Faith
at State: A Handbook for Christians at Secular Universities by Rick Kennedy
Book
Review
by Rob Heimburger
Faith at State: A Handbook for Christians at Secular
Universities by Rick Kennedy. InterVarsity Press, 1995; 168
pages
Faith at State
presents a well-balanced perspective on approaching life
and studies
at the secular
university. Written by Rick
Kennedy, Professor of History at Point Loma Nazarene College
in San Diego, and previously of Indiana University Southeast,
the book recommends an outlook that is neither overcautious
nor naïve, neither antagonistic nor uncritically open-minded.
Kennedy does well to
criticize the viewpoint too often taken by Christians at
secular
universities—that of seeing
the campus as a battlefield. Kennedy argues instead that
Christians have the home-court advantage in the university.
That which has been valued historically at the university—truth,
rationality, the search for a unity of all knowledge—is
what the Christian, too, should value. Kennedy encourages
students to use the classroom as an opportunity not for antagonistic
debate but rather for gaining knowledge and wisdom. Christian
students should pursue learning as a manner of loving God
and of learning God’s truth. Read assigned materials,
ask questions, and discuss things outside of class, Kennedy
opines.
Kennedy is at times
critical of the secular university, chastising it for compartmentalizing
life and study and for
the radical skepticism to which some in the university adhere.
Kennedy addresses the problems that come up in the secular
university when scholars try to "normalize" or "naturalize" the
Bible, a book that is essentially abnormal and supernatural.
Kennedy also recognizes that Christians in secular universities
encounter problems and challenges to their faith with which
they must deal. He offers helpful advice for Christians when
dealing with such issues, suggesting an attitude that is
neither overly accommodating nor overly belligerent.
In Faith at State Kennedy
also addresses the issue of the degree of certainty that
is
attached to the Christian faith,
and how we may know that Christianity is true. He emphasizes
the primacy of "axioms" known by intuition, including
the axiom that the Bible is divine revelation. He states
that the fact that the Bible is revelation cannot be proven;
it’s merely something we know "in our souls," for
the Holy Spirit has given us this assurance. Kennedy says
that we may reach a point of mental certitude, but not logical
certainty, of the truth of Christianity from an assemblage
of converging probabilities. While it is true that man in
his natural state recognizes the Scriptures as revelation
from the triune God, Kennedy is at fault here for not recognizing
that the truth of Christianity is objectively defensible.
Unfortunately, Kennedy’s position falls prey to the
very problems for which Kennedy criticizes the secular university.
He compartmentalizes life and study, not being as intellectually
rigorous with his faith as he perhaps would with his studies.
Furthermore, in not recognizing the objective, certain proof
that God presents to us of the truth of Christianity (Rom.
1:20), Kennedy’s position is defenseless before the
very criticism of which he is so wary—that of radical
skepticism.
Despite these problems,
Faith at State still serves as a helpful book. Kennedy’s advice is useful: He strongly
recommends that students get involved in a church and in
a Christian fellowship, and he encourages them to value their
time at the university and to love their school. Kennedy
adds many other helpful tidbits. For example, he says to
listen to the last five minutes of lectures, for professors
are often at their best that this point. Kennedy’s
thoughts on how the Christian should view the secular university—not
as a battlefield, but recognizing the home-court advantage—are
valuable. His argument for the importance of gaining knowledge
and wisdom is something that all Christian students need
to hear. Kennedy’s book is recommended as a worthwhile
read for Christians at secular universities.
Ministering in the Secular
University: A Guide for Christian Professors and Staff by
Joseph McRae Mellichamp. Lewis and Stanley, 1997; 149 pages.
Ministering in the Secular University is a useful book for
Christian academics that are interested in engaging their
campuses with the gospel of Jesus Christ. In the book, Joseph
Mellichamp, Emeritus Professor of Management Science in the
Manderson Graduate School of Business at the University of
Alabama and National Faculty Representative for Christian
Leadership Ministries, presents a variety of ideas for ministry
in the secular university. A number of creative ways to identify
oneself as a Christian and to minister to students and colleagues
is included along with advice on how to teach and do research
from a Christian perspective. Mellichamp argues too for the
need for Christian faculty/staff fellowships at secular universities,
and he details the ways that such groups can be effective
in influencing the university as a whole. Mellichamp’s short book is no grandiose statement
on the state of the modern university and the role of the
Christian within it. Nor does it purport to be. It’s
merely a catalog of suggestions for campus ministry, and
a useful one at that. Mellichamp’s recommendations
are good in that they are detailed and numerous. Plus, many
of his suggestions are ones that he has tried himself. At
times his proposals are perhaps too specific; still, many
of the ideas mentioned here can be customized for use in
other situations, in other types of departments, and with
different kinds of people. For example, some of his suggestions
that may be more effective in the business school environment
could easily be altered so as to be effective in, say, an
English department.
Mellichamp draws too
sharp of a distinction between secular and spiritual topics.
A greater
emphasis on the way the Christian
faith interacts with all of life and with the totality of
intellectual endeavors would be useful to the academic interested
in teaching and doing research in a distinctly Christian
manner. Mellichamp also seems too locked into a specific,
set plan for ministry. However, these tendencies—and
the fact that he strongly endorses Campus Crusade’s
Christian Leadership Ministries—can be taken with a
grain of salt. For what is presented here is a helpful compendium
of ministry tools infused with a healthy dose of personal
experiences. This book is recommended for the academic interested
in specific ideas for on-campus ministry.
Reviewed by Rob Heimburger
Philosophy student at Davidson College,
Davidson, North Carolina
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