The enrollment cliff is coming to a college near you. The college-age population in America is shrinking, and universities are now feeling the squeeze. If you add higher tuition costs and increased debt load to the mix, you can appreciate why potential college students are electing to pursue skilled trades. I was sobered to read at a recent seminary board of trustees meeting the Wall Street Journal article, “How Gen Z is Becoming a Toolbox Generation.” It’s not my intent here to make a case for the value of college and graduate school education as we know it today but to underscore the importance of using our minds in the service of God. When Jesus is asked about the greatest commandment in the law, he quotes from Deuteronomy about the importance of loving God with all that we are, minds included (Mt. 22.37).
Titus Flavius Clemens (ca.153-ca. 217), better known as Clement of Alexandria, devoted his life to loving God with his mind. As a convert to Christianity, his quest for learning took him to Alexandria, a vibrant area of learning and scholarship. The three major works he authored that survive give evidence of his thorough knowledge of Greek philosophy and ancient literature to add to his considerable theological and biblical acumen. The Paedagogus, one of his major works, centers on Christ as teacher, educator, and guide. Following Jesus as Lord is not a “one-and-done” decision. We are learning all our lives what it means to love God with all our heart, soul, and mind. In the appendix following his lengthy Paedagogus, Clement concludes with prayer:
Clement of Alexandria
O Educator, be gracious to thy children, O Educator, Father, Guide of Israel, Son, and Father, both one, Lord. Give to us who follow thy command to fulfill the likeness of thy image and to see, according to our strength, the God who is both a good God and a Judge who is not harsh. Bestow all things on us who dwell in thy peace, who have been placed in thy city, who sail the sea of sin unruffled, that we may be made tranquil and supported by the Holy Spirit, the unutterable Wisdom, by night and day, unto the perfect day, to sing eternal thanksgiving to the one and only Father and Son, Educator, and Teacher with the Holy Spirit. Amen.
The Paedagogus, translated by William Wilson from Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 2, edited by Alexander Roberts, James Donaldson, and A. Cleveland Cox, 1885. Revised and edited for New Advent by Kevin Knight.
Rev. Dr. Peter James served 42 years as the senior of Vienna Presbyterian Church in Vienna, VA — 21 years in the 20th century and 21 years in the 21st century. He retired in 2021 and now serves as Pastor-in-Residence at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary.
Even as a pastor, prayer came slowly to Pete. Read Pete’s story.