The Test of Relevantism

Mark Kalthoff has written an article defending the importance of liberal arts in a well-rounded education.  He makes the following observation concerning American academic culture.

We live in a culture of "relevantism."  Nearly every student, it seems, arrives on campus primed to ask, "How is this course, this assignment, this lecture relevant?  What can I do with it?  Tell me its immediate practical use."  Such questions arise because too many Americans know nothing of the old distinction between true education and mere training. *

The mentality of "relevantism" is not unique to academia but flourishes in the Church.  Pastors have recognized this shift and are increasingly shifting content from pulpit and classroom to deliver practical application useful for life in the church body or conducting oneself in the world.  In order to facilitate this change, doctrine is not given a priority except as it might bolster an application being presented.  Exegetical content give way to the thematic.  Categories of doctrine and theology become at best useful descriptions of what a local assembly or denomination holds as corporately true, though relegated to a status of sentimentality for individuals to pull out when opining about better past times but not able to immediately address pressing issues of the day.  The fruit of this culture is a group mentality that theology is boring and doctrine divides.  The overseers in a local body have a vested interest in resisting this wave of pragmatism and instead teaching the scriptures as they present themselves.  Doctrine and theology are not the bane of Christian life but vital instruments the Holy Spirit uses in us to effect godliness and repel false teaching.

Kalthoff warns against the attitude of immediate usefulness by reminding the reader that this is not the best gauge:

In view of this distinction between mere training and true education, I propose that submitting everything to a crass "relevantism test," the test that first asks, "What can I do with it?" is to ask the wrong question.  It is like asking about the uses for a newborn baby.  When immediate usefulness becomes the measure of value, we risk discarding things whose worth may be inestimable.  Further, it happens to be the case that things pursued for their own sake without regard to their practical utility quite often have the happy consequence of being useful in ways not originally perceived. †

Practical application has its place in Christian education, but we err when practicality is the totality of  education without establishing a foundation and building the superstructure within which the application is founded.  The usefulness or appropriateness of the basic instruction is often not immediately discernible.  Many years may go by before usefulness is realized. ‡  Both the instructor and student (or in Christian terms: disciple-maker and disciple) need to have the long view in mind.  As the information is assimilated, logical conclusions can be formed and used in appropriate times and seasons.

How does this instruction work itself out in the regular meetings of believers?  Ready-Fire-Aim tactics will not work.  Instruction needs to be consistent and committed, teaching the whole counsel of God and the plan of redemption.  Bible books should be covered as well as major theological sections (i.e., Christology, Hamartiology, Soteriology, et al) using a multi-year plan.  Will people balk at this approach and call out for something more "tangible" for today?  Yes, they will, but like any educator knows, the uneducated do not know what is essential, so understanding of the need must be integrated into the curriculum.

Someone once asked me if I want a church to be a mini-seminary.  No, I want believers in my assembly without correct doctrinal knowledge to properly handle the word of truth (2 Tim 2:15) and be firmly grounded, even if we have to teach "boring" things to get there.


* Mark A. Kalthoff, "The Usefulness of Useless Knowledge: Defending Classical Liberal Education from Melanchthon to Newman," Logia, Vol 21, No. 2, p. 51.
† Ibid.
‡ For instance, I now wish that more American citizens had paid attention to their instruction in American Government—or were even taught it.

Alternative Education

This post has no relation to the Bible but rather to Biblical education. I try to be on the lookout for alternative methods of teaching God's word and making it applicable. Along those lines, I also seek out alternative formal education. For instance, did you know that in Great Britain and South Africa, degrees can be earned strictly by research? Neither did I until somewhat recently. Which brings me to my point.

Are there American institutes that offer alternative forms of education? The answer is yes.

One example is Columbia Evangelical Seminary. Degrees are offered from Bachelor to Doctorate for a set tuition fee. The course mentors are highly qualified as the school requires an accredited degree to be qualified. In addition the courses are rigorous in nature and flexible depending on the interest of the student.

Another example is The North American Reformed Seminary (TNARS). This school operates at no cost. Tuition is free; and the books and lectures are found freely on the internet. The reading requirement may not be as strenuous, but the assignments have more stringent requirements than some accredited institutions.

