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College questions...

S

strcurious

Guest
Hello, I'm 19 and I'm heading off to college probably next spring or fall but have yet to figure out for sure where I'm gonna go. There are several schools that I'm trying to choose from but I have a dilemma. Do all Christian schools require that you sign a doctrinal agreement? If so, what does that entail? By me signing it, is that saying that I believe all of that, or is it saying that I understand that that's what they teach and believe? I'm asking because I do not believe, and cannot be convinced, that Yeshua is God and that God is a trinity (or, as some like to put it, a tri-unity). Any help would be great. Thanks, Scott

P.S. Please, no trying to convince me of Yeshua being the second person of the Trinity. Been there, done that. For my first year and a half of being a Christian, I believed it. I do not and cannot see this teaching in Scripture any longer.
 

heron

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Hi StrC,

Most Christian schools encourage broad doctrine, but will ask you to sign a statement that you agree with the basic tenets of Christian faith, and will abide within respectable conduct limits.

Some schools have no smoking/no drinking policies. Most will have separate male and female dormitories, with curfews or sign-ins. There are even secular schools now that ask for no drinking on campus, because of the liability issues.

I would guess that most schools will just ask you to write out a statement of your own faith, and then suggest you might find a better fit elsewhere if you are out in left field. They might not even do that. Smaller independent schools tend toward tighter doctrine restrictions, especially if they are denominational or training people to be missionaries and pastors. But most of the accredited schools are not. Accredited courses are not supposed to teach dogma.

Decades ago schools were more stringent in personal expectations; now there are laws that protect people from discrimination.

I can think of one Christian school that willingly accepts agnostic students, and teachers if they are adjunct. But they offer a Christian atmosphere by ensuring that full-time teachers are willing to promote the mission of the institution.

Your stance on Yeshua is more than most would want to deal with, but once you are in, there really won't be many times it will come up. Unless you make it an issue.

That is, signing up for theology courses will put you in a position of writing many papers and presenting your findings convincingly. If you are a computer science major, it might come up once or twice in your general studies courses.

I attended a Christian college, and found it a great atmosphere for learning. I would recommend it even if you were a Muslim or atheist, because there is a greater premise of self-discipline. Friends don't brag about staying up all night gaming, come to class late with a hangover, steal each others' Ritalin, or talk about cheating on a project. Your peers will generally be responsible people who are there to learn and make friends.

I am certainly not saying that secular campuses are evil, but I see time spent more effectively on Christian campuses.

Feel free to PM me with questions. You can also check the admissions pages on their web sites. I know a couple people who went to Gordon and loved it...almost commutable.
 
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Marcus Constantine

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stCurious,

Many Christian schools will ask that you sign a doctrinal statement, but many add the caveat that you can state how you disagree with a certain point. I have seen students that have written that they disagree with some aspect of a school's doctrine concerning cessation of tongues or the timing of the coming of Christ, but I don't know what they would do if you stated that you didn't accept Christ as being God of God, of the same essence as the Father. That is the foundation of all Christian doctrine, so I would think many would take issue with that. Send me a message if I can help your search in any way!
 
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