This Article Originally Appeared at Kuyperian Commentary

Introduction

The problem is murmured in its various forms within the Christian world. The state university, once a civic institution devoted to the dissemination of knowledge, now labors under the weight of its ideological entanglements—its costs rising in direct proportion to the absence of Christ in its curriculum and culture. Meanwhile, the private Christian colleges, those erstwhile custodians of orthodoxy, perform a grotesque liturgical dance—one foot in the sanctuary, the other in the woke salon. And the few that have not succumbed to such frivolities? They are priced beyond the reach of all but the wealthiest. Where are Christians supposed to send their kids to college?

The landscape of higher education, once a theater for the contest of ideas, has become a game of survival, with institutions shuttering their doors at an alarming rate—according to The Hechinger Report, between 2004 and 2021, 861 institutions ceased operations.¹ Despite the bleak picture of state colleges, many Christians habitually assume that mathematics and science education can be done without Christ (Prov. 14:15). It’s thought that the character of STEM education at State U is little different from Christ-based STEM education. By default, then, many Christians are only too glad to find their way into a government university STEM program.

Proverbs 14:15 says, “The simple believes everything, but the prudent gives thought to his steps,” which means it’s time to re-examine the default pattern. Is it truly wise to bury and conceal Christ when studying the world Christ made?

Anticipating Objections

Some will boldly proclaim that since two and two make four both at State College and at Christian College, there is no need for a distinctly Christian education in the study of science and mathematics. Christians concede that their children need to be shielded from the toxic humanities at Behemoth University. Yet they are convinced that the hallowed halls of STEM classes at the same university are free from the poison of ideology. They naively assume that math and science are neutral as if numbers could somehow escape the hand of the Creator. And so, with this unspoken confidence, they imagine it is safe to send Christ packing from the very classrooms where His wisdom might shine the brightest. Christians have an operational truce with the math and science departments at State U that needs to stop.

Some may argue that math is math. Physics is physics. It’s the same periodic table. So there isn’t a need to receive a Christian-based STEM education. The problem with this argument is it’s a tiny view of God’s world. It fails to understand that math, just as much as the humanities, ought to point to the permanent things. Why is there coherence between mathematical constructions and the workings of the physical world? What is the explanation for the marvelous complexity and order in the universe? A Christian education, whether the subject is Shakespeare or quadratic equations, studies each subject as a door through which students discover not just the divine ordering of the world, but the Divine Being who ordered the world. God’s mandate is that those subjects be taught in such a way that students are “without excuse” to perceive the brilliance of the glory of the Creator (Rom. 1:20). A Christian education fosters this sensibility. A secular one imbues students with one excuse after another.

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Jason Cherry is an elder at Trinity Reformed Church in Huntsville, Alabama, as well as a teacher and lecturer of literature and history at Providence Classical School in Huntsville. Jason is the author of the book The Making of Evangelical Spirituality and is one of the founders of Trinity Polytechnic Institute, where he helps shape its vision. To contribute to the college, email admin@tpi.college.

Footnotes

¹ Barshay, Jill. "PROOF POINTS: 861 Colleges and 9,499 Campuses Have Closed Down Since 2004." The Hechinger Report, November 21, 2022. https://hechingerreport.org/proof-points-861-colleges-and-9499-campuses-have-closed-down-since-2004/.