JERUSALEM AND ATHENS, PT. 1 Proclaiming the Gospel on the College Campus Note: The second part of Jerusalem & Athens will appear in a future issue of Westminster Magazine. What indeed has Athens to do with Jerusalem? What concord is there between the Academy and the Church? What between heretics and Christians? Our instruction comes from “the porch of Solomon,” who had himself taught that “the Lord should be sought in simplicity of heart.” —Tertullian
Introduction
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n May 28, 1998, Buck Showalter, the manager of the Arizona Diamondbacks, an expansion baseball team in its inaugural season, did something that had never been done before: with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning and the bases loaded, Showalter ordered his pitcher to intentionally walk Barry Bonds. The Diamondbacks were ahead of the San Francisco Giants 8-6, and the intentional walk made the game 8-7. The next hitter lined out to right field, and the Diamondbacks won the game. After the game, Buck Showalter said, “I wasn’t going to let that guy beat us. I knew I had to take the bat out of his hands.” In the post-modern era, philosophical and ethical discussions on university grounds were often characterized by the assumption of moral relativism, which denies the existence of an absolute and objective ethical standard determining right and wrong. Although as Christians we would disagree with such a premise, we would, nevertheless, seek to make the most of our opportunity to explain God’s law and the gospel. In other words, post-modernity would allow any idea and ideology to take its turn in the batting order; and, as Christians, we would look forward to grabbing a bat and stepping up to the plate when our spot in the order is up. The problem, however, is that as we walk up to the plate, it is not the moral relativism of post-modernism that we are facing, but the strident fundamentalism of our secular age. On this playing field, Christianity may walk up to the plate, but it may not carry a bat. Should the church, therefore, suspend its mission to
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make disciples, at least with respect to reaching college students for Christ? If we can’t swing a bat, should we instead wave a white flag? By no means! Far from capitulation, Scripture calls us to “preach the word”; to “be ready in season and out of season,” to “reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching” (2 Tim. 4:2). So, as we seek to minister to college students faithfully, it is important that we understand the peculiar challenges to the gospel that modern day society presents; but we should also be confident that the Holy Spirit will work through Scripture to renew minds and transform hearts, just like He always has. The campus minister may not be allowed to carry a bat; but the Good Shepherd has not relinquished His rod nor His staff.
The Resemblance
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uring Paul’s second missionary journey, he found his way to Athens, where he encountered a culture characterized by both pagan religion and erudition. In Acts 17:16, Luke writes that the city was “full of idols,” and in Acts 17:18–21, he writes that many Athenians were interested in discussing philosophy, being especially intrigued by new ideas. This description of Athens, and especially the ethos of the Areopagus (Mars Hill), begins to resemble what one might encounter on the college campus today: a place where students (and professors) devote themselves to manifold idols of the heart and mind, even as they revel in the consideration and investigation of new philosophies and ideas. Paul, ever the clever evangelist, plucks the very strings that resonate in the hearts of the Athenians by pointing to an altar dedicated to “the unknown god,” seizing upon their curiosity to tell them that “the unknown god” has now revealed himself in Christ. Paul teaches that God is the creator of all things, including all peoples from one man, and even quotes from the Greek poets to support his assertions. In Acts 17:30–31, we read Paul’s concluding remarks on Mars Hill: The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, because