Should someone look at these options? That depends on the desired outcome. I e-mailed one graduate of Columbia about his experiences, and he was rebuffed only once because his doctorate was not from a regionally accredited school. That was disappointing, but the overall experience was satisfying for his ministry.

Whether or not someone seeks to undertake a program along these lines, the idea that such programs are available is intriguing in itself. Consider what TNARS has assembled. There is a wealth of academic information available for anyone to use and improve there Scripture knowledge, if one takes the time to learn it.

Perhaps churches should recommend their congregants go through some of these or other materials for their teaching. It would certainly be a far-cry better than much of the pablum on television, and maybe the spiritual leadership in the local church would learn something as well.

Christian Education

An old acquaintance asked for my input on Christian education. The beeping sound he heard was me dumping my load. I thanked him for the opportunity and thought this would be a good place to reiterate some of what I shared.

I have given this much thought over the years but do not have a final conclusion on the proper course, but here is what I see. Ideally, a mini-seminary in each church would be ideal, but that may not be the best route.

Content—The whole counsel of God
Over the years, I have made comments about the need for expository teaching of all Scripture. The usual reactions include (with my response):

1. "We cannot cover everything on a Sunday morning and Wed. night." - How do you know? Have you ever tried?
2. "People won't sit through a long series." - Yes, they will, if they see the need and the relevance.
3. "We need to address current issues/events/needs [pick one]." - Plans can be adjusted if need be. But do they need to be? What is more important: temporal needs or eternal truths? I will allow that there are times the former should be addressed, but which of these is driving the philosophy of education?

After reading Shepherding God's Flock by Jay Adams and other works I don't remember at the moment, I put together a 5-year plan to go through all of Scripture and the major doctrines. Admittedly, it is more of a survey than in-depth study, but people are introduced to where things are and what they say.

Method—Large group
The example from the pulpit should be systematic and expository, but it does not have to be entirely lecture. In the last two years attending my last church, I encouraged the men to ask questions at the end of my messages about what was said. Basically, I treated it like a quasi-classroom. They got so comfortable with that that some would raise their hands in the middle and ask. We all enjoyed it. Not only were they comfortable enough to ask, but something on their minds got resolved and did not detract from the rest of what I was saying.

Method—Discipleship
Do you may remember that Willow Creek did a study of their teaching philosophy and determined that they had done things wrongly? Their solution was to put into effect a plan empowering people to be self-feeders. I humbly disagree with that approach, because it appears to be leaving a sheep without a shepherd. The examples of self-feeders in Scripture are as rare as hen's teeth—one might make a case for the Ethiopian eunuch. The Biblical example is discipleship (2 Tim 2:2). These are older, mature, godly people teaching and being a living example to younger. This is most natural in the home, but connections need to be made where that is not possible. Sheep left to themselves will usually get lost and/or starve to death.

Method—Catechesis
I think this little gem needs to be polished up and reset in its place. I have two examples of why this is true, both involving my former high school Sunday School class. The first came about when the elders decided to teach a survey of doctrine to the adults. I had been given the task of teaching the same adult topic/passage to the high school class. For this survey, I decided to use the Nicene Creed. It had all the elements I needed to cover, and where it was weak in eschatology, I filled in. The students loved it. The second example came when I was at a loss concerning which direction to go in the class. At this time we were operating without elders, so I had to do what I thought best. I decided to teach the Heidelberg Catechism telling them along the way which parts I disagreed with and why. Again, they loved it. Now maybe it was partly the instructor, but they learned and retained much of it.

After seeing their reaction, I decided to try putting together a similar thing starting with the London Baptist Confession of Faith but geared to the Plymouth Brethren. It didn't get far though.

The early church began this type of thing, usually as a prelude to baptism and church membership, and it was carried forward through church history. As a credo-baptist, I would not use it in that way, but I still think it important in order to lay out the basics of theology.

Conclusion
These elements need to be integrated into the thinking of the local church. It is a massive undertaking because of the planning required. It is an unpopular notion because it runs contrary to modern evangelical thought. It will work because it has been proven over and again in Scripture and history.

Ruminate on that awhile.