‘Whoreship and Prayer’ burlesque show inside Vassar Chapel mocks Christianity, Catholicism – The College Fix

Vassar Chapel; Vassar YouTube screenshot
Vassar Chapel; Vassar YouTube screenshot
Performances and advertisements draw criticism, concern from some students
Editor’s note: Graphic images shown below
A student group at Vassar College recently performed two sexual dance shows inside the private institution’s 121-year-old chapel that mocked Christianity and Catholicism, drawing concern and criticism from some students, but which were ultimately approved by campus leadership.
“Whoreship and Prayer” by the Vassar Burlesque Society drew crowds during its two pre-Thanksgiving performances. The Nov. 21 and 22 events included performers dressed in religious garb, including as priests and nuns, a campus source told The College Fix.
Official posters for the event advertised it with scantily clad students in bras and underwear alongside religious imagery and wording. One promotional flyer featured a photo of the Catholic Virgin Mary and the message “grab your Bibles . . . Burlesque is holding Mass.”
A message on Instagram from the group added: “Forgive us father for we have sinned… cum watch us repent.” The group recently made its account private.
Sydney Mize, a neuroscience major, told The College Fix the event “was clearly meant to be a mockery of Christianity.”
“I perceived this as an attack on Christian values and the practicing Christians on campus,” she said via email. “I saw this as a mockery of our beliefs and a way to belittle us.”
Ahead of the event, several Christian students met with college administrators to voice concerns over using the chapel to host such an event. 
After filling out forms and putting their concerns in writing, the students were told to meet with Vassar’s Office for Institutional Equity, which is separate from its Committee on Inclusion and Equity, and eventually met with Dean of Student Living and Wellness Luis Inoa.
Mize said that while Inoa didn’t disagree that the advertisements represented mockery against Christians, “he would not agree that it was hateful.” However at the meeting there was general agreement that “it would have been a different situation if it involved Allah” or had focused on another religion, she said.
“I saw this as a clear communication from the college administration that Christianity is not protected under the college regulations the same way that other religions are,” Mize told The Fix. “We are the exception, it is okay to mock and hate Christians where it would not be acceptable for any other religions.”
After the meeting, Dean Inoa sent an email to the concerned students saying no action would be pursued, and that the event would continue. He also said the concerns were shared with Vassar Burlesque.
“We will take a look at the space-approval process for major venues like the Chapel so we can learn from this moment,” the dean said in his email reviewed by The Fix.
In a statement given to The Fix, Vassar reiterated this message.
“We work purposefully to make our campus community a place where everyone feels safe, respected and comfortable in holding and expressing their religious and spiritual beliefs,” a Vassar spokesperson said.
“Ahead of the event, we heard from and immediately engaged with students who shared their concerns about the venue for this event and the manner in which it was being promoted. These sentiments were shared with the event’s student organizers, and our dialogue with all parties continues. Staff from our Dean of the College area have been engaged and they have reached out to impacted students to offer support.”
Representatives for Vassar Burlesque did not respond to requests for comment.
Vassar Burlesque is funded by the Vassar Student Association, which receives funding from the college “to combat systems of oppression against its members.”
The association’s website states it “recognizes and supports the Principles of Shared Governance of the College,” which Vassar outlines on its website as “to pursue diversity, inclusion, and equity [and an] environment in which all members, including those from underrepresented and marginalized groups, are valued and empowered to thrive.”
According to some students, tolerance of Christianity has never been a priority at Vassar.
“Vassar students preach tolerance, but of course, this tolerance has limits,” one student wrote in a 2022 op-ed for the student newspaper. “Unfortunately, for many students, this limit exists where religion begins.”
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