In the Christian faith, the season of Lent marks a period of preparation for Christ’s resurrection at Easter. For those outside of the faith, and in particular those of no faith, Lent may not provide the same unifying experience.

This year, Christians observe the season of Lent from Feb. 22 through April 8. Easter takes place the next day on April 9. Ramadan and Passover in the Muslim and Jewish traditions, respectively tend to coincide with Lent, making the spring season a significant one for people of many faiths.

For those outside of organized religion, the season may take on a different significance.

“Every Ash Wednesday, I like freak out, because I forget that there's so many people that are like Catholic and the other types of Christians,” said Veronica King, an atheist student and member of Secular Student Alliance who was raised non-religious.

“Most Christian people, I feel like don't have a literal mark that shows that they're Christian,” King said referring to the smearing of ashes on Christians’ foreheads on Ash Wednesday. “I usually go around assuming that everyone's an atheist unless I see something otherwise.”

Paragraph on Lent traditions

King noted that while periods such as Lent can be a reminder of her minority status, she hasn’t experienced much religious trauma, so she couldn’t speak as to how seeing religious symbols and rituals associated with Lent could be triggering for some students.

“I have a very like, nonchalant attitude towards religion,” King said.

Jennifer Graber is a professor of religious studies and associate director of Native American and Indigenous Studies at the UT College of Liberal Arts.

“When I came to UT, 11 years ago, I was very curious about what student religious life might look like, and I was really struck by the visible diversity,” she said.

Graber noted that while there are a number of Protestant or evangelical groups available to students on campus, there’s broad variety of religious groups such as Hillel for Jewish students, the Catholic Student Union and a Hindu Students Association, which she recently spotted organizing an event to celebrate Holi.

“I think one thing I realized is that students who come to UT are in some ways self-selecting, right? Like they're choosing to come to a place that's religiously diverse,” Graber said. “If you're looking at our calendar, it's a calendar that has been defined by Christian holidays.”

She added that students have the right to request accommodations from their professors for religious holidays that are not already incorporated into the academic calendar.

“I like to encourage my students to take this if they need it, and to also encourage them to ask for it in other classes as well,” she said.

Despite the opportunities currently available for students on campus, some would still like to see more diversity.

“It would be kind of nice if there was at least a bit more religious diversity,” said A. Johnson. “Walking down I might occasionally see some other religion represented.”

Johnson is also a member of Secular Student Alliance. Johnson was raised in a non-denominational Christian church but no longer holds religious or spiritual beliefs.

“If you're a religious student, you can usually pretty easily find a religious org on campus,” King said. “As a non-religious student, like it's just us, there's not other stuff out there.”

Johnson said that sometimes the sight of the many Christian orgs on campus can create the feeling of being an outsider.

“It is sort of like a reminder that I am, I guess, a minority,” Johnson said.

Despite the visuals that can serve as a reminder of secular students’ minority status, Johnson didn’t believe it greatly harmed the experience at UT.

“On campus specifically, I don't think that religion has such a powerful presence, that the simple act of being non-religious is going to cause you trouble,” Johnson said.