Some authors write from the vantage point of research. Others communicate only their experience. One has the distinct impression from Robert Harris that The Integration of Faith and Learning: A Worldview Approach was born of love’s labor in the academy with an eye toward helping students find their Christian footing in pagan environs. Indeed, the purpose statement of the book makes clear that Harris intended undergraduates to benefit most from this presentation.
Twenty-five years in the university setting establishes Harris’ right to speak on this topic. Further, his expertise in language and literature lends a hand toward communicating specific concerns with Christian interaction in higher education. Establishing a paradigm and definitions for discussion, Harris reemphasizes salient truths for the Christian learner in chapter one with special emphasis on “responsible skepticism” (p. 12) and an “emphasis on meaning” (p. 13). “Knowledge builds on knowledge” (p. 14) is a crucial reminder to all that the footers we pour on the four corners of our educational “house” are tied directly to permanent, first things.
Assumptions in place, developing a critical mindset (“don’t believe everything you hear”) creates the rhythmic undertone of Harris’ concern for students. He warns against the heretical secular—sacred dichotomy prevalent in both unbelieving and Christian circles (chapter two). The crying need of coherence in education proclaimed by many in and out of The Faith is stressed here. Chapter three, then, is critical for any student to cement in their thinking as it relates to the origination of knowledge. Here Harris shines citing critical questions that must be asked of any information source (pp. 42-43). Bias and authority issues lead directly to chapter four—the most important chapter in the book. Outside influences on knowledge have debilitating effects on thinking. People tend to leave out what does not conform to their faith commitment. What is listened to, talked about, read, written, and watched is seen through a screen of understanding. The questions on page 68 should be incorporated into any professor’s thinking on the subject of faith and learning. Chapters ten and eleven cement the approach Harris brings to the subject. Blueprints are sketched providing clear direction in building a Christian integrative residence.
Chapters five through nine seem to be the target of Harris’ aim for his foundational pages. The subtitle of the book focuses on a compare and contrast methodology with naturalism and postmodernism in the crosshairs of Christian critique. Harris centers on a “macro” integration approach, poking holes in the fabric of ideas and consequences for each aberrant worldview. Historical connections for each point of view clearly demonstrate the slow yet ardent progress faulty assumptions about the world have yielded in halls of learning. Five lessons to learn about research (pp. 128-130), seven truths compared to current culture (pp. 139-143), “the hermeneutics of integration” (pp. 182-84), and five tools for preparation of integration (p. 216) are all helpful, specific guides for students who desire good defensive weapons in the warfare of worldviews.
The construction of the text itself would help a professor teaching a course on the subject. Each chapter contains discussion questions and an important segment on “implications for integration.” Dialogue over issues could begin here. Having worked so long in the university setting, Harris knows the importance of theory and practice. High school teachers in apologetics, literature, philosophy, and any advanced placement course would find this text helpful. As such, the book is not written to help Christian schoolteachers understand or implement biblical integration in their day-to-day workload. But on the whole, Harris does Christian undergraduates a service in preparing them to defend their beliefs in ungodly settings. Indeed The Integration of Faith and Learning: A Worldview Approach may do wonders for future Christian leaders who must “encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it” (Titus 1:9).
A Review of Robert A. Harris, The Integration of Faith and Learning: A Worldview Approach. (Eugene, OR: Cascade Books, 2004). Reviewed by Mark Eckel, Dean, Undergraduate Studies, Crossroads Bible College. [Originally reviewed in February, 2005, while Associate Professor of Educational Ministries, Moody Bible Institute.]