"The convention itself in its national and state organizations has moved so far to the right that previous diversity on the faculty and among the trustees is no longer possible," said Bill Leonard, dean of the Divinity School at Wake Forest. "More theological control of the curriculum and the faculty has been the result."
David W. Key, director of Baptist Studies at the Candler School of Theology at Emory, put it more starkly. "The real underlying issue is that fundamentalism in the Southern Baptist form is incompatible with higher education," Professor Key said. "In fundamentalism, you have all the truths. In education, you're searching for truths."
Saturday, July 22, 2006
Baptist Colleges Seeking Independence
Today's New York Times has an interesting article about "Feeling Strains, Baptist Colleges Cut Church Ties." Here are a couple quotes:
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4 comments:
It's kind of hard to teach people who already know it all.
Wow, powerful post and one of the best quotes I have ever seen discussing the heresy of fundamentalism.
"In fundamentalism, you have all the truths. In education, you're searching for truths."
I both agree with the Baptist colleges/universities' moves and find them worrying. I agree with them because David Key is right.
I worry because I have seen that Baptist universities in the North that cut ties with Baptist bodies lost all Baptist and Christian identity. Brown University--founded by Baptists and the president had to be a Baptist minister until the 1930s, but now there isn't even a Baptist representation among the campus ministries; Denison University, Colgate University, Bates College, Colby College, Bucknell University--and our pride for being the first American university on the German research model, the University of Chicago (Bruce's alma mater, if I remember)--all no longer Baptist in any sense and most with little or no Christian presence. I have argued that Baptists, like the Disciples of Christ, should open a House of Baptist Studies, at the University of Chicago Divinity School. This was once an incredible school. The scholarship is still excellent, but now it is highly abstract and there is very little connection to vibrant church life. The same thing could be said in even stronger terms about Brown, Colgate, Bucknell, etc.
So, while I am glad that Wake Forest, Baylor, Georgetown College, Mercer University, Carson-Newman College, Stetson U. (my alma mater), Samford, etc. have broken ties with SBC state conventions in order to prevent the fundamentalist takeover of the SBC seminaries from being repeated at these excellent colleges/universities, I am worried about their future. How many generations will they retain a Christian and Baptist tradition and atmosphere? How can this be done without the official ties?
How DOES one give full support for academic freedom while still trying to inculcate a distinctive Christian tradition?
I don't have the answers, but I hope Baptist educators, North, South, etc., are wrestling with the questions.
Michael,
I never attended U of Chicago, but wish I did.
Jeff Pool is the only person I know that can claim U of Chicago as their alma mater.
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