Faith and Learning in RSG
Courses
• Zechariah 8: 14, 16: “This is what the LORD
Almighty says: . . . These are the things you are to
do: Speak the truth to each other, . . .”
• Jim Davids, September 9, 2011
Setting a Firm Foundation
• Cornerstone or Worldview course: Initial
focus is on truth and the inevitable demise
of post-modernism. Then we focus on
Creation, Fall, Redemption and their
application to government/politics, law,
economics, social organizations, history,
and art. At the end of the course students
can identify the major worldviews operative
in the United States today and how they
lead to positions on social questions
Building on the Foundation I
• In my first week of each course, I have the
online students read four written Worldview
lessons: (1) The definition and components
of worldview; (2) the Sovereignty of God
and His creation of separate spheres of
sovereignty (self-government, family
government, church government, and civil
government) . . . .
Building on the Foundation II
• (3) the biblical basis of law; and (4) the
positive societal benefits of Christianity. I
then ask students to critique and apply these
principles in Bb discussion. One such
question asks students to determine which
sphere is sovereign with respect to
hurricane relief, education, retirement
pension planning, homeland defense, etc.
Other Examples in RSG I
• Faith integration begins with my
introduction and posting of my personal
Christian testimony and I encourage
students to post similarly as well.
• Each class on line or on campus begins
with a devotional which incorporates
Scripture.
•
Other Examples in RSG II
• All assignments (discussion boards, exams
and papers) contain explicit learning
objectives on the integration and application
of biblical faith-based leadership principles.
Students discuss the application of key
servant leader principles and the associated
barriers to faith integration in secular
settings as well as strategies overcoming the
obstacles.
Other Examples in RSG III
• A second colleague reports that she:
• Includes a video devotional along with her
other lectures.
• Asks for student volunteers to contribute a
video devotional or short video prayer for
the class to be included in the week's
materials.
Other Examples in RSG IV
• Spends a week in class talking about what it
means to be a Christian scholar and how
one's worldview affects one's scholarship
and how one communicates Christian
concepts and values in a secular context.
• Presents ethical scenarios as "What would
you do if you were asked to lie to a family
member/forge a visa/aid someone in their
drug habit in order to get information, etc.")
Other Examples in RSG V
• Asks in a class regarding Disaster Relief
about "how can a good God visit suffering
or allow the infliction of suffering on his
people" and explores the notion that disaster
is a sign of God's wrath.
• Asks in a Terrorism class questions about
the ethics of warfare, what it means to
conduct just war, and the ethics of torture.