My name is [Name Removed - Eds.] and I am a 2008 graduate of Erskine College. I thoroughly enjoyed my Erskine experience and genuinely loved and appreciated my professors. It has come to my attention that some concerns have developed regarding Erskine’s commitment to integrating faith and learning in the classroom. These concerns were emerging while I was still a student, but now the situation has escalated enough to prompt current students and alumni to approach the ARP synod to ask for an inquiry into the conduct of Erskine College and its administration over the school’s mission. To summarize, Erskine College has compromised by allowing evolutionary, humanistic and secular concepts to be taught (without the criticism of a Christian worldview perspective) and by failing to stop such teachings when they first began. This, in turn, jeopardizes the students’ personal faith.

The faculty of Erskine is not stressing a Christian approach to scholarship and learning in the classrooms. Indeed, their lessons directly contradict the teachings of Scripture. According to the Statement of the Philosophy of Christian Higher Education of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, those academic institutes belonging to the ARP Church “have a responsibility to stress Christian doctrine as well as Christian ethics.” In addition, Erskine College’s mission statement expresses the desire of the school to integrate “learning and biblical truth.” However, Erskine has failed to integrate Christian principles in the classroom. For example, the science classes are permeated with Darwinian, naturalistic evolutionary theory where as nowhere in Scripture is this ideology evident. Instead, Scripture teaches that God created the world and all it contains in six days and rested on the seventh day. The faculty who teach this form of creation are bowing to the ideas of secularism and humanism that states God does not exist. By this, Erskine has undermined herself and her promise to adhere to the teachings of Christ.

Erskine College further compromised herself by failing to stop false teachings when they first began. The ARP Church’s philosophy on higher education states that the “church has the ultimate responsibility for the administrative, academic, and moral life of the college.” Thus, it is the responsibility of the ARP denomination and her leaders to ensure that Erskine College continues in the tradition of providing education based upon Scriptural truths, not the so-called truths of humanism and secularism. Despite this commitment, the ARP Church has not held the Erskine faculty and administration accountable to Erskine’s mission of providing faith combined with learning.

By teaching evolution, humanism and secularism, with no attempt to criticize them, the student’s faith is jeopardized. This jeopardizing of faith is accomplished by teachings that contradict Scripture and by professors mocking and criticizing their students’ faith (in the classroom). The ARP Church’s Philosophy on Christian higher education states that the “primary task of the College should be to guide the student into the development of a mature faith.” How can a student be given a strong foundation in the faith if he is taught theories, ideas and concepts that directly oppose the inerrant Word of God? What can be worse than to destroy the faith of a young adult? Matthew 18:6 says that “if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.” Erskine College is doing exactly that, causing young men and women to fall away from God by leading them away from the one true God. It would be better for Erskine to close its doors than to continue leading students down the path of humanism and secularism.

In the end, the root of Erskine’s difficulties lie in her failure to adhere to her commitment to integrating Christian principles with academics. This has lead to the presence of false teachings, the failure to stop such teachings, and the jeopardizing of the faith of students. However, before closing this letter, let me reiterate how much I love Erskine. I have a deep respect for the Faculty, Administration, Trustees and the ARP denomination. It is because of this love that I choose to write this letter. Please take these words and the words of current students and alumni seriously. I implore the Synod to examine the current state of Erskine College through a commission so that necessary changes will ensure that she is able to provide an education than integrates excellent academics with sound Biblical teachings.

An example of how I’ve felt that faith and learning have been separated in the classroom is best found in one of my experiences as a freshman in a History class. First, I must say that the class itself was of high academic standard. It was a challenge and a wonderful learning experience. However, when discussing world religions, the question, “Can there be a monopoly on truth?” was raised. Studying other religions allowed me to expand the way I think about my faith and whether or not I believe it is the truth. However, in concluding the lessons on “What is truth?” there never was an appeal that Christianity is the truth. Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life”. This is what I thought Erskine supported as the institution of learning for the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church. I understand that it is hard to integrate faith into every classroom session, and again, in no way do I want Erskine to be a safe haven of Christian students. However, in such a topic, I am concerned that even the fact that the institution stands on the truth that Christ is Truth was not mentioned. I have experienced this same neglect of integrating faith in learning in many other classrooms and other disciplines.

I have enjoyed my years at Erskine, and I do feel well educated. However, I at times regret that I did not seek out an institution that would have given me a much better Christian worldview to take into the world when I graduate next May. Erskine is a fine institution, but it needs to seek out being the institution committed to Christian commitment, not just excellence in learning, or excellence in the sports arena.

-Anonymous,
Class of 2010

I am writing to you because of my love for Erskine and for everyone that is involved with Erskine College in any capacity. Erskine is a great college that I thoroughly enjoy attending, but there are a few issues that have been brought to my attention and that I have seen develop while I have been there.

The Education Department has a verse that created their motto of producing “Transformational Teachers.” Romans 12:2 says “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” I have seen and heard that the Education Department seems to be more concerned with molding their future teachers to the standards of this world even though this verse is placed on bulletin boards and in the minds of all Education majors from the first day of class. I understand that there are standards and procedures that students must learn in order to be effective in the schools that they are going to teach in, but without the students’ minds being transformed and renewed by Christ, these future teachers will not be as transformational as they are meant to be.

This is an issue for me because in other areas of Erskine it seems that the goal is to please man rather than God. What exactly does the motto, “Forever Connected” really mean? The students had no idea that a huge banner was going to be proudly displayed with those words. What happened to “Christian Commitment and Excellence in Learning”? Can we not proudly hang that banner up on pedestrian highway anymore? The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ should radiate on Erskine’s campus. Our love for the Lord should be contagious enough that we shouldn’t have to change our motto to something more modern or general to influence others to come. The community and fellowship of us as followers of Christ, no matter what denomination, should be inviting to others. And at the current time, it doesn’t seem as if that is what Erskine is about.

I truly love Erskine and am so glad God called me to the small, liberal arts school in the little town of Due West. I have grown in my faith and have learned from professors, janitors, other faculty and staff, community members, and fellow students. But I question at times what drives Erskine. What is the passion of Erskine? What do others see when they look at Erskine? If it is not Christ, then something needs to change.

Thank you for reading my concerns and I ask that my name be held in confidence because of concern over retribution at Erskine.

Sincerely,
_______