The Grace Core - Faculty Resources: Why Christian Liberal Arts?

Professor Gene Fant teaches how to maximize a liberal arts education by outlining its history, criticisms, purposes, and benefits. Ultimately, he shows that liberal learning equips us to become spiritually and intellectually empathetic people who are passionate about serving God, the church, and the world. --from publisher description

This article argues that a coherent and inspired general education program, infused with a deliberate vision of the liberal arts, is crucial to the flourishing of Christian higher education. This article begins by describing the context and status of general education, emphasizing how this element of the educational program falls short in embodying a distinctive mission of Christian higher education. This article then contends that a vibrant vision of general education will be grounded in particular aspects of a liberal arts education that fulfill crucial outcomes of the Christian university, specifically cultivating the formal virtues and fostering meaning and purpose. The article concludes with recommendations for advancing the aims of general education within Christian higher education, highlighting the benefits of a common curriculum and intentional faculty development.

The authors discuss the book Teaching and Christian Practices (TCP ), edited by James Smith and David I. Smith, which was written to report and reflect on integrating classic Christian practices into their teaching and mentoring of students. This article focuses on four questions: What is "Christian" about these practices? How do people change? What does TCP teach us about pedagogy? What might have to be sacrificed in order to create space for such practices?