★★★★★ 5
Defining Christian Education
What distinguishes a truly Christian education from what a student might receive from a secular university or college, or one that is merely "church-related"? Renewing Minds by David S. Dockery is an attempt at defining Christian higher education. Dockery is a noted scholar and President of Union University (TN), a liberal arts college which is fast becoming one of the premier Christian universities in America.
As defined by Dockery, Christian education is all about instilling in students a Christian world and life view that prepares them "to think Christianly, to think critically, to think imaginatively," thus "preparing them for leadership and preparing them for life" (26-27). The goal is not to brainwash or program students in a particular doctrinal or theological point of view. The one who has a Christian liberal arts education need not fear the challenges of secular scholarship. Rather, the educated Christian is able to appreciate the culture in which be or she lives while being "able to bring truth to bear on the prevailing zeitgeist of that culture" (111). Armed with a Christian worldview firmly rooted in biblical revelation, the Christian is able to challenge "the presuppositions of our contemporary culture, both secular and Christian [emphasis added], which in their current forms seems to be pragmatic, disjointed, and unconnected" (113).
Christian higher education must take place in a university setting that "is not a church" but "a faith-informed, faith-affirming, and grace-filled community. . ."(141). It is a community of believers seeking truth within an atmosphere of academic freedom operating within the limits set by the historic orthodox faith. It is an academic community in which the faculty are active scholars and teachers, and where the students are pursuing an intellectual understanding of their faith and not merely pursuing the skills and knowledge necessary for employment.
Whether you are a parent seeking a Christian college or university for a child, or simply one who desires a better understanding of what Christian higher education really is, Renewing Minds is must reading.
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Reviewed in the United States on March 25, 2008
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