Wednesday, November 12, 2003
Some notes on Nazarene intellectualism
Yeah, I know I posted ten minutes ago, and I know that Anthony is disappointed that I'm posting so much -- but I press on.
I won't pretend that this has been a uniform phenomenon across the Nazarene church, but I have noticed a distinct inhospitality toward deep thinkers at Olivet and also at other Nazarene institutions I have heard about from reliable sources. Certainly we all know that A Certain Dynamic and Caring Professor Who Shall Remain Nameless's life was made a living hell at Olivet, and we also know how that has alienated a substantial group of young theologians and philosophers whom he helped to educate. If the Nazarene church were more hospitable to deep, challenging thinkers, the Nameless Professor being only one, then the next generation of Nazarene thinkers could include people like Tony Baker, Nate Kerr, Chad Maxson, Dave Belcher, Jodi Anglin, and others. As it stands, even if someone like that were to decide she was going to stand in the line of fire, there's a good chance that at least Olivet would not have her. (Point Loma is apparently different, and I hear that NTS would be much more hospitable if not for the stonewalling tactics of some general superintendants.)
I don't think it's a matter of politics. At least one person who I know has been screwed over in detail by the Nazarene college system seems to be generally "conservative" on a variety of issues -- but he's a passionate thinker who asks the wrong kind of questions. If education is going to be about passing down all the right answers and keeping the questions under control, then no one is really going to want to do it -- those who are passionate and who want to challenge people will simply go elsewhere. In the end, a denomination that wants to make sure that people come out of religious colleges with all the right answers in hand and without even an inkling of the right kind of questions is basically going to have to start hiring failed pastors who happen to have a PhD.
On the grand scheme of things, this doesn't really matter, and as an insider/outsider, I certainly have the option of not caring anymore -- but a weird little fringe group of dedicated people, which certainly describes the Nazarene church at its best, could certainly do a lot more good in the world if they were more hospitable to those who want to turn their minds toward God (not to mention those who are guilty of certain offences that I'm increasingly convinced aren't even prohibited at all in the New Testament -- though that's another post). If a church cannot be hospitable to those members who have the greatest gifts and who want very much to use those gifts in the service of the church, then I think that's a sign of a deeper failure and a deeper sickness.