Christian Education: Christian Schools and the City of God
by David H. Chilton
Why did the Puritans go to New England? According to a common misunderstanding, they were "running away": from persecution, from the evils of Stuart England, or from the difficulties of life in a non-Christian world. While it is true that these problems existed, to see their actions in this light is to falsify history. The Puritans were actually running to, not from. They did not think of themselves as having been "raptured" to America (and, indeed, one can think of more agreeable ways to be raptured than, in Cotton Mather's words, "to leave all the pleasant accommodations of their native country, and go over a terrible ocean into a more terrible desert . . ."). In fact, the very first consideration when the founders drew up the goals of the colony was "to carry the Gospel into these parts of the world, and raise up a bulwark against the kingdom of anti-Christ" (cited in Cotton Mather, Great Works of Christ in America, vol. I, p. 69). And as John Winthrop observed in his great sermon, A Model of Christian Charity (1630): "When He shall make us a praise and glory . . . men shall say of succeeding plantations, 'The Lord make it like that of New England': for we must consider that we shall be as a city set upon a hill: the eyes of all people are upon us" (The Puritans, ed. by Perry Miller and Thomas H. Johnson, vol. 1, p. 198f.).
The Puritans therefore did not build a cloister, but erected a culture. They carved a civilization out of a "howling wilderness," and achieved excellence in everything they attempted: theology, law, government, literature, science, agriculture, trade, craftsmanship, art and music. In short, their emphasis fell not on retreat, not on compiling lists of things that "good Christians don't do," but on their positive contributions to God's world.
What does this somewhat pedantic introduction have to do with Christian school? Simply this: that God has not called us to the task of Christian education for the purpose of turning out graduates whose only mark of distinction is what they don't do. The great Nonconformist movement shriveled up and died precisely because their primary tenet was just that: nonconformity. There were so many things they didn't do, that in the end the only thing they did was ... nothing. Of course, we are commanded to "be not conformed to this world"— but then what? The passage tells us to go on to work out God's will, His commands, in our lives. Jesus told us to be lights to the world, to be a city set on a hill, setting a standard for the world to follow. Christianity will fail in its mission of disciplining the nations if it is reduced to a mere, "I decline." The initial impetus for the founding of a Christian school may have been a reaction against sex education or violence in the public school, but the movement must not end there. The purpose of the Christian school must be the upbuilding of the city of God
I ran into a good man the other day whose earnestness in defense of the Christian school movement was quite admirable. Yet his actual apologetic went something like this: "Our schools don't allow drugs, drinking, smoking, dancing, dating, moviegoing, television, mixed swimming, pants on girls or long hair on boys. Therefore, our students are superior to public school students." Assuming for the moment that each of those activities is really to be shunned by the Christian, it should be apparent that their absence alone does not constitute Christianity (e.g., the Ayatollah Khomeini doesn't like them either). Thus, while we need Nehemiah's sword, we have need of his trowel as well: our duty is not exhausted in repelling the invasion of heathen ways, but we must actively build the kingdom of God. Our Lord calls for social transformation in terms of God's word, and this is a basic reason for the Christian school.
In the Book of Proverbs, we are told that "Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets: she crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she uttereth her words" (1:20-21). This is where God wants His word proclaimed—in the marketplaces, in the courts ("gates"), in the councils of state, and wherever men think and act. God demands that we acknowledge His wisdom in the world, and He has given us His word so that we may "receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and equity" (1:3). The Biblical training our students need is in the positive, practical application of Scripture to the issues of life. The goal of the Christian faith is not realized in a "subculture" mentality. We are preparing our students to rule society, to give light to the world. The decadence of our culture will not be arrested if our main focus is on the sinfulness of the Southern California hot-tub lifestyle. Moreover. our job involves so much more than just restraining decadence' Christianity is to be militant, on the offensive, effectively implementing God's law in every area of life. In everything—teachers, methods, curriculum and student performance—we must strive for excellence.
