The Bible and American Education

THE BOOK OF PROVERBS tells us that "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge" (1:7). The American Founders certainly understood this truth, and from the beginning stressed the relationship between a sound education based upon biblical absolutes and the future of the nation.

In 1776, the future President John Adams said, "Statesmen... may plan and speculate for liberty, but it is religion and morality alone, which can establish the principles upon which freedom can securely stand." That mind-set was widely held among the Founders who helped shape the political, educational, and legal foundations of the new nation. Men such as Daniel Webster, Benjamin Franklin, Benjamin Rush, Samuel Adams, and George Washington echoed these same sentiments, believing that the strength of the republic was dependent upon the morality of her people, and that religion must undergird it. They saw the education of young minds being at the heart of it.


NOT SURPRISINGLY, most of America's oldest universities were started by preachers and churches. Harvard, William and Mary, Yale, Princeton, King's College, Brown, Rutgers, and Dartmouth were all founded by Christian preachers and church affiliations.

Harvard University, for example, which was founded in 1636 by the Puritans, adopted the "Rules and Precepts" of the university that stated: "Let every student be plainly instructed, and earnestly pressed to consider well, the main end of his life and studies is, to know God and Jesus Christ which is eternal life (John 17:3) and therefore lay Christ at the bottom, as the only foundation of all sound knowledge and learning." Even Harvard's original seal, which can be seen etched in the walls of the campus today, states upon it these words: "Truth for Christ and the Church."

Yale College was established in 1701 with a stated goal that "every student shall consider the main end of his study to wit to know God in Jesus Christ and answerably to lead a godly, sober life." The College of William and Mary was founded in 1693 to supply the church of Virginia "with a seminary of ministers" that the "Christian faith may be propagated." And King's College, known today as Columbia University, purposed to "inculcate upon [students'] tender minds the great principles of Christianity and morality." Princeton had as one of its founding statements: "Cursed is all learning that is contrary to the Cross of Christ."

IN COLONIAL AMERICA, in addition to the Bible and the Bay Psalm Book, the first textbook for schoolchildren, The New England Primer, taught the ABC's by children memorizing basic biblical truths and lessons about life: A-In Adam's fall, we sinned all. B-Heaven to find, the Bible Mind. C-Christ crucify'd for sinners died, and so on. Included in the Primer, were the names of the Old and New Testament books, the Lord's Prayer, the Apostles' Creed, the Ten Commandments, the Westminster Assembly Shorter Catechism, and John Cotton's "Spiritual Milk for American Babies." The Primer was the second best-selling book in the American colonies (the Bible was number one).

IN 1836, NOAH WEBSTER, often called "The Father of American Education," expressed the purpose of schools was meant for the advancement of the Christian faith: "In my view, the Christian religion is the most important and one of the first things in which all children, under a free government ought to be instructed... No truth is more evident to my mind than that the Christian religion must be the basis of any government intended to secure the rights and privileges of a free people."

Unfortunately, in time, a philosophical shift took place in America, and the biblical principles for education were slowly eroded and abandoned, with sad and tragic consequences that continue to unfold. John Dewey, known as "The Architect of Modern Education," said, "There is no God, and there is no soul. Hence, there are no needs for the props of traditional religion." Those props have been knocked away, and the loss of moral standards has opened the door to untold numbers of unwanted teen pregnancies, abortions, drub abuse, alcoholism, violence, and suicide.

If we believe that the Founders were correct in asserting that America would fail if it lost its religious foundation, it is primarily incumbent upon Christian believers to reaffirm and reclaim our Chrisian educational heritage with the same passion and commitment of the Founders. There are many ways and many levels at which to instigate change, but it begins with a willingness to become engaged in the battle.