Page 10 - Providence Christian College - Fall 2018

choosing the right college, A cAse for the new Providence AcAdemic core, continued from Previous PAge
of a higher educational model that no longer emphasizes the principle of the common good debated within the parameters of a shared set of theological, philosophical, historical, literary, and political points of reference.
Human beings having opinions is part and parcel of being human. That our opinions sometimes differ is reflective of the fact that we are not automatons. The original promise of the American university was that it would serve as a place where ideational differences could be aired and exchanged under the superintendence of modesty, decorum, and competent judgment, and that public discourse would benefit as a result.
Civility can only be regained in American society if it is regained in how we teach young men
and women. That will require colleges and universities to re-commit to an educational model that emphasizes across the curriculum that a thousand (or any number for that matter) excellent words are worth their price in gold.
This is where you as a parent, alum, donor, or prospective student, come into the picture. Returning to the gold standard of words
(reading words, thinking about words, writing and speaking using words) and the academic standards that support words is difficult work.
It requires more thought about what to teach.
It requires more work from those who do the teaching. And it will require much more from you.
It will require all of us to take the time to read, to think, to write, and to speak with care and
precision. But all this hard work will be worth the effort because it will help inoculate you from the moral confusion that preys on so many others distracted and left powerless by
their addiction to simplistic pictures, images, and symbols.
The curriculum visual you see on page 9 represents our effort to bring together the story of the best of what has been written, spoken, and done into a four-year intellectual and spiritual journey that will leave you better able to glorify God through your service to mankind.
At the center of Providence’s curriculum is the truth of God’s word and our place in His creation; namely, that He made us in His image and likeness, that we chose rebellion, and that He sent His son to atone for our sin. Drawn to Him, we can see His creation anew and become new in His image once again.
Our world and our country are in need of men and women drawn to this picture of reality explored within a liberal arts framework,
which ultimately aims to liberate you from the poisonous ignorance and ideology that stamps out the virtues of liberality, charity, honesty, and humility so essential to human flourishing.
So there you have it. What I’m asking of you
is not what you can do for yourself by asking LESS of yourself and feigning an understanding through pictures and symbols, but what you can do to glorify God in service to humanity by asking MORE of yourself.
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