While it is certainly necessary to flee from sin, Jesus did not make that our priority. He said, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness." The kingdom speaks of God's rule over all of life, and righteousness refers to His standard, the laws and principles of Scripture by which the godly society functions, and in terms of which we are blessed. In education, this means that God requires us to produce young men and women of wisdom and ability who will build a Christian culture. For the Christian, retreat means defeat: our only hope is in victory. By every means, we must advance the kingdom of God. If we do, we will fulfill not only the Puritan vision for America, but the commands of our Lord Himself. The world must be converted, the nations discipled, and God's law established as the foundation of life. The city will transform the hill, and someday (Dan. 2:35) it will become a great mountain, filling the whole earth.
Note: To show what Christian schools are producing, we would like to publish worthy papers from students. These may be on any subject, and should be typed, double-spaced, 1000 words in length. Payment is $25.00 on acceptance. Please send papers with a self-addressed, stamped envelope, and include student's name, age and school. Address correspondence regarding this to the editorial office.
HOME EDUCATION AND CHRISTIAN MUSIC
by James B. Jordan
In my last essay I pointed out the advantages in educating children at home, or at least in a one-room school. The basic advantages in pure home education are that God has given the children to the parents, and the parents are best equipped by circumstances to carry out the task of elementary education. The children are in the home all day, so education can go on, informally, all day long, as indicated in Deuteronomy 6:7. All of life is religious, and all education is God-centered, to the pattern of Deut. 6:7 is good for all education.
People who have tried pure home education testify that it takes little time. Far less time is needed in formal teaching than is needed in a school. At the most, three hours per day with the books is all that is needed. The reason, of course, is that the parents know exactly what the child is working on, and can drill him or her informally all during the day. The parents can control their children's education 24 hours per day, seven days per week, and all year long. There is no need to give a summer vacation; breaks can be taken anytime, all year long.
One area where all parents can help with the training of their children, whether they put them in school or not, is exposure to great music. Most Christian parents want their children to grow up with good taste in music, appreciating the "classics." My purpose in this essay is to make some suggestions along these lines.
Classical music as such is not necessarily Christian. In fact, Beethoven began a great rebellion against the earlier concept of the musician as servant of God's glory, and most concert music (symphonies, concertos, ballet music, opera, etc.) is pagan in character. Because this kind of music, until the 20th century, continued to use the styles created by earlier Christian musicians, this pagan music is much richer and more beautiful than later classical and popular music. We can appreciate it under "common grace." All the same, it would be best if most of the music our children heard over the stereo were Christian music. Now, what classical music is there that is Christian, and where can I get it? Bach and Mendelssohn are the great Christian composers, but Anton Bruckner, Cesar Franck, and Olivier Messiaen cannot be excluded. Many of the most beautiful pieces of Christian music were written before Bach.
The best source of classical records and cassette tapes is the Musical Heritage Society, 14 Park Road, Tinton Falls, NJ 07724. They sell discs at $4.00 each, and have a large inventory. You can join their record club, so that you have to send back a card each month; or you can simply ask to be put on the information mailing list, so that you do not have to send back a card each month. As long as you buy from them from time to time, they'll keep you on the mailing list.
The Mass is simply a set of Christian hymns, which could be sung by Protestants as well as by Catholics. The Requiem Mass, however, is largely prayers for the dead, and is not acceptable to Protestant theology. I have recommended a couple of Requiems solely because of the beauty of the music. Sung in Latin, they are not likely to influence the children (or you) wrongly. Many of the composers listed below you have never heard of. My experience has been that virtually everyone who hears these pieces falls in love with them. They are not difficult, but very beautiful.
From the Musical Heritage Society (with record numbers):
- Brahms: German Requiem (in English; settings of the psalms, not a traditional Requiem Mass), 762-763.
- Bruckner: Mass in E, 1801
- Bruckner. Te Deum, 1552
- Cavalli: Messa Concertata, 791
- Charpentier: Midnight Mass (based on Christmas carols), 522
- Durufle: Mass, 1819
- Durufle: Requiem, 1509 (this MHS record, is the best recording of this gorgeous work)
- Durufle: Organ Music, 999
- Faure: Requiem, 1682
- Haydn: Mass No. 9, 3284
- LaLande: De Profundis (Psalm 130), 1275. (You cannot afford to miss this work.)
