The campus community remembered the victims of a terrorist attack in Paris in a Sunday vigil in which university leaders challenged Elon students to make a difference in the world by committing to lives of compassion and kindness.
Dozens of people gathered Sunday evening in front of Alamance building to pray for the victims of Friday’s terrorist attack in Paris and to offer support for those on campus whose own lives have been impacted by recent violence.
With a welcome by Elon President Leo M. Lambert and remarks by students, faculty and staff, the candlelight vigil featured more than 130 luminaries along the steps and pathways leading up to Alamance – one for each person killed when gunmen and suicide bombers coordinated attacks at popular Parisian destinations on the night of Nov. 13, 2015.
And while the Paris attacks served as the backdrop to the campus vigil, speakers reminded those in attendance that it was “only the latest in a series of terrible incidents,” from bombings in Beirut and Baghdad in recent weeks to the likely bombing of a Russian Metrojet carrying tourists home from a resort in Egypt.
Three French students studying at Elon University as part of a dual-degree program – Chloe Chambon, Eline Roillet and Theo Hardy, who wore the French flag on his back – thanked those at the vigil for showing support. Chambon lost a friend in the attacks, she said.
Other speakers implored the crowd not to allow violence to beget more violence. “I fear this will fuel a sense of xenophobia, a sense of fear and hatred of others,” said Associate Professor Sophie Adamson, who teaches French at Elon. “Hatred and violence are not the answer.”
Elon freshman Kenneth Brown Jr., president of the Class of 2019, said the Paris attacks are a reminder that human life is frail. “The universe gained 130 new stars. Heaven gained 130 new angels,” he said. “Events like these teach us that life is short, and that we don’t know when our time on earth will be finished.”
Many of those who visited the podium echoed similar themes to what Lambert asked of Elon students in his welcome. “Are we committed to lead by loving our neighbors?” he said. “Are our hearts filled with compassion? Is kindness our first instinct?
“May God inspire us to be instruments of peace in this world.”