Changes at Wheaton College concern alumni. From the article...
In the current document known as the “conceptual framework” of the education department at Wheaton College which must be endorsed by each of its faculty, the thinkers cited include among others, the father of the social justice movement, Brazilian Marxist, Paulo Freire and former Weather Underground terrorist Bill Ayers.
http://townhall.com/columnists/SandyRios/2010/02/26/billy_graham_meets_bill_ayers
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Yippee! Another post. :) This one is scintillating. I'm eager to respond to several points when I have a chance. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteTwo points of contention and a couple points of concord:
ReplyDelete"According to this definition of 'social justice,' the oppressor and the oppressed must be identified and actions taken accordingly." I like the suggestion in this sentence that we all function in both roles; the two sides of this pairing can never be definitively identified. However, God's word suggests that the focus (and the action taken) should always be fourfold: How can WE (and as Christ’s we must) bear oppression gladly, stop oppressing others, relieve others from oppression, and (related closely to the last two) bring oppressors to justice? I'd reject communist terrorism as a means toward any of these ends, but consider it a universal fact worth hanging onto that we oppress others while being blind to their plight. Our nation's political system is founded upon the biblical principle that power corrupts. This simple fact suggests that, when drawing a line between the oppressed and the oppressor in any of the world’s diverse relational pair-ups, it is fair enough to draw a line between those who have power and those who do not. This is subtle; the equation is never simple and unidirectional. Take teachers and students for example. Although my students can oppress me (because they do have certain powers over me), generally it's me who oppresses my students.
My second contention is over the issue of judging spiritual health by political allegiance. I was actually impressed that only 60% of Wheaton faculty voted for Obama. (I would have guessed higher in that particular election.) Either way, this is far from being a good first gage of spiritual health (as this article implies, I thought). Clear adherence to the integrity and authority of God's written word would be one of my chief ideological tests (and no litmus test is simple to apply or really our job to apply unless as an elder in the church). When it comes to the most tangible signs of spiritual health, action taken to relieve and build up the weak and the vulnerable is near the top of my list (which, I hope, does not excluded most political conservatives—being strongly inclined to libertarianism myself).
All that being said, I'm disheartened (terrified really in my weaker moments) by institutional drift. I was excited to note recently that Philip Ryken joined the faculty at Wheaton. Some criticisms of Wheaton that gave me food for thought were these posts by a grumpy Presbyterian historian:
http://oldlife.org/2010/02/15/whither-wheaton/
http://oldlife.org/2010/02/22/wheaton-is-calling-and-i-wish-theyd-stop/
I remember spending long hours as a boy in high school reading the book of Judges and thinking about the tragic inclination of all hearts, collective and individual, to drift away from their parents, their elders, and their Creator. I'd love to hear CCA people share examples of institutions that have avoided institutional drift most successfully over the years and why. I personally suspect that those institutions who remain the most faithful over generations (and there are very few) tend to be those who set their sights on the lowliest and most simple of goals.
I was thinking about my comment that "no litmus test is simple to apply or really our job to apply unless as an elder in the church." Although I would hold to an important categorical difference between judgments made by church leadership and the pragmatic choices made by other Christian individuals and organizations, there are plenty of times when we need to judge the faithfulness of other believers. What college to support with our money and/or children? What teacher to higher (or fire) at a Christian school? What book (or blog) to read next? Etc.
ReplyDeleteCorrection: Philip Ryken was named president of Wheaton College.
ReplyDeleteI'm encouraged that Phil Ryken was named president. I guess this means he's stepping down as pastor from 10th Presbyterian? It's been disheartening to hear the direction Wheaton was going. I think P. Ryken will need as much prayer as we can muster. Trying to articulate this issue and it's theological implications can be like trying to grab air or a Republican trying to reveal to a Democrat the long term implications of his views. The grid they think out of is completely different.
ReplyDeleteJen