-Ideals and Purposes of Abilene Christian College

Ideals and Purposes of Abilene Christian College IDEALS AND PURPOSES OF ABILENE
CHRISTIAN COLLEGE
Jas. F. Cox My Brethren and Friends:

It is but fair and right that the people who support Abilene Christian College with their money and influ­ence should know the ideals and purposes of the insti­tution. No college that does not have worthy, worth­while ideals, and therefore good reasons for its exist­ence, deserves the support of Christian men and women. The ideals and purposes for which Abilene Christian College stands have been stated at various times by others who have helped to make the insti­tution what it is. As time passes, however, and condi­tions change, arid experiences light our way, these ideals and purposes become more keenly apparent, and must be. more definitely stated. In the early part of the school year 1905-6, A. B. Barrett, a graduate of David Lipscomb College came West and interested a number of brethren and friends in the establishment of a school in West Abilene, where the Bible would be taught as any other subject, and where the teachers of otner subjects would present those subjects from the viewpoint of a Christian. This institution of learning was known as Childers Classical Institute. Its aim and purpose at that time was to give a cultural education in a Christian environment, and to develop boys and girls into Christian men and women worthy to be leading citizens of our country. In general there have been few changes from these general ideals and purposes during the twenty seven years of the existence of this school.

It is well just here to clearly understand what is meant by the term Christian College. In the first place a college is an institution of higher learning which gives instruction to graduates of standard high schools. The senior college gives four years of such instruction, leading to the bachelor degree.

There are certain def­inite, standards required by various standardizing agen­cies which colleges must measure up to in order to be recognized as first class and to receive from the state those privileges and that recognition that are neces­sary in order for the institution to jnaintain itself in competition with other colleges. The standardizing agencies, however, do not altogether determine the, cur­riculum, the purposes and the ideals of any college. There is much liberality and choice allowed institu­tions of learning as to the nature and extent of the cur­ricula and as to their general policies of management and discipline. Some colleges stress agriculture, and are called agricultural colleges; some stress the tech­nique of industry, and are called technological colleges; and some stress Christian living, and may be rightly called Christian colleges. So a Christian college is an institution of higher learning offering instruction to high school graduates for two or four years, with spe­cial stress upon the development of Christian char­acter.

Promoters and builders of Christian colleges have, therefore, as their ultimate aim the development of Christian character. Friends of. Abilene Christian Col­lege see that education above high school is necessary and that there is a great demand for a type of higher education that is not furnished by the colleges owned and operated by the state and by other organizations.

Christian men and women are asking for a place to send their sons and daughters where they will have a Christian environment in which to get that higher education that they cannot get at home. A Christian environment may be said to be made up of at least two large factors: first, the Bible must be taught diligently, seriously and conscientiously by those who do the teaching. The Bible must have a very prominent place in the curriculum, all the students must be required to study it and to learn it—not as mere literature, but as the very truth of the living God. In the second place, those who teach all the other branches of learning, as well as Bible, must be Christian men and women— those who believe the Bible to be the truth, the very words of the living God given to us through his holy apostles and prophets, and that it has been preserved and is today unmixed with human error. These teach­ers must present their subject matter from the view­point of a Christian. Such can not be done unless they are really and genuinely Christian. Long ago it has been proven that one teaches as much by what he is as by what he says. It is the purpose of Abilene Chris­tian College to have such an environment as has been described. This institution gives the Bible the most prominent place in its curriculum. Every teacher on the faculty must be a Christian, a member of the church of the Lord Jesus Christ, and must be free from habits that are not consistent with Christian living.

Abilene Christian College undertakes to have an envir­onment that promotes Christian living and which tends to strengthen the faith of its students in the Bible as the Word of God; and to train them in habits of right living. By way of repetition, therefore, it may be said again that Abilene Christian College is an edu­cational institution of higher learning, giving four years of college work leading to the standard bachelor degree. It is not an adjunct of the church; it is not run to do the work of the church; nor to supplement the work of the church. It is built and maintained for the benefit of people who are seeking a safe environ­ment in which young people who want to secure a higher education than is offered in their home com­munities and a type of education that they cannot secure in any of the schools maintained by the state. Abilene Christian College is not a preacher’s factory. Its purpose is not to manufacture preachers; however, if it maintains the environment and carries out the ideals for which it stands, the atmosphere will be entirely conducive to the growth and development of young men into effective gospel preachers.

