No more national anthem at pacifist Indiana college

• Reprints

A small Christian college in Goshen, Ind., with ties to the Mennonite Church will no longer play “The Star-Spangled Banner” at sporting events after getting complaints that the song’s images of war and the military undermined the school’s pacifist message.

Goshen College’s board of directors told its president, Jim Brenneman, to find an alternative to the national anthem “that fits with sports tradition, that honors country, that resonates with our core values and that respects the views of diverse constituencies.”

The 1,000-student college has only been playing the national anthem for a year. In March 2010, it began playing an instrumental version, followed by a peace prayer, before games and other events. The school said at the time it would review the practice after a year.

AP