AdventistEducation THE JOURNAL OFcircle.adventist.org/files/jae/JAE_v68n3.pdf · 2009. 10. 26. ·...

Adventist EducationTHE JOURNAL OF

Website: http://education.gc.adventist.org/jae/ February/March 2006

RELIGIONTEACHINGINADVENTIST

SCHOOLS

ANINTERVIEW WITHJANPAULSENPASSING ON WHAT REALLYCOUNTSSHOULDADVENTISTCOLLEGESREQUIRERELIGIONCLASSES?SURVEYOF ACADEMYRELIGIONTEACHERS

RELIGIONTEACHINGINADVENTIST

SCHOOLS

2 JOURNAL OF ADVENTIST EDUCATION | FEBRUARY/MARCH 2006

ContentsF E B RUA RY / M A R C H 2 0 0 6 VO L . 6 8 N O. 3

PHOTO AND ART CREDITS: Cover, BrandX Photos; pp. 4-8, courtesy ofJon Paulien; pp. 10-14, 46, 47, courtesy of Andrews University PR Dept.; pp.17-20, 23, 24, 26, 37, 38, 43-45, courtesy of the respective authors; pp. 28-32, courtesy of Loma Linda University PR Dept.; pp. 33, 35, Shutterstock.

4 TEACHING RELIGION FOR THE CHURCHAn Interview With Jan PaulsenBY JON PAULIEN

10 TEACHING ABOUT GOD AND HUMAN LIFEBY LAEL CAESAR

16 PASSING ON WHAT REALLY COUNTS:TRANSMITTING ADVENTIST VALUES AND BELIEFS AND A SPIRIT OF SERVICE AND MISSIONBY FRANK M. HASEL

22 SHOULD ADVENTIST COLLEGES REQUIRE RELIGION CLASSES? BY GREG A. KING

27 WHY THE STUDY OF RELIGION BELONGS IN ADVENTIST GRADUATE PROGRAMSBY GERALD R. WINSLOW

33 THE MINISTRY OF BIBLE TEACHINGBY V. BAILEY GILLESPIE

37 GETTING BACK TO THE THREE R’S IN HIGH SCHOOL BIBLE CLASSBY STEPHEN HERR

40 WHAT SAITH THE BIBLE TEACHERS? BY KEITH KERBS

46 FOSTERING KNOWLEDGE OF THESCRIPTURESThe Andrews University Bible KnowledgeAwardBY BEV STOUT

3 GUEST EDITORIAL

F E A T U R E S

D E PA RT M E N T S

410

22

27

THE JOURNAL OFAdventist Education

EDITORBEVERLY J. ROBINSON-RUMBLE

ASSOCIATE EDITORENRIQUE BECERRA

SENIOR CONSULTANTSC. GARLAND DULAN

ANDREA LUXTON, ELLA SMITH SIMMONS CONSULTANTS

GENERAL CONFERENCEJOHN M. FOWLER, LUIS A. SCHULZ

EAST-CENTRAL AFRICAHUDSON KIBUUKA

EURO-AFRICAROBERTO BADENAS

EURO-ASIAVLADIMIR TKACHUKINTER-AMERICA

MOISÉS VELÁZQUEZNORTH AMERICAGERALD KOVALSKI

NORTHERN ASIA-PACIFICPHOON CHEK YATSOUTH AMERICA

CARLOS ALBERTO MESASOUTHERN ASIANAGESHWARA RAOSOUTH PACIFIC

BARRY HILLSOUTHERN AFRICA-INDIAN OCEAN

ELDEN KAMWENDOSOUTHERN ASIA-PACIFIC

STEPHEN R. GUPTILLTRANS-EUROPEAN

DANIEL DUDAWEST-CENTRAL AFRICA

CHIEMELA IKONNE

COPY EDITORRANDY HALL

ART DIRECTION/GRAPHIC DESIGNHOWARD I. BULLARD

ADVISORY BOARDANDREA LUXTON (CHAIR),

ENRIQUE BECERRA, HAMLET CANOSA,C. GARLAND DULAN, JOHN M. FOWLER,

DUNBAR HENRI, GERALD KOVALSKI, ERMA LEE,ERLEEN BURGESS, MICHAEL RYAN, LUIS A.

SCHULZ, CAROLE SMITH, CHARLES H. TIDWELL,JR., BONNIE WILBUR

THE JOURNAL OF ADVENTIST EDUCATION publishesarticles concerned with a variety of topics pertinent toAdventist education. Opinions expressed by our writersdo not necessarily represent the views of the staff or theofficial position of the Department of Education of theGeneral Conference of Seventh-day Adventists.

THE JOURNAL OF ADVENTIST EDUCATION (ISSN0021-8480) is published bimonthly, October throughMay, plus a single summer issue for June, July, August,and September by the Department of Education, Gen-eral Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, 12501 OldColumbia Pike, Silver Spring, MD 20904-6600. TELE-PHONE (301) 680-5075; FAX (301) 622-9627; E-mail:[email protected]. Subscription price, U.S.$18.25. Add $1.00 for postage outside the U.S. Singlecopy, U.S. $3.75. Periodical postage paid at SilverSpring, Maryland, and additional mailing office. Pleasesend all changes of address to P.O. Box 5, Keene, TX76059, including both old and new address. Address alleditorial and advertising correspondence to the Editor.Copyright 2006 General Conference of SDA, POST-MASTER: Send address changes to THE JOURNAL OFADVENTIST EDUCATION, P.O. Box 5, Keene, TX76059.

The best ministerial talent should be employed to lead and directin the teaching of the Bible in our schools. Those chosen forthis work need to be thorough Bible students; they should bemen who have a deep Christian experience, and their salaryshould be paid from the tithe” (Ellen G.White, Counsels to Par-

ents,Teachers, and Students, p. 431).Way back when I was in high school in the 1970s, I thought that most

Bible teachers were ministers who ended up in the classroom because theywere ineffective in their chosen field. While this was obviously an over-generalization, sometimes perception is reality.

Bible teaching should be a ministry that one desires and is well trainedto perform. I believe that religion courses should be the most important part of our curricu-lum—and yet many times, we assign the classes to part-time people who are not committed tomaking the classroom a priority, or do not know how to teach Bible effectively.We should al-ways have the most committed and best-trained teachers assigned to our religion classes—peo-ple who know what they believe and are able to communicate it effectively and positively tostudents. However, equally important is for the student to get different perspectives from a vari-ety of teachers. “Different teachers should have a part in the work, even though they may notall have so full an understanding of Scriptures” (ibid., p. 432).

We also need to have a strong, appealing, up-to-date curriculum.The North American Di-vision has updated its Bible curriculum about every 10 years or so. Should this occur more of-ten? In some parts of the world, students do not even have their own Bibles, and instructors haveno teacher’s edition or money to purchase resource materials for themselves or their students.This is a tragedy that needs to be remedied.

I believe every Seventh-day Adventist school—from elementary through graduate level—should make religion classes mandatory. For many students who are not Adventists, this providesus with a wonderful opportunity to share Jesus Christ in a positive manner. It also allows us toexpand the understanding of students who have been Adventists since birth. However, we needto make sure we have the correct teachers in the classroom.

Most of our religion teachers are asked to do a lot. Many serve as school chaplains, coordi-nators for school service and outreach programs, and recruiters—in addition to teaching a fullload. Despite all the demands on their time, religion teachers have an unparalleled opportunityand a sacred responsibility to minister to the spiritual needs of their students.This requires a lotof extra time in counseling and just sharing Jesus Christ. Sometimes, the only reward will beChrist’s “well done” within the heart of the teacher.

Principals, presidents, headmasters—make sure that your Bible teachers are the most effec-tive teachers in your schools. It is our solemn responsibility to educate students for eternity, anda vital part of that is both providing students with accurate knowledge about God and invitingthem to accept Jesus as their Savior and to walk with Him throughout their lives and into eter-nity.Yes, all teachers in Adventist schools should be teaching for eternity; however, Bible teach-ers have a special and sacred responsibility in this area. Don’t just assign whoever’s available thatperiod to teach the Bible class. Make sure the person you choose is on fire for God and is trainedto share the gospel effectively.Then make sure that he or she has money for resource materialsas well as time and a subsidy for in-service and advanced training.

The editors and writers hope that this special issue of the JOURNAL OF ADVENTIST EDUCA-TION will serve to stimulate thought and result in concrete planning that will enhance the qual-ity of religion teaching throughout the Seventh-day Adventist system, at all levels.___________________________________________________________________________

Dunbar Henri is Principal of Takoma Academy in Takoma Park, Maryland. He has taught secondary-level religionfor 23 years, and is a member of the JOURNAL’S advisory board.

Guest Editorial

JOURNAL OF ADVENTIST EDUCATION | FEBRUARY/MARCH 2006 3

Enhancing the Quality of Bible Teaching

DUNBAR HENRI

TEACHINGRELIGIONFOR THE CHURCH:

AN INTERVIEW WITH

JAN PAULSENPRESIDENT OF THE

GENERAL CONFERENCE


Paulien: As far as I know,Dr. Paulsen, you are the firstGeneral Conference presidentwith a Ph.D. in Religious Stud-ies. So I want to ask what impactyour scholarship has had on youas a Christian and as an adminis-trator in the church.

Paulsen: My studies in the-ology began at Emmanuel Mis-sionary College back in the late1950s.Then I came to the [Sev-enth-day Adventist Theological]Seminary [in Berrien Springs,Michigan] and did a B.D. in thedays when we had those.Afterthese studies, my wife and I went toAfrica as missionaries in 1962.WhileI was in Africa, I began my teachingministry, and I found it appealing. Ifelt drawn to the wonderful privilegeof helping to create the mind of apreacher.

After four years in Africa, Imade contact with three or four

universities in Europe to see if Icould be accepted into a doctoralprogram. I was very open about be-ing a Seventh-day Adventist minister.If anybody wanted to accept me, they

needed to know what they weregetting. I applied to Edinburgh,but in my heart I really wantedto go to Germany. I come from acountry where the LutheranChurch is the state church. So Iwanted to study the German lan-guage, and I wanted to study the-ology with a faculty based in theLutheran tradition. I didn’t knowthen that you would not be ac-cepted into a theology program ifyou came from a church that wasnot a member of the WorldCouncil of Churches.

Because of this, two of the Ger-man universities I applied to immedi-ately rejected my application. But Iheard nothing from Tübingen for acouple of months.Then I got a letterfrom Professor Peter Beyerhaus, theprofessor of missions and ecumenical

theology. He himself had served inAfrica for a number of years, so hewrote:“You have made a submis-BY JON PAULIEN

Dr. Jan Paulsen


sion here to the faculty of SystematicTheology, but since you live in Africanow, would you be interested in do-ing a study that is related to MissionTheology? Since you have a certaintouch with the African reality, youcould explore some aspects of theChristian witness in the African tradi-tion.”

So I thought about it andthought,“If I can do it on the basis ofbiblical theology instead of anthro-pology, I might like to do that.” So,we worked it out and I did my stud-ies under Beyerhaus at Tübingen. Itwas an interesting time, and I usedthe opportunity to do courses indogmatics under Jürgen Moltmannand in the Book of Romans underErnst Käsemann (the last year hetaught at Tübingen before he retired).So it was a very fascinating period ofmy life. I finished at Tübingen in1972.

How did it impress me? I thinkprimarily in the sense that a system-atic and comprehensive study of the-ology shapes your mind. It is a disci-pline. It’s not so much a question ofwhat you learn as what you becomeas a thinker and as a person. It teachesone a certain generosity of mind andhopefully also some humility alongthe way.You don’t know everything,and what you think you know you

might have to acknowledge as wrong.I think it has given me a broadenedmind without becoming a threat towho I was and where I belong.

I would probably not recommendthat a young graduate go to a schoolsuch as Tübingen. I had been in min-istry for 10 or 12 years when I wentthere. My strong background in min-istry conditioned me for the chal-lenges. It was probably the one pe-riod in my life when my wife and Ihad almost all of our social life withpeople who are not members of ourchurch. It was wonderful to associatewith people who did not share ourtheological convictions, yet to haverespect and mutual acceptance ofeach other as people.

Paulien: That’s very interestingto me because I’ve noticed in variouscommittees that you don’t seemthreatened when somebody differswith you.You have a capacity to say,“I have to re-think this.” I don’t seethat in every church administrator.But in today’s world, one has to havea certain flexibility with many issuesthat we face.Were you an Adventistall of your life?

Paulsen: I was. My mother wasbaptized when she was carrying me,200 miles north of the Arctic Circlein Norway. Finding a job there ischallenging when the Sabbath begins

at noon on Friday! But I grew up ina wonderful Seventh-day Adventisthome. My father was a shoemaker,and my mother was at home. It was asimple life, but it was a wonderfullysecure Christian home; there was alot of joy.

Paulien: From a cobbler toTübingen! That’s quite a leap.Are youhaving as much joy being GeneralConference president, or is that a bitmore stressful than growing up innorthern Norway?

Paulsen: Well, an assignmentsuch as this is a very serious thing. Ittakes a lot of thought and prayer.Youreally need to feel in your heart thatthis is the best way you can serveGod.You wouldn’t want to do it oth-erwise. Having said that, people aresometimes surprised that I don’t feela great burden—I actually enjoy whatI’m doing. It’s a weighty assignment,but I feel that things don’t depend onme. I don’t go to bed at night andstay awake.The Lord is going to lookafter His church.

Paulien: I wonder if the securityyou felt growing up in Norway hassomething to do with your ability tohandle pressures now.

Paulsen:Yes, maybe it has. Ithink my life has been shaped by awonderfully strong faith that my par-ents had.They allowed space for us togrow, to make mistakes and move on,and I’m sure that had an impact ofthe kind of person I am today.

Paulien: I feel that I know you alittle better from some of these expe-riences you have shared. I’d like toturn to some challenging topics now.Let me begin with a tough one. MostAdventist scholars recognize that thechurch’s International Board of Min-isterial and Theological Educationwas well intended. But many of usfeel that the harm it could cause out-weighs the good. Could you help usunderstand your strong support forthis initiative?

Paulsen: Let me comment ontwo different perspectives. First of all,this was voted on by the church atAnnual Council before I becamepresident. I have a strong conviction

Dr. Jan Paulsen and Dr. Jon Paulien.

that if the church sits in council, withleadership from around the world,and they decide that something hashigh value for us, it is my responsibil-ity to give it an opportunity todemonstrate whether it has value ornot. So unless it has shown that itcannot accomplish what it was de-signed for, I’m duty-bound to honorthe decision that was taken. So that isthe purely mechanical side of it.

Does the IBMTE action havevalue? Well, when the Annual Coun-cil took this action, it outlined half adozen goals or values that theIBMTE was designed to attain.Andthey’re good values. Even those whohave problems with the whole initia-tive do not argue with these values.They relate to the life and the wit-ness of the church; they encouragethe togetherness of theologians andadministrators in the church.TheIBMTE was designed to foster thesevalues.

The council action then outlineshow the church felt these valuescould be achieved, and that is, I grant,90 percent of the document. But it isalso recorded in the Annual Councilaction that if a given division findsthat these values can be better ac-complished a different way than theone that’s outlined in this document,they are free to submit an alternateroute to the council. Now if it doesnot work, it should have a very lim-ited life. But if it does work, weshould look for creative ways to makeit even better for the needs of the lo-cal fields.

I must say, however, that I don’tthink we handled the setting up ofthe IBMTE well. I think the processof consultation beforehand shouldhave been much more comprehensivethan actually took place.There couldhave been a greater buy-in from thestart if there had been wider consul-tation.

Paulien: I guess one of thethings that worries me about theIBMTE is that it seems to imply thatthe leadership of the church doesn’ttrust the church’s scholars.They wantto keep tight control over what we’re

doing. How would you respond to ascholar who felt distrusted?

Paulsen: I would say to you,and to all my colleagues who teachour students:“The church desires noother way of training our ministersand our youth than through the sys-tems we have.We do trust those whoteach theology.That trust is based onthe extent to which we are bondedtogether.We belong to the same fam-ily, but that doesn’t mean that we al-ways see and express things in thesame way. In the family, parents andchildren are bonded by a love thatwill overcome many things, even

when they shout at each other. Fami-lies find a way to deal with all sortsof difficult things.”

So I feel that church administra-tors trust those who are teaching the-ology, although we might not alwaysexpress it in the way we should.Trustis there, first of all, because we don’thave any desire or intention to do itany other way. So we need you.Theelected leaders that I work with, thedivision presidents particularly, readilyacknowledge the high value that thetheologians bring to our church.

Paulien: It strikes me in hearingyou that it’s been more than 20 yearssince the theological consultation that

occurred a couple of years after thatfirst Glacier View.At that time, about60 administrators and 60 scholarsworked together in small groups. I’vehad the privilege of working with theDaniel and Revelation Committeeand the Biblical Research Commit-tee, so I have a fairly regular interac-tion with a lot of the church’s topleaders. But most of my colleaguesdon’t. Perhaps we should consider abroad meeting where a new genera-tion of scholars can get better ac-quainted with the church’s leaders.The trust you are speaking about canbe developed in the kind of personal

contact that has been missing formany of our religion teachers.

Paulsen:Yes, I accept whatyou’ve said.That may well be whatshould be done.You know, you dosomething which you think is a goodidea at one time, but it has value onlyfor a short period. It would be goodto set up a forum in which we cancome together and talk about thesethings.

