By the front doors of Curris and outside the free speech zone, preacher Nicholas Bowling spoke and led prayer before an audience on Oct. 28.
The audience spread from the doors of Curris to Howton Agricultural Engineering Building, and required Murray State police officers to maintain entry into Curris as well as passage between the north and south sides of campus.
As Bowling preached, many audience members chatted, either in agreement or criticism of him, some shook hands with one another, with several wearing Make America Great Again caps or affiliated apparel.
Notably, Colson Thomas, College Republicans member and Judicial Board justice, was present at the event. The News reached out to Thomas for comment on Bowling’s visit and preaching, but he did not reply.
Bowling preached about subjects like masturbation, that he referred to as “sexual immorality,” his own history with alcohol and sins.
On Bowling’s website, he is described as someone who only knew relgion and not Christ, resulting in him living in “a very hypocritical lifestyle.” After leaving the military, he began college and entered a fraternity where he had “all the access to all the alcohol, drugs and girls” he desired.
“I never want to go back to those things,” Bowling said. “Why not just because he said, don’t do them, because I have no desire for those things any longer. I don’t desire to get drunk. I don’t drink any alcohol. Now. Why? Why? Why would I? I have no desire. The reasons I was drinking to get drunk, and the short time pleasure that it brought to me, I have no desire because he’s so much better knowing him, living for Him, the Holy Spirit we’ve been talking about, the Holy Spirit He lives on the inside of us.”
Bowling’s session for the event was supposed to run from noon-2 p.m., but Murray State allowed the event to run over for Q&A.
One of the questions a student asked Bowling was why do religious leaders, or leaders in general, “cherry pick” pieces of scripture and ignore others.
“Selfishness,” Bowling anwsered. “They want to do their own thing, deceit taught them wrong, the Devil was tempting them–there could be a lot of reasons why people would cherry pick. Maybe they had an experience in life that was hurtful or painful that’s too hard for them to bear … so they just change the Bible’s teachings and their doctrine to fit their circumstances and their experiences and what is pleasing to them.”
