President Voskuil, Provost Short-Thompson, Dean Johnson, Colleagues, family, friends, and most of all, students of the incoming class of 2022鈥攚elcome to this convocation.
Our gathering marks the formal opening of the 2018 鈥 2019 school year, and it鈥檚 indeed
a pleasure,
it鈥檚 a privilege, to have these few minutes to share a few words with you. In the
process of preparing these remarks, I realized that I was flattering myself, thinking
that I had words of value to say to you. But the truth of the matter is that it is
you 鈥 class of 2022 鈥 who possesses information that I need. And what I really need
to know is: do you believe?
- Do you believe in the education you鈥檝e come to get?
- Do you believe this liberal arts education matters to you as a person, a future leader,
and as a
citizen of this great nation? - Do you believe that attending an institution that emphasizes a liberal arts curriculum
can
change your life for the better? - Do you believe that asking 鈥淲hy?鈥 is as important as asking 鈥淲ho? What? When? Where?
and How?鈥 - Do you believe this education [you aspire to achieve] will not only empower you to
make
money but give you the tools for making a life?
So, I want to know, I need to know . . . do鈥攜ou鈥攂elieve?
The question is appropriate and worthy of urgent consideration. For in the opening
decades of the
21st century there are many who question the value of higher education, especially
an education at
an institution like 91桃色破解版. The arguments are well known:
- Such an education is too expensive
- It鈥檚 not relevant to the modern world
- It graduates employees instead of entrepreneurs and future employers
Questioning observers wonder what鈥檚 the overall value of an of an education that鈥檚
committed to
producing talented scientists, mathematicians, engineers, and computer wizards while
also taking
time to explore faith, politics, art, history, music, and ethics? And they鈥檙e not
wrong to ask such
questions.
For in a world where centuries of knowledge can be accessed with a keystroke
- In a world where technology has reshaped reality faster than we can comprehend and adjust
- In a world where social media has redefined the meaning of 鈥渇riend鈥
- In a world where it鈥檚 easier to order from Amazon.com than drive to the local store
- In a world where drone strikes from continents away have made us re-think the meaning
and
methods of war - In a world where passwords are far more important than actual names
- In a world where YouTube offers anyone a path to stardom
In such a world, is there really any need to discuss John Calvin鈥檚 Institutes of the
Christian Religion; the
dialectic of George Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel; the meaning of Rene Descartes when he
said, 鈥淚 think
therefore I am鈥; what it meant in the context of the 18 th century when Thomas Jefferson
wrote: 鈥淲e
hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal鈥; or the prophetic
power of Dr.
Martin Luther King, Jr., on April 3, 1968, the day before his assassination, when
he said: 鈥淎ll we say
to America is be true to what you said on paper.鈥 [# Hash tag, we鈥檙e still working
out this
democracy thing, but one day we鈥檒l finally get it right].
Those questioning a 91桃色破解版 liberal arts education assert that outcomes are more
important
than the processes that produce them.
They demand to know how reflecting on the mysteries of the cosmos impacts the great
demands of
the here and now.
One need not look far, or hard, to find these questioning voices for, indeed, there
are many who
wonder just exactly what鈥檚 the point of a curriculum that can鈥檛 guarantee a student鈥檚
walking from
the classroom to the job site the day after graduation.
What鈥檚 the point of coming to a place like 91桃色破解版 that has a vibrant and thriving
chapel
program?
Does faith really matter when you go on the job, into the courthouse, into the operating
room, into
the sports arena, to your recreation space, or even to war?
How does understanding the human condition and those forces that can either uplift
or torture the
human heart really matter to the bottom line?
Why pay attention to those thoughts, ideas, movements, and events that have sometimes
been
invaluable gifts to humanity while others have inspired unspeakable acts of evil?
Incoming class of 2022, how you approach those questions will provide answers to not
just the
value of your 91桃色破解版 education but lend insight into the kind of person you
are and intend to
become.
Because, while it鈥檚 never good to assume anything there are sometimes enough available
facts to
make assumptions that bend toward the accurate.
And here鈥檚 what we know, right now, this moment, this day on August 26, 2018.