Paulien: A related question: Re-ligious scholars have a very difficulttask because on the one hand, we’reexpected to have a prophetic voice inthe church, to probe the edges ofknowledge, to challenge where chal-


lenge is necessary.At the same time,we’re supposed to mentor a new gen-eration in the tradition of the church.Those two tasks seem to be in ten-sion at times. Do you have anythoughts on how we can balancethese two tasks in our lives?

Paulsen: Those who are in-volved in scholarship and teachingwill always feel this tension.As acommitted Adventist and as a profes-sional, you will always be dealingwith fresh ideas that are not as fullydeveloped as others. It is part of yourthought-life.After all, how do youlimit thinking? The reality is, you

don’t.You read and you search andyou think, and you pray, and youwonder, and sometimes it comes to-gether and sometimes you have tofile it away for a while, to allow timefor things to mature.

While it is important to do that,you mustn’t leave your students withso many loose ends that they don’tknow what to do.Teachers and the-ologians have a responsibility to ayoung student so he or she isn’t leftto flounder.We are responsible tohelp students tie all the threads to-gether.A theology teacher does notuse the classroom to lay out findingsthat are in conflict with the stated

positions of the church.There areproper venues where individuals canbe given opportunity to share find-ings that challenge where we havebeen up to that point.

Paulien: We need to explorethat. It might not be as big a problemfor me and for some of my colleaguesin the seminary, because we have adoctoral program.This is made up ofpeople in their 30s and 40s; maturepastors and thinkers.You can exploresome really heavy stuff there andkeep things together. But in the un-dergraduate classroom, as you’venoted, there is a lot of vulnerability.

So I feel for my colleagues who teachundergrads.Where do they go, whatvenue do they have when they havequestions or problems, when their re-search takes them to the edge?

Paulsen: I think we do have acouple of venues for that.The churchhas the responsibility to provide op-portunities for religion teachers to airfindings that are somewhat differentfrom where the church is, so they canreceive some good feedback. Oneplace where it needs to happen is in-side an institution like Andrews. It ishelpful to start at a more local level,either within the institution or possi-bly with the participation of two or

three institutions. It doesn’t have tobe a General Conference [GC] initia-tive.

On the other hand, there is a fo-rum already provided by the GC inBRICOM. People can get a hearingfor their new ideas there.The churchneeds to give individuals the oppor-tunity to air their findings so some-body else can test them.

Paulien: While I’ve enjoyed be-ing a member of BRICOM, I thinksome of my colleagues who were in-vited to share their findings there feltthat they were on trial.And that’s notalways the best context in which a

person can process ideas.What I hearyou say is that we ourselves may needto create venues outside the class-room where we can challenge oneanother and learn from one another.The classroom often seems the placewhere intellectual stimulation bestoccurs.

Paulsen: But it’s also a placewhere you have a very vulnerablegroup. I think it is fair and right,however, that people who work withmaterial, such as a theologian does,must be given opportunity to testtheir findings outside the classroomin an appropriate forum of colleaguesand church leaders.


Paulien: Now that we’re on thesubject of theological thinking, doyou have any thoughts on the futureof Adventist theology? Are there anytrends around the world that mightbe of interest to us?

Paulsen: Well, I don’t see oneparticular global issue.When I thinkof our church as a global community,there is so much diversity.There is noone issue that seems to be surfacingeverywhere. I think the church willalways be challenged with “How canI be a faithful Seventh-day Adventist,alive to the church, alive to my taskof witnessing, yet do it in my uniquecultural situation?”The church is ex-panding rapidly around the world.And many of the cultures the churchencounters are very different fromthose in the Western world. How canthe church cope with this rapidgrowth and still keep its Adventistidentity intact? That is one of the bigchallenges.

Paulien: When it comes to a va-riety of cultures, would it make moresense to increase the fundamental be-liefs and make them more specific orto make them a little more simple?

Paulsen: In every culture, youhave to be sure that you have statedyour faith in as basic a way as possi-ble. Being a believer shouldn’t requiremuch formal training. It was nevermeant to be a complicated science.So should we shorten the 27?Changing the fundamentals doesn’tmean that the belief of the churchhas changed.When we drafted the27, it was stated we intended to re-examine them every now and thenand say,“Have we said it the bestway? Was there something we leftout, which we have now discoveredthat we should have included?”

An example of this is occurringnow. Recent advances in the 10/40window indicate that there are reali-ties in respect to God and evil powerswhich the statements from 1980 donot address.We are, therefore, propos-ing an additional fundamental beliefat the session in St. Louis.* This newfundamental addresses our need tosay something about prayer, the devo-

tional life, and how Christ has over-come the powers of evil.

Paulien: A concern I have is thatevery word of our Fundamental Be-liefs has an oral tradition as to whythis word was chosen, and that wordwasn’t chosen. It seems to me that ifwe wait until all those who draftedthe 1980 statement are no longerwith us, we can end up with a lot ofmisunderstanding or even an un-changeable creed. So I’m thinkingthat taking a fresh look at all of thefundamentals in the very near futurewould make a lot of sense.Would this28th fundamental provide an oppor-tunity to evaluate the whole thing inthe light of the past 25 years?

Paulsen: We were not meant tohave a creed, these are not fixed state-ments; they are always going to besubject to change. I hope that inbringing in this additional one we aresignaling to the church that these arethings that we will constantly belooking at.We will constantly ask thequestion,“Did we say it as well as weshould have, does it make sense at thistime in history, or was there some-thing we overlooked that we shouldhave included?”

I don’t expect that we will justopen all of these at a General Con-ference session; you will run intochaos if you do that.There has to be

a process beforehand. Some thoughtshould be given to these matters be-fore they come to the session, andthat is how we have handled the newfundamental. It was sent to world di-visions and institutions of learning toexamine the choice of words thathave been made.

Paulien: Would you reflect a lit-tle on the purpose of the Faith andScience Conferences and their finaloutcome?

Paulsen: It’s easier, of course, todefine the purpose than to define theoutcome. Some seven or eight yearsago, when I was chair of the board ofthe Geoscience Research Institute,the request came through that boardto the GC to set up a conferencewhere theologians and scientists atour schools could come together andlook at Creation.There have beenmany caricatures of what is beingtaught about Creation at our institu-tions.

So the GC agreed to schedule,over a period of two years, a series offaith and science conferences thatwould look at Creation.These con-ferences would have input from menand women who teach theology, whoare involved in administration, andwho teach science or are involved inscience research.We were quite delib-erate in choosing people who would


be able to bring a certain broadness ofinput. It has to be possible for us totalk together, even when we don’t seeeye to eye on everything.There isnothing to be gained from runningaway from something simply becauseit’s not so easy to talk about.

The purpose of these conferenceswas to bring people together in anopen discussion, in an atmosphere ofmutual trust and safety. I don’t expectthe church to change its position onthe matter of Creation.We haveclearly stated in our Fundamental Be-liefs our view on Creation. I expectthe church to stand firm on that. ButI hope that we can come out of theseconversations with a better under-standing of each other on both sides.

Paulien: Most Protestant de-nominations faced with issues likeCreation have tended to split into anumber of smaller groups. Do you seeAdventism heading for a breakup, oris there something different about usthat will keep us together?

Paulsen: Well, I would like tothink that there is. I really don’t sensethat we’re going in the direction of adivision or a split along that line. Inthe first place, we are different fromother Protestant churches; we are veryglobal.There are many, many ele-ments that bind us together: the waywe handle our resources, our Biblestudy materials, the writings of EllenG.White. Many things hold us to-gether as one family, and we are verydeliberate in making sure that bondedquality stays intact.

So I don’t sense that there is thatkind of a rupture coming.As I travelaround the world, what I sense fromour members, leaders, and teachers isa strong desire to hold the church to-gether.There is a very strong sense inour international family that we areone.You don’t really find this in anyother church quite the way we haveit.This is God’s design for us that weare going to preserve.

Paulien: I’m encouraged thatyou’re not as worried about this assome of us might be.A related issue isthat at times evangelists take somevery different tacks in handling the

thing that we need to define verycarefully, what is the heart of the Sev-enth-day Adventist faith identity.There is a reason God called thismovement into being 150 years ago.We need those who teach theologyand religion to provide strong inputon Adventist identity.We need to beclear on the beliefs that give us goodreasons to pursue our mission. I feel itis so important that we be clear aboutthe core issues.

In conclusion, when I was ateacher of theology, I found it veryrewarding and a sacred responsibilityto create a young mind.To our reli-gion teachers, I say that there is nolarger or more responsible assignmentin the church. Our young people aretomorrow’s church, and they staywith you for many months. It givesyou a chance to shape their mind. Iappeal to you, therefore, to carefullyreview the elements that you bringinto your teaching in light of this. Iwould want you to share with yourstudents the central components ofSeventh-day Adventist identity.Theseare what drive and compel us intomission, and mission is what we’rehere for. ✐

_________________

Jan Paulsen is Presidentof the Seventh-day AdventistChurch, whose headquartersare in Silver Spring, Mary-land.At the time of the in-terview, Jon Paulien wasPresident of the AdventistSociety for Religious Study.He is Professor of New Tes-tament Interpretation at theSeventh-day Adventist Theo-logical Seminary in BerrienSprings, Michigan.The orig-inal video interview was pre-sented at a meeting of 150North American religion

teachers in San Antonio,Texas, on November 19,2004. Some of the oral flavor of the original hasbeen retained.______________________________*When this interview took place, thechurch’s 28th Fundamental Belief had notyet been adopted.

same subject around the world. Itmakes me wonder if differences inevangelism could one day lead us to abreakup.

Paulsen: It is a fact that in pub-lic evangelism, the basic core teach-ings of the church are being expressedin largely the same way. But there areevangelists who will highly profile therole of the Papacy in parts of theworld, while in other areas, such as inparts of Latin America (where theCatholic Church is a very strongchurch), our public evangelists delib-erately take a different approach.Theyset about accomplishing their mission,not as a focused Catholic-bashing ex-ercise, but as spreading the completegospel, which will draw people onthe basis of positive values rather thanon the basis of negative attacks orcriticism.

So I think there are differences inemphasis on that. Being an evangelistis a very challenging role. Each cul-ture has to select its approach and thepeople who can best carry the mes-sage into that culture. Clearly, somepeople can do that better than others.

Paulien: Thank you very much.Before we close, I’d like to give youan opportunity to talk about anyother opportunities or threats thechurch faces.

Paulsen: When I look at theworld church, the biggest challengethat I see is not to focus on growth atthe expense of nurture and disciple-ship. In some places, numbers havebecome the final criterion that de-fines whether you have succeeded ornot.As a result, there are places in theworld where we’ve had large numberscome in, but they have no place inwhich to worship and they have noone to look after their spiritual needs.They are left like sheep without ashepherd, and they become easy pick-ings for someone else. So I think wehave a huge challenge to make surethat we not only bring people intothe church but sustain and grow theChristian life that follows baptism.

Another issue we need to addressis the question,“What is the heart ofAdventist life?” I think this is some-


Jon Paulien

Jan Paulsen

Teaching AboutGod

and Human

Life“God and Human Life” is the name of an undergrad-

uate religion course taught at Andrews University inBerrien Springs, Michigan. It strikes me as paradigmatic ofwhat undergraduate Bible teaching is supposed to beabout.

Before I became a Bible teacher, I used to be a theol-ogy professor. My students came to school because theybelieved God had ordered them to.They came to preparethemselves to go where He commanded. I loved my workwith them, but it was not enough. I hankered after a class-room filled with undergrads focused on future riches andfame, or on nothing at all. I wanted to teach youth whoenrolled because of academic motivation and intellectualcapacity, and those who were apathetic about the spiritualjustifications for the existence of my school.

I saw my time with them as the chance to revel to-gether at a neighborhood park instead of trying to get ac-quainted at a traffic stop.The park is the college Bibleclassroom, where conversations about Jesus Christ are le-gitimized both by structure and time, where the teachersare unapologetically Christian, where the textbook isGod’s Word, and where the goalsare to advance eternal purposes: toknow God and Jesus Christ whom


He has sent (see John 17:3). By contrast, the “traffic-lightencounter” represents Sabbath afternoon witnessing, oreven on-campus chapel services and dormitory worships,by which conscientious saints strategize to interrupt keenand busy people with words about how good Jesus is.AndHe is good.And so is creative Christian zeal. But I wantedmore than short, occasional encounters. I wanted hourstogether in the park.

A New OpportunityIn February 1996,Andrews University’s General Edu-

cation Committee came up with a new Bible class thatwould feature boundless associations between theologyand everything from architecture to zoology (and every-thing in between); between existence and transcendence;between God and everything.The class, whose teaching Inow share, is titled “God and Human Life” [GHL]. It wasconceived to introduce the doctrines of revelation/inspira-tion, hermeneutics, the Trinity, and soteriology, terms asvital to most college students as supercalifragilisticexpialido-cious.To quote the university bulletin, it deals with “HowGod confronts human beings—includes the process ofrevelation, principles of interpreting Scripture and simi-larly inspired material, the nature of God and His expecta-tions for humans, and the evaluation of these concepts aspresented in Scripture and classic literature of various reli-gions.”1

In truth,“how God confrontshuman beings” encompasses amuch grander scope than mereBY LAEL CAESAR


scholastic attention to certain aspects of systematic theol-ogy.And this is by no means the exclusive province of theGHL curriculum.All of Scripture is an account of howGod confronts human beings.And as Paul advises, it wasall designed for our educational benefit (Romans 15:4).Bible classes, in academy, in college, or otherwise, ought todemonstrate that outside of biblical explanation, life is toofragmented to make sense.This is true integration of faithand learning.

Speaking and thinking about “how God con-fronts human beings” urges teacher and stu-dents to relate personally and practically to theissues and situations involved, particularly con-frontation between people and the God of the

Bible.Teachers who deal with the reality of how Godconfronts humanity must be deeply involved with their

subject, and with students.As Parker Palmer points out:“real learning does not happen until students are broughtinto relationship with the teacher, with each other, andwith the subject.”2 This relationship is vital if Bible classesare to truly engage students in grappling with how Godconfronts human beings.

Palmer also insists that students must be brought intorelationship with the subject.There can be no doubt as towhat—or rather who—the subject is in any Bible class at aSeventh-day Adventist academy, college, or university.Thesubject is always God. George W. Reid has lamented the“open, freewheeling, and exploratory” character of some[post-]modern Bible classes, which at times “provide littlemore than an occasion to ventilate uninformed opinions.”3

Instead, Reid says,authentic collegeBible study “leads toinquiry about Godand His Word. Itspoint of ultimate ref-erence is God, nothuman thought.”4

The wide variety ofreligion classes, fromAdventist doctrine,to personal spiritual-ity, to business andsocial ethics, illus-trates the many waysto engage students’minds in thinkingabout God and HisWord.

The God I TeachAbout

As a Christianteacher, I am cer-

tainly not unique in believing in a God who is directly in-volved with human life. Hindus, Muslims, the Church ofJesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and ancient Greeks haveall shared my conviction.5 Thus, as I explain to my stu-dents, the notion of God’s association with human beingsis not a new idea invented by your teacher over the sum-mer.

The God of the Bible is the one whose initiativemakes everything possible (Colossians 1:16), from creation,to revelation, to science, to eternal salvation (John 1:1-3).He is the first and the last (Revelation 1:17); the begin-ning, the sustainer, and the climactic end (Revelation 21:6;22:13; Colossians 1:17); the one who cannot be circum-scribed by the most meticulous of creaturely observation,but whose self-disclosing witness is always completely reli-able (John 10:35; 2 Timothy 3:15-17; 2 Peter 1:21); theone who, paradoxically, is both presumed and introducedin the first words of the Bible:“In the beginning God . . . .”

I wanted to teachyouth who en-rolled because ofacademic motiva-tion and intellec-tual capacity, andthose who wereapathetic aboutthe spiritual just-ifications for theexistence of myschool.

The photos in this article show the author, Lael Caesar,interacting with his students.

(Genesis 1:1).The biblical witness to God as creation’s ra-tional core grants us insight we would otherwise lack intothe explanation of origins. It also gives us Earth’s clearestarticulation of the meaning of life and individual destiny.

Integrated ThinkingThis breadth of “God understanding” hints at the

counter-intuitiveness of imposing category distinctionsupon Him as our subject and the confrontation that is Hispurpose. Here are six reasons why Bible classes are an ex-cellent venue for integrated discussion of these themes.

1. Reversing the Fragmen-tation of Knowledge

First is their ability to re-verse the awkward fragmen-tation of knowledge thatnew college students face.Paul speaks truthfully whenhe insists that “we know inpart . . . , we see but a poorreflection as in a mirror” (1Corinthians 13:9, 12, NIV).Our knowledge is partial be-cause humans are limited.The need for dividing datainto manageable bits thatproduce 50-minute lectures,semester-long classes, andlifelong careers has producedcategory distinctions partic-ularly unhelpful to the hu-man progress that educationso vociferously celebrates.

Constrained tochoose which information bits to absorb, fartoo many students acquire a “distinction educa-tion” instead of a distinctive one. In the univer-sity in particular, many courses merely sensitize

enrollees to the distinctions between what is legal andwhat is ethical, between social or environmental sensitivityand commercial success, between international relationsand enlightened national self-interest, between faith in asupreme deity and the study of autonomous rocks. Manystudents learn to accept, to adjust to, or worst of all, totake advantage of these distinctions. But as a venue whereGod faces humanity, the Bible class provides a context thatpromotes the integration of these academically and profes-sionally separated categories.

