Posted on 03/09/2018 7:44:28 AM PST by SeekAndFind
When Kelly Monroe Kullberg's book, Finding God at Harvard, came out in 1996, those who followed The New York Times' Best Sellers could not miss the title's reference. Several years earlier, Ari Goldman's The Search for God at Harvard (1991) not only made the list but was named a "Notable Book of the Year" by the Times.
The difference between the two books is stark. Goldman's spotlights a Harvard where religion is celebrated, as long as it is not the Christianity of the school's founders, especially with its claim to salvation exclusively through Christ. Kullberg's spotlights Christians whose faith survived and even thrived in an environment where hostility to the Gospel vainly tries to hide behind the mask of tolerance.
This mask fell off in dramatic fashion last month when Harvard's Office of Student Life placed the university's largest Christian student group, Harvard College Faith and Action (HCFA), on a one-year "administrative probation" for asking one of its leaders to step down for having a lesbian relationship. A few days later, the College demanded that HCFA disaffiliate from its parent organization, the Christian Union, whose Statement of Ethics includes "The reaffirmation that sex belongs only in the context of marriage between a man and a woman."
The attempt to destroy religious freedom by telling followers what kind of leaders they must have is not new. It has been a favorite tool of totalitarian governments, from the Nazis to the Communists. But how could this happen at an academic institution in a land where religious freedom is part of society's foundation? And how could it happen at Harvard, of all places?
Like most of Western academia today, Harvard drinks deeply from the wells of dogmatic pluralism which teaches that anyone who makes exclusive truth-claims must be a hateful person and is therefore to be hated. Yet Harvard's seal continues to testify to the very exclusivity it now rejects, with the word "Veritas" (Latin for "Truth") encircled by "Christo et Ecclesiae" (Latin for "Christ and Church"). It bears witness to an inconvenient historical truth: Harvard was founded in 1636 for the purpose of training Christian ministers.
Within a century, the Christian zeal that led to the founding of both the New England colonies and the colleges of Harvard and Yale (in 1701) had begun to wane, and revival was needed. The First Great Awakening of 1730-1755 held back the tide of unbelief that rolled across that Atlantic during Europe's Enlightenment, but not for very long.
According to historian Nathan Hatch, in 1782, with the end of the American Revolution in sight, only two students professed Christianity at the newest Ivy League school originally established for ministers at Princeton. By 1800, only five students belonged to Yale's college church. According to another historian, J. Edwin Orr, a poll taken at Harvard concluded that none of its students were believers, and eventually the president was forced to resign.
In other words, we've been here before.
The late 1700s were spiritually dark days, not only for college campuses, but for the nation as a whole. Eight years of war with Great Britain had a devastating effect on the American church. Deism, Unitarianism, and even radical skepticism were everywhere.
And like today, the unbelief of those times was hostile unbelief. In his lecture titled, "The Role of Prayer in Spiritual Awakening" (available on YouTube), Orr tells us that it was accompanied by violence and persecution. Christians and Christianity were openly mocked. Sound familiar?
But the Second Great Awakening (1790-1840) had already started. Thankfully, Princeton recovered and became a pillar of the 19th century Christian church. But some colleges never fully returned to their Christians root. Harvard became a center of Unitarianism in the 19th century.
And so here we are again.
What was it that rescued the United States from the brink of total abandonment to unbelief? Church historians of the period credit two things: the zealous preaching of the word of God and sustained corporate prayer. The 18th century theologian of the First Great Awakening, Jonathan Edwards, coined the phrase, "concerts of prayer," to describe what was involved in the latter: Christians from across denominational boundaries gathering together to implore the Lord to bring spiritual healing to our land. And, of course, this must be coupled with faithful preaching. These are the things that Holy Spirit promises to use in our churches and in our lives as Christ's ambassadors to a lost world.
___________________________________________
Ron Henzel is the Senior Researcher at Midwest Christian Outreach, Inc, co-author of A Matter of Basic Principles: Bill Gothard and the Christian Life and co-host of The Unknown Webcast. He has an M.A. in Biblical Studies from Wheaton College (IL) and is an elder at Providence Christian Church, Cape Coral, Florida.
Harvard is in Massachusetts and is manned by massholes.
So yeah.
Georgetown, (Jesuit’s destroyed this place) should be included in this category.
This ship sailed long ago.
Yep
Harvard is a cesspool of perverts.
And on that Day, every knee will bow…but not until that Day.
Yes they did - about 25 or 30 years ago, if not longer.
Is the root a marxist-muslim agenda and cash donations from the ME?
Agendas / mass marketing can be bought and paid for....
There’s a very old building on Harvard Yard that has dozens of little crucifixes built into its masonry, right at eye level.
I wonder how long before they are destroyed and replaced.
Since 1805 or thereabouts...
Yes. I spoke too soon. Upon further review, you are 100% correct.
bkmk
Ping!
The article states this total untruth;
Within a century, the Christian zeal that led to the founding of both the New England colonies and the colleges of Harvard and Yale (in 1701) had begun to wane, and revival was needed. The First Great Awakening of 1730-1755 held back the tide of unbelief that rolled across that Atlantic during Europe’s Enlightenment, but not for very long.
According to historian Nathan Hatch, in 1782, with the end of the American Revolution in sight, only two students professed Christianity at the newest Ivy League school originally established for ministers at Princeton. By 1800, only five students belonged to Yale’s college church. According to another historian, J. Edwin Orr, a poll taken at Harvard concluded that none of its students were believers, and eventually the president was forced to resign.
In other words, we’ve been here before.
The late 1700s were spiritually dark days, not only for college campuses, but for the nation as a whole. Eight years of war with Great Britain had a devastating effect on the American church. Deism, Unitarianism, and even radical skepticism were everywhere.
This is from it’s first state constitution 1780
PART THE FIRST
A Declaration of the Rights of the Inhabitants of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Article I. All men are born free and equal, and have certain natural, essential, and unalienable rights; among which may be reckoned the right of enjoying and defending their lives and liberties; that of acquiring, possessing, and protecting property; in fine, that of seeking and obtaining their safety and happiness.
Art. II. It is the right as well as the duty of all men in society, publicly and at stated seasons, to worship the Supreme Being, the great Creator and Preserver of the universe. And no subject shall be hurt, molested, or restrained, in his person, liberty, or estate, for worshipping God in the manner and season most agreeable to the dictates of his own conscience, or for his religious profession or sentiments, provided he doth not disturb the public peace or obstruct others in their religious worship.
Art. III. As the happiness of a people and the good order and preservation of civil government essentially depend upon piety, religion, and morality, and as these cannot be generally diffcused through a community but by the institution of the public worship of God and of the public instructions in piety, religion, and morality: Therefore, To promote their happiness and to secure the good order and preservation of their government, the people of this commonwealth have a right to invest their legislature with power to authorize and require, and the legislature shall, from time to time, authorize and require, the several towns, parishes, precincts, and other bodies-politic or religious societies to make suitable provision, at their own expense, for the institution of the public worship of God and for the support and maintenance of public Protestant teachers of piety, religion, and morality in all cases where such provision shall not be made voluntarily.
And the people of this commonwealth have also a right to, and do, invest their legislature with authority to enjoin upon all the subject an attendance upon the instructions of the public teachers aforesaid, at stated times and seasons, if there be any on whose instructions they can conscientiously and conveniently attend.
Provided, notwithstanding, That the several towns, parishes, precincts, and other bodies-politic, or religious societies, shall at all times have the exclusive right and electing their public teachers and of contracting with them for their support and maintenance.
And all moneys paid by the subject to the support of public worship and of public teachers aforesaid shall, if he require it, be uniformly applied to the support of the public teacher or teachers of his own religious sect or denomination, provided there be any on whose instructions he attends; othewise it may be paid toward the support of the teacher or teachers of the parish or precinct in which the said moneys are raised.
And every denomination of Christians, demeaning themselves peaceably and as good subjects of the commonwealth, shall be equally under the protection of the law; and no subordination of any sect or denomination to another shall ever be established by law.
This about Harvard,
CHAPTER V.—THE UNIVERSITY AT CAMBRIDGE, AND ENCOURAGEMENT OF LITERATURE, ETC.
Section 1.—The University
Article I. Whereas our wise and pious ancestors, so early as the year [1636], laid the foundation of Harvard College, in which university many persons of great prominence have, by the blessing of God, been initiated in those arts and sciences which qualified them for the public employments, both in church and State; and whereas the encouragement of arts and sciences, and all good literature, tends to the honor of God, the advantage of the Christian religion, and the great benefit of this and the other other United States of America, it is declared, that the president and fellows of Harvard College, in their corporate capacity, and their successors in that capacity, their officers and servants, shall have, hold, use, exercise, and enjoy all the powers, authorities, rights, liberties, privileges, immunities, and franchises which they now have, or are entitled to have, hold, use, exercise, and enjoy; and the same are hereby ratified and confirmed unto them, the said president and fellows of Harvard College, and to their successors, and to their officers and servants, respectively, forever.
Art. II. and whereas there have been, at sundry times, by divers persons, gifts, grants, devises of houses, lands, tenements, goods, chattels, legacies, and conveyances heretofore made, either to Harvard College in Cambridge, in New England, or to the president and fellows of Harvard College, or to the said college, by some other description, under several charters succcessively, it is declared, that all the said gifts, grants, devises, legacies, and conveyances are hereby forever confirmed unto the president and fellows of Harvard College, and to their successors, in the capacity aforesaid, according to the true intent and meaning of the donor or donors, grantor or grantors, devisor or devisors.
Art. III. And whereas by an act of the general court of the colony of Massachusetts Bay, passed in the year [1642], the governor and deputy governor for the time being, and all the magistrates of that jurisdiction, were, with the President, and a number of the clergy, is the said act described, constituted the overseers of Harvard College; and it being necessary, in this new constitution of government, to ascertain who shall be deemed successors to the said governor, deputy governor, and magistrates, it is declared that the governor, lieutenant-governor, council, and senate of this commonwealth are, and shall be deemed, their successors; who, with the president of Harvard College, for the time being, together with the ministers of the congregational churches int he towns of Cambridge, Watertown, Charlestown, Boston, Roxbury and Dorchester, mentioned in the said act, shall be, and hereby are, vested with all the powers and authority belonging, or in any way appertaining, to the overseers of Harvard College: Provided, that nothing herein shall be construed to prevent the legislature of this commonwealth from making such alterations in the government of the said university as shall be conducive to its advantage, and the interest of the republic of letters, in as full a manner as might have been done by the legislature of the late province of the Massachusetts Bay.
And things like this I have found in all of the original constitutions
Article I. Any person chosen governor, lieutenant-governor, councillor, senator, or representative, and accepting the trust, shall, before he proceed to execute the duties of his place or office, make and subscribe the following declaration, viz:
“I, A.B., do declare that I believe the Christian religion, and have a firm persuasion of its truth; and that I am seized and possessed, in my own right, of the property required by the constitution, as one qualification for the office or place to which I am elected.”
Pretty hard to claim the founders were not Christians. BVB
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.