10 Reasons Not to go to a Christian College

1. Your youth pastor went there

When the majority of your social life consists of youth group, Christian concerts, and church events, the center of your universe that incredibly hip, never gonna act (or dress) his/her age youth pastor. They are the wacky and wild beacon shining a light into the dark world of troubled teens. They are helping forgotten youth. If you want to help people, you need to be just like them! Or do you?

Unfortunately, many church kids are so entrenched in Christian culture that they can't imagine life after youth group. So they take the next best route and seek out the college that made their youth pastor so awesome to begin with. This isn't to say that the college your youth pastor attended is never going to be a good fit for you. However, if this is one of the primary reasons you're making your decision, I'd encourage you to reconsider.




2. You are pursuing a non-ministry degree

This isn't a judgement on the academic quality of non-ministry degrees offered by Christian colleges. That will vary from school to school and even between departments at the same school. Rather, it is about cost effectiveness. Yes, you can get a degree in elementary education from a private Christian school, but considering the average starting pay for teachers, would you be better off getting the same degree at a fraction of the price from a public school? It's something to consider.




3. You are pursuing a ministry degree with no clear vision or desire to work at a church.

I cannot stress this enough...when you are evaluating your school choices, be sure to get information from a variety of sources, including those outside of the institution itself. Most schools want to make sure to maintain/increase their enrollment numbers.  I know far too many people (myself included) who were reassured by their Christian university that their major would allow them a high degree of flexibility. They will say that a ministry degree is gladly welcomed to a number of non-church/ministry related fields. Let me clear that up right now....It is not. A degree in a ministry field will never be as a highly regarded among non-Christian circles. If you are uncertain as to what you truly want to do, don't just sit in your major until you figure it out. Go to a community college, get your generals out of the way, and take some time to do a little soul searching.




4. You are a woman who ultimately dreams of being a pastor's wife and/or stay at home mom.

This may sound harsh to some, but I've known these women. While studying at their Christian college, they constantly talk about how really their only dream is to be a stay at home mom and wife. They earn their four year degree, ended up married withing two years of graduating, never work a day in the field they majored in, and end up burdened with tens of thousands of dollars in school debt resulting in high monthly repayment amounts while living on a single income. If your ultimate dream is to meet a nice Christian college guy and live happily ever after with no intent to work, here's what you can do: Rent an apartment near your favorite Christian school. Starting attending church as well as the college-aged Sunday school group at one of the most popular Baptist/Evangelical Free/non-denominational church in the area. You will save tens of thousands of dollars and likely end up with the same result.




5. Everyone else in your family has gone to school there.

Never make you choice based on the perception of others or what has always been done. College is an important and personal choice and should be treated as such.




6. You want to go to a school with like-minded people.

Guess what?? There are like-minded people anywhere you go and there are people you do not think like you everywhere as well. Wearing the label of "Christian" is no guarantee that you think alike. There are countless other matters on which to disagree (politics, music, movies, denominational differences,etc.) even when you share the same basic fundamentals of faith. Christians exist at state schools as well. You are more likely to find people who think like you do by pursuing the activities/causes that interest you most rather than simply assuming all Christians will get along and agree. The exciting thing about discovering such people in non-Christian circles is that it will open your eyes to the common ground that people of differing beliefs share rather than viewing it as an "us vs. them" situation.




7. It is out of your price range.

I have come to believe that one of the absolutely most irresponsible things that Christian colleges tell prospective students is reminding them that "God will provide." My own Christian alma mater actually promotes such an idea in its marketing literature. One of the major statistics that they cite is that the financial aid department has "helped 97% of our students reduce the cost of tuition and an affordable education." Phew. Well, that's a relief....wait a minute...

In this case "affordable" is an extremely relative term. One family's "affordable" is another's "more than twice what we can afford." Apart from that, such a statistic doesn't say what kind of financial aid those 97% received. Grants will indeed reduce your tuition costs. However, when it comes to loans, you will pay for them in the long run. Odds are once you finally get those student loans paid off (I'm at nearly 8 years and counting...) you will have paid much more than the amount of the original loan.