2. Providing a Sense of PurposeSecond, the Bible class can bring a sense of purpose to

students’ lives. Human ambition and divine destiny, per-sonal desire and divine design are far more biblically com-patible than many imagine. Students who have grown up


in a culture where science teaches that God is unnecessarywill be amazed at the level of insight for living available in1 Samuel 23:1-13. In that account, God protects David byrevealing a series of actions still in the future.As studentslearn how much spiritual guidance the Bible’s God cangive them, they will enter into dialogue with Him.Andthe God of David will gladly talk with them about thepros and cons of their hypotheses, to the benefit of theirfuture plans.6

3. Challenging the Disciplinary Credibility Scale [DCS]Effective Bible classes also challenge the disciplinary

credibility scale, one of higher education’s most sacredproperties. Because the social sciences and humanities donot establish and state their facts in a uniform way, orteach from the same materials across the board,7 they havetrouble claiming the same authority or credibility asphysics and other hard sciences.8 Again, because some dis-ciplines produce quantifiably greater academic and intel-lectual advantage, or professional success, measured interms of larger salaries, fatter perks, and/or greater publicesteem or acclaim, they are seen as more valuable.

In truth, “howGod confrontshuman be-ings” encom-passes a muchgrander scopethan merescholastic at-tention to cer-tain aspects ofsystematictheology.


physics continued to think in unscientific ways about mo-tion. Researchers designed experiments that exposed theinadequacy of the students’ ideas, and highlighted the gapbetween their beliefs and the principles taught in the class.Thus challenged,“the students performed all kinds ofmental gymnastics to avoid confronting and revising thefundamental underlying principles that guided their un-derstanding of the physical universe.”9 In other words, thefacts they had memorized and the exams they had passedhad not altered their thinking about basic physics. Re-searchers now know that “some people make A’s by learn-ing to ‘plug and chug,’ memorize formulae, sticking num-

bers in the right equationor the right vocabulary intoa paper, but understandinglittle. . . . Even when learn-ers have acquired some conceptual understanding of adiscipline or field, they are often unable to link thatknowledge to real-world situations or problem-solvingcontexts.”10

Conscientious teacher response to this problemmay engender frustration among well-inten-tioned students, particularly those fixated ontheir grade-point average.Though this focus isno student invention,11 educators are very

much aware that in many instances, ‘getting an A’ rankshigher on the undergraduate’s scale of values than under-standing the concept. Besides this, there is the Bibleclasses’ low position in the hierarchy of undergraduate val-

Bible classes do not register on any list of high-value classes based on financial calibrations. Bib-lical scholarship is not a lucrative career. Stu-dents do not see general-education Bible classesas honing their money-making skills. Further,

because Bible is not a hard science, college religion classesare hard pressed to compete for credibility, authority, andvalidity with math, computer engineering, chemistry, biol-ogy, or physics.

But effective Bible classes enable the teacher and stu-dents to reflect on the only true scale of values.As collegeyouth dream of future fame, scholarly attainment, prosper-

ity, and entertainment, Bible study helps them to remem-ber the real purpose for living: Not science versus history,but serving versus being served (Matthew 20:28).Andthey are challenged by Jesus’ famous question about gain-ing the world in exchange for one’s soul (see Matthew16:26; Mark 8:36, 37).Again, as they consider the relativevalidity of human observations and divine declarations,they may determine to live by “every word that proceedsout of the mouth of God,” laboring, not “for the foodwhich perishes, but for the food which endures to eternallife” (Matthew 4:4; John 6:27, NAU).

4. Straightening Thinking About GodA fourth and major contribution of Bible classes is

their potential for unraveling twisted thinking about God.In the early 1980s, Ibrahim Abou Halloun and DavidHestenes, physicists at Arizona State University, discoveredthat many students who earned an “A” in introductory

The wide vari-ety of religionclasses, fromAdventist doc-trine, to per-sonal spiritual-ity, to businessand socialethics, illus-trates themany ways toengage stu-dents’ mindsin thinkingabout Godand His Word.

ues. Forthright students have made it clear to me thatthey don’t want to work very hard in Bible classes—because they have other, more significant things todo; further, they want me to tell them what will beon the quiz and exam; which they expect should bequickly completed with little mental effort.

Meaningful study about God is hardlyhelped by this kind of environment.Helping students understand how Godconfronts human beings means avoid-ing simplistic objectives focusing on

memorization and regurgitation, in favor of those“that embody the kind of thinking and acting ex-pected for life.”12 Bible teachers have a solemn re-sponsibility to help correct students’ twisted thinkingabout God, which relegates Him to insignificance orlimits His involvement in academics and human life.The conscientious Bible teacher cannot be content todispassionately communicate theological information.The goal of the study of God is not memorizing data,or grasping theoretical concepts, or earning an “A.” Itis experiential. It is linked “to real-world situations[and] problem-solving contexts.”13 The goal of Bibleclass is to improve the mind and the present quality oflife, and to experience the thrill of everlasting inti-macy with God. Godliness, Paul insists, is profitableboth now and tomorrow, here and in the next life (1Timothy 4:8).To the extent that focus on grades andpreparation for exams obscures the vital, life-alteringgoal of reveling in godliness, of basking in the sun-light of God’s love more fully than ever before, to thatextent Bible teaching has failed. Helping students seegrades as secondary, and a life-changing experiencewith a God of love as primary—this continues to beone of the great goals of my Bible teaching.And I sayboldly:Achieving that appreciation is one of the mostliberating thrills in all academe.

5. Bringing a Practical Orientation to LifeBible classes also provide a much-needed practical ori-

entation for life. Students who understand God’s rightfulplace in their lives, understand that living with and forHim is wholly and thoroughly gratifying. Life with God isboth wholistic and good. It is very different from theschizophrenic tyranny that drives people to compartmen-talize their lives into discrete areas such as sleep[lessness],diet, work, church, entertainment, etc.With the fine dis-criminations of the Holy Spirit for their guide, and God’sglory as their purpose, students may commit to sleepingwell, eating right, enjoying refreshing friendships, and re-newing their minds with invigorating recreation and regu-lar spiritual communion. Such a life-affirming practicalorientation strongly contrasts with the sad combinationsof sleep loss and wretched nutrition (junk food) that soeffectively undermine the physical health and the powers


of concentration so necessary for the student to do his orher best.

Students need to see that it is God’s deep pas-sion for their physical and social happiness, fortheir total success, that expresses itself as guide-lines for healthful and temperate living. Learn-ing of God as Lord of human life delivers

conscientious and forward-looking youth from some mis-guided notion that they must serve two masters, God andambition. If they will live now as healthy, happy subjectsof His kingdom, He promises to grant them the desires oftheir heart (Psalm 37:4).

6. Sharpening the Great Controversy PerspectiveThe sixth area where the college Bible class can pro-

mote integrated thinking is in linking the story of Lu-cifer’s rebellion to the origins of “art for art’s sake” and“knowledge for its own sake.” Before Lucifer introduced a


skewed system of values, everything was done to the gloryof God. Later, the idea of objectivity allowed things to beassessed and appreciated apart from the celebration of di-vine love.At times, in this new context, created beingsclaim applause for their work instead of ascribing all glory,laud, and honor to God. In the spirit of Lucifer’s originalsearch for recognition, humans seek to compete for recog-nition with the One who brought them into being.Rather than gratefully serving God and their fellow manas artists, scholars, artisans, administrators, or housekeepers,Earth’s fallen creatures chase after personal aggrandizementand indulgence, public recognition, and money.14 These di-mensions of human selfishness are products of Satan’s waragainst God’s order and his jealousy of Jesus’ supremacy.Bible teaching can refocus students’ thinking by showinghow the Great Controversy theme explains and correctsthis skewed emphasis and is the key to a comprehensiveunderstanding of human life and God’s relation to it.

ConclusionStudents attend college to obtain training for academic

and professional careers.A Christian school must incorpo-rate both knowledge of God and a commitment to serviceinto that training. Effective Bible classes connect studentswith a God whose boundless power is at the service ofHis infinite, personally caring love. No one’s actions, atti-tudes, and choices are beyond the sphere of concern ofthis limitlessly loving God.This reassurance will give ouryouth confidence for living and decision making becauseGod’s solicitude and power are always available on theirbehalf. Further, because God cares so completely and iswilling to help them, they may ask His advice about theirbest course of action.Wherever His counsel leads themprofessionally and academically, they may safely followwithout having to waver between conceit and inferiority,foolhardiness and insecurity.This enables them to live fulland balanced lives of study, play, and worship that bringglory to God in the here and now, and get them accus-tomed to sharing and serving in His splendid companyforever. ✐

_________________________________Lael Caesar teaches Bible in the Department ofReligion and Biblical Languages at Andrews Univer-sity in Berrien Springs, Michigan. During his years ofreligion teaching there and at Montemorelos Universityin Mexico, he has been chosen “teacher of the year”four times.

______________________________________________

NOTES AND REFERENCES

1. Andrews University Bulletin 94 (Berrien Springs:Andrews Univer-sity, 2005), p. 186.

2. Parker J. Palmer, To Know As We Are Known:A Spirituality of Edu-cation (San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1983), p. xvi.

3. George W. Reid,“Building Faith in the College Religion Class,”

Journal of Adventist Education53:2 (December 1990/Janu-ary 1991), p. 26.

4. Ibid.5. Hindus hold that the

Bhagavad-Gita was spoken byLord Sri Krsna, the SupremePersonality of Godhead, toHis intimate devotee Arjuna.The Hindu Vedas are ac-cepted as originally spokenby the Lord [Vishnu] himselfto Brahma, from within hisheart. Muslims believe thatthe Qur’an was given

through revelation to Mohamed.The church of Jesus Christ of LatterDay Saints holds that the Book of Mormon was made available to theworld through Joseph Smith’s obedience to the instructions of Moroni,the messenger of God.And ancient Greeks depended on the oracle ofDelphi.

6.Through the years that I have taught GHL, I have consistently re-quired students to memorize a quotation that crystalizes this concept ofdivine willingness to guide humans who are willing to be led:“Conse-crate yourself to God in the morning; make this your very first work.Let your prayer be, ‘Take me, O Lord, as wholly Thine. I lay all my plansat Thy feet. Use me today in Thy service.Abide with me, and let all mywork be wrought in Thee.’This is a daily matter. Each morning conse-crate yourself to God for that day. Surrender all your plans to Him, tobe carried out or given up as His providence shall indicate.Thus day byday you may be giving your life into the hands of God, and thus yourlife will be molded more and more after the life of Christ” (Ellen G.White, Steps to Christ [Boise, Idaho: Pacific Press, 1981], p. 70).

7.They do not exhibit the “Epistemological, linguistic and curricu-lar convergence [that] are found in physics, . . .” for example, where peo-ple all over the world use the same introductory physics textbook, Halli-day and Resnick’s Fundamentals of Physics (1988): Janet Donald, Improvingthe Environment for Learning:Academic Leaders Talk About What Works (SanFrancisco: Jossey-Bass, 1997), p. 31.

8. Ibid., p. 32.9. Ken Bain, What the Best College Teachers Do (Cambridge, Mass.:

Harvard, 2004), p. 23.10. Ibid.11.“Students quickly intuit that grades are the medium of ex-

change.The accounting procedure in higher education has thus led to adistortion in students’ educational goals that may only be rectified bymajor administrative and programmatic changes” (Donald, p. 22). It maybe noted that it is competition, not evaluation itself, that is the culprit.Part 2 of this article explains more about my personal struggle againstthis distorting phenomenon of competition in the context of studentassignment evaluations.

12. Ibid., p. 18.13. Bain, p. 23.14. See Ellen G.White, The Desire of Ages, page 21:“. . . in the heav-

enly courts, in His ministry for all created beings: through the belovedSon, the Father’s life flows out to all; through the Son it returns, inpraise and joyous service, a tide of love, to the great Source of all.Andthus through Christ the circuit of beneficence is complete, representingthe character of the great Giver, the law of life.”All of creaturely effortwas originally a declaration of praise and gratitude to God, the GreatGiver of life, and breath, and everything. Lucifer’s radical modification iswhat selfishness is all about—breaking the circuit of life by validatingingratitude and stealing from God to give to undeserving selves.

Effective Bibleclasses enablethe teacher andstudents to re-flect on the onlytrue scale of val-ues.

PASSING ON WHAT REALLYCOUNTS:TRANSMITTING ADVENTIST VALUES AND BELIEFS AND A SPIRIT OF SERVICE AND MISSION

Adventist religion teachers face a variety of students.Some are entrenched in postmodern convictionsand conditioned to seek something more extraordi-nary in their religious experience than the mererecitation of facts. Others wrestle with a tendency todisbelief or are inclined to question fundamentalbiblical doctrines.A few come with an atheistic or

animistic background. Others have had very tangible conversion expe-riences, even though the emotional and psychological baggage fromtheir former life may hang on for years. Still others are deeply rootedin an Adventist subculture where they feel at home, yet they feeldeeply dissatisfied with the way things are going—or not going—inthe church.

How can religion teachers foster the transmission of Adventist be-liefs and values to such a diverse audience? In a culture saturated withthe idea of self-fulfillment, how can they instill in students a desire toreach out and serve others? How can they help students focus on mis-sion rather than narrowly on academic success to ensure getting awell-paid job?

What Is Education?The answer is to focus on what really counts in Adventism. For

Adventists, all of Scripture is important to our faith.While God’s infal-lible revelation cannot be reduced to just a few basic doctrines, Sev-enth-day Adventists are recognized in holding no less than certain ba-sic biblical beliefs.1 We now have 28 Fundamental Beliefs that identifythe church’s understanding of certain biblical teachings.

Transmitting what is uniquely Advent-ist, however, involves more than memoriz-ing a lot of Fundamental Beliefs.Adventist


How can religionteachers fosterthe transmissionof Adventist beliefs and valuesto . . . a diverseaudience?

BY FRANK M. HASEL


teachers must also pass onthe values and principlesembedded in those beliefs.Understanding those val-ues and principles will en-able students to translatetheir cognitive beliefs intoa biblical-Adventist life-style.

This leads to the ques-tion of what educationreally is. It has been saidthat “Christian education,simply defined, is the min-istry of bringing the be-liever to maturity in JesusChrist.”2 In other words,the purpose of educationalministry is to help stu-dents develop a Christlikecharacter.3 This is what wewant to pass on.

Education for FaithEducation for spiritual

maturity means educatingfor faith.This can best bedone in the context ofmutual trust in a faithcommunity as well as inan academic environmentthat is conducive to bibli-cal faith. However, Scripture speaks of biblical faith inthree different but interactive ways.A proper theologicalunderstanding of spiritual maturity includes the cognitive,the affective, and the volitional.4

The Cognitive Aspect of Faith“Faith has an intellectual or cognitive aspect.There is

an element of knowledge or content to faith. Scripture af-firms that faith means believing certain things are true.There is a content to be believed, and that content hasspecifics.”5 In other words, it is not enough to have faith.What a person believes is every bit as critical as the factthat he or she believes. If we want to help our studentsgrow in faith, we must communicate the biblical content offaith.This will include our understanding of basic biblicaltruths.“It is impossible to be spiritually mature and yet beignorant of the truths of God’s Word. Spiritual maturity iscontingent upon knowing what God has said. . . .” and thismeans “teaching the content of the faith accurately.”6

The Relational Aspect of FaithFaith also has a relational aspect. It is not enough to

know the right content.7 Religious beliefs must also cap-ture the heart and will.8 Thus, a living faith goes beyond

the intellectual; it is rela-tional and alive towardGod. It requires an emo-tional commitment to theobject of one’s faith sothat the heart delights inthe truth. It is not possi-ble to speak of spiritualmaturity apart from thesequalities.Therefore, thereligion teacher’s goalmust be to help studentsturn their hearts towardGod.Then they will notonly understand the truthbut also be attracted andcaptured by the truth9 andhave a desire to be incommunion with JesusChrist, who is the Truth.

The Volitional Aspect of Faith

Faith also has a voli-tional dimension.Truefaith empowers people toput their beliefs into prac-tice to achieve a Christ-like lifestyle.We cannottruthfully say that we be-lieve in Jesus unless ourcommitment translates

into active obedience and a loving desire to do God’s will.Taking these aspects of faith seriously will help teach-

ers choose the right approach for transmitting their be-liefs.To educate for spiritual maturity means to be faithfulto all of Scripture. It also means respecting the dignity ofthe other person and seeing him or her through the eyesof Jesus—with love and compassion. Furthermore, it in-cludes a belief that students are free moral agents whomay need help making wise decisions.An authentic edu-cation for faith will avoid manipulative or coercive meth-ods that produce a forced compliance to the will of God.Instead, it will seek to win the students’ trust and encour-age them to commit their lives to God. It will help themthroughout their lives to develop a spirit of dependenceupon God and a healthy independence from other peoplein obeying His will.

Educating for Spiritual MaturityIn many ways,Adventist education has been oriented

more toward equipping its students with professional skillsrather than developing their character.10 A study known asReadiness for Ministry11 showed that what was consideredvaluable for the pastor’s effectiveness was not, in fact, min-istry skills, but character values. For example, more than

Photos in this article depict students at the author’s school,Bogenhofen Seminary, Austria, engaging in a variety of reli-gious life and outreach activities.

half of the top 12 most-valued min-istry descriptions—out of 444—werecharacter-based, such as “keepshis/her word and fulfills promises,”“acknowledges his/her own need forcontinued growth in faith,”“servesothers willingly with or without pub-lic acclaim,” and “main-tains personal integritydespite pressures to com-promise.”Although pro-fessional skills and otherfactors are important inministry, this study com-pellingly highlighted whatreally is important for apastor—the solidity of hisor her Christian characterin the sight of God andHis people.This commit-ment is just as importantfor other careers.

