Professor's assignment leaves students puzzled

Chris Hopkins sat down in the side chair. He looked at the design on the mat. "No, I don't," he said, opening up the front cover of the Qur'an.

Miss McCaffrey was helping Mr. Hopkins with his homework. His assignment: to solve a puzzle. Bruce Johnston, a professor in the religious studies/philosophy department at The College of Saint Rose in Albany, has given a semester-long puzzle to two of his courses.

"I love to solve puzzles," the teacher said. "I find them mentally challenging."

Solving the puzzle

The students must record their process with the puzzle in a journal. At the end of the semester, they should be able to find a common theme from all the clues, which will give them a question as well as its answer.

"I believe that learning is fun, and everyone I see with the puzzle so far is having fun," said Prof. Johnston. "The best learning is the learning for which there is a hunger on the part of the learner."

To the mat

The name, Rosa Mystica, contains 11 letters. Multiplied by three, that yields 33, the number of blocks between the statue and the college's interfaith sanctuary.

On the side of the clue was the following message: "Bundle up, it's cold out -- but you don't need a mat-- that's already been provided."

That riddle referred to the sadjdjada, which Muslims use when they pray to Allah. The last phrase on the clue read: "Open and find THE OPENING," which is the English equivalent to Al Fatihah, a prayer in the Muslim holy book, the Qur'an.

Clues inside clues

"I warned the students the first day that doing the puzzle will take more time and thinking than doing a test," he said.

He has several reasons for giving his students this puzzle. "I designed my puzzles not only [for students] to become sensitive to the shape and form of what's in front of them, but also [so they] pay attention to their surroundings," he said.

His puzzle also encourages collaborative learning, "getting people to work together, not because they were told but because they need each other and respect each other."

Challenged

Peter Prichard, a freshman majoring in psychology, had another reason for choosing the puzzle: "I'm not a good test-taker, so it's a good alternative."

Prof. Johnston noted that Jesus told His messages in the forms of parables, many of which proved puzzling to His listeners.

"Those that are capable of understanding will and those that can't can't," the teacher said. "Sometimes, the message gives information to people that are not able to handle it, so they misuse it. It's dangerous to them, and it's dangerous to us."

Aha!

"Right now, I'm thinking about the next clue," he said. His eyes stared into the wall. "Oh yes...yes!"

And with that, he laughed and walked out of the room.

(Editor's note: The author, a student at The College of Saint Rose, was an intern with The Evangelist last summer.)

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