- Ockeghem: Missa Mi-mi, 1003 (You can't afford to miss this either)
- American Colonial Christmas Music, 1126
- Christmas in the Cathedral of Reims, 818
- Music from the Cathedral at Tours, 1035
- Alain: Organ Works, 868 (for the adventuresome: more modern sound)
- Dance Music of the Renaissance, OR352-354 (delightful for children) Dance Music of the Gothic Period, 761
- Demessieux: Organ Music (for the very adventuresome), 3042-44 St. Saens: Organ Preludes and Fugues, 3045
- Franck: Organ Works, OR299-301
- Franck: Piano Works, 1152
- Tournemire and Vieme: Organ Music, 1016
- Mendelssohn: Organ Sonatas, 1226-1227
- Mendelssohn: Piano Preludes and Fugues, 1112
- Introduction to the Organ: four records, narrated, 1604-1607 Music for 2 organs, 1217
- Messiaen: a modern composer, Catholic, sounds far-out at the first hearing, but can grow on you.
- If you are adventuresome, try Visions d'l'Amen, 1762, and Organ Works Vol. 1, 1826-1828.
Many fine recordings, of course, are not available from MHS. I recommend the following, which you can get from your record store or from a discount mail-order firm:
- Bach: Preludes and Fugues for Organ (Antony Newman), Vox Box QSVBX 5479, 5480.
- The Bach Album by Ormandy, Columbia MG 30072
- Bach: St. John Passion, in English. Robert Shaw Chorale, Victor LVT3000
- Bach: St. Matthew Passion, Nonesuch HP73021
- Bach: B minor Mass, Robert Shaw Chorale (the best performance), Victor LSC 6157
- Bach: The Art of Fuguing (a fabulous record), Townhall S-20 Mendelssohn: Elijah; St. Paul (several good recordings available) Handel: Messiah, Robert Shaw Choral (the best, liveliest performance), LSC 6072
- Tanayev: John of Damascus, ABC AY 67043
- Rachmaninov: Vesper Service (best performance of a gorgeous work), Angel SRB 4124
- Orff: Music for Children (several recordings available: (kids love it)
- Poulenc: Babar the Elephant, Angel 36357 (narrated in English) St. Saens: Carnival of the Animals (get one with a narrator, e.g., Westminster WGS 8187)
- Treasury of Gregorian Chants: Everest 3159. Four records, old recordings, but really beautiful singing by monks and nuns.
- Early American Choral Music: Vox Box SVBX 5350. Psalms and Hymns of our fathers.
- Songs of Middle Earth (Tolkien); Caedmon TC1231
- A Nonesuch Christmas: Nonesuch H71232
- Robert Shaw Christmas Albums: These are the finest Christmas-carol recordings ever made, even though they are old, "Joy to the World" and "A Christmas Sing In" (RCA Victor).
- Laudario 91 di Cortone: Nonesuch H 1086. A beautiful recording of late medieval music.
- Voices of the Middle Ages, Nonesuch 71171
- The Jolly Minstrels, Cardinal VCS 10049
- A Treasury of French Organ Music: Nonesuch H 71020 Sacred Harp Music: Nonesuch H 71360 and Victor LSC 2942 Tuskegee Institute sings Negro Spirituals: Westminster W9633
- O Sacrum Convivium: miscellaneous choral works, Argo ZRG 662 The Armenian Mass, Westminster Records. I am not sure of the current order number for this, but it is a very interesting and delightful work.
For the most part, these records are budget lines: you will pay around $4.00 instead of around $8.00 for them. My personal collection of Christian and classical recordings numbers well over a thousand discs, but these are the ones I have found to be the very best. I do not think you will be disappointed with any of them.