While Seventh-day Adventistshave emphasized the importance ofcharacter development and spiritual-ity, in theory we tend to give lesstime and attention to those areas thanto intellectual skills.We must educatefor character as well as intellect, de-cency as well as literacy, virtue as wellas knowledge.12 Ellen White insistedthat “the Bible must be made thegroundwork and subject matter ofeducation,”13 unfolding “a simple andcomplete system of theology and phi-losophy,” and warned against human-istic trends:“When education in hu-man lines is pushed to such an extent

ical training. It strengthens thecharacter, so that truth and upright-ness are not sacrificed to selfish desireor worldly ambition. . . .What educa-tion can be higher than this? Whatcan equal it in value?”16

Character Development,the Curriculum, and theTeacher

But how do we institu-tionalize character educa-tion? It will not be achievedby adding yet anothercourse entitled “EverythingYou Need to Know AboutCharacter Development.”Christian maturity requires awillingness to have one’scharacter formed and trans-formed—and perhaps evenmore upon the positive ex-ample of the teacher. For

“no educational system is above thepeople working in it. If the teachersdo not fear the Lord and delight inhim, the best educational system willfail.”17

The teacher needs a supportiveenvironment that allows time to men-tor students, one on one. Downsnotes that “people can be taught bestto know doctrine and think in bibli-cal categories when they are in-

that the love of God wanes in theheart, that prayer is neglected, andthat there is a failure to cultivate spir-itual attributes, it is wholly disas-trous.”15

Christian education is first andforemost character education.“Insteadof educated weaklings, institutions oflearning may send forth men strongto think and to act, men who aremasters and not slaves of circum-stances, men who possess breadth ofmind, clearness of thought, and thecourage of their convictions. Such aneducation provides more than mentaldiscipline; it provides more than phys-


Transmitting what isuniquely Adventist . . .involves more thanmemorizing a lot ofFundamental Beliefs.

structed individually or in smallgroups.”18 When the class sizes in-crease to such proportions that teach-ers have a hard time rememberingstudents’ names, let alone interactingwith them on a one-to-one basis, itbecomes very difficult to transmitspiritual values.

Although Jesus occasionallypreached to an audience of severalthousand, He taught a rather smallcircle of close disciples. Here, smallerschools seem to have anadvantage because theirmore personal atmos-phere is more con-ducive to the transmis-sion of spiritual valuesthan a large and anony-mous setting.19

It is important forstudents to learn centralbiblical facts, appreciatethe beauty of Adventistbeliefs, develop an un-derstanding of world-views and philosophies,and acquire professionalskills. However, all thisis worth very little ifnot accompanied by integrity.

Moral qualities are not somuch transmitted intellectuallyas by observation—from whatstudents see and experience inthe lives of teachers—in theclassroom, in church, and intheir homes and families. Obser-vational learning effectivelycommunicates values, behavior,and attitudes.20

However, there is no spiritualgrowth apart from truth.“Christianeducation must approach and treatScripture as truth if it is to producespiritual growth.”21 The combinationof sound Christian witness and thetruth of Scripture is the key to ateacher’s influence and effectiveness.“Character alone, apart from theWord of God, will not produce right-eousness. Conversely, the Word ofGod, if it is not communicated by arighteous teacher, will be less likely tohave a powerful influence on the stu-dent.”22

skills, such as being able to choose in-dependently and in an informedmanner, are basics of Christian educa-tion.

Created beings are held responsi-ble for their choices.Therefore, Chris-tian education needs to help studentsaccept responsibility for their behav-ior and their decisions. Understandingthe nature of forgiveness, acceptingthe redemption offered through faithin Jesus Christ alone, and experienc-ing the joy and fulfillment that comesfrom following Jesus and His written

In other words, if teacherswant to transmit to students theimportance of (1) involvement inthe church and its missionary ac-tivities, (2) an active devotionallife, and (3) selfless service, theymust value and model these activi-ties themselves.This will inspiretheir students to do the same.

Essential Values and BeliefsHaving said all this, I would

like to pinpoint some essentialvalues and specific beliefs thatwe must transmit in our schools.These suggestions are not exhaustive,but rather may serve to stimulate fur-ther reflection.

Understanding SalvationChristians want to follow the di-

vine plan for character developmentbecause they have experienced God’sforgiveness in Christ.The Bible saysthat God offers His unmerited salva-tion to all, but to receive this free gift,humans must make a conscious deci-sion.This means that decision-making


If we wantto help ourstudentsgrow in faith,we mustcommunicatethe biblicalcontent offaith.

Word are essential ele-ments of religious educa-tion. No student shouldleave our schools withoutan experiential knowl-edge of salvation.

Understanding God’sCommandments

Postmoderns areplagued by a deep-seateduncertainty about truth.Truth for many has be-come a matter of taste or personalpreference. Familiarity with the TenCommandments can provide reliableorientation and guidance in moraleducation. However, it is helpful toapply God’s law in different contextsso that students comprehend theprinciples embedded therein and canapply them to their own lives.

For example,23 the first command-ment (Exodus 20:2, 3) includes theprinciple of setting the right prioritiesbecause God deserves first place inour lives, rather than material things,possessions, other people, or fame.

Not misusing God’s name meansmore than refraining from swearingand cursing. It also means living as achild of the God whose name webear and not falsely portraying Hischaracter through our words anddeeds.This calls for integrity andhonesty, as well as self-control, pa-tience, justice, and steadfast love.

The fourth commandment calls usto be good stewards of our time andphysical energies (Exodus 20:9, 10).Other commandments highlight theworth of the family, teach us to re-spect other people’s possessions, to betruthful, to value the beauty of sexwithin the safe boundaries of mar-riage, and to guard the dignity of life.

Biblical Virtues The Bible teaches many virtues

that provide a basis for decision-mak-ing.24 These principles can be foundin a condensed version in passagessuch as Galatians 5:22-23, 2 Peter 1:5-7, 1 Corinthians 13, Matthew 5:3-11,and Romans 12, to name but a few.We should teach our students to be

Adventist, already suggestsan understanding of sacredand prophetic time (i.e., theSabbath and the Adventhope).

To know the Sabbathand keep it in the rightspirit means knowing thedifference between what isholy and what is profane,between the sacred and thecommon. Students can de-velop an awareness for this

important distinction when they ex-perience it in how their teachers live,dress, talk about God, conduct wor-ship services, choose what kinds ofmusic to listen to, and use HolyScripture, to name but some areas.

The Sabbath also points us to thesupernatural origin of all life, as re-vealed in God’s seven-day creation27

and points us to the Creator of time,the Sovereign of time, and the Re-deemer in His time.28 Character edu-cation has declined under Darwinism,which depicts morality as evolvingrather than fixed and certain.All thismakes the teaching of the biblicaldoctrine of the Sabbath even moreurgent today.The Sabbath is a signthat human beings belong to God.Our worth and dignity are not de-rived from what we do but come as aresult of being created by God andspending time with Him.

Seventh-day Adventists are aprophetic movement that draws itsidentity as God’s remnant people outof a particular interpretation of Bibleprophecy. Understanding apocalypticprophecy, especially the books ofDaniel and Revelation, is essential tocomprehending the church’s role inthis last phase of world history.To un-derstand the times in which we livegives a sense of urgency for our mis-sion to the world.

Connected with this propheticunderstanding of history are other as-pects of our Adventist belief such asour understanding of salvation andChrist’s high-priestly role in the heav-enly sanctuary, the judgment, ourunique mission and responsibility asGod’s end-time people, and much

self-controlled and moderate (Gala-tians 5:22-23; 1 Corinthians 10:31),content (1 Timothy 6:6; Hebrews13:5; Philippians 4:11), grateful (1Thessalonians 5:18; Philippians 4:4-6;Psalm 95:2; 107:1), honest (2 Cor-inthians 13:7; Philippians 4:8), loyaland committed (1 Corinthians 15:58),kind and compassionate (Ephesians4:32; 1 Peter 3:8, 9), patient and per-severing (1 Corinthians 13:4-7; Reve-lation 2:25), and respectful of all peo-ple and of divine authority (1 Peter2:17; 1 Thessalonians 5:12; Romans12:10).25

Promoting Peace and PracticingForgiveness

Today, it seems particularly fittingto promote peace and forgiveness.Christians should be peacemakers(James 3:18), reflecting God’s shalomin their lives. In a world increasinglytorn and divided by violence, war, andaggression,26 it is our privilege and re-sponsibility as teachers to imitateGod’s indiscriminate love and to re-flect His forgiveness in the way wedeal with ourselves, our students,other people and races, as well as withother denominations and nations. Ibelieve this requires a serious re-eval-uation of our individual and collectiveattitude toward all wars and violenceas a method of conflict resolution anda serious look at the rise of national-ism even within our own ranks.

Understanding Sacred Time andProphetic Time

Other aspects of our faith shouldbe fostered and faithfully transmittedto students. Our name, Seventh-day


more. Biblical prophecy gives us asense of realism.While we see thisworld as it really is—in all its darkand sinful condition, we never despairbecause of the wonderful Adventhope.

ConclusionWhile the content of our beliefs is

important for spiritual maturity, it ispersonal character that will manifestitself in service to other people andcommunities and in courage in publiclife.This is what we want to pass on.Therefore, religion teachers shouldbelieve what they teach about Godand the Bible, trust the Scripture,promote faith, and consistently modelwhat it means to live in relationshipwith God and with those He hasplaced in their care.29 ✐

________________

Frank M. Hasel cur-rently is Dean of Bogen-hofen Seminary in Aus-tria, where he teachesSystematic Theology, Bib-lical Hermeneutics, andPractical Theology. Hestudied theology in Ger-many, England, and the

U.S.A., where he earned his Ph.D. in System-atic Theology from Andrews University. He is anordained minister and member of the Biblical Re-search Committee of the Euro-Africa Division aswell as a member in several scholarly societies. Dr.Hasel has published one book and numerous ar-ticles in scholarly and popular journals. E-mail:[email protected].

______________________________


1.The preface to the Fundamental Beliefs ofSeventh-day Adventists states:“Seventh-day Advent-ists accept the Bible as their only creed and holdcertain Fundamental Beliefs to be the teaching ofthe Holy Scriptures.These beliefs, as set forthhere, constitute the church’s understanding andexpression of the teaching of Scripture. Revisionof these statements my be expected at a GeneralConference session when the church is led by theHoly Spirit to a fuller understanding of Bibletruth or finds better language in which to expressthe teachings of God’s Holy Word” (Seventh-dayAdventist Church Manual, p. 9).

2. Perry G. Downs, Teaching for SpiritualGrowth:An Introduction to Christian Education(Grand Rapids, Mich.: Zondervan, 1994), p. 16.

mension and atmosphere that exists on manylarger Adventist schools and institutions aroundthe world is not denied. However, the larger thesetting, the more difficult it becomes to imple-ment spiritual formation. One way to create a set-ting that fosters spiritual and character develop-ment at large schools is to create numeroussmaller circles and study groups where spiritualmentoring on a personal basis is much easier thanin a large, more anonymous, classroom setting.This of course involves an additional effort andinvestment of energy, time, and personal involve-ment beyond the normal teaching assignment,which normally is not recognized and paid for.

20. Ibid, p. 163.21. Ibid., p. 132. It has been pointed out that

“the systematic truth of Scripture is not clearlycommunicated in a purely socialization mode. . . .A pure social learning approach to Christian nur-ture could lead to heresy being taught and be-lieved, without anyone realizing it. It is thepropositional truth of God’s revelation that pro-vides the safeguards and norms for our faith. Ifthe propositional truth is lost, the foundation islost” (p. 163).

22. Ibid., p. 160.This means that whenchoosing a teacher,Adventist schools must lookfor more than knowledge and academic qualifica-tions.“God has called us, not to model perfection,but to model redemption.We are to be livingdemonstrations, not of how good we are, but ofhow good God is.We are to be models of theGospel, of God’s redemptive acts in sinful human-ity” (p. 164).

23.There is not enough space here to give anexample of an application for every command-ment.This, however, is something that needs to bedone to help students understand the relevance ofGod’s perfect law that gives freedom (cf. James1:25, 2:12).

24. See the discussion in Donna J. Habenicht,Ten Christian Values Every Kid Should Know(Hagerstown, Md.: Review and Herald Publ.Assn., 2000), which I follow closely in this sec-tion.

25. Habenicht has correctly pointed out that“all of these values are rooted in love—God’s loveand the love He gives to us.Without love in thecenter of your being, these values cannot be ex-pressed” (ibid., p. 25).

26. In light of this biblical fact, I wonderwhether an active participation in and support ofmilitary engagements and bearing of arms reflectssuch a peaceful attitude.

27. Belief in God’s special creation is founda-tional for many other biblical doctrines and forbiblical faith.There are at least 12 theologicallyrelevant connections between Creation and otherbiblical beliefs, cf. Frank M. Hasel,“Living WithConfidence Despite Some Open Questions: Up-holding the Biblical Truth of Creation AmidstTheological Pluralism,”Journal of the Adventist The-ological Society 14:1 (2003), p. 231.

28. I am indebted to my cousin Michael G.Hasel for these ideas.

29. Cf. Roger L. Dudley with V. Bailey Gille-spie, Valuegenesis: Faith in the Balance (Riverside,Calif.: La Sierra University Press, 1992), p. 271.

This definition suggests that Christian educationis to be oriented toward believers and thus beginswhere evangelism ends, helping believers grow intheir faith.

3. Even though the word character appears rel-atively rarely in the Bible, God has plenty to sayabout developing a Christlike character. For EllenG.White, the concept of character includes the“preparation of the physical, mental, and moralpowers for the performance of every duty; it isthe training of body, mind, and soul for divineservice” (Christ’s Object Lessons [Washington, D.C.:Review and Herald Publ.Assn., 1941], p. 330).Thus,“an upright character is of greater worththan the gold of Ophir.Without it none can riseto an honorable eminence. But character is notinherited. It cannot be bought. Moral excellenceand fine mental qualities are not the result of ac-cident. . . .The formation of a noble character isthe work of a lifetime and must be the result ofdiligent and persevering effort” (Patriarchs andProphets [Mountain View, Calif.: Pacific Press Pub-lishing Association, 1958], p. 223).

4. I am here following closely Downs, Teach-ing for Spiritual Growth, pages 18 and 19.

5. Ibid., p. 18.6. Ibid.7.The Epistle of James warns against the dan-

gers of having a faith that is only cognitive andtells us that orthodoxy alone is not sufficient(1:25-27; 2:14ff; 4:17).

8. Downs, p. 18.9. Ibid., pp. 18, 19.10. Ron E. M. Clouzet,“The Spiritual Ob-

jective of Theological Education,” presentation atthe European Theology Teachers Convention, Bo-genhofen Seminary,April 11-14, 2003, 3. Cf. theunpublished doctoral dissertation by Clouzet, ABiblical Paradigm for Ministerial Training (Pasadena,Calif.: Fuller Theological Seminary, 1997).

11. David S. Schuller, Merton P. Strommen,and Lilo L. Brekke, eds., Ministry in America (SanFrancisco: Harper & Row, 1980), pp. 16-22, asquoted in Clouzet,“The Spiritual Objective ofTheological Education,” p. 10.

12. Cf.Thomas Lickona, Educating for Charac-ter: How Our Schools Can Teach Respect and Respon-sibility (New York: Bantam Books, 1991), p. 6.

13. Ellen G.White, Fundamentals of ChristianEducation (Nashville,Tenn.: Southern Publ.Assn.,1923), p. 474.

14. Ibid., p. 129.15. Ibid., p. 350.16. __________, Education (Mountain View,

Calif.: Pacific Press Publ.Assn., 1903), p. 18, em-phasis supplied.

17. Downs, p. 26.18. Ibid., p. 133.19. In saying this, the positive spiritual di-


The religion teacher’sgoal must be to helpstudents turn theirhearts toward God.

It is not unusual for incom-ing freshmen, when lookingover the general-educationrequirements at a Seventh-day Adventist college oruniversity, to exclaim:

“Eighteen quarter credits [or 12semester credits] in religion! Whydo I have to take more Bibleclasses? I took Bible in academy. Icame here to prepare for a ca-reer.”

And it isn’t just students whoare prone to ask such questions.Several years ago, Pacific Union College (PUC), inAngwin, California, where I taught when this article waswritten, was revising its general-education program.Thisstimulated a great deal of discussion.Which classes fromeach discipline should be required? How could the schoolensure that students received a quality liberal-arts educa-tion? It became clear during these discussions that not allfaculty members outside theReligion Department wereequally committed to maintain-


ing a sizable religion requirementin the general-education pro-gram. Some of them expressedthe same doubt as the hypotheti-cal student,“Why must we re-quire so many credits in reli-gion?”

