumna from Japan who studied intercultural peacebuilding, emphasized how Christ’s teachings of unconditional love can be found in politics. “I feel that political science has given me a training to be open to and explore other people’s perspectives,” she shared. “Our beliefs mean the world to us, so we should be respectful to what others think and feel because if we deny [their perspectives], we might end up hurting them as if their worlds are illegitimate.”
Rachel Akana, a BYUH alumna from the Island of Hawai’i who studied political science and social work, observed similarly to Kojima that studying political science, “does a good job of unifying people through understanding. That grows our empathy for people, our compassion, our patience.” Both Akana and Kojima emphasized how studying political science can humanize other perspectives and lifestyles and allow diverse communities to become more loving and unified. Akana said politics and history are intertwined, and an understanding of these two disciplines can strengthen communities through lives devoted to public service. “Political science does a really good job of recognizing those who came before us, where we are now, how we can move forward and what we can do to help one another,” she explained.
Camilla Marie Fajardo, a BYUH senior and political science major, commented, “Jesus Christ teaches us about the importance of following the laws of the land. Political science has not only helped me to understand the law of the land better but also helped me understand how communities work. It has helped me understand why wars happen and what we can do to build peace.” She also said majoring in political science helped her understand how legislation can be used to serve others and spread God’s love.
Just as Fajardo noted the value in being a good citizen, Vilai Ilolahia, a current political science senior from Tonga, said he felt the realm of politics cannot be inherently evil because, “Jesus Christ was a politician [who advocated] for Gentiles and those who weren’t of a Jewish faith. His point was to focus on Him to get to the Father.” Moreover, Ilolahia also said political science “taught [him] how to suss out … leaders who are for the people and those who are in it for personal gain,” highlighting how individuals can use the spiritual gift of discernment when deciding who to elect to public office.
Photo by Camille Jovenes
Walker said political science has helped her be a better disciple of Jesus Christ, “because so much of political science is focused on meeting people’s needs with the resources available to you,” which she said is what God does for His children. “Aside from the church, it is the most influential way to build up the kingdom of God. Government is established to help people and raise their quality of life, which I would say is exactly what Christ asks us to do when we make covenants with Him.”
Being at BYUH has helped Fajardo develop a more hopeful view of politics, she said. “Our teachers don’t just talk about [what bad things are happening in the world], but they bring to us ways in which we can change it … to make the world a better place.” She also said being at a school with students from dozens of different nationalities and cultures has helped her to learn how communities can, “come together more instead of separating … We live in this world together. We have to figure out how to work together. It’s never going to be a world of just one country or just one culture, so we have to figure out how to work together.” She said BYUH is a university that excels at building cross-cultural dialogue and cooperation.
Akana said living in Laie was formative in helping her learn how she can help her native Hawaiian community. She shared, “Rubbing shoulders with community mentors here has empowered me to hone in on my cultural heritage.” She specified the ways in which they lead Pacific Island-based cultural education reminds her that all peoples of the Pacific are connected. “They are maintaining focus in ancestral knowledge and writing the holistic playbook to how our [Asian American and Pacific Islander] communities can thrive within our cultures. I am very grateful for the work they are doing inside and outside of the church.”
However, she said she does not care for what the term “political science” sometimes represents. “Our systems are nothing without our communities and our culture. It takes a village. Accrediting it all to a system of power discounts our communities,” she noted. Despite the complicated nature of politics, she said she was grateful for the opportunity to study at BYUH because she said, “[it] helped me carve a space to seek my ancestral knowledge and grow into that understanding in my work, education, family, community and more.”
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