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Theological Reflections on the Role of a University Christian Community
Ke Joon Lee
I have been requested to reflect on the role of Christian faculty
members in particular under this theme of the role of the University Christian
community. As a university chaplain I
would like to confine the area of my reflections to my own university
experiences and the
1. The Reality
of the "University Christian Community"
Before entering into the main stream of my theme, I want to make clear,
first of all, what I mean by the phrase "University Christian
Community". In a broad sense of the
word, the Christian university as such might be included under that term. However, since there are a great many
non-Christian and even anti-Christian faculty members in a Christian
university, it does not seem appropriate to include the whole university under
this phrase. It is more appropriate to
restrict our understanding of the "University Christian Community" to
include the Christian faculty group in a Christian or non-Christian
institution.
It would be an oversimplification to sum up the present role of a
University Christian Community in terms of worship and Bible Study. But it is true that the general tendency of
the members of this community is to apply the inspiration and convictions they
derive from their religious experience to their academic work and personal life
on an individual level. This implies
that it is very difficult to find any decisions or actions in regard to social
issues which are made by the community as a whole at the present time. This theme raises the serious question as to
whether such a group should be called a "Christian Community", for a
Christian community represents the body of Jesus Christ, called to be in
mission by God in a particular context.
It would be helpful for our understanding of this community situation to
know three factors which undergird such an individualising form of belief and life. The first is the radical conservatism of the
Korean Churches, a conservatism deeply implanted by the early American
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missionaries. The second is that these faculty members have
never received any theological training as laypersons that would help them find
a point of contact between their fields of knowledge and their faith. The third is that they have been threatened and
frustrated by three soul-searching incidents over the past 15 years as a result
of which a number of their colleagues were dismissed from their institutions as
a result of external pressure because of their Christian convictions and
actions.
Thus, an attempt at reflection on the University Christian Community in
2. Academic
Activity
There is no doubt that the primary function of faculty members is to
engage in teaching and research. When
they can demonstrate their academic excellence in a major discipline through
proper teaching, then they are highly recognized and have a chance to survive
on campus. But having overcome this
first obstacle they come to the "publish or perish" complex.
There are other inevitable demands on or temptations for professors in
developing countries. They are needed
for rational development which is mainly carried out by the government and
business corporations. It is a
well-known fact that professors have made some remarkable contributions to the
socio-political as well as technological development of nations by their
participation. But while there have been
benefits derived from their participation, there are many more serious problems
that have not been attacked. The process
of modernization involves rather destructive and dehumanizing forces such as
polarization between the rich and the poor, pollution, human rights issues, and
nuclear power.
The University Christian Community is called on to understand and
respond to these problems so that through teaching and social participation
they can help to find solutions to these problems based on both Christian love
and justice. In the present situation
they can not remain comfortably neutral faced with this dichotomy between
knowledge and faith; nor can they assume the relation between them is very
informal. Since the Christian gospel
demands the holistic salvation of au mankind, which means liberation in all
realms of human fife, the community has to stand firmly against social
injustice on the one hand and propose new standards for a quality of life in
terms of a sincere integration of knowledge and faith on the other. It becomes clear, futhermore,
that such integration of thought and action will be of value to their students
in that they will learn of the essential nature of education as theory as put
into practice in concrete situations, and thus they will become more
responsible persons for building a better human community.
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3. Communication
with Students
One of the most serious issues on campus has been the almost total lack
of sincere dialogue between faculty members and their socio-politically
oriented students. Let us take a look at
two aspects of- this matter. The first
involves external influences. Until the
mid 1970's when the Park regime began to reform the nation, students on the one
hand were quite open in their contacts with professors, and professors on the
other did not seek to escape from meeting students who desired to discuss
socio-political issues. Increasing
external pressure finally caused a division between students and faculty
members, and the dialogue between them came to an end.
Another aspect is that while students have accumulated massive amounts
of information and knowledge concerning various dehumanizing situations in the
Third World and set up their own political philosophy which they believe will
solve the present urgent social problems, most of the professors have not
studied in this area so that the depth and breadth of their political knowledge
does not compare to that of the students, and they hold to a less progressive
or even conservative ideology.
This is a task which the University Christian Community must confront
and consider with integrity in order to overcome or reconcile this unhappy
division. But there seems to be no
instant answer to the problem. I would
suggest that Christian teachers should consider an indirect approach to this
matter. Let them mobilize the churches
as places to restore the relationship with young people by restructuring and
revitalizing youth work in the church, an area that has been almost completely
neglected by the local churches in recent times.
4. Church
Unity and Social Participation
The members of the University Christian Community belong to various
denominations which have emphasized their differences, especially since
1945. In this situation it would be a
blessed event if faculty members would share their common experience through
participating in common worship services and Bible studies, becoming "true
people of God" who can serve as symbols of the ecumenical body of Jesus
Christ.
This symbol could make a great impact, directly or indirectly, ,upon various conflicting student groups on campus to
bring them to reconciliation and unity in Jesus Christ.
It is also expected that when professors involve themselves in their
local churches they will play two roles as missioners sent back for church
renewal. First, they become ecumenical pioneers for their churches, calling
them to become one in Christ. Solidarity
among churches beyond denominational walls will definitely strengthen the voice
of the church in social witness. Second, they carry special concern for young
people,
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especially for student
groups in the churches, where there has been much mistreatment and
isolation. Revitalization of youth work
will give a home base to the homeless Christian student groups. As a result, the University Christian
Community may be able to help the church accomplish a unity and a social
witness that is needed for the authentic proclamation of the