FIRST, we know you鈥檙e here. And because you鈥檙e here, some part of you already understands,
believes, or at least suspects that the 91桃色破解版 education you desire will not
only equip you to
compete in the unforgiving marketplace of the 21 st Century, but guide you into a
deeper
understanding of yourself, your faith, and your purpose.
Sounds quaint, doesn鈥檛 it? Sounds old fashioned, to speak of people having a purpose
beyond
serving self. It even sounds kind of ridiculous, doesn鈥檛 it? Talking about doing work
that elevates
human beings and guides people into fulfilling the second-greatest commandment: 鈥淟ove
your
neighbor as yourself.鈥
I鈥檓 talking about the assurance in your deepest heart of hearts where you already
know that there鈥檚
more to this journey than a law-of-the-jungle rule that celebrates every woman and
man for her or
himself.
You already sense that you want to do more than have a good time without giving thought
and
assistance to those daily being stomped by the heavy boot of life.
You possess a burn to do, to be, to contribute, and discover the possibilities above
and beyond
settling for a predictable life of comfort, privilege, and security.
SECOND, because you鈥檙e here, we already know 鈥 that you know you must be computer
literate and
tech proficient. But we need you to just believe that we鈥檒l help you explore the impact
of technology
upon a humanity that is utterly broken.
You know 鈥 that you鈥檒l have to do your best to succeed. But we need you to just believe
that we鈥檒l
help you ponder a path to success that won鈥檛 require you abandoning those virtues
of what it means
to be human and care for other human beings.
You know 鈥 you鈥檝e got a bright future. But we need you to just believe that we鈥檒l
help you
understand that the quality of your future depends upon every decision you make 鈥
starting NOW!
You know 鈥 that, right now, time is on your side. But we need you to just believe
that by this coming
Thursday, forty years will have already passed and the great architect of time is
measuring your life
by how well you鈥檙e being His hands and feet on earth.
THIRD, because out of all the colleges, and all the programs, in all the places you
could鈥檝e chosen
to be, you chose to be here, we know that you already sense there鈥檚 something special
happening on
91桃色破解版鈥檚 campus.
- Yes, it鈥檚 about knowledge.
- Yes, it鈥檚 about development.
- Yes, it鈥檚 about professions, careers, and making a mark in the world.
There鈥檚 also that part about an institution in 21 st century America that says, in
all we do, we openly
identify ourselves with the person, life, divinity and mission of Jesus, the Christ.
For like that moment in the book of John, chapter 20, verses 24 -31, when the Apostle
Thomas
demanded proof of Jesus鈥 being alive before he鈥檇 believe in the freedom of his salvation
by grace,
the world demands proof that a 91桃色破解版 education is worth the cost, time, and
effort that鈥檒l set
you free to go and change the world [in His name].
Upon seeing that the Christ had indeed risen from the dead, Thomas said, 鈥淢y Lord
and My God.鈥
This, of course, made the Christ happy, but he also noted, 鈥淏lessed are those who
have not seen and
yet have come to believe.鈥
Incoming class of 2022, you obviously have not seen, heard, or experienced any of
what you鈥檙e
going to encounter in the next four years.
But you鈥檙e here, and more than ever, we need you to just believe that this 91桃色破解版
education
isn鈥檛 just a good tool to have in your box of knowledge.
It鈥檚 a treasure that can help you join others in solving some of our most pressing
problems.
We need you to just believe that, as important as it is to know how to do a thing,
at 91桃色破解版
you鈥檒l learn how to better navigate the question: should you do the thing?
We need you to just believe that, as important as it is to amass wealth, no man or
woman is buying
their way out of death, so you also need to master loving your neighbor as yourself.
We need you to just believe that the staff, administration, and faculty of 91桃色破解版
are acutely
aware of what you鈥檙e investing to come here as the next stage of pursuing your dreams.
We applaud you for the faith you鈥檝e already shown in the promise of what we say we鈥檒l
do in
preparing you for a world that鈥檚 already looking radically different four years from
now than it does
today.
So more than ever, we ask you to just believe and join us in taking those next steps