Judgements about what is relevant and irrelevant are always
based upon religious convictions. Perceptions of marginality are always formed
by beliefs of what is central. Marginality is always a perceived marginality;
the irrelevance of Christianity is always a matter of a belief about its relevance
or otherwise. These perceptions and beliefs do not just exist - they are held,
they are believed, they are lived by the student, by the academic, by the
social scientist, by the ordinary person in the comings and goings of everyday
life. So it is never simply a matter of the marginality or the irrelevance of
the Christian social perspective to our society. There is always more to it.
In all scientific disciplines there are problems which the erstwhile student has to confront. This is also true at the undergraduate level, and it is worth saying that these intellectual problems are of a character which might induce a sense of social and spiritual isolation in a sensitive student who does feel at home in that environment.
Here below are some of the objections I collected during my study days from academics and fellow students when I tried to openly defend the idea of a Christian social perspective. You might find others; collect them and make a mental note.
Ø the Christian religion provides a moral system and not a social scientific viewpoint;
Ø sociology is a
matter of science whereas Christianity is a matter of faith;
Ø sociology is
the study of society in terms of how humans form their social relationships
whereas Christianity is a story, a socially constructed myth by which those who
want to believe it, interpret life in terms of God and His Law.
Ø Christianity is concerned with the personal and private, a sectional viewpoint; sociology on the other hand is concerned with the social, the public, what is common to all.
These views have all emerged historically as people have argued for the merits or demerits of Christianity. Each item in this list implies that a Christian social perspective is somehow invalid, no matter how relevant it may have been in former times. It is widely thought that the Christian student who seeks a Christian social perspective is somehow labouring under a massive misunderstanding. Such a student has failed to face up to something. Maybe, they are simply lonely. Maybe they have a displaced sex-drive.
Sometimes perceptive and caring academics will see it as their task to help the student make the transition from the high-school of faith to the university of reason and logic. Such ethical concern should not be dismissed out of hand, even if we detect it is based upon a misunderstanding.
There is of course widespread apathy among students, academics and academic administrators. When the Vice-Chancellor of a prominent University is dismissed for plagiarism, many students of that university will shrug their shoulders, except of course when they reflect upon the value of their own testamur in the job market.
Ø "You come from that University, do you?" which being translated means: "Can I trust you?"
But many do view the search for truth in one’s studies as futile. Fellow students may avoid the impolite observation that you are wasting your time, but when pressed they will say that what you are concerned about is not their ‘thing’.
Ø "If that is what turns you on, fair enough!"
So we have try to explain that the absence of a Christian social perspective from the list of ‘perspectives’ (or ‘theories’) presented to students in introductory lectures is itself an intriguing logical and historical problem. But we should not think that other students will see it in that way. For us it may be the most important and intriguing intellectual problem which we can face but we should not be too quick to build up our hopes that others will see it like that even after they have heard us out and agree that we have a point. We will learn that accepting something as true is not at all the same as deciding to act accordingly.
The Christian student will now have at least one important task: why has Christianity become marginalised and what are the basic forces that keep it that way? If this task is to be undertaken in a Christian way the student must develop a first-hand understanding of the impact of this marginalisation process upon her/his own decision-making as a student. The attempt to clarify the true situation must itself be part of a self-critical process.
In our era the ideologies of cultural, racial and sexual minorities are often given priority in the academy. So is the way ahead to argue that the Christian social perspective is also a minority viewpoint? We need to face honestly the apathy among Christians. We need to face up to the fact that in our society we now have a style of public debate which swings between the rule of the majority and rights for minorities. We have to avoid the common fallacy, implicit in our political system, that a view not held by the majority is somehow flawed, or not worthy of concentrated consideration. Likewise we have to avoid the view that Christian must be in the minority because those who are right are always on the edge. The pendulum swing of public opinion between majority and minority is no norm for how we should approach this issue. We need to sense how it is that public opinion, and its much publicised indicators, has such a power in our lives, in our thinking, in our public debates.