I know it's hard when you really have your heart set on something, but don't listen to anyone who says that money shouldn't be an issue. It is, and unfortunately it is an issue that will haunt you long after you've earned your degree.




8. You don't think you'd ever be able to handle having a gay/atheist/Buddhist/alcoholic/sex-crazed/etc. roommate.

Becoming an adult isn't about being comfortable, it's about learning and growing in an attempt to be a better person. That growth will not happen if you are unwilling to interact with anyone whose beliefs may differ from your own. Also, such reasoning assumes that there are no other Christians at a public school and that there are no gay/sex-crazed/alcoholic/etc. students at conservative Christian schools. Both are a myth. The gospels never suggest that Jesus avoided contact with those he disagreed with. On the contrary, he often interacted with them. If you truly want to live like Jesus, people who are different than you shouldn't be anything to fear.




9. You fear that a secular school will corrupt your faith.

As a general rule, I don't believe in making any major decision based primarily on fear. Unfortunately there are many Christian leaders willing to play into this fear when encouraging people to choose a Christian school. A secular school is no more sure to destroy your faith than a Christian one is to strengthen it. Faith is a personal matter that needs to be invested in by the individual who possesses it. It does not fall or stand based on the label of the school one attends.




10. You want to do God's will.

That's not to say that it is never God's will for someone to attend a Christian college. I'm not much in the market for claiming to know God's will. What I mean by this is that it is a terrible idea to choose a Christian school if you believe it is the only way to do God's will. God doesn't confine himself neatly to our boxes and assumptions. Quite frankly, he doesn't care about our categories and is willing and able to work in whatever way he wants, even through people and institutions that do not bear his name. You can serve God and live out your faith wherever you are.





In the end, choosing a school is a personal decision and one that should be made based on solid research about the institution as well as a thorough personal assessment of what it is that you are looking for and wish to accomplish through schooling. As it is the time of year when many graduates are making school decisions, I wanted to share my perspective. If you attended a Christian college (or as a Christian chose not to) is there anything you would add to this list?

The Paradox of Dave Ramsey and Christian College Tuition

When I decided to attend a Christian College, unlike most of my peers, my mother was the first to try to discourage me. Not because she isn't a Christian, but because of the sky high tuition rates such institutions charge. Private Christian colleges are expensive. Very expensive.

Many who are concerned with such costs dismiss those concerns by telling themselves that God will surely make a way for them to attend since they are stepping out in faith and demonstrating their devotion to learn more about his word. (Count the Christian culture cliches in that sentence. ) Many Christian colleges also market to prospective students with such concerns or potential alumni donors by filling their marketing materials with similar phrases.

This isn't very surprising. But I do find it confusing in light of another Evangelical trend.

Dave Ramsey

I struggle to reconcile such fervent marketing of costly education coming from the same people who adore Dave Ramsey and all of his financial teachings.

For those who are unfamiliar, Dave Ramsey is American Evangelical Culture's most beloved financial guru. Most AEC churches regularly offer his "Financial Peace University" class. They learn about "debt snowballs," cutting spending, and buying big bargains - all dressed up in shiny biblical language.

Although I respect the idea of helping people get out of debt and don't necessarily diagree with all of Ramsey's teachings, there is a lot of legitimate concern over whether such classes (and their encouragement to save wealth to "live like no one else") should be presented as Christianity. That's a fair and productive debate to have. But I'm not here to present such a debate. (If you want to discuss that issue more, SCCL brought up the topic recently.)

I want to present a different question that confuses me. How can the same culture that embraces Dave Ramsey's teachings on avoiding and getting out of debt continue to encourage their kids to take on tens of thousands of dollars of debt that will take years to pay off all in the name of "Christ-centered education?" What sort of cognitive dissonance allows them to embrace both ideas?  Am I the only one confused by this?

