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PREACHER CAUSES CONTROVERSY ON OU CAMPUS

  VIDEO: Kevin McPherson, Runtime 1:59

  A large crowd of students gathered around a Gospel proclaiming preacher on OU’s campus, when insulting claims were made toward students in sororities and fraternities in the name of religion. 

The preacher, Gary Bowman, started to become most insulting to students when he let out slurs against people in Greek life, calling sorority houses “whore houses” and calling fraternities “fraterna-brothels.” These remarks were met mostly by scoffs and laughs, but others felt too insulted to laugh.

Bowman has been seen on campus for many years, and often gathers an audience of students who want to defend themselves. He is so common on campus that some people have given him the nickname, “Preacher Bob,” or even “Moses.”  

Even Christian students are offended by Bowman’s words. “The difference of what he’s preaching and what’s in the Bible is love,” Sean Lassiter explains. Lassiter believes that Bowman’s preaching reinforces a false stereotype about Christians that portray them as hateful people. “If the message is delivered through hate and anger, it’s not how Jesus said to reach people.”

In response to some racial slurs, one student approached the crowd from behind as Bowman continued to preach. The student announced that he was starting a petition to call for the removal of Bowman from the campus. Upon announcing the petition, students gathered to sign, passing the paper around, quickly gaining signatures. Whether the petition has been effective has yet to be seen.

Bowman believes that his efforts bring about the revelation of gospel to students. “This could be the last sermon that people hear.” He said, “Eternity is too long to be wrong.”

Bowman has been seen on college campuses as early as 2004, bringing about similar messages even then. That year, he also won a lawsuit for violation of his first amendment rights in the amount of $60,000 against the state of Tulsa for claiming that police threatened to arrest him for using a children’s karaoke machine to broadcast his anti-abortion views.

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OKC BAND MOVES INTO OU FOR FRESHMAN YEAR

VIDEO: Kevin McPherson, Runtime 3:56

This year, members of the band Cosmostanza moved into the OU dorms and continue to make music, though the struggles of adjusting to college life make it more difficult than it was in the past. The band is a duo, made up of the singer/guitarist, Maxwell Moore, and Raney Aboud on drums.

Aboud and Moore, both now OU freshmen, attended the same high school in Oklahoma City. They believed it would be beneficial to be roommates as they were band-mates and good friends. However, even though they live together, the time consuming nature of college has made it hard for them to practice. The duo remains optimistic as they move forward, taking steps such as finding a practice space in Norman.

Ever since they appeared on the scene, they have gotten a lot of attention. They attracted a loyal group of fans, and both of their music releases have been reviewed in the music section of the Oklahoma Gazette.  Fans of the band have noticed a change in their performances, though the change is a positive one. “A lot has changed. The dynamic between Max and Raney, the frequency of shows, and the attitude behind the band seems a lot more mature. I'm not sure if college affected that, but they both look like they know what they're doing a lot more now,” said Broderick Lockett, a long-time fan.

Aboud and Moore share the song-writing duties, as both write lyric. Moore writes the guitar parts and the vocal melodies, and Aboud writes the drum parts.

Both members see their past performance at Norman Music Festival as a top moment in the band’s career. Moore was happy about playing outside to many eager fans, and Aboud enjoyed all of the ‘buzz’ that surrounded the event.

Aboud says the name Cosmostanza came from a reference to ‘Seinfeld.’ When naming their band they wanted a name that would reference the show, as they are both fans.

Cosmostanza currently has two EPs out for free download at cosmostanza.bandcamp.com.

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LOCAL ARTIST USES 'SELFIES' AS SUBJECT FOR PROJECT SLIDESHOW: Kevin McPherson, Runtime 2:14 Maria Wood, a local artist and Rose State art student, has started a project where uses ‘selfies’ a recent cultural phenomenon as a subject for her painting. The ‘selfie’ is a term that refers to when someone using a camera, typically one on an iPhone, turns the lens to themselves, or points it into a mirror so that the one taking the picture is the subject of it. Wood takes the pictures that people take of themselves and paints them. Wood says that she sees the selfie as the “modern self portrait,” as it captures an exact moment in time. This is contrary to portraits in the past, when the subject of a painting had to sit in front of a painter for possibly weeks on end. The process starts when someone sends her a selfie. Wood then prints the picture and takes it to a canvas, where she sketches it and starts the process of painting. She has currently finished two paintings in her project. The subject of one, Ted Wielinski, is thoroughly satisfied with the result. “I like Maria's style a lot so I was excited to volunteer. I wasn't entirely sure what to expect, but I like the finished product a lot and I'm glad I sent her my picture,” he said. The subject of Wood’s most recent painting within this project is a fellow artist and friend, Anika Major. Currently, Major has only seen the sketch of her selfie, but remains excited. “I love Maria's style! She paints in a really versatile way and I think it's really admirable of her to take on a project like this. I was really excited to send her my picture, mostly because I don't usually get painted since I'm a painter as well. My picture is still in the sketch process but it's looking good and I’m really, really excited to see how it goes!” Wood said that she was always interested in art, but she became serious about during the end of high school, when she started to earn college credit for taking art classes. She graduated from Midwest City High School in 2012 and went on to attend Rose State as a Liberal Arts major with a specialty in visual art. She has since completed several projects and is working to continue to grow in her craft.