Anti-intellectualism currently plagues Christianity, which has forsaken the Biblical commands regarding the search for knowledge. People subscribing to this anti-intellectualism do not realize that they reject not only facts but also the processes of learning precisely how to learn, broadening their base of knowledge, and carrying on insightful discussions which seek to go beyond what happened on Laguna Beach last week. Moreover, the refusal to gain knowledge and strive after instruction is blatant disobedience of the command which God Himself acknowledged as the most important commandment of the Law.

Hosea 4:6 states, “My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge.” God lamented this unfortunate fact during His punishment of Israel for unbelief. Obviously, God places great importance on knowledge if an entire generation of His people face destruction without it. However, this verse seems to have been forgotten among Christians recently as they insist that knowledge about the Lord is the only knowledge that matters; all else is useless and overall a waste of time. Without a doubt, this way of thinking is a form of dualism: an attempt to separate that which is perceived to be secular knowledge and that which is perceived to be sacred knowledge. Although elements which directly involve God most certainly have their place in the Christian life, other elements like sociology, art, and English also have importance. God created both “Christian” activities and “academic” pursuits; as such, He expects His children to take part in both. In Matthew 22:37, Jesus identifies the greatest commandment as “[loving] the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” More people would do well to remember (and practice frequently) the last segment of this verse.

Equally troubling is the current line of thinking that advocates studying only the subjects one believes one will find useful in the career of one’s choice. This is a dangerous way of believing, however; Albert Speer had no options open to him save those which would directly assist him in his career and as a result unwittingly participated in the slaughter of about 12 million human beings. The phrase “This doesn’t involve my major; why do I need to learn it?” is in high usage around DBU, probably second only to “effing” and “Time for a DTR.” Most of the time this phrase is uttered, it is because the student has found himself or herself challenged by a class and seeks to justify not doing the work required of him or her. This attitude is reprehensible on two counts: not only has the Lord commanded us to obey those in authority over us (romans 13:1-2; 7)-such as professors-He has also blessed us with minds in the expectation we will use them.

If one truly believes that all truth is God’s truth, then one will strive to take in as much of that truth as possible. Thus, science, literature, art, or any other subject that expresses truth is worthy of study. The fact that God chose to reveal Himself to us through the Bible, a book laced with symbolism and multiple ways of interpretation, shows that He expects us to exercise competency in reading, examining, and understanding His Word. How can we do this without having studied English to grasp the different literary devices which make it beautiful, or history to understand the context in which the events of the Bible occurred, or any other of the multitude of subjects which have relevance to the Bible? Human beings alone have the gift of intellect; logic dictates that this gift has purpose and should be used. Intelligence in this way becomes essential to a Christian’s understanding of his or her faith and ability to interpret the Word of God; just ask Sor Juana.

Quite often students fail to recognize the connections between subjects which at a surface level seem unrelated-and often, instructors fail to point them out. This oversight must be fixed. Careful thinking shows us music majors must understand some math, and English majors must know history, and philosophy majors must have a grasp on the sciences. Unless we begin to see the interconnectedness of all the knowledge to which we are exposed, the inquisitive manner of thinking which has sustained the Western world since the time of Augustine will die. Furthermore, the very process of learning has value in itself. Through the struggle to understand a particularly difficult equation or poem or process, we learn how to go about comprehending new ideas and making sense of the information presented us. Without the ability to grasp these new ideas and draw conclusions from the facts involved, a human will find himself of herself incapable of functioning on a daily basis in society. No matter what profession one pursues, these skills will be useful on the job as well as in everyday life and communication with others. Therefore, classes which seem useless should not be spurned; their value is found both in the subjects to which they are dedicated and the skills they teach.

The great things humanity has gained in the name of knowledge measure multitudinous. Without the study of medicine, surely disease would run rampant and the human life expectancy rate would decrease considerably from its current status. Without countless experiments involving electricity, we never would have benefitted from electric lights, telephones, or many other modern conveniences. The secular world readily accepts the gift of rational thinking and has produced such leaders as Hitler by the misuse of the intellect. Imagine the good a person with Hitler’s mind and persuasive power paired with a Christian worldview could do! If Christians do not begin to use their intellect to its fullest potential, what will keep Christians from falling prey to deception by the next Hitler? What will qualify them to lead the masses away from the persuasiveness of a highly intelligent yet corrupt individual?

At its core, faith relies upon understanding and knowledge as opposed to emotion and blind following, although people often mistake the latter two for faith. Thus, supposed faith set on a foundation other than discernment does not fit the true definition of faith at all. Often the Scriptures speak of a concrete knowledge of God. Psalm 34:8 entreats humans to “taste and see that the LORD is good”; the senses play an active part in humans’ perception of and relationship to God. Scripture stresses the place of knowledge and the mind in the Christian life; circumstances in everyday life testify to the mind’s importance as well.

Gain knowledge not simply because it is required of you; gain knowledge because Christ Himself is its author.