The educational philosophy that produces the curriculum of most American public education is called "Humanism." Humanism became prevalent in the early 1920's, initially and gradually taking over the teacher education departments of colleges and universities where the vast majority of American teachers were trained. It was a planned and deliberate movement aimed at using the public school system, which included the state funded colleges and universities, to bring about social reform and a byproduct of that was the slow elimination of religious influence from the curriculum of the public school system.
Most of the reform of public education under humanism was accomplished during the 1950's. It culminated with the Supreme Court's Engle v. Vitale decision, which did not remove prayer from public schools, as is often alleged, but which did remove the recitation of prayers authored by school officials representing the government. Subsequent decisions by the court removed Bible reading from public schools and defined "state-sponsored" as an adjective applied to religious activity in public education found to be in violation of the establishment clause of the first amendment.
The response to all of this educational philosophy and reform was that churches and Christian groups began establishing Christian schools. MCA was founded in 1956, precisely in response to the humanist influence in public schools, which got a head start in Chicago, because it originated locally in two universities founded specifically for the purpose of promoting humanism in teacher education training. Lack of belief in the existence of God, in the inherent sinful nature of humanity, which creates the need for some kind of redemption or salvation, makes educational curriculum objectives incomplete, since the power to bring about our own salvation does not exist within the human intellect. If it did, then humans would have, by now, figured out how to get back on the other side of Eden, and live eternally on their own.
The Resurrection Accounts, Providing Full Evidence of Jesus' Resurrection From the Dead, Are the Completion of the Purpose of Human Existence
The Voice is a modern translation of the Bible, in a style known as "dynamic equivalent." The translation includes a thorough examination of the original language and the manner in which thoughts and ideas were expressed, and then tries to present them in English with a similar "dynamic" effect. Of course, any time a modern translation is produced, there are critics who don't like what appears to be a lack of formality, though that may have actually been the original author's intention. It's difficult to reproduce the exact nuance and tone of two thousand year old words, but this translation chooses to use the less formal terminology in incidents where it is deemed appropriate. So the account of Jesus' appearance to his disciples after his resurrection emphasizes those things that prove he was not an apparition or a vision, but physically rose from the dead and was present in the room.
Out of nowhere, Jesus appeared in the center of the room.
[Jesus] "May each one of you be at peace."
As he was speaking, he revealed the wounds in his hands and side. The disciples began to celebrate as it sank in that they were really seeing the Lord.
[Jesus] "I give you the gift of peace. In the same way the Father sent me, I am now sending you."
Now he drew close enough to each of them that they could feel his breath. He breathed on them.
[Jesus] "Welcome the Holy Spirit of the living God. You now have the mantle of God's forgiveness. As you go, you are able to share the life-giving power to forgive sins, or withhold forgiveness."
All of the eleven were present, with the exception of Thomas. He heard the accounts of each brother's interaction with the Lord.
[The Disciples Proclaim] "We have seen the Lord!"
This is the narrative of Jesus' appearance to his disciples, gathered together on the evening of the day when the women had found the empty tomb. The author, John, who was an eyewitness to this event, takes care to make note of the physical evidence proving that this event took place, and that there were multiple, credible eyewitnesses who saw it, and made note of it, because each one of them experienced a touch from Jesus that provided evidence of his physical resurrection from the dead.
One of the main points is that Jesus had spoken of this happening to this same group of people. But once they were in the moment, what they had imagined his "resurrection" would look like was a much different experience than what they were seeing. They lived in a culture where people often spoke of dreams and visions as if they were reality, but Jesus appeared in such a way as to make it clear they were not seeing a vision or experiencing the visit of a ghost. He notes that "each one of the brothers" had an account of their interaction with the Lord.
We believe in all of these things because of our faith, which is informed by the same Holy Spirit of the living God that gave the disciples their testimony of faith. In the same way they were able to testify of their own encounter with Jesus, assuring Thomas that he had risen from the dead, they give us, through this written word, the same message.
Here's the difference between the Christian gospel and humanism. Humans are unable to rise above the "ceiling" that separates them from salvation, because of death. They cannot transcend, with human intellect alone, the spiritual realm where God's redemption exists. The only vehicle, if you will, that can make that transition is the one that Jesus introduces here as the power which raised him from the dead, the power that transcended death, and that was the Holy Spirit. That is the necessary element in human salvation. And it is this belief that makes our educational philosophy and our curriculum objectives complete.
The Difference in Educational Philosophy is This Core Belief
There was never a time in American history when public education has acknowledged or incorporated belief in an eternal, all-powerful and sovereign God as a part of its educational philosophy. It has always operated in a manner separate from the church, as required of all public institutions by the first amendment's establishment clause. What was occurring, during an era of overwhelming Protestant influence in public education, was the permission given to students, teachers and parents, to conduct various religious activities, mainly prayer and Bible reading, in the school's classrooms.
As the humanist philosophy advanced, taking over universities during the post Civil War era, and began to turn education into a means of bringing about social reform, its agenda, which is completely secular, changed religious activities done for convenience into what amounted to religious coercion, leading to court decisions to enforce the first amendment, and eliminate them from the school's previously open public forum. The development and growth of Christian schools is just one response among many from those who felt that over-reach and over-regulation were interfering with their freedom of conscience.
We teach this as historical fact. In concluding the narrative on this gathering of disciples and the evidence they bring establishing the resurrection of Jesus as a fact, John writes, "The accounts are recorded so that you too might believe that Jesus, the Liberating King, is the Son of God, because believing grants you the life he came to share."
We do not have the power to save ourselves, but we have a liberating King whose resurrection breaks the ceiling of death, and by acknowledging our own sin and accepting his forgiveness, we can follow where he leads.
We hope you find your way to worship and celebrate the resurrection this Easter. If you do not have a home church where you can join in and celebrate, you are welcome to join the celebration at 10:45 a.m. at Midwest Bible Church.
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