Teacher to Teacher - March 2008 - (Page 7) are expected to, as we are to evaluate the good and evil in all that comes our way (1 Thess. 5:21; Eph. 5:8–12; and often elsewhere). We are to learn from the good and the evil alike. To God, the two greatest issues for any one are simple: how does he treat God? and how does he treat his neighbor? (Matt. 22:35–40). Cultures, like indi viduals, may legitimately be evaluated by the same standards. False religion should be studied and criticized. Often a careful study will demonstrate about what the culture’s philosophy, history, or even geography influenced its false religious conclusions. (It’s easy to under stand, for example, why Hawaiians be lieved in Pele, the hottempered volcanic fire goddess.) We can be warned away from repeating similar errors ourselves. Similarly, we can evaluate any culture’s treatment of its neighbors. Cannibalism is not merely an alternative lifestyle; it is a rejection of the image of God in man, even in one’s enemies.6 The extreme cru elty of the Assyrian armies—who would leave at the gate of a conquered city a pile of the heads of the city’s men—can be condemned and need not be excused as “just the way they did things.” Some cultural questions become more complicated, of course. Is the Comanche 6 I am aware of recent research suggesting that cannibalism may have been much less common historically than previously believed; see, e.g., William Arens, The Man-Eating Myth (1979). The thinking is based on the fact that most allegations of cannibalism come from the accused culture’s enemies, who of course are motivated to make up horrific stories about them. I’m not sure there are sufficient data available to make a reasonably certain conclusion, and in any case the question is beyond the scope of this essay. culpable for not settling down into ag ricultural communities? Is that poor stewardship? Or is keeping on the move actually better stewardship of natural resources? What about the Native Amer ican view of private property? Does that view violate any biblical teaching? Does the fact that man in the Millennium is said to sit “under his vine and under his fig tree” (Micah 4:4) imply that God ex pects mankind to have a clear concept of private property? These thorny issues should be ad dressed in the Christian classroom, as time allows. They are good exercises in exegesis and logic, and they enrich the students’ interaction with other cultures. They are nothing to be afraid of. But the teacher should take care continued on page 8 Academic excellence with a biblical worldview 800-BJ-AND-ME Teacher to Teacher | March 2008 page 7 http://www.bju.edu
Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Teacher to Teacher - March 2008 Teacher to Teacher - March 2008 Teacher to Teacher - March 2008 - (Page Intro) Teacher to Teacher - March 2008 - (Page 1) Teacher to Teacher - March 2008 - (Page 2) Teacher to Teacher - March 2008 - (Page 3) Teacher to Teacher - March 2008 - (Page 4) Teacher to Teacher - March 2008 - (Page 5) Teacher to Teacher - March 2008 - (Page 6) Teacher to Teacher - March 2008 - (Page 7) Teacher to Teacher - March 2008 - (Page 8)
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