Christian school education at the university level
If the basic education lays the foundations, it is in higher education that: (a) the links between the different areas of knowledge are clarified, (b) the philosophical coherence between our faith and the demands of our practical life is verified and ( c) A comprehensive vision of life is established, such as that we have in Psalm 19. In college, do we have the opportunity to make the Psalm 24. 1 proposal more real?”The earth and all that it contains belongs to the Lord, the world, and those who live there. “Will the university course, taught from a biblical point of view, lead the student to affirm, as in Ecclesiastes 12. 13?Of all that has been heard, the sum is: Fear God and keep His commandments; Why is it every man’s duty?
- The great representatives of the history of the Christian Church have always attached the utmost importance to higher education.
- Augustine wrote De Doctrina Christiana.
- A treatise on education.
- Its importance and methods.
- Luther said:.
I certainly do not advise anyone to send their children to those schools where the scriptures do not reign. He who does not constantly deal with the Word of God will surely be corrupted; therefore, we must always monitor what will happen to people who attend higher education institutions.
I fear that these educational institutions will be open doors to hell if they do not diligently teach the scriptures and put them in the minds of the youth.
Calvin’s main work was to systematize biblical and Christian principles into a coherent philosophy of life. He also founded a “Christian Academy” in Geneva, a higher education institution, following biblical molds and guidelines.
Abraham Kuyper, Dutch statesman and theologian of the last century, when he founded the Free University of Amsterdam, based his inaugural address on Isaiah 48. 11: Do I not give my glory to others? proclaim your philosophies, openly and without challenge, as we look passively and in retreat to your progress in all fields, we are doing exactly what God expresses not to allow: we let his glory be given to others! In Kuyper’s understanding, the teaching that ignores God had no possible integrity, because God is present in all life. He wrote: God is present in all life under the influence of his omnipresent and omnipotent power. No area of human life is designed in which religion confirms its requirements for God to be praised, for God’s ordinances to be observed, and for all work to be imbued with its prayer in fervent and continuous prayer. Where is the man, whatever he does, whatever he applies? In agriculture, in commerce, in industry?, Or his spirit in the world of art and science, he is, whatever he is, constantly placed before the face of his God, he is employed in the service of his God, must strictly obey. his God and, above all, he must aspire to the glory of his God.
Kuyper says that the theological understanding of God’s sovereignty is what gives coherence to our understanding of the universe. See these highlights in your argument:
For Augustine, Luther, Calvin, Kuyper and so many other reformers, the task of promoting education, in general, at the highest levels, was a simple act of obedience to the Lord!
The Christian university should be the antithesis of the secular university. In reality, the secular university is, therefore, misdesignated, because it constitutes a diversity, rather than a university. That is, we find diversification, inconsistency, a dissociated view of things, an investment of values, etc. The standard is the? Glue? instead of the principles of honesty. Student leaders are not the ones who stand out the most from an academic point of view, but on the contrary precisely those who dedicate the least possible time to the search for knowledge. The paradox is that the secular university does not fulfill its purpose, does not meet needs and does not provide answers to people. Modern man has lost his confidence and security. He does not trust society and its development; it is devoid of its relation to the past. He feels lonely and lazy in the dark, resigned to the fact that no one can justify life, that no valid model can be found anywhere and the search for meaning in his existence is in vain. It is Christ who gives coherence to life and the truly Christian university must have him as the center of the answers it will give to everyone’s questions. The basic principles of Christian school education cannot only be extrapolated to the university level, an area that has been practically abandoned to the realm of academia without consequences for the ultimate problems of life and where, in many ways, evil reigns.
Proverbs 8 and 9 give us a wonderful exposition of the different aspects of “wisdom. ” Among other things, she says that the world was created by her (8: 22-31); this man is part of her (8. 31); who intervenes between God and man (8: 32-35); that the love of wisdom is the love of life (8. 36); and that it is the basis of law, order, peace, prosperity and life (8: 13-21). In the New Testament, in various passages (Luke 7:34, 35; John 1: 1-17; 8. 58; 1 Corinthians 1:24, 30; Romans 16:27; Colossians 2: 3), wisdom is personified in Christ, the only mediator between God and men; God manifested in the flesh, in our likeness. We know that wisdom does not mean simple knowledge, but the correct application of the knowledge acquired. Only Christian educational institutions, committed to presenting biblical principles holistically, practicing Christian school education can adequately educate our youth. Only those Christ-centered institutions can aspire to have their students apply their acquired knowledge wisely, serving God in whatever professional field it can be placed. Our prayer is that we can examine our responsibilities as Christians and do much more than we have done to promote the establishment and spread of true Christian education in schools.
In this book, Solano Portela makes a critical assessment of the current scenario of Brazilian education, both lay and religious, according to him, the predominant pedagogical proposal in Brazil goes beyond a pedagogical methodology and contains serious contradictions with the principles of the Christian faith. From this analysis, Solano proposes the development of a pedagogy for Christian school education, called redemptive pedagogy, which points to an education of excellence based on a biblical vision of the world of life and the world.
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