Now in fairness to those whopose this question, there is noprecept in the Decalogue man-dating that a tithe of general-education classes be devoted tobiblical and theological studies,though religion professors might

wish that were the case!Religion teachers may wonder why anyone would ask

such a question, since the answer seems so self-evident (atleast to us).We may be tempted to fall back on tradition—asserting that the college has always required this numberof religion credits. However, I would propose that weview the question as an opportunity to reflect analytically

about why Adventist collegesshould require religion classes.Doing so will help us discover

SHOULDADVENTIST

COLLEGESREQUIRE

RELIGIONCLASSES?

BY GREG A. K ING

If the endeavor in which Adventistcolleges and universities are involvedis to truly deserve the label “educa-tion,” it must have a spiritual di-mension. It must speak to the mostvital area of life, namely, human-ity’s need for a relationship with a

transcendent God.

and set forth the rationale and objec-tives for such classes, and to reaffirmtheir essential nature.

I believe there are persuasive andweighty reasons for requiring religionclasses as part of the general-educa-tion program at any Christian col-lege—and especially at an Adventistinstitution.

RationaleThere are a number of rationales

for required religion classes, but Iwould like to focus on two matters

close to my heart. First, if the en-deavor in which Adventist collegesand universities are involved is totruly deserve the label “education,” itmust have a spiritual dimension. Itmust speak to the most vital area oflife, namely, humanity’s need for a re-lationship with a transcendent God.Solomon was right when he declared,“The fear of the Lord is the begin-ning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7,NIV).1

Unfortunately, most secular highereducation has completely lost this di-

tive leaders that Duke is a Christianuniversity would be met with eithera firestorm of protest or howls oflaughter. But I would maintain thatthe founders of Duke and Harvard—and nearly all colleges and universitiesfounded in early America—had itright.The most important aim of ed-ucation is to seek a knowledge of theOne who claimed to be the Way, theTruth, and the Life.

This should especially betrue at Seventh-day Ad-ventist colleges and uni-versities. Our charter isfound in the following

statement:“True education meansmore than the pursual of a certaincourse of study. It means more than apreparation for the life that now is. Ithas to do with the whole being, andwith the whole period of existencepossible to man. It is the harmoniousdevelopment of the physical, themental, and the spiritual powers.”2

With this understanding, we have noreason to be apologetic and every rea-son to be unhesitating in our supportof required religion classes, which fo-cus directly on the spiritual dimen-sion of life.These classes should be atthe heart of what we do in Adventisthigher education.

Religion Classes and MissionHaving a meaningful religion re-

quirement is one of the best ways ofadvancing the overall mission of aschool.The PUC mission statementreads as follows:“Pacific Union Col-lege is a Seventh-day Adventist learn-ing community offering an excellentChrist-centered education that pre-pares its students for productive livesof useful human service and uncom-promising personal integrity.” OtherAdventist colleges’ mission statementshave similar emphases.

Since such statements describe theoverall mission of the school, the col-lege’s required curriculum must bedesigned to ensure that these wordsbecome a reality in the lives of stu-dents. Required religion classes play avital role in providing a “Christ-cen-

mension. For example, Harvard Uni-versity, arguably the most prestigiouseducational institution in the world,has as its motto the Latin word veritasmeaning “truth.” However, you mighthave a hard time finding a Harvardstudent or faculty member who couldmake any connection between thecurrent brand of education offered atthe university and the original mean-ing of that motto.When Harvard be-gan its storied history, that term didnot mean truth in the abstract, itmeant the truth that is found in

Christ Jesus. Harvard was founded totrain missionaries to witness to theNative Americans.

It is hard for some to fathom thatDuke University, famous today for itsbasketball championships, has on itscampus a plaque that reads,“TheAims of Duke University are to asserta faith in the eternal union of knowl-edge and religion set forth in theteachings and character of JesusChrist, the son of God.” But that waswhat Duke stood for at one time.Now, any assertion by its administra-


Photos in this article depict the author, Greg King, interacting with his stu-dents at Southern Adventist University.

tered education,” and in challengingstudents to live “lives of useful humanservice and uncompromising humanintegrity.” In fact, the role of theseclasses is so vital that it would be dif-ficult to imagine the mission beingaccomplished without a religion re-quirement.

To summarize, both the sine quanon of the spiritual component intrue education and the vital role ofreligion classes in fulfilling the mis-sion of the college provide a strongrationale for required religion classes.I will now set forth several objectivesof such classes.

ObjectivesSeveral years ago, a student wrote

on an information sheet distributedat the beginning of one of my Bibleclasses:“I was raised in a Seventh-dayAdventist home. My parents are peo-ple of great faith, and I love them andam grateful to them for raising me asa Christian, but I no longer considermyself to be Christian. In academy, Ibecame a real believer, but later I be-came a believer with a lot of doubts.Over the past few years, I’ve seriouslyquestioned my beliefs and am cur-rently in the process of doing so. My

questions have become more basicright now.They’re somewherearound, am I prepared to believe in aGod? If so, what kind of God?” It isthese kinds of students—who are be-coming increasingly common on ourcampuses—that I have in mind as Ipropose the following objectives.

1st Objective: EvangelisticSimply stated, the primary pur-

pose of religion classes must be tohelp our students have an encounterwith Jesus Christ. In other words, weare not merely transmitters of infor-mation, or experts in various special-ties, we are also evangelists—and ourtarget audience is the group of stu-dents in our classrooms.

The importance of this task is un-derscored by the fact that many ofour students have never experienceda soul-saving, life-changing relation-ship with Jesus. If we really believe

that Jesus is the One who providesthe most abundant, satisfying, fulfill-ing way to live (see John 10:10), andthat eternal life is found in knowingHim (see John 17:3), then one of ourprimary goals must be to inspire ourstudents to have a relationship withHim, too.And we should use everyopportunity we can, whether throughsharing a devotional thought in theclassroom, touching base with stu-dents outside of class to let themknow we are praying for them, etc.,to share our own relationship withJesus Christ.

In a published interview, Mal-colm Maxwell, president of Pa-cific Union College for 18years, succinctly described thisresponsibility:“In accepting a

position on the faculty of PacificUnion College, you are acceptingpastoral and evangelistic obligations;


I believe there are persuasive and weighty reasons for re-quiring religion classes as part of the general-education program at any Christian college—and especially at anAdventist institution.

part of your job at PUC means youwill reach out and touch our studentsfor Christ.This is the one thing thatsets our school apart. Many schoolsprovide a good academic experience;we do, too, in a context of Christiancommitment.That’s what we’re allabout.” If this is the responsibility ofany teacher in any discipline, it mustespecially be true for religion teach-ers.3

This objective is not necessarilyachieved through excellent lectures orscintillating reading assignments. Infact, accomplishing this evangelisticgoal may sometimes have little to dowith course-related issues or specificsubject matter. Please do not concludethat this condones shoddy teaching orscholarship, for we must strive for ex-cellence in our lectures, our scholar-ship, and indeed, all that we do. Butour primary objective transcends theacademic enterprise.

I was reminded of the transitorynature of the information we transmitwhen a student, immediately aftercompleting his final exam, went overto the wastebasket in the corner andwithout fanfare, threw away all of hisnotes from the class.This experienceserved as a jarring reminder that stu-dents tend to remember little of thefactual content of their classes. Manyof the dates and names and historicalevents vanish from their minds likethe morning dew. However, they arelikely to remember what type of per-son I am, whether I took a genuineinterest in them, and most of all, if I,in their view, had an authentic rela-tionship with Jesus Christ that in-spired them to want to get to knowHim better.

2nd Objective: Impart Bible Knowl-edge

A second objective follows natu-rally on the heels of the first. It is toimpart a knowledge of the Bible, theWord of God.To fulfill this objective,we must require classes that focus onthe study of Scripture.

This objective is worthy of atten-tion for a couple of reasons. First, wemust communicate to our students

ever, if I can arouse in my students apassionate hunger to study the Biblefor themselves, to make a lifelongcommitment to seeking God in thepages of His Word, I will have made alasting, perhaps an eternal, differencein their lives.

Abasic ingredient of im-parting a knowledge ofthe Bible is sharing thetime-honored principlesfor interpreting it.These

principles will be of great benefit toour students as they study a Book thatcan sometimes be very challenging. IfI can help them to interpret the Biblemore competently and accurately, Iwill have better prepared them toserve as active lay people and leaders.Moreover, this may help safeguardthem against some of the interpretiveexcesses that have been characteristicof fringe groups such as the BranchDavidians.

3rd Objective: Share Christianity’sMajor Doctrines

A third objective of required reli-gion classes is to communicate themajor teachings of Christianity andthe Seventh-day Adventist Church.The Bible emphatically challenges thecommunity of faith to transmit re-vealed truth from generation to gen-eration (see, for example, Deuteron-omy 6:7, 8). One of the best placesfor this to happen is in a classroom.

This objective is important for avariety of reasons, not least of whichis that what is not passed along willeventually be lost. If we want our stu-dents to be committed AdventistChristians, we must communicate thebeliefs that we as a church deem im-portant. Babies are not born knowingthe chief tenets of the Christian faithlike salvation by faith in Christ, theinspiration of Scripture, and the Trin-ity, nor major teachings of Adventism,like the Sabbath and Creation.Theymust be taught these doctrines.

It is important to note that thepurpose in communicating Christianteachings and the Adventist faith isnot simply to indoctrinate or to en-

the centrality of the Word of God inour personal Christian faith and inthe life of the Seventh-day AdventistChurch.We need to clearly indicatethat we really do give priority to thewords of Scripture. In a world whereso much is transitory, we must showthat we believe that,“‘The grass with-ers and the flowers fall, but the wordof our God stands forever”’ (Isaiah40:8).Teaching the Word of God hasalways been a central part of theProtestant tradition, and Adventistcolleges should show that they valuethis aspect of their heritage.

Emphasizing a knowledge ofScripture will also help to counter thewidespread biblical illiteracy that ex-ists in both the world and the church.While we might chuckle about thelack of biblical knowledge exhibitedon television game shows, with peo-

ple identifying the Epistles as thewives of the apostles or declaring thatNoah’s wife was Joan of Arc, wemight be shocked at the lack ofawareness of some scriptural basics bylongtime church members.

By “imparting a knowledge of theBible,” I don’t mean that the teachershould act as if he or she has com-pletely mastered the treasures of theBible and is there merely to dispensethese treasures to the students.Whilethe teacher does need to share impor-tant passages, themes, and concepts,perhaps the best thing he or she cando is to inspire students to engage intheir own personal study of the Word.

If I can enthusiastically share averse or teaching from the Bible, Ihave achieved a positive result. How-


We have no reason to beapologetic and every reasonto be unhesitating in oursupport of required religionclasses, which focus directlyon the spiritual dimensionof life.

able the students to regurgitate ideasin the same way the teacher statedthem in class. Rather, the Bibleteacher should lead the students tothoughtfully reflect upon, understand,and commit themselves to the sameheritage of faith to which he or she isdedicated.

For the teacher to fulfillthis objective, he or shemust not act as an impar-tial, unbiased moderatorwith no commitment toany position.As a Seventh-day Adventist Bible teacher,I am a partisan for Christ. Iam committed to mychurch, and I make noapology for attempting toshare my commitment withmy students in a thoughtfuland well-reasoned manner.

There is no space hereto list the teachings that should becommunicated in the classroom set-ting. Of course, foremost amongthem is the plan of salvation and ac-ceptance of Christ as a personal Sav-ior.Another important teaching is abiblical worldview that undergirds allof Christian faith and life.

Secular society continuouslybombards our students with a com-pletely different worldview, describedin this quote by a Harvard scientist:“Man is the result of a blind, pur-poseless process that did not have himin mind. He was not planned.”Ad-ventist religion teachers must combatthis nihilism by presenting a loving,personal Creator God who knowsHis children personally and has a planfor each one (see Jeremiah 1:5;29:11). In addition,Adventist doc-trines such as the Sabbath, Creation,and the Second Coming should bepresented in the classroom.

4th Objective: Transforming Students’ Lives

The fourth and final objectivegrows naturally out of the previousones. It is to inspire our students topattern their own lives after the ex-ample of Jesus Christ (see 1 John2:6). Bible classes should challenge

students to devote their talents andenergies to God in order to make adifference in the world.

We are not just try-ing to change ourstudents’ minds.Our goal is muchmore far-reaching

and significant—for our students’ livesto demonstrate supreme love to Godand unselfish love to others (seeMatthew 22:37-39), for them to treatothers with justice and mercy whilethey walk humbly with their God(see Micah 6:8), and for them to livethe principles in the Sermon on theMount.We want them to be so com-mitted to living for God that theywill respond with acts of moralcourage, should the situation requireit.

Our ultimate goal, like that of theMaster Teacher Himself, is to see thelives of our students transformed sothat they become agents in advancingthe kingdom of God on Earth.

ConclusionWhen I became chair of the reli-

gion department at Pacific UnionCollege, one of my colleagues askedabout my main objectives for the de-

partment. His question challenged meto crystallize in my own mind what Ihoped our department would accom-plish through its teaching ministry onour campus.

As I thought about his probingquestion, I concluded that our objec-

tives revolved around threemajor concerns: the Son ofGod, the Word of God, andthe church of God.

First, our religion classesshould inspire students to be-gin or deepen a relationshipwith Jesus Christ and tomodel their lives after Hispattern of love and service;

Second, our classes shouldhelp students become betteracquainted with Scriptureand motivate them to studyGod’s Word for themselves;and

Finally, our classes should chal-lenge students to be more committedto the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

If religion classes leave our stu-dents more passionately devoted toJesus, more deeply committed to HisWord, and more strongly dedicated toHis church, we will have accom-plished our objectives. ✐

________________

Greg A. King taught atPacific Union Collegewhen he wrote this article.He is now Professor ofBiblical Studies at South-ern Adventist Universityin Collegedale,Tennessee.His e-mail address is

[email protected].______________________________


1. All Bible verses in this article are quotedfrom the New International Version.Texts cred-ited to the NIV are from the Holy Bible, New In-ternational Version. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984,International Bible Society. Used by permissionof Zondervan Bible Publishers.

2. Ellen G.White, Education (Mountain View,Calif.: Pacific Press Publ.Assn., 1952), p. 13.

3.This quote is taken from an interviewwith D. Malcolm Maxwell titled “Our DistinctiveDifference—Seventh-day Adventist Higher Edu-cation,” Pacific Union Recorder (April 15, 1996), p.5.


Having a meaningful reli-gion requirement is one ofthe best ways of advancingthe overall mission of aschool.


“What therefore you worship as unknown,this I proclaim to you.

The God who made the world and everything in it,being Lord of Heaven and earth. . . .”

The Apostle Paul in Athens1

Should graduate studentsin Adventist universities be required to take religioncourses? I believe that they should.

My purpose in asserting the importance of includingreligious studies in the curricula of graduate programs isborn of two convictions. I believe that the careful study ofreligion should be an important element in Christian edu-cation at all levels, and I lament that many graduate pro-grams are missing this opportunity. So this is a call forchange.

Some years ago, when I became dean of the religionfaculty at Loma Linda University (LLU) in Loma Linda,California, I needed to understand the religion require-ments for undergraduate and graduate programs as well asfor post-baccalaureate professional programs. I found thatthese programs had vastly different requirements. In orderto earn a diploma, every undergraduate student had totake a significant number of religion courses.And, thanksto the visionary leadershipof my predecessors, theLLU post-baccalaureate

professional pro-grams such as medi-cine and dentistryalso included care-fully designed reli-gion components.The curriculum forour medical stu-dents, for example,continues to includeseven requiredcourses in religion,for a total of 14 quarter units, with titles like “God andHuman Suffering” and “Wholeness for Physicians.”Thedentistry program has a similar religion curriculum.

I was surprised to discover that most of LLU’s graduateprograms required only one unspecified two-unit coursein religion.The requirement could be fulfilled by either agraduate-level or upper-division undergraduate course.This minimal requirement applied regardless of whetherstudents were enrolled in one- to two-year master’s degreeprograms or in the much longer doctoral programs.

A proposal to change this requirement, so that all grad-uate students would take at least one three-unit course inreligion at the graduate level, produced some resistance.One program director—a very conservative Adventist—wrote a stern two-page letter in which he argued that ourgraduate school was not a “seminary” and that the pur-pose of religion courses for graduate students should bemostly devotional.

More than one colleague asked me why our universityshould have any graduate-level religion requirements

when most of our sisterinstitutions’ graduate pro-grams had no such re-BY GERALD R. WINSLOW

WHY THE STUDYOF

RELIGIONBELONGS IN

ADVENTIST GRADUATE PROGRAMS

How is it that somany Adventistgraduate programsinclude no provisionfor the academicstudy of religion?


quirement. Nevertheless, the proposalpassed.

Since that time, the inclusion ofreligion in the curricula of all LLUgraduate programs has expanded sothat even our 18-unit certificate pro-grams include at least one graduate-level course in religion.And ourdoctoral programs, with the clearmandate of LLU’s administration andboard of trustees and the generallyenthusiastic support of program di-rectors, now include three differentthree-unit graduate-level religion

courses. From all that I can see, thedire predictions have not come topass. On the contrary, student evalua-tions indicate a high level of appreci-ation for the courses.

A Survey of Graduate ProgramsThe argument that required reli-

gion courses would put Loma LindaUniversity out of step with other Ad-ventist graduate programs puzzledme.Was it true that Adventist gradu-ate education was generally devoid ofrequired courses in religion? The dis-appointing answer, at least in NorthAmerica, is mostly yes. In 2003, I sur-veyed the curricula of all the Advent-

ist graduate programs in NorthAmerica other than those at LLU.The eight schools surveyed offered atotal of 80 graduate programs (ex-

cluding ones such as the M.Div.,whose major emphasis is the study ofreligion). Of these 80 programs, onlyfive (about six percent) requiredcourses with a religion prefix.Two ofthese programs were in church ad-ministration; one was in music min-istry.

