Christian Liberal Arts Education

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A liberal arts education is designed to teach the whole person – both spiritually and mentally. It develops critical thinking skills and prepares the individual to be a contributing member of society. A liberal arts education focuses on what it is doing to me as a person. A Christian liberal arts education should promote Christlikeness in its students. Because of this, a liberal arts education, especially a Christian liberal arts education, should help us to avoid failing to live each day in the possibility of eternity. Cross believed that his students only lived for the here and now. They were focused on graduating and moving on to a high paying job. They were materialistic in their thinking and didn’t contemplate a life beyond the present…show more content…
By studying language, we learn to express our thoughts clearly in the written word and learn critical thinking skills by examining various works and determining their meaning. Only through clear expression can we convey our message of “Christ Above All” and persuade others to listen. Critical Survey of Worldviews teaches us of opposing worldviews and helps us to develop our own. When we understand what we believe and why we believe it, we are better able to defend it against challenges and to draw others to our side. Psychology courses help us to understand the human mind and how our personal bias and society can influence our behavior. Without a sense of history, we can’t know where we came from or where we want to go. Lessons of the past help us make informed decisions for our future: “As a historical agent he will inevitably participate in his future, and liberal education can help him do so with intelligence and creativity” (Holmes 391). A Christian liberal arts education integrates faith and learning and teaches the student not only how to earn a living, but also how to live because it has an eternity in view. The core curriculum requirements of a Christian liberal arts education are based on the humanities which serve as the building blocks of education. These are the most like God’s own attributes and character. When…show more content…
“Man is a valuing being” (Holmes 391). It is in our genetic make-up and for a Christian, these values should align with scripture and the will of God. “If a man values the truth, he speaks it; if he values justice, he works for it; if he has hope amidst life’s turmoil, his life has meaning” (Holmes 391). The college years are a time when we form our value and belief system that will direct us for the rest of our life. A Christian liberal arts education will help to mold these ideas and beliefs so that they are determined by the will of God. The purpose of a Christian liberal arts education is to change students’ lives and to equip them to change the culture and the world around them from a biblical perspective. “To a significant degree, what man can do is being studied and taught at the expense of what man should do” (Stull 38). Who we are at the end of our college career is more important than what we are. A Christian liberal arts education will help us to reach our potential and become exactly the person that God wants us to be – a caring, compassionate adult who lives each day in the light of
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