Disclaimer: I obviously have a horse in this race, since I really regret the amount of debt I incurred from attending such a college and don't think that it was worth it at all. If I had to do it all over again, I would choose a much cheaper public university. But that's a topic for another post...

Vanity, Vanity, All is Vanity

"Hey...hey...."
"Oh, hey," I replied as I rubbed my eyes and wondered why she was in my dorm room so early.
"Okay, so I really think that God wants you to lend me your car so that I can get to church this morning."
"Um....oh. I'm sorry, but I can't. It's not my car. It's my mom's and she doesn't want anyone else to drive it. I'm really sorry."

In hindsight, I guess I could have gotten up and given her a ride. At the time, I was simply exhausted and wanted to go back to sleep. But that's really not the point.  This memory recently resurfaced due to something my sister said the other day. My sister didn't stumble into the world of American Evangelical Culture like I did. She was also raised Lutheran, went to a public liberal arts college after high school, traveled the world exploring both personal and geographical horizons, and is still a Lutheran today. I don't remember exactly why it came up, but we were driving in the car discussing how people give direct credit to God for various happy or sad events saying "The Lord did this" or "The Lord caused that." And she turned to me and said, "I think that's taking the Lord's name in vain too." I had never thought of it that way, but I really think she has a point.

A Confession

This year, I'm making a point to attend the Wednesday Lenten prayer services. I don't know if prayer service is the right term, but it's probably the closest. These aren't prayer services in the way most Evangelicals would think of the term. They have a format closer to a regular church service and contain a scripture reading, music, and brief sermon. But their overall focus is to drive you towards prayer and contemplation, providing a period of silence for both. Last night's service was a service of darkness and light, with a candle procession. It was beautiful. But what has stuck with me most was the focus of the sermon the pastor gave.

As I've mentioned, Lent is a season that focuses on forgiveness. It is a time when we seek to forgive and learn what it means to be forgiven. During last night's sermon, the pastor (who is the youth pastor) told the story of a youth camping trip in which one young boy fell behind during the canoe portage as he struggled under the weight of the pack he was carrying. The pastor went back to find him and offered help. The stubborn young man gritted his teeth and stated "I can do it." As he slowly walked with the boy, the pastor asked "What will it take for you to let me help you? What do you have to prove?" He said that at that point he realized that this wasn't just about the pack. It was about all the struggles in this boy's life. It was about being the smallest, being bullied, being overlooked, etc. It was about all the burdens that he carried from the difficulties in his life. The pastor used this as a springboard to exhort the congregation to consider what burdens they are refusing to let go of, even when they are too much to bear.

It really made me think. As with anyone who has been hurt by the church, there are definitely areas in which I struggle to forgive. It's been beneficial to focus on those this Lenten season. (It's one reason I don't give anything up for Lent. I know that I would use the act of giving up sugar or TV to feel as though I was observing the season while I was actually avoiding the difficult act of forgiving those who've hurt me.) But as I started to think about what the larger burdens I carry from my painful exodus from Evangelicalism, I realized that there was one I haven't been acknowledging.

Happy Spiritual Birthday to You?

Most of us love birthdays. The cake, the festivities, the presents...overall, they're pretty great. But when I attended Conservative Christian College, I learned that many there celebrated two birthdays...their physical birthday and their "spiritual birthday." Those birthdays  didn't come with all the cake and gifts, but they were announced proudly. I've even seen confusing facebook statuses from people in their 20s or 30s that say things like "Today is my 17th birthday!"

Such landmarks were also used to justify why someone did something others disagreed with. For example, "Well, they are just a baby Christian." Or as the basis for a challenge from a chapel speaker or pastor. "Everyone should memorize at least one Bible verse for every year that they've been a Christian." The whole concept confused me, on both personal and theological levels.

It confused me because I had never heard of such a thing before. And once I understood what it meant, I realized that I didn't have a spiritual birthday. Let me clarify.

