Students gathered to watch Sister Cindy preach at the Oval on Wednesday. Credit: Michael Goulet | Campus Photo Editor
Cindy Smock, better known as Sister Cindy, returned to Ohio State on Wednesday, preaching to students to abstain from premarital sex and to find Jesus through her “Hoe-ology 101” lecture.?
Sister Cindy was at the Oval for around four hours, starting at about noon and ending around 4 p.m., drawing a consistent crowd of about 50 people, though several came and left while she was speaking.?
“I’m seeing some beautiful hoes,” Sister Cindy said, as she started off her conversation about “hoe-ness” by bringing up Proverbs 11:22, which states, “As a ring of gold in a swine’s snout, So is a lovely woman who lacks discretion.”?
She said that God still loves those who are promiscuous.?
“My dears, even in your hoe-ness, you are of great value to God,” Sister Cindy said.
She then taught students about the seven levels of “hoe-ness”: “oopsy hoe,” “boyfriend hoe,” “hookup hoe,” “mega hoe,” “giga hoe,” “vampire hoe,” “establishment hoe” and the surprise eighth, “ho no mo,” which is a student who stops having sex before marriage.
Sister Cindy was accompanied and helped by campus preacher, Brother Tom, whose last name was unavailable.?
Brother Tom preached that sex is more than just a physical and biological act, but rather “primarily a spiritual act.”?
Brother Tom preached that in order to have safe sex, “you have to wear something far, far better than a condom:” a wedding ring.?
Tamar Westphal, a Ph.D. student in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies at the university, told students she is a sexual health educator and that she would talk with students and answer any questions they might have about healthy, safe sexuality and relationships, substance use and drinking..?
Westphal said that she thinks that what Sister Cindy preached lacked “information about ways to have safe, healthy sexual and romantic relationships.”
Mel Magin, a fourth-year in history and political science, said that Sister Cindy is “extremely entertaining,” and that Sister Cindy has been around since her mother was a student at the university.?
“I’m part of the ‘ho no mo’ revolution. Go Bucks,” Magin said.
Jamison McCuen, a first-year in political science, said that he thinks that people came to “poke fun at it or be part of the fun of it.” McCuen also said that he appreciated Sister Cindy’s desire to prevent STI’s, but “maybe the way that she’s doing it or the means she’s doing it is a little odd.”?
Tricia Merenda, a Program 60 student— a tuition-free, non-credit program that allows Ohio residents aged 60 and older to audit undergraduate and graduate courses — was surprised to see Sister Cindy on Wednesday.?
Merenda says she went to the university in the 1980s, and she recalls seeing Sister Cindy during her time there.?
Merenda remembers big crowds of people, and she describes Sister Cindy as “softer today,” and said she was harsher in the past.?