AN EDUCATIONAL COMMENTARY ON THE BIBLE
By Rodney N. Kirby
No. 4—'The Image of God"
"And God said, let us make man in our own image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion . . . So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them." (Genesis 1:26-27)
Pick up almost any book on Christian Education, and you will find as a central concept this idea of "the image of God." Certainly, it is a vital idea. Education involves two images of God—the student and the teacher. Our views about the nature of each of these will lead to definite educational methods. For example, a belief that the child is no more than a "behaving organism" leads one to the mechanistic stimulus —response method of education derived from B. F. Skinner.
And so it is important what we mean by "the image of God." Unfortunately, most Christians do not do justice to the text for this lesson when they deal with it. The words "image" and "likeness" both basically mean "like"; but how is man "like" God? Obviously, man is not an exact replica of God – man is not omniscient, omnipotent, etc. So in what way is man "like" God? Here is where much speculation takes place. Some say man is like God in that he is a rational being. Others locate man's image-bearing character in his moral nature. Still others claim that man's aesthetic and creative nature is what is meant here. Some say it is his social nature; others, his spiritual nature; still others, his ability to make free choices. Each of these choices makes a difference in educational practice. For example, an educator who believes that man's freedom is what makes up his image-bearing nature will reject such methods as drill, rote memorization, and strict discipline. These restrict the child's freedom of choice, and thus are a denial of his nature. However, others, having a different opinion about "image of God," may have no problem with these practices. The answer to this problem can only be solved by digging into Scripture itself, to determine what Moses meant by the terms "image" and "likeness." We must not engage in speculation about what these (or any other) terms mean; we must engage in exegesis, letting Scripture interpret itself.
The word translated "likeness" is d'muth, which is used about the same as our word "like." The Greek (from James 3:9) is homoiosis. A study of this word doesn't shed any additional light on the matter; it merely states that man is "like" God, without specifying how he is like God.
The word "image" is, in the Hebrew, tselem. It's basic meaning, like d'muth, is "like." However, when we note the contexts in which it is used, some additional light is shed. It is commonly used (as in I Sam. 6:5, 11) for "idols." Now, the ancients did not actually believe that these idols were pictures of their gods. For example, it would be absurd to think that the Israelites, in Ex. 32, believed that a calf was literally their god. No, the "images" were seen as representatives of the gods. The calf represented God; the golden hemorrhoids represented the real ones—by sending the representative away, they symbolically got rid of the real thing (better than Preparation H!). Idols were representatives of the Gods; praying to them was as good as praying to the real thing.
Not only is the "image" a representative of God, he is an authoritative representative. This is seen in the context in Genesis 1. Immediately after God says, "Let us make man in our image", He says, "And let them have dominion." Note also vs. 27-28. The representative of God is one with authority over creation. The essence of the image of God is dominion. We are authoritative representatives of God on earth—"viceroys," to use Matthew Henry's term. This is borne out by a look at the New Testament word which translates tselem-eikon (Col. 3:10). This term originally referred to the image of the emperor on his coins; the coin was thus made authoritative, true, and genuine. We can see this note of authority coming through in other passages: I Cor. 11:7, where the whole context is one of rule and authority; H Cor. 4:4-5, where Christ, who is the image of God, is preached as Lord; and Col. 1:15ff., where Christ being the image of God means that He created all things (vs. 16), He sustains all things (vs; 17), and He is the head of the Church (vs. 18). Thus man, as the image of God, has dominion over the earth as God's authoritative representative on earth. Now, this representative must obey his king; this is brought out in Col. 3:10. Here, the restoration of the image of God is said to be a restoration to true knowledge —epignosis. As Paul uses this term, it does not refer merely to intellectual knowledge, but to obedient knowledge. In Col. 1:9-10, Paul prays that we may be filled with the knowledge of God's will, so that we may walk in a proper manner. In II Tim. 3:7-8, "never coming to the knowledge of the truth" is parallel with "opposing the truth." In, Titus I: i , knowledge is according to godliness. So we are restored to the image of God which is obedience to God; we are like God as we obey Him.
