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The Fourth Sunday after Epiphany, 2005
January 30, 2005
Christ Church, Covington
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”
(Matt. 5:1).
I like what Stephen Carter, Professor of Law at Yale University,
African-American, Episcopalian, novelist, and cultural critic wrote about
religion and education a decade ago: “Religion and education share a
characteristic that so many human activities lack: they matter”. That’s in
his book The Culture of Disbelief, subtitled “How American Law and
Politics Trivialize Religious Devotion”. Religious belief typically
inculcates values, while education without the formation of character is
hardly worth the effort. So the two have common ground. Part of Carter’s
theme is that values ought not to be exiled from schools just because the
values are rooted in religious experience. The book is worth the read,
covering far more than just education, and I’m happy to give it a plug.
So today we have a chance to think about things that matter. We have a
chance to consider the common ground religious faith and education occupy,
the territory of values and character, and also the means they use to
advance them. We’ve got the chance to speak within the context of
Christian faith, which I hope will encourage us.
Let’s start with Jesus. In the Sermon on the Mount he directly addresses
values. He is forming the disciples’ character, and in the process forming
their community. Humility, modesty, righteousness (that is, being right
with God), mercy, innocence, and openness are all embraced. The way we
live, the values we incarnate in our lives, was central to Jesus’ message.
And just so we won’t think that Jesus was a complete innovator, we also
heard the prophet Micah, “What does the Lord require of you but to do
justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” (Mic.
6:8).
Then think of Jesus’ method. He taught by means of stories; not
exclusively, but in large part. A tried and true educational method. He
gathered the disciples together, to give them the power of his own
example. He was the mentor, the leader, the teacher, the one who educated
them (a word which means “to lead to”). His teaching couldn’t just pay lip
service, but required follow-through, even to the cross. The
follow-through was crucial, in fact, since it was the death that was the
means of salvation, and made the teaching complete.
Stories, and authentic mentoring: these are the building blocks for all
values and character formation. Think about the stories that formed you.
I’ve just made reference to a powerful one that we’ve continued to tell
through the centuries, and which you’ve probably heard before: the story
about Jesus’ death and resurrection. Think about the mentors you’ve had.
These stories and people have made you who you are.
Jesus knew this. Educators know this as well. Education really has to be
about the formation of the whole person, no matter what is being taught,
and values are central to education, though not always acknowledged. I’m
glad that Christ Episcopal School puts “imitate Christ” and “act justice”
at the heart of its operating principles. Of course, this means that we
are going to be judged more rigorously for the inevitable failure to live
up to the calling. Well, so be it. This is the challenge that every parent
feels, every educator feels, every mentor of any sort, in fact. It’s a
responsibility that can’t be shrugged off by any of us. Why? Because
education and religious faith matter. They have common ground. Jesus
formed character and inculcated values, and through the Church and the
Scriptures and our gathering today he continues to do so.
The Rev’d John Bauerschmidt is Rector of Christ Church, Covington.
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