For those of you who are not familiar with the concept, many in American Evangelical Culture count the day that they "accepted Jesus into their heart" as their spiritual birthday...the day they were reborn so to speak. So, how does one know exactly what day they count as their spiritual birthday? The most common measure is by celebrating the day they prayed "the sinner's prayer." Don't look for the term (or the prayer itself for that matter) in the Bible. It's not there. Rather, it's a prayer that has become the standard to know whether or not someone is saved. It involves confessing one's sin, asking God for forgiveness, expressing belief in Jesus Christ and His redemptive work on the cross, and committing to follow Him from now on.

So, like I said...I have no spiritual birthday. I was raised in a Lutheran Church and can remember from a young age believing in God and Jesus Christ, but no one ever told me I had to put Him into my heart and make sure He was my personal savior. I didn't hear that claim until I started spending more time with kids from the Evangelical Church late into my high school years. And at first I worried. "Was I really a Christian? Did all the previous years not count? Why didn't anyone tell me about this? Does this mean I'm not saved?" Due to those fears, I'm certain I must have prayed some version of that prayer at least a dozen times over the next five years. I mean, you can't be too sure, right?

Even so, there was no date I could mark as a spiritual birthday, because I was a Christian long before praying any of those prayers. And once I made the decision to take my faith more seriously, it was a series of small intentional steps rather than one grand gesture. This didn't bother me. After all, didn't Paul say to work out your salvation with fear and trembling? That certainly doesn't sound like a simple formulaic prayer to me.

In some ways I get why so many people push that type of prayer as a measure of faith. It does cover some basic tenets of Christian belief. And if you're from the type of church that prints the tally of the number of people "saved" in the bulletin every week, there's got to be some standard of measure. But overall, it just seems like an overly simplified approach to the complex beauty of faith.

But I Don't Wanna Be a Princess...

I come from a line of strong women. On the maternal side of the family, we are direct descendants of Marie-Anne Lagimodiere. She was a French Canadian woman who bucked the tradition of her day by venturing west with her voyageur husband rather than staying back in the more "civilized" regions of Canada waiting for his return, as most wives did at that time. Due to this, they played a crucial role in establishing many cities and their children were some of the first of European heritage to be born in the western provinces. But I imagine that at the time her decision to go along for the journey was scoffed at and heavily judged because "that's just not what women do." But I think she's pretty amazing for it. When all was said and done her defiance still holds a place in her nation's history, helping it grow into what it is today.

The more I look around, I see so much of that same attitude within certain Christian circles. There is this idea that there's an entire category of things reserved for men, because they are just "not what women do" or that God doesn't want women to do them. As a woman, this has a big impact on me because it boils down to what positions, identities, and societal roles I'm allowed and/or expected to take on.

I know that people can be very defensive on this matter and I'm well aware of the arguments on both sides of the issue. But I can't help but wonder why we are so willing to accept this view that the New Testament verse that instructs women to always cover their head in prayer or worship is a cultural concept that no longer applies, but those that instruct women not teach men and to quietly submit to them are seen as completely valid in this day and age.  (Is it because if the head covering instructions were still valid, then the instructions in the same section for men not to have long hair would infringe on the hipster style of a lot of young Evangelical leaders?)

I know this may sound controversial, but I truly believe that the way in which American Evangelical Culture tries to teach gender roles is very capable of creating a sort of identity crisis for females. In many circles, the identities they are allowed to assume are extremely limited. I never knew these sorts of view were still being taught to the degree that they are in some circles until I started encountering them more frequently at Conservative Christian College. (Although I will say that I think there are many others like myself who refuse to abide by these narrow definitions, which is what helped me survive surrounded by them.)

Here are some identities that were consider acceptable and/or actively promoted:


1. Princess

This was a play off the idea that God is king and we are all his sons and daughters. Therefore, all girls are princesses. It was a spiritual way to buy into the Disney hype many of this generation already have in their psyche without having to step on the toes of any Southern Baptists who may still be boycotting Disney. This was a great option for girls who were raised with strict ideas of what roles were allowed to each gender and to those who were anxiously awaiting their prince. The problem is apart from being a "daughter of the King" this role isn't defined. I can't imagine the most godly way to live would be under what our society knows/has known of the role of princesses which didn't amount to much more than a self-indulgent life of idleness and luxury that is often completely dependent upon men. On the flip side, I have never heard any Evangelical leader try to get young men to embrace their identity as a prince. If someone has (especially if you have a link to sermon audio/video/text) I would love to know.


2. Wife in Waiting

This actually closely ties into princess in many ways. I'm not in any way trying to put down the institution of marriage or families. I have nothing against either and in fact support both. But I can't help but think that if you rest the vast majority of your identity in your marital status or children, it's going to create some problems. I saw many girls in college who, with the best of intentions, seemed to constantly be trying to prove what a great wife and/or mother they would be. Some would do so to the point where they were cooking, cleaning, and even doing laundry for guys. When a friend who was going to be an Resident Assistant the following year asked me what advice I would give to her freshman girls, I replied, "No laundry before marriage." We both laughed. But my point was that it creates a very unhealthy relationship that can often lead to girls constantly seeking a boy's approval while he is in a position that easily allows him to take advantage of her. I even knew a guy in college who used to walk around during visitation hours (we'll get to that later) and write on the girls' message boards "Bake me a cake" along with his name and phone number. I was appalled and asked him why he did that. He replied "Because a lot of the time it works. I've gotten a lot of cakes." Some of these girls really thought he would be impressed with them. In actuality, he wasn't even really paying attention. He just wanted some cake.
Apart from that, we should probably consider whether it's worth the tens of thousands of dollars a year that private Christian colleges cost just to try to learn how to be a good wife and/or to find a husband.


3. The Proverbs 31 Woman

This is a often pointed to passage as to what a woman should be. And this is one of the few identities that I actually like, a lot. But I seem to interpret these verses much differently than most I met at CCC. When I hear people talk about this passage, they seem to say it supports the idea of a woman isn't obsessed with outward appearance and takes care of her household and family (i.e. cooks, cleans, and raises kids). But look at these verses. They also talk of an industrious, creative, and hardworking woman. These passages clearly talk of a women who looks into land investments and buys one (no mention of her husband being involved in that deal). They speak of a woman who works on that same land (aka outside of the home) and uses what it produces to make a profit (once again, husband not mentioned in this work). It speaks of a woman who not only makes goods for use in her house, but also makes goods which she in turn goes out into the city to sell. This isn't your happy homemaker who is just waiting for her husband to get home. She sees what needs to be done and does it rather than waiting for her husband to take charge in every single matter. While he is conducting his business, she conducts hers. In the end it says she deserves honor and praise. Why? Because of the work her hands have done. Enough said.


 
 Those are the main ones that come to mind, although I'm sure there are others. Tomorrow I'll discuss some of the negative identities I saw given to women at CCC. This isn't an attempt to vilify men or those who believe strongly in established gender roles. It's just to say that some of us don't and we still seek to follow God. I wanted to talk about the expectations of women in American Evangelical Culture, because they really can put a lot of strain on some women or make others feel like they don't belong in the church at all. How sad.

I'll probably talk some more about this topic as I keep writing, because established gender roles and in some cases indulgence in sexist language/behavior were one major thing that made me feel like a misfit in the Evangelical world. I was always taught growing up that I should never assume I couldn't do something just because I was a girl. (Thank you, Mom and Dad!) Suddenly I was in a world where people were telling me precisely that. Based on some of the articles and videos I've seen being passed around lately on the internet, this idea that we need to put men back in their "rightful role" seems to be gaining some traction with well known church leaders and organizations. (I'll discuss that later as well.) If we believe that women are created in the image of God, with a worth and value all their own, is that reflected in our churches? Do we treat them as such? If you're a woman, do you feel valued as such? I think those are questions worth considering.