And so we may tie all this together. Man was created in the image of God. This means he is God's representative on earth. As God's representative, he has authority, rule, dominion over the earth. Yet this rule is under God—man must obey God in his representative capacity.
We may sum up man's image-bearing nature by the word dominion. This is how man is unique among the creatures, and how he is like God. Now, the speculative ideas mentioned at the beginning are not entirely wrong; they are aspects of dominion. Man uses his unique rational powers to exercise dominion (note Gen. 2:19-20). Man does have a moral nature—he is under God in his dominion. All of the choices mentioned above are valid. They do not sum up the "image" concept, though, but are many aspects of dominion.
Quickly, what are the implications of this for education? We will go more into detail on this next month when we deal with dominion. Here, we may note that a restoration of the image of God means a restoration of dominion; and this image is restored through obedience. Education, thus, is unto dominion. Christian schools are not to be monasteries, into which children run to escape from the world. We train the children for conquest. If we deny this drive for dominion, we are actually denying that man is made in God's image.
Man is made in the image of God—he is God's authorized representative, His "viceroy", on earth. Let us train our children for the fulfillment of this task.
BOOK REVIEW
by David H. Chilton
Great Works of Christ in America (2 vols.), by Cotton Mather (Banner of Truth Trust, 1979) $29.95
In a day when Puritan principles have been largely forgotten, the current revival of interest in Puritanism is an exciting development. The issue of state control of religion has again come to the fore, and Christians in this country appear to be waking up to the fact that our situation is not so very different from that of the founding fathers. The renewed concern with colonial history is thus not entirely motivated by antiquarianism. Basic, practical problems in theology, law, education, social reconstruction and the life of church and community are being reconsidered in the light of the wisdom (and folly) of the Puritans. Even those who once sought to restrict their inquiry to questions of worship and theology proper are becoming forced to deal with other aspects of Puritan thought. As Gary North puts it “Puritanism is a package deal": theology has a way of flowing out into every area of life. Nor will it do to revere the Puritans, in some pseudo-patriotic sense, as the rugged individualists of the frontier. The New England colonies were covenantal communities, aiming at the glory of God throughout the whole of life. Their view of salvation was ultimately tied up with their perspective on government, penology, social relationships and family responsibilities (i.e., it all came from Scripture). True Reformed theology inevitably begets a Biblical sociology, and we cannot hope for the return of lost liberties apart from their basis in a commitment to Biblical law.
The Puritans and their successors did not always realize this themselves. By Cotton Mather's time (1663-1729), much of the original Puritan piety had degenerated into moralism (see Larzer Ziff's Puritanism in America and Joseph Hartounian's Piety Versus Moralism). This was, to a great degree, true of Mather himself, uncomprehendingly caught in the shift between the older values of his forebears and the new morality of Benjamin Franklin's generation. Mather did not share in the postmillennial expectations of his predecessors, who had worked in terms of Biblical law and its promised blessings. His grandfathers, John Cotton and Richard Mather, had both been influential in the founding of the New England theocracy and the hammering out of a Biblical political and social philosophy. Renunciation of the world began with his father, Increase, and Cotton Mather arrived on the scene to become a professional minister in a way that would have been foreign to the first generation. He does not treat history as history, the story of the covenant and the coming of God's kingdom: in Peter Gay's words, "Mather dissolves history into biography"—and biography is useful for its moral lessons alone. in other words. the Biblical philosophy of history will lead the historian to deal with the facts of history as the outworking of God's plan in the linear development of the kingdom: the world and the actions of men are important as the fruit of God's decree. But for Cotton Mather, the importance of history is to be found in the relative utility of historical vents to illustrate spiritual truths. The great Reformation doctrine of Providence is thus reduced to a neoplatonic concept: God causes things to happen, not for His purposes in this world, but simply to paint an earthly picture of a heavenly reality. To understand the writings of Mather and many of his contemporaries, it is crucial to grasp this point. Mather was not the cause of the decline of the Puritan outlook; he was merely an unconscious representative of it.