Further scrutiny of the 80 pro-grams indicated that several of themdid require courses with titles such as“Christian Ethics and Values” and“Faith and Learning” that obviouslyincluded the academic study of reli-gion, even though the courses didnot bear religion prefixes. Even so, itappeared that only about 18 percent

had any visible requirement for thestudy of religion.

Why Graduate Programs Do Not In-clude a Religion Component

How is it that so many Adventistgraduate programs include no provi-sion for the academic study of reli-gion? Did this result from the convic-tion that such programs would besuperior if they did not include a re-ligion requirement? I have not madea study of the history of Adventistgraduate education, but my more

than 40 years of personal experience,first as a student and then as a profes-sor and administrator in Adventisthigher education, have allowed me todraw some conclusions.

The relative absence of religion inso many of our graduate programs isnot the result of secularization. Inother words, these programs did notstart with a clear vision regarding theintegration of religious studies, andthen, over time, experience an ero-sion of commitment. Most of thegraduate programs that are now de-

Most of the graduateprograms that arenow devoid of theformal study of reli-gion have always beenthis way.

All of the Loma Linda University students shown in this article, at both un-dergraduate and graduate level, are required to take religion courses.


void of the formal study of religionhave always been this way.Why is thisso?

I offer the following incompletelist of answers based on my experi-ence and on numerous conversationswith Adventist educators. Here arethree examples of reasons commonlygiven:

1. Our students have already studiedenough religion.When Adventist gradu-ate programs first emerged, most ofthe students came from the church’sundergraduate institutions. Somedecades ago, it was common for Ad-ventist colleges to require two unitsof religion for every undergraduatequarter of study. Thus, at that time,most students had to take 24 units of

religion to earn a baccalaureate de-gree.2 Later, this was lowered to 18units for students who had attendedAdventist secondary schools. Subse-quently, the standard became 18, andin some cases 16 units, for all stu-dents. In the early days, since moststudents enrolling in Adventist gradu-ate programs were church memberswho had taken many religioncourses, administrators concluded thatbenefits of the academic study of reli-gion had been achieved. Underlyingthis argument is a profound misun-

derstanding of the purpose of reli-gious studies. Many people regardsuch courses as “academic lite”—mostly devotional in nature, andhardly worthy of graduate-level study.

2. Required religion courses will makeour graduate programs unattractive. Thisfear expresses itself in many ways.Some are afraid that including reli-gion courses will cause prospectivestudents or colleagues at secular insti-tutions to view our programs as sub-standard.They fear that we will beconfused with a “Bible college” and

not taken seriously. Others fear thatthe inclusion of religion will eithermake the program longer, and thusmore expensive, or will force theelimination of other importantcourses, thus making the program in-ferior to its competitors.

3. We can integrate religion in ourprograms without requiring formal courses.This is one of the most common rea-sons for rejecting required religioncourses at both the graduate and un-dergraduate levels.After all, should itnot be possible to integrate the studyof religion within courses in history,literature, mathematics, and science?And, since all of our professors arepeople of faith, surely they can makeclear the connections between theirdisciplines and religious convictions. Ifear that part of the price for a beliefin the “priesthood of all believers” isthe corollary that most anyone shouldbe able to teach religion, regardless ofhis or her academic preparation.

Reasons to Require the Study ofReligion in Graduate Programs

To these three examples, manymore could be added. It is my belief,however, that negative reactions ofthis sort have caused Adventist gradu-ate programs to miss remarkable op-portunities for offering a genuinelysuperior education. Many reasons canbe given for this belief. I will men-

The author, Gerald R. Winslow, teaching a religion class at Loma Linda University.


tion only three.1. Graduate education presents stu-

dents with an important opportunity andstimulus for spiritual growth and matura-tion. Graduate studies typically presentstudents with critical issues of mean-ing and values at a time when theyhave newly entered adulthood. Manyof these students are more ready toaddress fundamental questions abouttheir purpose in life than at previoustimes.As James Fowler has observed,“Persons may reach chronologicaland biological adulthood while re-maining best defined by structuralstages of faith that would most com-monly be associated with early ormiddle childhood or adolescence.”3

While there are many ways to in-

corporate opportunities for faith de-velopment in the curriculum, the in-clusion of carefully crafted courses inreligion ensures that graduate stu-dents will encounter, both in theircourse work and in the person of theprofessor, potentially invaluable op-portunities for growth.

Our graduate students todaycome from remarkably diverse reli-gious backgrounds. Providing theman appropriate environment for theexploration of faith requires carefulrespect for this diversity. But it doesnot require spiritual or theologicalneutrality.4 As Richard Rice has ar-gued, the task of the professor of reli-gion on an Adventist campus is morethan “dispassionate inquiry.” In Rice’swords, we have a responsibility to“recommend a religious perspective.”

Doing so in a manner that respectsthe student’s own religious biographyis the way to the most fruitful con-versations.

2. The inclusion of religious studieshelps to ensure the balanced education ofthe whole person. Because of the min-istry of Ellen White,Adventists haverich resources for reflection on thevalue of wholistic education.Advent-ist education is never more successfulthan when it remembers these words:“True education means more thanthe pursual of a certain course ofstudy. It means more than a prepara-tion for the life that now is. It has todo with the whole being, and withthe whole period of existence possi-

Some are afraid thatincluding religioncourses will causeprospective studentsor colleagues at sec-ular institutions toview our programsas substandard.


ble to man. It is the harmonious de-velopment of the physical, the men-tal, and the spiritual powers.”5

Nothing about this vision ends atthe conclusion of a baccalaureate ed-ucation. Failure to include seriousstudy of religion at the graduate levelcarries the unhappy risks of imbal-ance. Students are expected to gainthe highest levels of intellectual in-quiry in their chosen areas of aca-demic specialty while the explorationof their religious convictions may re-main at the level of adolescence.Small wonder, then, that religious be-lief may seem juvenile and irrelevantfor such students.

Quality Christian education, onthe other hand, makes explicit provi-sion for the integration of the sacred.In the words of Parker Palmer,“Thehealth of education depends on ourability to hold sacred and secular to-gether so that they can correct andenrich each other.”6

3. Graduate education that includesthe study of religion is intellectually supe-rior.This claim may seem the leastobvious. But I am firmly convincedthat including religious studies incurricula as diverse as business ad-ministration and the natural scienceswill help to create programs that arestronger academically.

Recently, one of my colleagues, aperiodontist who teaches in our den-tal school, told me that the most im-portant course he took during hisgraduate studies in dentistry was Phi-losophy of Religion. He said he be-lieved this was true not only becauseof the opportunity for spiritualgrowth, but also because the mode ofinquiry opened new horizons of in-tellectual life.

Exploring the relationship be-tween language and thought and theway we justify our most basic convic-tions helped this colleague through-out his career to seek greater clarityon the issues that matter most.Anytime students have the opportunity tojoin with other first-rate minds in theclose examination and discussion of atext, their intellectual growth is likelyto be significantly enriched.This is

especially true when the text in handfocuses on what it means to be hu-man in a divinely created universe.Ellen White’s observation is as cogenttoday as it was when published a cen-tury ago:“As a means of intellectualtraining, the Bible is more effectivethan any other book, or all otherbooks combined. . . . No other studycan impart such mental power asdoes the effort to grasp the stupen-dous truths of revelation.”7

If we believe this—and weshould—then we will be emboldenedto integrate religious studies, includ-ing biblical study, in every Adventistgraduate program.We should not feardecreased enrollment because we will

believe that the educational programswe are offering are spiritually and in-tellectually superior to their secularcounterparts.We already have suffi-cient evidence that large numbers ofstudents will be attracted to exactlythis kind of education.

How to Do ItExperience has taught me that

expanding the religion curricula atthe graduate level must be done withgreat care.A supportive alliance withprogram directors and deans is essen-tial, and courses must be tailored tothe specific needs and interests of theparticipants. Most graduate studentsare highly focused on particular aca-


demic and professional goals, andcourses in religious studies need toaddress the practical implications oftheir inquiry. So, for example, whenour graduate school introduced anew doctoral program in social pol-icy, one of the new religion courses,negotiated with the program directorand approved by the graduate coun-cil, was “Christian Citizenship,” anexploration of Christian ethics fo-cused on the formation of social pol-icy.

Finally, and crucially, the profes-sors who teach graduate studentsmust be carefully selected.An excel-lent undergraduate teacher may, ormay not, make a gifted leader of agraduate seminar.

Today,Adventist graduate pro-grams have an unprecedented oppor-tunity for reaching new levels of aca-demic and spiritual excellence. Manythousands of students come to ourcolleges and universities seeking thebest education. For a significant per-centage of these students, their timein our church’s graduate programswill be their only encounter with Ad-ventist education.We should not failthem, nor should we fail to live up toour visionary calling as a propheticcommunity of faith, by omitting the

careful study of religious convictionsas a central feature of every graduateprogram we offer.

We must pray for the Holy Spiritto help us overcome our insecurityabout our spiritual heritage and reli-gious identity, which so often pro-duces fear of overtly incorporatingreligion into our graduate curricula.Other Christian universities have ma-tured beyond this insecurity.And, bythe power of the Spirit, I am confi-dent that we can, too.

As administrators and professors,

we should work to ensure the cre-ative inclusion of religious studies inour graduate programs because this isour calling from God, and becausethe result will be a better educationfor the wonderful students who in-vest in Adventist higher educationand who put their trust in our lead-ership. ✐

________________

Gerald R. Winslow,Ph.D., served as Dean ofthe Faculty of Religion atLoma Linda University(LLU) in Loma Linda,California, for more thana decade. He is currentlyProfessor of Religion at

the university and Vice President for SpiritualLife at the LLU Adventist Health Sciences Cen-ter.This article is adapted from a presentation tothe International Conference on Religious andTheological Education in Silver Spring, Mary-land, July 6-10, 2003._____________________________


1.Acts 17:23-24, English Standard Version.2. I am referring to quarter units, not semes-

ter units.3. James Fowler, Faithful Change (Nashville,

Tenn.:Abingdon Press, 1996), p. 57.4. Richard Rice,“Religion and the Adventist

University,” Spectrum 28 (Spring 2002), p. 60.5. Ellen G.White, Education (Mountain View,

Calif.: Pacific Press Publ.Assn., 1903), p. 13.6. Parker J. Palmer, The Courage to Teach (San

Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1998), p. 111.7. Ibid., p. 124.


THE MINISTRY OF

BIBLETEACHING

BY V. BAILEY GILLESPIE

Iwas a youth pastor, building a thriving ministry in Southern California in a friendly,supportive church. My seminary classmates were all following their call to ministry.Andthen I got the phone call.“Bailey, have you ever thought about teaching Bible full-time?”The local academy principal wanted me to begin a ministry at the local Adventistschool, and I had to make a decision.

Although I had taught on occasion before, I’d never thought about making this kindof career change. But I was being given the chance to teach Bible and music, both areas I loved.So after prayer and thought, I said,“Yes.”Then with enthusiasm, I began to make the move fromfull-time pastoral work to full-time teaching.

To my surprise, I began to receive a number of critical phone calls.“I’m so sorry to hear that


you’ve left the ministry!”The as-tounded reaction was from one of mybest friends in ministry, who viewedthe move into teaching as a denial ofmy calling. Our discussion lasted along half-hour.Another call came, andthe concern was repeated.

I thought I was ministering to adifferent group of people, not leavingthe ministry. But a number of identitytags began to be eliminated from mylife—no more invitations to workers’meetings, mailings from the ministerialdepartment were not forwarded, con-ference youth ministry informationfailed to reach me anymore.These sub-tle signs reinforced my concern thatteaching was not considered a main-stream ministry, and in fact, I found iteasier and easier to distance myselffrom other ministerial matters.

What Does Research Suggest?But our own denominational Val-

uegenesis research supports the ideathat religious education is one of the venues where youngpeople clarify their vision for their lives, learn values andlife-affirming choices, and meet Jesus as a personal friend.Most important to parents and teachers is Adventistschools’ nurturing of spiritual faith.The findings suggestthat students like their church school because it helpsthem develop their own religious faith. For example,when asked,“How much has each of the followinghelped you to develop your faith?” 74 percent respondedthat attending an Adventist school helped this happen.And the value of religious education seems amplified be-cause we have trained, committed, and creative religionteachers in our schools who are professionals in teachingfaith.We’ve learned, for example, that 63 percent of grades6-12 students in Adventist schools say that the Bibleteacher is an important factor in their faith decisions.1

What’s So Unique About Bible Teaching?Religion teaching in Adventist schools is an important

and integral part of the faith-development process. EllenWhite suggests that those who attend our colleges anduniversities should have a training that is different thanthat given in public education:“Our youth generally, ifthey have wise, God-fearing parents, have been taught theprinciples of Christianity.The word of God has been re-spected in their homes, and its teachings have been madethe law of life.They have been brought up in the nurtureand admonition of the gospel.When they enter school,this same education and training is to continue.Theworld’s maxims, the world’s customs and practices, are notthe teaching that they need. Let them see that the teach-ers in the school care for their souls, that they have a de-

cided interest in their spiritualwelfare.”2

Tragically, only slightly more thanone-third of the potential studentsfrom Adventist homes take full advan-tage of this unique ministry. Otheryouth must wait until the weekend,when their Sabbath school teachers andlocal pastors provide this value-addededucation. In Adventist schools of vari-ous sizes and types, teachers lead youngpeople in Bible study and religious dis-cussion, seeking together to understandthe Bible’s meaning and significance forChristian living. Despite their weak-nesses and difficulties, God has used theefforts of devoted teachers to accom-plish significant results in the lives ofthose they teach.

A Lot of Money “Just for a BibleClass”?

All too often we hear those words,“Adventist education is so expensive;

it’s so much money for only a Bible class.”And, of course,if that were all that students got for their money, this criti-cism would be justified. But that is not all that our schoolsprovide. If the school has the luxury of having full-timereligion teachers, the possibilities are far greater thanmany expect.

Perhaps one reason why many parents feel dissatisfiedwith their schools is that the teaching of religion seemstoo general and vague. If the Bible curriculum has beenreduced to a discussion of generalized Christian theologi-cal concepts or philosophical principles, then the studytoo often ends only as a theoretical exercise, without suffi-cient carry-over into daily life or application to home,school, relationships, recreational choices, and other areasof students’ personal experience. Findley Edge, a religiouseducator, suggests a way out of this dilemma.“The objec-tives that Christian teachers seek may be subsumed underthree general headings: knowledge, inspiration, and con-duct responses.”3

Men and women who teach the Scripture have a re-sponsibility to move beyond the content and cognitive in-sights of textual material or theology, as important as theseare. Going beyond conceptual theology and textual exe-gesis to inspiration (worship, praise, gratitude, forgiveness,and personal freedom) and then helping students makechoices that impact their own actions, and respond toGod’s leading, helps make the religious educational en-deavor more professional and balanced as well as morecomplete.

There is a natural learning progression in religious in-struction. First, the teacher helps the students understandthe biblical story or passage.And then, the instructor

VALUEGENESIS RE-SEARCH SUPPORTSTHE IDEA THAT RELI-GIOUS EDUCATIONIS ONE OF THE VEN-UES WHERE YOUNGPEOPLE CLARIFYTHEIR VISION FORTHEIR LIVES, LEARNVALUES AND LIFE-AFFIRMINGCHOICES, ANDMEET JESUS AS APERSONAL FRIEND.


moves logically to building Christian at-titudes, actually naming the virtue he orshe would like students to understand(honesty, purity, love, goodness, kindness,friendship, etc.). Once the values in thetext or Bible lesson have been clarifiedand other stories or passages in the Biblehave been explored and compared, thenext logical step for the religion teacheris to move to the most difficult goal—response. Helping students to commit toand practice this new attitude is the testof creative teaching.

You see, no religious truth is truly learned unless itmakes a difference in one’s life.Teaching commitment toan attitude was the purpose of Jesus’ ministry—not justsharing information about God, or clarification of His re-quirements, but making a difference in His hearers’ lives.And it must have worked, for in 300 short years, the civi-lized world of the West was populated with a thrivingChristian community and a growing, active church. Soanswering the questions like,“What difference will thisattitude make?”“What problems will class members faceif they express this new attitude in some part of their

lives?”“What temptations might come ifthey live this attitude?” or “What mightkeep us from having this attitude?” areall-important questions to ask on thisjourney.

So What Else Can Religion TeachersDo?

The spiritual dimension of life is dif-ficult to clarify since religious experi-ence is such a personal commitment, butBible teaching is a true ministry that

moves well beyond mastery of subject matter and ade-quate communication of God’s plan for students’ lives.Alist of the things that are included in ministry for theyoung might be endless, but let me identify 10 areas thatthe religion teacher, or at minimum, those responsible forthe religious life of a school, might target to increase stu-dent commitment to God.

Our Valuegenesis research of Adventist students in de-nominational schools identified some areas as particularlyimportant and revealed a significant correlation between amature faith and commitment to the church. It suggestswe can do some things to enhance our students’ commit-

RELIGION TEACH-ING IN ADVENTISTSCHOOLS IS ANIMPORTANT ANDINTEGRAL PART OFTHE FAITH-DEVEL-OPMENT PROCESS.


ment to God and the church:1. Encourage their commitment to personal piety

through shared devotions, worship, and prayer by the com-munity of students and faculty—in essence, creating“church” for them every day.

2. Schedule weeks of prayer, and encourage studentparticipation in spiritual activities.

3. Create a climate rich in personal testimony and wit-ness by their teachers and friends, helping them to buildtheir own testimony of God’s grace.

4. Ensure that a personal, loving relationship with Jesusis modeled by caring adults.

5. Help them understand God’s guidance, wisdom, anddirection for their lives, as well as His discipline, correc-tion, and forgiveness when they make mistakes as they de-velop strong morals and a desire for personal growth.

6. Give them a working knowledge of God’s principlesof living so that they understand the practical issues thatgovern life and have the wisdom to tackle life’s complexsituations and apply their new attitudes about God.

7. Help them learn how God’s strength helps themface difficult times.

8. Give them a sense of purpose and of personal valuethrough knowing that God made them unique, loves themunconditionally, and wants to be involved in their choicesevery day.

9. Encourage the development of strong characterthrough openness to the power of the Holy Spirit.

10. Promote praise and thankfulness, strong morals, anda desire for commitment to personal growth.

All these can be products of the multi-faceted ministryof the religion teachers in Adventist schools.

The Challenges of Bible TeachingWhat makes religion teaching unique is its dual fo-

cus—knowledge and spirituality. Religion gives us hintsabout the organization of the kingdom of God, but spiri-tual life implies concern for the hearts, minds, and actionsof people who commit themselves to God’s purpose andmission.That is why it is important to recognize that noteveryone is equipped or even gifted enough to fulfill thiscalling. Just because someone in your school seems “reli-gious” or “spiritual” or seems to take a particular interestin prayer or service may not make him or her the bestperson to fill both roles of this crucial position. Schoolswith small budgets often take the easy way out and asksomeone who seems “religious” to teach Bible, but the re-sults often reflect a failure to recognize the skill needed tofaithfully and clearly communicate both a knowledge ofthe Bible and the intent of the message of Jesus.

Like other disciplines, Bible teaching is a profession, inthat it has a distinct content for students to master. In theMiddle Ages, theology was thought to be the “queen ofthe sciences,” and many began their academic careers bymastering this area of study before taking law or medicine,or entering politics.The field of religious studies has disci-

plines—Old and New Testament studies, often called bib-lical studies; ethics, psychology of religion, comparative re-ligion, sociology of religion, theology—both biblical andsystematic—to mention just a few. Careful understandingof the “content” or “knowledge” area of any discipline iscrucial for mastery.

Would you let a person trained in communicationsteach accounting? Or let someone teach English as a sec-ond language who speaks only Japanese? Of course not.Likewise, trained professionals, gifted in teaching andskilled in the knowledge of Scripture and theologicalthinking, are the best choices to teach students about reli-gious topics.When this is coupled with personal piety andunderstanding of spiritual and faith formation, you havean ideal match that will benefit our young people.

That is why it is crucial that schools hire Bible teach-ers with appropriate training and that these teachers keepup-to-date by participating in professional organizationsand by reading journals in their discipline. Religion teach-ing is a constantly evolving area of study because as newresearch on the psychology of learning and faith develop-ment become available, they can be applied to the studyand practice of religion and adapted to the needs of thestudents, resulting in better learning and personal commit-ment.A trained professional will keep abreast of thesechanges, developing fresh and creative methods of adapt-ing curricula to meet emerging challenges.The profes-sional Bible teacher will look for ways to use exegesis tomove students to conversion, commitment, and a growingfaith life.

Administrators must recognize that the ministry ofBible teaching requires more than hiring a devout personwho shows up at class on time with a comprehensive les-son plan covering the topic of the day. Ideally, the Bibleteacher becomes a pastor, friend, mentor, guide, and model

of the love that Jesus shared with His dis-ciples as He prepared them for the king-dom. ✐__________________________________

V. Bailey Gillespie, Ph.D., is Professor of Theol-ogy and Christian Personality, and Director of the JohnHancock Center for Youth and Family Ministry, Schoolof Religion, La Sierra University, in Riverside, Califor-nia.

______________________________________________


1.V. Bailey Gillespie and Michael Donahue with Ed Boyatt and BarryGane, Valuegenesis Ten Years Later:A Study of Two Generations (Lincoln, Neb.:AdventSource and Hancock Center Publication, 2004), p. 302. Order yourown copy of the complete Valuegenesis research project that compares theresponses of young people from the 1990 and 2000 data sets on faith, values,and commitment. Contact the Hancock Center at http://[email protected].

2. Ellen G.White, Counsels to Parents,Teachers, and Students (MountainView, Calif.: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1943), pp. 501, 502.

3. Findley B. Edge, Teaching for Results (Nashville,Tenn.: Broadman &Holman Publishers, 1995), p. vii.


How often do youhear a student say,“Bible is my favoriteclass! It is the mostinteresting subjectI’m taking. It’s theonly class I know I

will really use in every part of mylife”? Or are they more likely to say,“I hate Bible class! It’s boring and hasnothing to do with real life.”

How about parents? Recently, aparent admonished me:“The onlyreason I am sending my child to thisschool is because of the Bible classes,so make them good.”Another par-ent’s reaction was different:“I don’tsee why my child is failing your class.I really would appreciate you not giv-ing so much homework. Besides, it’s

Bible class.You act like it is an impor-tant class like math or science.”

These sentiments have been re-peated to me many times in manyways throughout the past four-and-a-half years of teaching Bible classes togrades 9-12.They help explain thedilemma of Seventh-day Adventisthigh schools today.To put it plainly,we don’t know what to do with thesubject of religion, usually referred toas Bible class.We know it is impor-tant—indeed, probably the most im-portant subject.Without it, ourschools would have little reason toexist. However, we also know stu-dents will either seem to alreadyknow almost everything about what

Getting Back to the ThreeR’s in High School

Bible ClassB Y S T E P H E N H E R R

Students from the author’s junior class discuss theological issues whilerole-playing members of various religions.

Several of the author’s students visit a nursing home as part of their religionclass work.


we teach—or know nothing aboutthe subject whatsoever. In addition, asignificant number of students don’tseem to care whether or not theytake a Bible class, and we aren’t surewhat to do about it.

I want to offer a ray of hope andguidance to those of you who areteaching secondary-level Bible classes.I especially want to help the oneswho find themselves assigned at thelast minute to teach religion courses.Many of you have no formal trainingor education in this area beyond thegeneral-ed religion classes you tookin college. For those of you who havebeen teaching a while, I hope to re-inspire your love for the Bible and foryour students.

Finding the ideas, resources, andtime to teach Bible classes effectivelyis not an easy task. In addition toBible, many of us teach in other dis-ciplines, do administration, or serve asdormitory deans. Even a full-timeBible teacher has numerous othertasks: preparing chapels, vespers,weeks of prayer, Bible retreats, Sab-bath schools, mission trips, and any-thing else relating to religion oncampus. Unfortunately, we often failto balance the time spent on class-room teaching and that devoted toprogramming and events.The eventsare public and seem to highlight whatwe do more than classroom teachingdoes. So, if we’re not careful, we

spend most of our time on that area.I have struggled with finding that

balance during my time at HighlandView Academy, a boarding academyin Hagerstown, Maryland.As withmost teachers, I have many responsi-bilities other than classroom teaching.So how do I create an effective learn-ing experience for my students? Ihave gone back to the three R’s. Inteaching Bible, these are responsibility,relevance, and role-play. Understandingand utilizing these can help yourclasses to become life-changingevents.

ResponsibilityAs teachers, we have a responsibil-

ity to know what we are doing. It’soften tempting, when we’re busywith weeks of prayer and missiontrips, to get up front in class and tryto “wing it.”We think that becausewe know the Bible stories so well—from growing up with them—thatwe should be able to teach studentshow to be better Christians. I’ve no-ticed that when my students get ex-cited about what is happening inclass, it’s after I have studied, planned,and had my own experience withGod prior to stepping foot in theclassroom. Careful planning includessetting goals and including in classthings that will bring about thosegoals.

Good preparation does not implyslavishly adhering to a lesson plan,

even though having one is very im-portant. It includes being open to“teachable moments” when studentsask questions about moral issues thatare of profound concern to them.

RelevanceDo you see the meaning for your

own life in each lesson you teach? Ifnot, you will have a hard time mak-ing the class relevant to your students’lives. Do you understand the needsand interests of your students? Bygetting to know each of them, youcan craft lessons that relate the Bibleand class assignments to their lives.

Each year, during the Adventisthistory unit, I assign my sophomoreclass a research paper.They are askedto choose a pioneer and tell why heor she had a lasting effect on the Ad-ventist Church. Several of my stu-dents are now defenders of peoplesuch as Joseph Bates because they cansee how their work has actually af-fected the church and society today. IfI mention Joseph Bates in class, thosestudents cheer. If someone makes anegative remark about Bates, they getvery defensive. For them, the earlyhistory of the church is a living doc-ument, not just a list of facts anddates.

Another activity I use in class tomake the Bible relevant to students isschedule issue days. Each studentwrites down questions, problems, ora topic that is on his or her mind

Members of the author’s junior Bibleclass enjoyed visiting with leadersof a Hindu temple in Silver Spring,Maryland.

Two of the author’s students pose with statues of Buddha during a visit to aCambodian temple in Silver Spring, Maryland.


relating to the Bible, God, religion,Christianity, or Adventism and eachslip of paper is put in a box, and wechoose several to discuss, while offer-ing biblical guidelines and applica-tions to that situation. It’s helpful topull out the topic a day or week inadvance to give yourself and the stu-dents time to prepare for the discus-sion.

When you schedule a time forsharing and testimonies, don’t beafraid to share your own experiences.Students watch their teachers, princi-pals, deans, and every other staffmember to see if these adults reallylive what they claim to believe.Tohelp students feel more comfortable,schedule a sharing day or set aside asegment of each class. Start off withyour own testimony. If we as teachersdo not share our faith openly withour students, how can expect them toshare?

Role-PlayEvery teenager needs a chance to

get up and act on what he or sheknows.This is one of the ways youcan make the Bible class relevant tostudents’ lives.

The North American Divisionsecondary Bible curriculum includesboth world religions and Bible doc-trines. For these units, instead ofteaching lots of facts, let your studentsexperience what they are studying.Make the whole unit a witnessingunit. Practice role-play scenarios inclass to prepare your students to an-swer tough questions about theirfaith.Assign one student to be a Bud-dhist, one a Muslim, and another anAdventist.Then based on those be-liefs, have the students answer ques-tions like these:“What happens aftera person dies?”;“Why do bad thingshappen to good people?”; or “What’sthe point of life?” Getting students tothink in the shoes of someone elseenables them to understand a differ-ent point of view, and helps solidifywhat we believe as Christians.

However, don’t just talk about thevarious religions. Go to an Islamicmosque, a Jewish synagogue, a Cath-

olic church, a Hindu or Buddhisttemple, a Quaker meeting house, orany other place where students cansee, hear, and experience a service ofthat religion.Then discuss issues andbeliefs with the monk, imam, priest,rabbi, or pastor. I recently took agroup of students to a Buddhist tem-ple and a Hindu temple.We all re-member more from that one tripthan from hours of lectures in a class-room.

Role-playing is more than justvisiting places of worship. Get stu-dents out in the streets of yourneighborhood or town sharing thenews about Jesus. Have them knockon doors all over town and ask topray with those they meet. Once amonth, I take a group of students to alocal nursing home.We sing and talkto the residents. It doesn’t require alot of preparation. But the impact onstudents and residents is immeasura-ble. Jesus understood that real learn-ing happens when people teach, sogive students plenty of solid contactwith hungry souls all over town.

I use another role-playing strategywhen I teach the doctrine of salva-tion to the junior class. I could justexplain all the terms, texts, and ideas,and move on. But then I rememberthat I learned twice as much in myfirst four years of teaching than I didin my four years in college. So I havecreated a Bible study for each studentto give to another person. If you pre-fer, you can spend some class time onhow to prepare a Bible study.Thepast couple of years, I have assignedmy students to give the study to theirparents or to a school staff member.This requires them to do more in-depth preparation, and communicatesto the parents and/or deans what thestudents are studying in class. It alsogives the nervous first-time Biblestudy giver an adult listener whodoesn’t criticize, as another teenagermight. By doing this activity, you canachieve multiple goals: Help studentsunderstand the various doctrines andteach them to give a Bible study.Whenever a student takes ownershipof information and tries to convince

someone else of the merit and valueof that information, he or she willunderstand it better as well.

The three R’s, responsibility, rele-vance, and role-play, are not the onlyimportant concepts in religious in-struction, but they have given myteaching new focus and direction. ✐_____________________________

Resources I have found helpful:Books

Help! I’m a Small Group Leader byLaurie Polich

Mission to OZ: Reaching Postmod-erns Without Losing Your Way by MarkTabb

God Cares (Daniel and Revela-tion) by Mervyn Maxwell

Secrets of Revelation by JacquesDoukhan

Studying Together by Mark FinleyI Kissed Dating Goodbye by Joshua

HarrisGuys and Girls Curriculum from

Youth Specialties

CD-ROMsThe Ideas Library CD-ROM v.3.0

by Youth Specialties

DVDsMatthew by The Visual BibleActs by The Visual BibleReligions of the World by Schles-

singer Media

WebsitesYouthspecialties.comCircle.adventist.orgReligioustolerance.orgLordsday.org

JournalsYouthworker JournalChristianity TodaySigns of the Times

_______________

Stephen Herr has beenthe Bible Teacher andCampus Ministries Direc-tor at Highland ViewAcademy, in Hagerstown,Maryland, since 2001.He is currently workingon an M.A. in Religious

Education from Andrews University, with em-phasis on Campus Spiritual Leadership.


“I’ve pastored be-fore, but never taughtBible. I don’t evenknow where to be-gin!”

“I’m already sooverwhelmed—andthe school wants me toadd another class!”

“I hardly ever seemy family. It seems likeI’m always at school!”

These are samplesof comments that Ihave heard from Bibleteachers in my eightyears as an elementaryand secondary teacher.These statements cap-ture some of the frus-trations that many ofus feel when trying tobe an effective teacher and still live a semi-balanced life.

In February 2003, I conducted a North American Di-vision-wide survey of academy Bible teachers.At thetime, I was teaching Bible at a boarding academy in theMidwest.The Mid-American Union Conference suppliedme with the names of all the current Bible teachers fromeach union directory and the funds to cover supplies andpostage.

Of 178 surveys mailed, 106 were returned—a very re-spectable 60 percent response.The survey contained 16multiple-choice questions (respondents were asked tomark strongly agree, agree, neutral, disagree, or strongly dis-agree), and six open-ended questions.The surveys weresent to the approximately 100academies and junior acade-mies in the United States,

Canada, and Bermuda.The survey dealt

with two specific ar-eas—Bible teachersthemselves and curricu-lum/content issues.Theresponses to the surveysprovide some insightinto what is happeningwith Bible teachers andtheir classrooms.A num-ber of fundamental is-sues have been raised bythis survey, which willbe discussed in this arti-cle. But first, let’s findout more about theBible teachers who re-sponded.

Qualifications and Ex-perience

On paper, at least, Bible teachers in North America arequite well qualified. Sixty-nine percent said they werecertified to teach Bible.The other 31 percent had variouslevels of qualification.Twelve percent were certified teach-ers but did not have a Bible endorsement. Nineteen per-cent were teaching without any teaching certification;however, almost a third of those were ordained pastors.

Years of experience was also significant.Although theaverage Bible teacher had taught for 8.1 years, most werequite new to teaching Bible. Most of those responding(53 percent) had taught Bible for five years or less. Only28 percent had taught the subject for more than 10 years.

Teaching LoadIt should come as no sur-

prise that 34 percent of the

What Saith theBible Teachers?

A Survey of North American DivisionAcademy Religion Teachers

B Y K E I T H K E R B S

Demographics of Bible Teachers

Who Responded

76% Seventh-day Adventist certified69% Bible teaching endorsement25% Ordained ministers (seven were pastors)11% Not certified, or ordained8.1 Average years they had taught53% Had taught for five years or less28% Had taught for more than 10 years34% Served as school chaplain68% Taught only one or two Bible classes54% Taught only Bible classes75% Male (all recipients)

The survey brought to light anumber of fundamental issues

that must be addressed.

Bible teachers also served as schoolchaplain. More than two-thirds (68percent) of the respondents taughtonly one or two Bible classes, andonly about half (54 percent) saidBible was the only subject theytaught. Most were either part-timeteachers or taught Bible in additionto their “primary” job—whether thatwas teaching one or more other sub-jects, or serving as a dean, vice prin-cipal, or guidance counselor.TheBible teachers also said they spentcountless additional hours sponsoringclasses or organizations, or doingcoaching or supervision. Some men-tioned as many as six such responsi-

bilities in addition to their teachingload.

Level of Stress and Effect on Family

Having worked at a boarding

academy for six years and now at aday school, I know that teaching canbe quite stressful.The majority ofBible teachers agreed.Almost 60 per-cent said they often felt overwhelmedand stressed.That could account forthe large number of new Bible teach-ers.Their families fared only a littlebetter. Nearly half (44 percent) of theBible teachers said that their familiessuffered because of their job.Whilethis is less than half of the respon-dents, it is still a matter of concernsince it represents a large number ofspouses and children who are notgetting the attention they need.

