R.U.S.H. began at Marshall in 1996, Steven J. Conifer, sophomore president from Hurricane, said. 

"I believe it was Chad Docterman's idea to start this group," Conifer said. "He was the first president of the organization." 

R.U.S.H.'s basic doctrine provides an alternative to traditional religious/ spiritual beliefs in a nurturing environment for students at Marshall who consider themselves non-religious, whether they are atheists, agnostics or merely skeptics/ freethinkers, Conifer said. 

"There should be available to those students a community committed to the sundry ideals and principles to which rationalists, especially secular humanists, adhere," Conifer said. 

"The supreme importance of human lives; the betterment of the quality of existence for humanity as a whole; and the realization of the potential of human beings to explore and understand their world via methods such as scientific experimentation, empirical investigation and observation, reason, logic and critical inquiry, without recourse to mystical 'explanations' which appeal to supernatural beings, entities, forces or powers." 

R.U.S.H. is a fairly new group with only a small amount of members. The group will meet regularly next fall, most likely on a biweekly basis. 

"Members of the organization are very enthusiastic and intend for it to be extremely activist in nature," Conifer said. "R.U.S.H. will gladly aid any group or cause which promotes free thought, tolerance, open mindedness, the accountability of individuals for their actions, and/or a reliance on human intellect, reason, and diversity in all endeavors to solve problems, understand our world and eliminate suffering and improve/advance the well-being of our species as a whole." 

R.U.S.H. will organize/sponsor discussions, lectures and debates about free thought, rationalism, and/or secular humanism. It will also help to assist those in economically ­ socially and/or politically ­ disadvantaged positions, Conifer said. 

"I am an atheist and philosophy major who possesses an avid interest in publicly debating the existence of God, especially the Christian God, or any issues relevant," Conifer said.

Conifer thinks students would benefit from joining his group.

"R.U.S.H. is staunchly dedicated to compassionately correcting mistaken beliefs, encouraging true ones and helping students to learn how to distinguish between the two," Conifer said.

More information is available by e-mailing Conifer at rnewed9899@cs.com, Jeremy Asbury, vice president, at asbury14@marshall.edu, or adviser Richard Bady at bady@marshall.

Story by Courtney Ross