Abilene Christian College encourages young men to be preach­ers of the Word; in fact, it encourages every student to love and study the Bible and to be zealous, .faithful teachers of its truths, because it believes that in no other way can they be as happy and as useful as when they a,re sincere, faithful, earnest teachers of God’s Holy Word. It is not the purpose of Abilene Christian College to usurp or to take over the work of the home; it is rather an extension of the work of a Christian home. It undertakes to offer a Christian home envir­onment to those young people who are seeking a higher education; it undertakes to do this, as has been said, by holding up God’s Word continuously before these young people as the important thing in life. It reverences, stands for, and teaches the same Bible that their mothers loved and taught to them while they were at home. It urges these young people to attend reli­gious services and to take an active part in them. It makes this possible by offering various meetings for worship and study. It also undertakes to provide Christian work that would give spiritual work to the students. It may be said, therefore, finally on this point that Abilene Christian College is striving to maintain a real Christian home environment for its students.

Any institution of higher learning in Texas today must measure up to certain academic standards that are required by the state if it would receive from the state certain benefits. One of the greatest benefits to be received from the state of Texas, for this or any other college, is the privilege of certification of its stu­dents by the state to teach in the public schools. For­tunately it is possible for us to meet these requirements and at the same time maintain our high ideals and pur­poses. One of the greatest services now being ren­dered by Abilene Christian College rs that of turning out young men and young women who are genuinely Christian, to be teachers in our public schools. These young people generally have the highest ideals of Christian living and are real lovers of humanity. They are well-qualified to teach the secular subjects that they are required to teach in the public schools. Hundreds have gone out of Abilene Christian College who are today leavening influences in various communities in Texas and other states. Everywhere they are holding up the Bible as God’s Holy Word and Christianity as the only hope of a decaying civilization. We find these teachers not only promoting Christian living in the public school during the week, but on Sundays we find them in the local congregations as leaders and helpers in building up the cause of pure New Testament Chris­tianity.

It is not the purpose of Abilene Christian College to compete with state schools and other col­leges and universities in buildings, equipment, learned faculties, and in other outward manifestations. It is the purpose of Abilene Christian College to offer some­thing, however, that these state institutions do not and cannot offer. It is its purpose to stress spiritual devel­opment, to teach the Bible, and to maintain a real Christian atmosphere. Of course it is necessary for this institution to have good material equipment in the way of buildings, supplies, laboratory equipment, library, etc. It is also necessary that we have a faculty that measures up to a high standard in scholarship and training; but our first consideration in getting the faculty is Christian character and training, and then the mental or academic training is thought of. In its relationship then to the state, Abilene Christian Col­lege undertakes to meet the material standards in buildings, equipment, and faculty; but it does not undertake to have the most expensive, the largest, nor the most ornamental buildings. It does not undertake to have the most learned faculty, but it does undertake to excel state school in Christian environment and in the study of the Bible as God’s Holy Word. In its effort to meet the standards of the state in order to have the certificating privilege it may some­times do things that seem to be leading in the wrong direction. It is indeed difficult to maintain our edu­cational standing and at the same time maintain our high standard of spirituality which to us is first. But we are learning more and more in this regard, and it is our firm belief that our high standard of Christian character and citizenship as an ultimate goal for our students may be maintained, and at the same time we may be able to meet every requirement of the state for higher institutions of learning. By way of repetition and for the sake of emphasis I wish to say again that Abilene Christian College is not maintained for the purpose of making preachers, or missionaries, or teach­ers, or farmers, or business men and women; but its purpose is to develop honorable, upright, happy, Chris­tian men and women out of the young people that are sent to us—men and women who will build Christian homes and take their places in society as leaders in their communities, and in all things that make for civic righteousness and the upbuilding of the cause of Christ in the world. Since teaching is the great work of the church it is, of course, our ambition that every one of these be teachers of God’s Holy Word; possibly not public teachers or teachers of classes; but never­theless teachers. It may lead many of them to be preachers, some to be missionaries at home and abroad; some to be elders, some to be deacons—but we hope to lead all of them to be kings and queens in happy Chris­tian homes.

Since those of us here who are directing this great work are stressing such high and worthy ideals we do not hesitate to ask other Christian men and women everywhere to be interested in it, and help us promote it by means of their money and influence. We do not claim perfection for Abilene Christian College. We make many mistakes in its administration and many things are done here that we do not uphold, but in all this we want to assure you that we are striving toward these high ideals. But so long as institutions are governed and directed by men, even though they be thoroughly Christian, many mistakes will be made and many failures will bp evident. We are encour­aged, however, in the great work that is done here when we consider the products that have gone out from Abilene Christian College and see the great good that they are doing in the world. We are encouraged when we compare the work of this institution with that of other institutions pf higher learning that are maintained by the state and by other religious bodies. Since there are no other institutions of higher learn­ing that are stressing the ideals and purposes that have been set forth in this address, we believe that Abilene Christian College has a just right to exist and to ask those who believe in this sort of higher education to support it with their means and their influence, and to continue to make this the greatest college in the world.