Professors Who Deliberately Shake the Faith of Our Children

“What should teachers say to religious students who doubt evolution?” That’s the title of a recent Scientific American article—and considering the publication, we know already that the answer will be in support of evolutionary ideas!

The author, John Horgan, who is the Director of the Center for Science Writings at Stevens Institute of Technology in New Jersey, answered this question with (unsurprisingly) an affirmation of evolutionary ideas. But what I thought was important to point out was his clear mission to challenge students’ religious beliefs.

Now, Horgan teaches college classes on topics in science, the humanities, and social sciences. He wrote the following about one of his class assignments:

I asked both classes to write a paper on the following question: Why do you think Darwin’s theory of evolution still encounters so much opposition today? I encouraged the students to personalize their responses—that is, to discuss how they reconciled their own faith, if any, with evolutionary theory.

Horgan’s entire assignment is clearly biased toward evolutionary ideas (and as I discuss in my bestselling book The Lie: Evolution/Millions of Years, everyone has a bias). You see, his questions assume the truth of millions of years and evolution, and his follow-up statement assumes that students will have found a way to mix evolutionary ideas with their faith.

Well, Horgan read the papers and found that a significant portion of his students (sadly, not the majority) found it impossible to mix evolution with Scripture. Of course, this led him to ask the question: “What should teachers say to religious students who doubt evolution?”—and to supply his own evolutionary answers.

In the process of reaching an answer, Horgon lists all the supposed evidence for evolution, while also admitting that there are many questions the evolutionary worldview cannot answer. But his conclusion is revealing: “I feel a bit queasy, I admit, challenging their faith, from which some of them derive great comfort. . . . On the other hand, if I don’t prod these young people into questioning their most cherished beliefs, I’m not doing my job, am I?”

So, Horgon’s agenda is clear: he wants students to question and ultimately reject the Bible’s history of the universe. You see, this is just another example of the challenges our children will likely face when they enter college (or even at a public high school). Many professors are out to deliberately shake the faith of our children, which is why our children need to learn how to answer these skeptical questions and attacks. Parents, if you’re in the process of choosing a college for your child to attend, I urge you to read our book Already Compromised (of which I am a co-author), and to check out our list of colleges that have affirmed in writing the Answers in Genesis statement of faith at www.CreationColleges.org.

As sad it as is, the truth is that even at many so-called Christian colleges, students will encounter professors like Horgan. Your college-age children, whether they realize it or not, are still quite impressionable, still actively forming their beliefs and values, still deciding what they will accept and what they will reject. Be sure you continue to feed their hunger for truth with God’s truth as they move away from home.

Accordingly, through the next two years we will be launching many initiatives to reach children and teens with the truths of the Bible, and to rescue them from the secularists. The overall theme will be “Standing Our Ground, Rescuing Our Kids.”

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying—including praying for our young people,

Ken

Note: I thank Steve Golden for his assistance in composing this blog.