Maybe it’s the Christian rock station you tune into. Maybe it’s those late-night “what does it all mean” conversations you have with close friends. Maybe it’s the yoga class you take on Saturday morning.

Odds are, in college, you have found some way to get in touch with your spiritual side. You may not even realize that the things you do and talk about on a daily basis may tap heavily into your spirituality, even if you don’t consider yourself religious or attend church.

Most college students today don’t consider themselves religious, either. Studies show that upon beginning college, most students’ church attendance and involvement other religious activities declines. Often, it stops altogether.

This is easily explained. In a university setting, we are no longer under the watchful eye of parents; therefore, it is easy to skip out on a Sunday morning service here or there. And if there is any doubt in a young person’s mind that the religious path their parents had once chosen for them is not what they truly believe, then, once out of the house, they will likely find an alternate route.

But discontinuing the act of going to church does not necessarily indicate disinterest in religion and spirituality in general. The college years arguably provide the opportunity for some of the deepest spiritual reflection and exploration to take place. In fact, a recent study confirms this.

UCLA’s Higher Education Research Institute surveyed 100,000 of 2005’s college freshmen at 236 colleges around the country about their thoughts on spirituality and religion. The study found that 4 in 5 of the freshmen described themselves as having “interest” in spirituality, while 3 in 4 claimed to be searching for a purpose or meaning of life.

These results surprised researchers, who had previously relied upon the college crowd to be “crassly materialistic.”

However, almost half of students surveyed reported that they felt it was the responsibility of their college or university to provide outlets for them to expand their knowledge and appreciation of spirituality.

Yet there is a definite hesitance from universities to include anything too theological in any curriculums. And with Ohio Senate Bill 24 looming over instructors, it is easy to see why they, too, are apprehensive to take up such topics in the classroom.

The fact that students are looking to non-traditional means of discovering spirituality is not surprising. Since they are no longer receiving religious guidance from parents, and they aren’t being prompted by professors to talk about it in class, who are they turning to?

Each other.

UCLA’s study revealed that nearly 46 percent of students said that they share religious/spiritual views with “most” to “all” of their close friends. Perhaps this is why, on our very own campus, there are more than 20 existing student organizations dealing with spirituality or religion. It could also explain the variety of classes available on campus in departments ranging from philosophy to English dealing with everything from meditation to the Bible.

There can be little dispute that the university life does not offer enough opportunities for religious and spiritual reflection. College is the time when young people finally have the chance to figure out how they feel about religion, explore the different possibilities, and perhaps decide what ideas they feel comfortable committing to. For many of them, it is the first chance they have to do this all on their own.

Just because only a reduced percent of us are still attending church on a regular basis is not any indication of spiritual apathy. Only 42 percent of students reported feeling secure enough in their religious views to commit to regular practice. A quarter of them consider themselves to be still “seeking” a religious path. Another quarter are either “doubting” or “conflicted” about religion in general.

This means half of us really don’t know what to think. More importantly, though, it means that we care enough to realize that we don’t know, and to want to do something about it.

The most important thing to understand about spirituality is that you don’t have to be devoted to a particular religion to experience it. Spiritual growth can take place without setting foot inside of a church or a temple. Though I don’t discourage those activities, they are certainly not your only options.

If you have interest in other forms of religion and spirituality that stray from your standard Sunday church service, explore them. Whether you’re into Buddhism, ancient Zoroastrianism or perhaps something a little more New Age, the library or a bookstore with an extensive religion and spirituality section is probably the best place you can start.

After you’ve acquired some basic knowledge about the subject, it will only be a matter of time before you can start discussing and debating it with your friends.

After all, that’s what we’re all here for.

E-mail comments to Megan at [email protected].