Why I #SupportDocHawk
Here is a well articulated explanation from Brian Howell, a Wheaton College faculty member, on why the wearing of academic regalia (or in my case... posting a picture) signifies and embodies a degree of solidarity with Dr. Hawkins...
"Wearing my regalia in solidarity with Larycia Hawkins is not to stand against Wheaton, or to shame or belittle those who act on its behalf. Instead, I seek to stand with the mission and meaning of Wheaton as an institution for Christ and His Kingdom, where we can trust one another in this mission. I wear it because I believe in the integrity of tenure and its importance to the academic life. I wear it because I believe that Larycia Hawkins has acted with integrity to uphold the ideals of academic freedom, and I stand with her in seeking a restoration of the relationship between her and Wheaton College. I wear it because I believe in the mission of Wheaton as an institution of higher education rooted in a Christian mission guided by God and His word. I wear it to stand with the ideals of this school and my fellow faculty who strive to uphold them." (See more: http://brianhowell.blogspot.com/2016/01/why-i-wear-my-regalia.html)
Some wonder why I'm spending so much time following this situation. It's not about theology for me. There have been theological disagreements since the beginning of Christian faith and there will continue to be. As long as we are not killing one another over it (which we used to), it’s fine. As a Christian university, Wheaton is entitled to have a statement of faith.
What I am terribly concerned about is the very idea of Christian Higher Education itself. I believe Christian conviction can rest at the center of one's learning and engagement with the world without compromising the search for truth. I believe in it because I was formed by it. If Christian truth is, in fact, True - it ought not fear any form of sustained critical inquiry. Like any other worldview, the Christian faith brings to its inquiry a unique set of values and attitudes about the world. In the spirit of a true and meaningful diversity, the Christian voice, along with other religious traditions, are as important to learning as any secular discourse. A rigid secularity ought not to have the last word on teaching, research, and learning (nor can it realistically).
Yet many institutions of higher learning believe robust faith and critical inquiry is not possible. A recent text on graduate school admissions by Julie Posselt explores how several universities go about accepting and rejecting their applicants. A noticeable trend was the bias many committees had toward graduates of Christian colleges. Speaking of one Christian college graduate and applicant, the chair of the committee stated,“I would like to beat the college out of her.” It makes me wonder how my application was received when applying to doctoral programs a year ago.
Wheaton College has long been perceived to be one of the very best institutions of Christian higher learning, yet the current impasse at the school reaffirms the suspicions of many throughout the world that religious conviction hinders, rather than advances, the search for truth.
Why is this matter somewhat personal for me? Because I believe strongly in Christian Higher Education and the contribution it can make to the world and because I intend to be a part of such teaching and research as a professing Christian studying religious pluralism and public life. To do so, academic freedom is essential. Administratively, such freedom requires a trust between faculty, staff, students, and other university stakeholders that all are united in a common vision of God’s reign as it is uniquely expressed in Christian tradition. That trust is falling apart at Wheaton College, and with it, the idea of an Evangelical higher education.
But all is not lost. I have been blessed and amazed by the love and advocacy of many current Wheaton students on behalf of Dr. Hawkins - done so without the toxicity of the culture wars that surround them. They love God, they love their school (why else would they remain there and be so active?), and they love what Dr. Hawkins brings to the institution. I have been encouraged to see many of my former teachers who shaped me while I was at Wheaton raise their voice and support in a strong yet humble tone. These faculty embodied for me what Christian education was supposed to be during my undergraduate studies and they continue to do so for me today.
"More than Ms. Hawkins’s future is at stake. Professors say this case raises the question of whether the administration will allow faculty members the flexibility they thought they had to have lively debates on theological issues, and whether their social-media posts will receive the same scrutiny that Ms. Hawkins’s have. "I think our academic freedom will be compromised if she is let go," said Mr. Green [a New Testament faculty member]. "I think it has already been compromised."" -Chronicle of Higher Education, College Wrestles With Controversy Over Its Response to Professor’s Religious Views
Christian education needs its statements of faith. They give institutions their distinctive vision. But such statements ought to propel faculty into new fields of inquiry rooted in their love of Christ, not police the details of theological nuance. If Christian Higher Education is to survive in its most robust and engaged form - than its members must be given the fullest freedom afforded them so that the principles of their confessions are able to touch all aspects of the world they seek to minister to.