In this small book I am trying to convey something of what I have learned over 30 years since I began trying to discover the pathway towards a Christian sociology. My thinking now goes like this : if Christian students can better understand the state of affairs that excludes a Christian social perspective from ‘mainline’ sociology then as students they may be in a better position to compare and contrast the Christian social perspective with the other sociological perspectives that are presented in the academy.
The fact is we have been discussing the absence of Christian sociology in an era that has to confront the 'plurality' of worldviews, the diversity of sociological perspectives. Any critical social science must involve critical reflection on this issue. This issue is not a Christian fundamentalist quirk. It is an issue that drives to the heart of the scientific enterprise, such as it is, and demands self-critical understanding by all involved in science.
This is because theoretical argument should always involve the thinker in self-critical reflection. A student/thinker checks the written account, the logical argument, against what is believed. The thinker asks: ‘Do I believe this? Is it true?’ This is also true for the student who is a Christian. Theoretical thinking is in fact unthinkable without such thinking. Any student/thinker has to make judgments about the truth of an argument, the consistency of theoretical concepts, the validity of the assumptions, the logical coherence of the argument, the implications of the empirical analysis. But this is not all. The student also has to consider views that have been ignored, misrepresented, misunderstood and overlooked. As we have said above, the Christian student has to come to some account of why a Christian social perspective seems to be an alien viewpoint among contemporary sociological perspectives. As a student grows in understanding about this then the exclusion of other non-Christian viewpoints will also be thrown into sharp relief.
The student evaluates the range of options that are on offer and has to find a way to avoid getting lost in detail. So, the student develops a critical view of an argument by identifying the assumptions. Then the direction in which social research takes can be perceived. The perspective in which a course is delivered can be understood.
So having developed a strategy to critically investigate the assumed marginality of Christianity, the Christian student will ask: Does the Christian student have to do anything more to fulfil the Christian vocation in theorising about society? If by 'student vocation' we mean what we normally do as students then the short answer will be ‘No!’ The student will study, just like any other student who is acting out a student role. But that is like saying university study can be understood as a drama on stage. One student called 'Christian' will play the part in exactly the same way like any other student whether 'Atheist' or 'Apathetic' or 'New Age' or 'Bogan'. Each role player keeps to the script assigned to them for that part.
But the stage metaphor is helpful in our analysis of student life only in a very abstract way. University life is not just a matter of demonstrating that one can play a part. Scientific education is not just a matter of compliance with powerful demands. Is university a matter of intellectual prostitution, so that one can then go out into society and 'practise' the craft one has learned? I may be using metaphor here but it confirms my point which is that going to university is not just a game, it is not just a matter of learning one's lines in a predetermined script.
Our initial question that led us to this point was: does this mean that the Christian will have to do more in order to follow the student vocation? We have said provisionally: "No!" in the sense that a Christian student will confess that Christ by His completed redemptive work has restored scientific study to its true place. A Christian student is no more a student than a non-Christian student. But this insight may well mean that a student will have to study more to understand what is not in the curriculum, and why, as well as what is.
How can the Christian student claim to be a Christian student of society if all reference to a Christian social perspective is held in abeyance? The curriculum may ignore a Christian social perspective; but that is no reason for the Christian student to blindly accept this omission as the way things have to be. This then is the challenge before the Christian student. Obscure and vague polemic is not the goal. Winning arguments is not the goal. Getting top marks is not the goal. The aim is to be a Christian university student who is willing to face the challenge of being Jesus' disciple.
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August 2004 © A
Christian Calling in Social Theory and Research is a work written by
Bruce C Wearne (PhD), 29 Lawrence Rd., Point Lonsdale Vic 3225 AUSTRALIA,
61-3-5258-3913. Each chapter may be photocopied or retransmitted in its
entirety only with full acknowledgement of the author and the source. It shall
not otherwise be reprinted or transmitted without permission. This
personal project aims to encourage a positive Christian student
engagement in universities around the world which need to better understand the
vocation of science as an expression of our love for God and our
neighbour. Your comments are welcome. Email can be sent to bcwearne@ozemail.com.au
http://members.ozemail.com.au/~bcwearne/index.html