Mather's treatise can be considered as one long "jeremiad," a form of preaching which had become standard in Increase's generation. Dr. North defines it as follows:
The jeremiads were intended to transform a declining society, but not through external conformity to God's civil law-order a law-order whose specific economic applications had almost completely baffled the ministers—but rather through a pietistic, individualistic searching of souls (Journal of Christian Reconstruction, vol. VI, no. 1, p. 160).
Mather's book, following in this tradition, amply merits Ziff's summary: he calls it "the greatest monument of clerical withdrawal from the political scene into a position of commentary on its eternal implications".
The foregoing is not meant to dissuade anyone from purchasing and reading Mather's massive work (over 1200 pages). On the contrary, there is much profitable material here. Mather's deficiencies should not prohibit us from studying history as God meant it to be studied. Mather provides us with the most exhaustive treatment of the New England churches ever written. There are, naturally, dozens of biographies, and probably no one of any importance is left out. The contents, in seven books, are as follows: 1) The founding of the colonies; 2) Biographies of the governors and magistrates; 3) Biographies of sixty (!) New England divines; 4) The history of Harvard College; 5) The history and documents of the synods; 6) A record of "many illustrious, wonderful providences," including stories of demon possession and witchcraft; 7) The "wars of the Lord," from the Antinomian and Quaker controversies to the battles with the Indians.
Great Works of Christ in America is a valuable sourcebook for the history of American Puritanism, its principles and practices. Students as well as teachers should be able to use it easily. It is packed with information: Perry Miller once observed of Mather. "The most remarkable fact is that one small head could carry all he knew." His pages are liberally sprinkled with Latin, Greek and Hebrew quotations, and one 18th-century publisher apparently rejected it on that basis, commenting: "His library is very large and numerous; but had his books been fewer when he wrote his 'History,' it would have pleased us better." The modern reader is saved only by the fact that, in this reprint of the 1852 edition, the citations are all fully translated. Mather's style, while not quite lively, is interesting (particularly if one shares his penchant for epigrammatic delivery). As long as it is used, it will not be an expensive addition to a school library, and it can form the basis for many student assignments. It is a book that should be read, and read with understanding.
Discussions, Volume IV, by Robert L. Dabney (Ross House Books, P.O. Box 67, Val! cito, CA 95251; and Sprinkle Publications, P.O. Box 1094, Harrisonburg, VA 22801). $11.95.
Robert Lewis Dabney (1820-1898) was the leading light of Southern Presbyterianism in the 19th century. Gifted with remarkable theological and political insight, he wrote clearly and forcefully against the many errors of his day. Some readers will no doubt be familiar with Dabney through his popular Systematic Theology (published by Zondervan) or the two-volume set, Discussions: Evangelical and Theological (published by The Banner of Truth Trust, but now out-of-print). The book reviewed here is the fourth volume of his "discussions" (subtitled "Secular"), and significantly not reprinted by the Trust. For here Dabney brings his theology out of the prayer closet, and deals with the complex issues facing his contemporaries. It is "secular" only in the sense that it is not involved with strictly ecclesiastical concerns; his strong commitment to Biblical principles is evident on every page.
The book consists of over two dozen essays and several poems authored by Dabney between 1855 and 1897, one of the most significant periods in American history. Dabney incisively deals with it all: here are chapters on the Civil War, the freedmen issue, public schools, slavery, labor unions, Communism, currency and the gold standard, modern philosophy, women's rights, and more. Certainly, not all of his opinions will meet with our approval, but then we must take care that out notions are as Biblically based as Dabney's. When the original publishers hesitated about including certain articles, Dabney sternly reproved them for their "plan of trimming a man... to suit your notions, and then handing the resultant down as if it were real." The idea was hastily dropped, and in this book we definitely are in possession of the real Dabney. It is an extremely valuable, enlightening work, and I would suggest that every teacher of American history not only secure a copy, but that he abandon any intentions he has of teaching Civil War history until he has studied the chapter on "The Real Cause of the War.”
Biblical Educator, Vol. 2, No. 5 (May 1980)
For a PDF of the original publication, click here: