EDITORIAL
"I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God for salvation...."

Romans 1:16. Power is a big word on campus these days. Most people feel powerless. "Salvation" is hardly a word known on campus but all people need it. So what is God's plan to empower people for salvation? It is the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the words and lives of his people who are on campus.

Faculty who know the Lord can be the difference between heaven and hell for students, staff and peers. Have you exercised your creativity to devise effective ways to live and speak the Gospel on your campus?

One prof I know has "movie nights" on Friday evenings in his home. Students are invited to watch a movie and discuss it (while munching on popcorn) under the leadership of the professor. Movies are chosen and the discussion is led so as to help the students open their minds to the Light.

Our model of ministry in this issue is about another kind of outreach--to fellow faculty and spouses. Some students and faculty have become involved with the environmentally concerned on their campuses so as to build credibility for their witness. Others work with Habitat for Humanity groups with the same goal. There are lots of ways to let campus dwellers interact with Jesus.

Let's not be, unlike Paul, ashamed of the Gospel. We are stewards of just what the campus needs today: real Life in Jesus Christ.

KEEPING UP
The Outrageous Idea of Christian Scholarship, George M. Marsden, Oxford University Press, New York, Oxford, 1997

"Contemporary university culture is hollow at its core." (pg. 3) Thus George Marsden begins. But he says much of the current Christian presence is "a passive, low-profile approach which is not making much impact" (pg. 101) and he concludes his book "...the question that has motivated this book is why Christian scholarship has such a low reputation in the rest of the academic community. Why is such scholarship thought to be impossible, nonsensical, or even non-existent?..Why do not more scholars who are Christian think deeply about the relevance of faith to their scholarship?" (pg. 118-119)

In this follow up to his very valuable, The Soul of the American University, Marsden faces those who challenge the relevance of Christian commitment to scholarly areas in the various fields of the university. He also addresses those who are believers in Christ, "Why are there in mainstream academia almost no identifiable Christian schools of thought to compare with various Marxist, feminist, gay, post modern, African-American, conservative, or liberal schools of thought? If one compares, for example, the number of Marxists in America with the number of Christians, the disparity in their visibility in mainstream academia is truly remarkable. What is it about the dominant academic culture that teaches people they must suppress reflection on the intellectual implications of their faith?" (pg. 6)

It is puzzling that although the Enlightenment faith in science is often attacked today, "yet when the subject of religion is mentioned, the categories of enlightenment skepticism seem to be miraculously resuscitated." (pg. 26) Post- modernism is no refuge for us in this atmosphere. Marsden points out, "Christians, however, need to challenge relativistic post modern, anti-realist naturalism just as much as the older objectivist naturalism. Both these parties start with purely naturalistic assumptions and make these normative for good scholarship. Christians need to challenge these assumptions and to suggest that scholarship might just as responsibly take place within the framework of the assumptions that God has created an ordered reality." (pg. 30-31)

Essentially he is arguing that "traditional religious viewpoints...can be just as hospitable to scientificly sound investigation as many other viewpoints, all of which are ultimately grounded in some faith or other." (pg. 45) While it is true that for those engaged primarily in empirical study, Christian and non-Christian may find the same phenomena, "it simply does not follow that, because there is no special view of photo-synthesis, there is therefore not a Christian view of biology." (pg.61) "So it is important that scholars carefully evaluate the first principles taken for granted by their particular community". (pg. 72) Citing the late Donald MacKay, Marsden attacks reductionism (pgs. 75-77), a dominant methodology of academe today.

The helpful role of the doctrines of creation and incarnation are explained (pp.84-93) demonstrating that we have valuable insights from our faith to imploy in exploring our academic subjects. And appropriate humility is called for in his advice. "Christian scholarship should be marked by a healthy sense of the limits of human knowledge." (p.95)

At the end of the book (113ff) Marsden sites many contemporary Christian scholars who he believes are exemplary and he sees them as strong contributors to the various realms of academic thought. His challenge could be summarized in the following quote. "The principal of a higher citizenship [Augustinian] provides a framework for thinking about how Christians can be full fledged participants in the secular academic institutions of the day, yet be free of illusions about those institutions. Rather than either accepting the current academic standards as ultimate, or rejecting them as hopelessly corrupt, Christian scholars can consider them valuable ad hoc principles for getting certain jobs done. At the same time, they will see in them what one finds in all human inventions, the tendency to absolutize the relative." (pg. 98-99) A must read!!

I'd like to recommend two brand new InterVarsity Press publications, the first by scientist Walter R. Hearn titled, Being a Christian in Science. The best I can do to recommend it is to quote from my own blurb on the back of it since I read the manuscript several times before publication. "What a young potential scientist needs at the beginning of learning the craft is an experienced, broadly informed and, above all, an honest guide. Walter Hearn is just such a guide, and Being a Christian in Science aptly and personally conveys his wisdom. Hearn deflates misconceptions--both those held by the academy and those held by the church--and underlines the truly important. This book is perfect for college students and for senior scientists. It glorifies God."

