On America – Intellect

Greetings Dear Reader,

One of the curses of spending most of one’s adult life as an educator is that one witnesses firsthand the destruction of education in our culture.  The college that I taught at when I first began my teaching career had a very simple motto: “Where character is developed with intellect.” 

For some time I have viewed the erosion of intellect for its own ills and problems.  The new students that enter my classroom seem increasingly unprepared for college level education.  I recently saw a quote that moved me to this thinking.  “In 100 years we have gone from teaching Latin and Greek in High School to teaching remedial English in college.”  In fact it is less than that.  I was in High School a mere thirty odd years ago and I took Latin for two years. 

We have forgotten that knowledge is power.  We have sacrificed thinking for participation credit.  Everything about leaning matters.  It is impossible to have education with it being influenced by politics.  The problem is when politics drives education.  We have sacrificed a generation to poor education and it hinders our entire growth as a nation.

There must be intellect to have character.  I must follow Christ in my head and my heart.  I must honestly examine every issue.  I cannot ever ignore the responsibility to think well about the things of God.  Thomas Traherne wrote, “To think well is to serve God in the interior court.” 

I cannot follow Christ well if I do not think well.  I cannot be an honorable disciple of Christ if I do not do so with my intellect.  I must think through the issues.  I must promote honest thinking.  I must be able to reason with others to provide a reason for the hope and faith I carry.  We are in grave danger if we do not remember how to think, learn, and apply.  I must do it daily if I am to pass it on to my students, friends, and family.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store."