More than a Christian Veneer

 

In the 1990’s Marvin Olasky, editor at World Magazine, began editing a series of books on Christian worldview. These books included All God’s Children and Blue Suede Shoes, by Ken Meyers, and State of the Arts, by Gene Edward Veith (both of which are excellent). Each book in the series approached a  topic from a specifically Christian perspective. When I read Recovering the Lost Tools of Learning by Douglas Wilson in 2010, it was one of those "light bulb" moments. Revisiting that book recently, I was reminded why.  

I read the book having taught history in a government school for six years. I knew public education was mostly a farce but could not give a thorough explanation as to what should be done in response. Certainly I had ideas which I would usually discuss with my carpool companion as we rode to and from work. But they were essentially to restore rigor and discipline to the classroom. There was no cohesive philosophy of Christian education, just tweaks to the current system with plenty of Bible added.

Reading Recovering the Lost Tools of Learning was an oasis for me. The author, Douglas Wilson, not only had ideas of what Christian education should be, he put those ideas into practice. Wilson, longtime pastor of Christ Church in Moscow, Idaho, helped to start Logos School in Moscow. He wanted to start a school that would be more than public education with a Christian veneer. He and the men of the church wanted an education that would nurture the soul. This is best expressed in the words of English poet John Milton. “The end then of learning is to repair the ruins of our first parents by regaining to know God aright, and out of that knowledge to love him, to imitate him, to be like him, as we may the nearest by possessing our souls of true virtue, which being united to the heavenly grace of faith makes up the highest perfection.” That quote summarizes the message of this book.

Growing Virtue Through Education

 

a Review of Norms and Nobility by David V. Hicks

One of the lesser-known cries of the Protestant Reformers was, “Ad fontes,” which means “back to the sources.” They were calling upon people to return to the writings of the Church Fathers when studying theology. The fathers were guides for many who were leading the Reformation at the time. Recently I decided to go back to a source that, while not ancient, was instrumental in the rise of the modern classical education movement: Norms and Nobility (1981), by David Hicks.

Some books allow for a quick reading and yield their insights without much effort. Not so with Norms and Nobility. Although short, it packs enough wisdom to require multiple, slow readings. Mr. Hicks’ thesis is simple: education will produce some kind of person. Whereas modern education produces utilitarian, empty souls; classical, Christian education aids the formation of virtuous souls. He believes the latter should be the intention of education, as it was in classical Greece, Rome, and the early Christian era. But modern education has abdicated that role in exchange for the diminished role of job preparation. In doing so we have failed the rising generation.

Theology of Leaven

 

Theology of Leaven

Matthew 13:33 “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.”

Many people read Rod Dreher’s The Benedict Option and discussed it afterwards. Many more didn’t read it but criticized it anyway. The most prominent critique was that he was calling for people to “head for the hills,” or become Amish. Of course removing yourself and your family from a bad situation is not always a bad idea, especially if you live in a place where you will be persecuted for your faith (see Acts 8). But Christians should not be known as people who only retreat.

That said, retreat is not what Dreher calls for. He calls for strategic training and redeployment. Now that may sound like a mere euphemism for retreat, but in reality it’s a separate plan.