Expressed Needs ofBible Teachers

What did Bibleteachers say wouldhelp them be moresuccessful? The mostcommon request waspractical ideas—espe-cially from otherBible teachers.Timewas the second mostmentioned challenge.They felt they hadjust too much to doand not enough timeto do it. Multimediaand video resourceswere the third most

mentioned need. Fourth was theirdesire for adeeper spir-itual/prayerlife. Often,Bible teach-

ers and pastors are expected to haveeverything together spiritually.They,like all people, need a support systemto stay strong.

The teachers also expressed a de-sire for more support from the con-ference, the administration, and otherteachers. Some teachers said theyneeded more training or experienceto do their job well. Other miscella-neous needs were smaller class size,more money for equipment and re-sources, and more outside class activi-ties and field trips.

Curriculum/Content IssuesAnother area explored by the sur-

vey was textbooks and curriculum.What materials are Bible teachers us-ing in their classrooms? Are they us-ing the new Bible textbooks? Eighty-


The surveyswere sent to theapproximately100 academiesand junior acad-emies in theUnited States,Canada, andBermuda.

Years of Teaching Bible

Number of Bible Teachers

36 to 40

31 to 35

26 to 30

21 to 25

16 to 20

11 to 15

6 to 10

< 5

Year

s

Number of Bible Classes Taught

0 10 20 30 40

Number of Teachers

Num

ber

of C

lass

es

3

2

13

16

32

40

6

5

4

3

2

1

SDA Bible, &ordained

Qualifications of Bible Teachers

51

127

12

18

SDA &Bible

SDA only

Ordainedonly None

two percent said that they were con-sistently using the Crossroads Bibletextbooks. Only 12.5 percent indi-cated that they did not use the seriesregularly.

Another question inquired abouthow heavily teachers supplementedthe textbooks.Three-fourths indi-cated that they supplemented heavily(50 percent strongly agreed). Sincethe majority of these teachers stillused the textbooks regularly, it ap-

pears that they are personalizing theirteaching to make it as practical aspossible.

The survey also asked the Bibleteachers’ opinion of the new Cross-roads Series curriculum. Sixty-three

percent of the teachers said they weresatisfied with the Bible textbooks (22percent strongly agreed; 41 percentagreed). Even though there weresome complaints, overall, most Bibleteachers appeared very satisfied and


Acting/skitsCooperative learningDebates (Creation vs. evolution)DiscussionsGroup projectsIllustrationsImageryMock trialMusic in the classroomObject lessons and storiesOral presentations (PowerPoint)Personal testimoniesPosting assignments (on the Web)ReportsRole-playScrapbooksSharing assignmentsSimulationsSmall groupsStudents teach classWriting KWLs (What I Know,

What I Want to Know, What ILearned)

Career shadowingClay statues/figuresConduct evangelistic series

(with New Beginnings DVDs)Dramatize BibleDrawingExperiential/interactive learningFashion show for Daniel 2 statueFeeding the homelessQuilts for AIDS babiesMechanical baby Models of sanctuary or New

JerusalemMurals of chapters in RevelationPaint themes on classroom wallsPlan wedding and receptionPostersTreasure huntVideo and art projectsVideo interviewsWalk through Old Testament in life-

size map

Bible marking (chain referencing)Bios on peopleCareer reportCatholic and Mormon guest

presentersCharacter toolboxCreative datesDevotional/prayer journalsHow to give Bible studiesJournals/gratitude journalsMark promises in BibleTake a break from the mediaPeer counseling/mentoringPersonal devotional programPhilosophy of life paperPlan vespersPrayer families (in school)Prayer for an individual studentReaction/position papersSpending time alone with GodStudent week of prayerStudents design spiritual theme

bulletin boardStudents giving worshipVisit a temple or synagogueWriting creeds30-day fast from secular music

Teaching Methods Hands-On Projects Practical Ideas

My Family Often Suffers Due to My Job

Neutral (29.5%)

Strongly Disagree (12.4%)

Disagree (14.3%)

Strongly Agree (18.1%)

Agree (25.7%)

One of the author’s students and hisBible project—Peter walking on thewater.

grateful to have the new Bible text-books.

Other Curriculum MaterialsThe teachers used a wide variety

of materials in addition to the text-books. Not surprisingly, the Bible wasused heavily—including topical Biblestudies and specific books of theBible. Ellen White’s books were alsoused—especially the Messiah (The De-sire of Ages), Steps to Christ, and theConflict of the Ages series.This isgood news, since few teenagers haveever read any significant amount ofEllen White’s writings.

Other resources were mentionedas well:

• Videos/DVDs (Net ’99, theACTS set, and Focus on the Family).

• Books such as God Cares 1 & 2,27 Fundamental Beliefs, Philip Yanceybooks, commentaries, and even col-lege material from their own teach-ers.

• Materials from Youth Specialtiesand Amazing Facts.

Practical IdeasThere were as many different

ideas as people surveyed—and thensome. In the sidebars on pages 42 and43 are a sample of the ideas thatBible teachers said they were using intheir classrooms across North Amer-ica.

Obviously, a lot of wonderfulthings are happening in Bible classesacross North America, but the survey


1, 2 Kings projectChurch history projectDiscussions of current eventsEthics projectGood old-fashioned Bible studyIdeas for conflict resolutionJoshua videoLast-day events portfolioLots of gamesMarriage and family portfolioTraining for peer ministryPresentations on the Messiah or

The Great Controversy

Pro and con of issues in Chris-tianity (oral presentation)

Read Steps to ChristResearch on desired topicSeeds of Wisdom study guideSmall group ministry trainingSpiritual journals“Twenty-One Independent Qualities

of a Leader”Utilize Story of RedemptionVideo critique of The Ten

Commandments

Weekly video day featuring vic-torious Christians

World religion presentations orceremonies

Write a newspaper columnWrite commentary on a Bible text

(as final test)Writing children’s booksWriting dramas/skits

Other Ideas

I Often Feel Overwhelmed & Stressed

Neutral (18%)

Agree (37%)


StronglyAgree (22.5%)

Neutral (16%)

A student from the author’s Life and Teachings of Jesus class works on amural.

also revealed some problematic issues.Let’s look at some of them.

Addressing Fundamental IssuesThe majority of Bible teachers

don’t remain in the profession verylong.Why is that? Is teaching Bibletheir main focus, or is it something addedto their “regular duties”? It appears thatmany people teaching Bible eitherhave too many other things to do, orthe assignment is not their passion orpriority.

Hiring practices may also be afactor, as it appears that many schoolsare not employing full-time Bibleteachers.This situation of having fewfull-time Bible teachers is more seri-ous than it might appear. Like peoplein other disciplines, Bible teachersneed mentors and networks to helpone another—especially those whoare just starting out. For example, forthree years while I was teaching inthe Mid-America Union, I was theonly Bible teacher in the entireunion who was qualified or willingto work with a student teacher. Noone else taught enough Bible classes,was certified and endorsed in Bible,or had had enough experience. Itgave me a great opportunity to workwith student teachers, but also raisedconcerns about who is teaching Bibleto our young people.

How well are they trained to teachBible? Some academies don’t have the

money to hire a full-time Bibleteacher, so they assign the classes toanyone with a free period—whetheror not the person has any training oraptitude for it. I’d like to challengeschools to be very careful in selectingBible teachers—choose someonewith a passion for the subject whowill make the maximum positive im-pact on your students. Just becausesomeone has completed a minor inBible and taken a methods class doesnot make him or her an effectiveBible teacher!

Why all the fuss about whoteaches Bible? I agree with an experi-enced teacher who once told me thatBible class is different than any otherclass.The spiritual battle for students’

souls is fought more in Bible classthan in any other class. In Bible class,we aren’t talking about numbers,writing essays, how to hit a ball, oreven how to (or not to) blow some-thing up in the lab, as important asthese things may be.We are talkingabout students’ lives and eternal des-tiny—the issues that they strugglewith, how they feel about God, thechurch, their parents, and what valuesthey embrace.The Great Controversyis always going on in the minds ofstudents—whether or not this is evi-dent. If you’re sending a teacher tosuch a battlefield, you’d better sendthe best you’ve got, or can get!

Is the stress too great? Are they get-ting burned out? Teaching, especiallyin a boarding school, takes a 110 per-cent commitment of time and en-ergy. Small schools in particular tendto pile an unreasonable number of re-sponsibilities on teachers and thenwonder why they get burned out andschool morale takes a nosedive. Over-loading teachers with too much workis potentially self-destructive for boththe school and the teacher.

Do they have anywhere to turn whenthey need help? Teachers of history,math, science, English, and music canjoin national organizations that holdyearly conventions and make lots ofresources available on the Web and incatalogues, etc.There are very few re-sources that apply specifically to Sev-enth-day Adventist religion teachers,


I Consistently Use NAD Bible Textbooks

Strongly Agree (51.9%)


Disagree (4.8%)

Neutral (5.8%)

Agree (29.8%)

Students in the author’s Adventist History class create a mural of Adventistpioneers.

with our unique beliefs and needs.Even if we can get some things, theyoften cost a lot of money. In someschools, teachers are given a budgetof $200 per year to teach four-plusclasses—and discouraged from evenspending that.

Some efforts have been made toprovide resources.The CIRCLEWebsite (http://circle.adventist.org)offers valuable links to helpful mate-rials, books, and videos. However, alot of the materials must be pur-chased, so this will be a limiting fac-tor for many.The Adventist Edu-cation Forum (http://edforum.adventist.org) is also a valuable re-source where participants can askquestions and read discussions otherpeople are having. Music and physicaleducation have their own sections,but all the other disciplines arelumped together. It would be nice ifreligion had its own area, as well.

Another place to go for help isother teachers in your discipline.Conventions of various sizes are agreat place to meet other Bibleteachers and share ideas. I was verydisappointed, though, at the 2000NAD teacher convention in Dallasbecause no time was set aside forBible teachers to discuss ideas and is-sues.Those who could, met duringlunch and decided that a Websitewould be a great idea to share re-

sources. Unfortunately, it hasn’t hap-pened—because no one really hasenough “extra” time to invest into itwhile still teaching full-time.

In my survey, I asked about aWebsite to share ideas. Eighty-eightpercent of the Bible teachers saidthey desired a Website, and more than50 percent said they would submitideas.What really needs to happen isfor the North American Division Of-fice of Education, an Adventist col-lege, or some other third party tohost and maintain a Website for Bibleteachers—or for a group of teachersto do this.A committee could bedesignated to screen materials forsuitability, academic quality, and theo-

logical soundness before they areposted on the site.There also needsto be an incentive to post ideas—maybe even an academic or monetaryreward.This would be cheaper andmuch more effective than hiring out-side people to create materials thatmay not prove useful. I imagine thatmost academies would be willing topay a small yearly fee to access such aWebsite.

ConclusionThe survey results were interest-

ing and informative. If the issues areindeed as I have portrayed them, thenI hope that improvements will bemade.All of us as the Body of Christmust work together to accomplishthe specific tasks God has given us.We cannot function without God’spower in our lives or without oneanother. Let us all seek to walk moreclosely with Christ and work to-gether to more effectively share Hislove with our students! ✐

______________

Keith Kerbs hastaught secondary-levelBible for seven years andis currently teaching atColumbia AdventistAcademy in BattleGround,Washington.

He is pursuing an M.A. degree in Religious Ed-ucation at Andrews University in BerrienSprings, Michigan.


Quite Satisfied With NAD Textbooks

Strongly Agree (22%)

Strongly Disagree (7%)

Disagree (13%)

Neutral (17%)

Agree (41%)

Several of the author’s students pose in front of their mural on the GreatControversy.

While “Thy word have I hid in myheart” (Psalm 119:11, KJV) is an oft-quoted Bible verse, in today’s post-modern society, it seems that weeklySabbath school Bible gems and mem-ory verse songs have all too often been

replaced by movie quotes and popular song lyrics.Madeline Johnston, a re-

tired seminary secretary atAndrews University (AU) inBerrien Springs, Michigan,noticed the disturbing lack ofmemorization and wanted todo something about it.“I be-lieve memorization is impor-tant,” she explains.“BothEllen White and science haveshown us the benefits ofmemorization for the mind.Memory stretches and growsif it is used, but atrophies ifnot.Also, Bible verses that wememorize stay with us andimpact our lives.” Her passion for increased knowledge ofGod’s Word has resulted in the Robert M. and MadelineSteele Johnston Endowed Bible Knowledge Award.

Johnston received her inspiration for the award fromattending Culter Academy, an evangelical school in LosAngeles.There, students who memorized and recited 500verses received a special gold pin at graduation, which wasexchanged for another pin if they did a second 500.

Madeline thought Andrews University would benefitfrom a similar award open to the entire university family.She shared her idea with friends and school administratorsand received mixed feedback. Some suggested that a Bibleknowledge award might be more appropriate than one fo-cused on rote memorization. So Madeline began to lookinto the possibility of creating an endowment to honorboth Bible knowledge and memo-rization.

Madeline’s husband, Robert, pro-


FOSTERING KNOWLEDGE OF THE

SCRIPTURESTHE ANDREWS UNIVERSITY

BIBLE KNOWLEDGE AWARD

fessor of New Testament and Christian Origins at the Sev-enth-day Adventist Theological Seminary at AU, hadhelped develop the seminary’s Bible Knowledge EntranceTest. During his years as a professor, Johnston had noticeda lack of basic Bible knowledge among his students. Occa-sionally, he would give bonus questions on exams: extracredit to any student who could write the Ten Command-

ments or name the books ofthe Bible in order. He discov-ered that only about 25 per-cent of the class could re-spond correctly.

Johnston discussed hisconcern with the other semi-nary faculty members, whoagreed that the problemneeded to be addressed.Asseveral other seminaries hadalready done, they voted torequire incoming Master ofDivinity students to take aBible Knowledge EntranceTest during orientation.All

students would have to pass the test before graduation.Those who failed it the first time would be required totake a remedial course in basic Bible knowledge.

As the chair of the Bible Knowledge Entrance TestCommittee, Johnston created and administered the testuntil his retirement in 2002, when David Merling assumedthis role.The test, which has now been given for almost adecade, consists of both multiple-choice questions andmemorization.The multiple-choice section includes ques-tions on the Old and New Testaments as well as generalBible knowledge. Students must answer questions on top-ics such as the major divisions of the English, Septuagint,and Hebrew Bibles; the stories and significance of Biblecharacters such as David and Solomon, Elijah and Elisha;the names of the 12 disciples; and the similarities and dif-

ferences between the Synoptic Gos-pels and John.The memorizationpart requires students to quote all orBY BEV STOUT

part of the 23rd Psalm, the TenCommandments, the Lord’sPrayer, and the Three Angels’Messages; to know where thoseare found; and to list the books ofthe Bible in order.

Students are given an oppor-tunity to prepare for the exam.Seminary applicants receive astudy guide covering what theyare expected to know.The infor-mation, along with a sample test,is also on the Internet (http://www. andrews.edu/sem/bket/bket.htm).

When the test was first given,the pass rate was less than 50 per-cent; however, scores have im-proved greatly, and the effects arevisible in the classroom.“Teachers can tell the differencein their classes now,” states Johnston.“They can assumethat most students have a basic knowledge in certain ar-eas.”

Working with Andrews’ development office and gen-eral counsel, Madeline drafted a proposed endowment toreward both Bible knowledge and memorization. Part Aawards $750 cash each fall to the M.Div. student who,taking the Bible Knowledge Entrance Test for the firsttime, scores the highest. Part B focuses on memorization.Any student, faculty or staff member at schools connectedto Andrews University (kindergarten through universitylevel), or spouse thereof, who memorizes 500 Bible versesfrom a nonparaphrastic translation of their choice and re-cites them nearly word-perfect, 250 at a time, to a desig-nated person, receives a high-quality leather Bible em-bossed with his or her name, a certificate, and a special

bookmark/ruler tonote the event.

The seminary dean’soffice sent a letter toJohnston’s colleaguesand former students,giving them an oppor-tunity to contribute fi-nancially.The endow-ment was announced atJohnston’s official re-tirement reception inSeptember of 2002.Bob Kingman, thenchair of the AU Phys-ics Department, an-nounced that the gov-erning committee ofPhysics Enterprises, adepartment-operated

business that manufactures andsells physics teaching tools, hadvoted to give the Johnston En-dowment a matching grant of upto $10,000.This launched the en-dowment with seed money of$20,000. Other parts may beadded to the endowment, if fundsbecome available.

The first Bible knowledgeaward was presented in the fall of2003 to William Kasper, whoscored 100 percent on the BibleKnowledge Entrance Test. In thespring of 2004, two participantsclaimed the memorization award:Susan Joshua, wife of seminarystudent Calvin Joshua; and Mar-vin Budd, then a contract teacher

at AU, now its database administrator.The inclusion of InMinistry extension students began

to be included in the testing in 2004, with $50 of theaward going to the off-campus student with the highestscore.That fall, three M.Div. students tied with a score of

98 percent on the entrance test.The Johnstons hope that this award

will inspire students and faculty alike tofollow the lead of the Psalmist by hid-ing God’s Word in their hearts. ✐_______________________________

Bev Stout is Media Relations Coordinator atAndrews University, Berrien Springs, Michigan.


Madelyn and Robert Johnston.

Marvin Budd, Bible KnowledgeAward Winner.

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