The second book is by Jimmy Long, a long-time staff worker with InterVarsity, now directing InterVarsity's work in North and South Carolina and Virginia. It is titled, Generating Hope: A Strategy for Reaching the Post Modern Generation. The book represents the on the field experience of an observant staff worker who now has Generation X children of his own. It also represents the product of careful study, being the result of a D Min effort at Gordon-Conwell Seminary.

It begins with a sociological analysis of where young people are today and what they are facing, including a helpful analysis of the contemporary philosophical climate: post moderism. The recommended ministry shape is small groups and the guidance, instruction and stories are very helpful. My guess is that many of us teaching this generation would benefit very much by a careful reading of at least the first half of this book which is analysis and theological reflection.

MODEL OF MINISTRY: FACULTY BIBLE DISCUSSIONS
How can I cope with teaching, conducting research, studying, publishing, drafting proposals for funding, spending time with students, carrying a variety of responsibilities in the university community, and- at the same time - retain faithfulness to family and Christian service? As a professor trying to maintain a position of respect and security in my department, I find this question daunting.

If however I change the question and ask, "How might some aspects of family life as well as support from fellow Christian professors increase my day-to-day efficiency and competence?", I am encouraged. Think of a Bible study on campus, one that is open to all faculty, including spouses, designed for the university community. It would be different from many church Bible studies; the common denominator is an interestt in becoming better acquainted with the content of Scripture regardless of the weight one might put on its authority.

For the Christian professor there is very real value in such an activity. Spouses can be involved in the work of reaching out to university colleagues, and one's personal life can be strengthened through team work with one or two fellow Christian professors in the Bible study. Instead of being a drain on one's energies, this kind of study group contributes to professional life and "Christian Service" - rather than being an extra - becomes an integral part of campus life. Even an occasional evening spent in this kind of activity can be supportive amidst the challenges of academic life. Several of us found this to be true at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.

In the early 1990's a few of us met for Bible study twice a month during the academic year at the home of an engineering professor on campus. It came about almost by accident. An interest group of the Faculty Women's Club had been involved for some time in a Bible study and one day someone suggested that a parallel activity for men and women would be a good idea. So we bagan. Colleagues, some with their spouses, joined us. For many of them this was their first Bible study.

We took a familiar route initially. An expert theologian was brought in to lead a study of Mark's Gospel. We were sure that such an approach would be the right one in a university setting. How wrong we were! Our expert was sharply focused on his subject but our participants were more interested in interacting freely on particular passages. We had overlooked the old pedagogical adage of beginning where the learner is.

Fortunately interest levels were high enough to bring us back for a second year. As we assessed the events of the previous year we soon discovered that everyone wanted a thoroughly collegial structure in which we shared all aspects of planning and conducting our discussions. Our second year therefore began with a sequential study of John's Gospel in which group members volunteered to lead, a responsibility that often took the form of simply asking a few starter questions. Interest grew and some new faces appeared. One person said, "Can you believe this is the same group as last year?" The new format gave freedom for open discussion and sharing.

When we chose one of Paul's letters for study, things did not go well. There was resentment, even hostility, toward Paul's strong assertions. This convinced us that, given the range of backgrounds, we should stick to the gospels for the foreseeable future. There was common interest there in the person of Jesus. At the conclusion of one series, a particular person who had been highly critical of Biblical miracles expressed his thinking in this way: "I am completely fascinated with this person, Jesus."

Over time, mutual trust and genuine enjoyment of one another's company has developed. We find ways for meeting socially between terms. Different views are expressed quite frankly. The variety of fields represented by the participants both enrich and challenge us all. We have faculty from Geophysics, Astronomy, English, Architecture, Computer Science, Education, Medicine, Engineering, and Commerce. Those loyal to the authority of the Bible - purposely kept to a minority - often encounter totally unexpected comments. For instance, when we studied the incident in Luke chapter eight, concerning the demon-possessed man, one member, noting the way in which Jesus allowed the evil spirits to enter the swine remarked: "This event is a good example of the law of conservation of evil spirits."

To date, in spite of having met for several years, we do not have stories of conversions but we do have two significant outcomes: (a) a heightened interest in the Bible; (b) new bonds of friendship across a broad spectrum of belief. We are convinced that we have found an appropriate model to help us share our confidence in Christ with colleagues on campus. I should add that we are fortunate in being able to meet at the center of the campus in the home of a Christian faculty couple well accustomed to hosting visiting scholars.

Angus and Ruth Gunn
University of British Columbia, Canada