“Should my teaching be any different at a Christian college…?”1 Most readers of The Christian Scholar’s Review Blog will undoubtedly affirm that yes, in our role as Christian educators, our teaching should reflect our Christian faith. A growing number of books, articles, and blog posts—on this very site—help us to explore the topic of “how Christ can animate learning.” I am grateful for these resources.
The flavor of our culture, however, has grown less and less Christian. According to a recent Pew survey, there have been “many years of steady decline” in Americans identifying as Christian. This shift toward secular, syncretic, and individualized moral views is evident in our public schools, in music and entertainment, and even in our textbooks.
Have you too noticed certain agendas being pushed in your course titles?
Have you bemoaned unduly negative or dystopian portrayals of life, family, or injustice within the pages of your chosen texts?
And have you sensed the (consequent) heavy hearts of students faced with this onslaught of negativity and brokenness?
I certainly have. And I am weary of it.
It was this realization that inspired me to begin to curate my own materials for one of my courses. Students taking my French Culture and Civilization class are introduced to the writings of many key figures in the history of Western Civilization (who also happen to be French). Among them, Ernest Renan, whom they read in Unit 1, which I titled “The Idea of a Nation.” Via his speech given at the Sorbonne in 1882, we ponder his definition of a nation as a spiritual principle, a “soul,” characterized by a shared past and a present desire to live together. In Unit 2, labeled “Diversity: Ethnic, Gendered, and Religious,” students read excerpts of Christine de Pizan’s Book of the City of Ladies and are happily surprised to find, in the words of this medieval author, an empowering Christian defense of women. In Unit 3, finally, entitled “Savoir Vivre,” they find delight in Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin’s Physiology of Taste. This philosophical and culinary treatise celebrates the pleasures of the table; it outlines duties for the host and guests alike. These are inspirational historical artifacts; their ideas elevate and ennoble. They are texts that remind us of the dignity of our shared humanity.
It seems to me that our students could benefit from such lofty notions these days.
It was similar ponderings that provoked me to accept a meeting with a Christian textbook publisher. I am somewhat embarrassed to confess that I had never before looked into Christian textbooks. I’m not sure that I knew that such titles existed outside of the discipline of theology. An agent for one company reached out just as I was reevaluating our first-year French textbook. I took the call, hoping to find a title that might work for our students.
There was a time in the not-so-distant past when I would have never considered such an option, as it would have seemed radical and extremist. But the truth is that our society is no longer saturated with Christian belief and practice—even less so the texts published for academia. As Christ’s “royal priesthood” (1 Pet. 2:9), instructors commissioned to educate from a Christian perspective, why would we indoctrinate our students with worldviews that are inherently (and sometimes blatantly) unchristian?
Unfortunately, the publisher with whom I spoke did not have a suitable first-year French textbook (although they do have one for German!). Indeed, I realized during our conversation that his call was less intended to advertise their French catalog and more aimed at inviting a submission. He indicated only one stipulation for said manuscript: a minimum sales volume of 150 each year.
I thanked him for his time and brought our conversation to a close.
A Christian publisher soliciting Christian textbooks from Christian academics: it sounded like heaven on earth. Such scholars could unite knowledge born of faith commitments with knowledge born of professional affiliation—an undivided whole. And yet, given the small size of the average Christian university, most of us could never guarantee this number of sales at our home institutions.
But then I thought of the community of readers of the Christian Scholar’s Review Blog. Might there be a way of joining forces—co- or multi-authoring Christian titles for use at multiple academies? It is, I hope, a possibility that you will consider—perhaps even in conversation with fellow readers of this blog. Leave a comment below with ideas or interest in a collaboration.
Our Christian universities—and our students—will be stronger for it.
