“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Genesis 1:1 — It’s fitting to frame any discussion on the value of art by quoting the very first verse of the Bible. If we truly believe Scripture to be theopneustos or “God-breathed”, we must then recognize that the first description that God provides about Himself is that He is a creator. In Classical Christian education, the traditional academic rigor we strive for should always be infused with…
Read MoreI never cared for my name until, when I was around 10 years old my family was having dinner talking about where their names came from and what they meant. We all went around talking about what our names meant until it got to me. My aunt looked it up and Micah meant “one who is like God.” After that I didn’t think about my name until in my junior year in theology class we read “Parker’s Back” by Flannery O’Conner. In O’Conner’s short story…
Read MoreHere’s the text with extra space added between the paragraphs for better formatting on your blog: My father is not a fish. I don't believe that he ever will be. But for the past few days it has felt like my father is a fish.I often implore my students to furnish the interior of their hearts, to decorate their minds, to wallpaper their souls with great literature and poetry. It's a hard thing for...
Read MoreWhat a joy it was to see so many of you at our 2024 convocation service last week. We are hopeful that more and more of our families will join us each year as we seek to begin our school year by asking for the Lord’s blessing. It was an evening of beautiful singing and prayer. We were also blessed by a message from Rev. Tim Goodwin who is the Director of Operations at The Geneva School, a classical Christian school in Manhattan. Tim spoke...
Read MoreA day or two after walking a group of teachers through a magnificent old fairytale, an old myth: The Handless Maiden, one veteran educator came up to talk to me about the story. But in reality it wasn't a discussion about the story simpliciter, it was about the role of stories—stories told, stories heard, stories written. The teacher said to me, “I…
Read MoreA Proclamation: Any American who has ever listened to a bugler sound Taps, the last salute, whether on a green and grassy hillside, a muddy field halfway around the world, or a lonely tarmac stateside or anywhere freedom is cherished and defended, knows exactly why we set aside a special day each year to honor those who have died for our country and to pray for permanent peace. We do so for the sons and daughters of our land who have perished in the cause of liberty…
Read MoreO Lord of Divine Majesty, You are the sustainer of the cosmos. We eternally express our admiration to You, for You are magnificent and exquisite in Your love. Every good and perfect gift is from You who does not change like shifting shadows. (1) Bestow humble hearts upon us, O Lord, that we may come properly into Your presence with shouts of thanksgiving. We will extol…
Read MoreOne of the insights of classical, Christian education is that education is much more than information transfer, or preparation to take tests. It is a rigorous training of the whole soul: body, mind and spirit. As Plutarch wrote long ago, “the mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be…
Read MoreO Lord, we rejoice in You, our Everlasting Father, even creation rejoices in You! “Thou burning sun with golden beam, thou silver moon with softer gleam, O praise Him, O praise Him! ”All nations shall fear You, the King of kings and Lord of lords for You are good and true. When You saved us from the serpent, we exclaimed Your wondrous works. We shouted out the stories of our salvation from…
Read More“My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken us? Why art thou so far from helping us, and from the words of my roaring? O my God, we cry in the daytime but thou hearest not; and in the night season I am not silent.” (1) O God, our Father, although You remain silent, we place our faith and trust in You even though we are worms at your feet. (2) O Lord, our fathers have put their trust in you and from you their rescue came. (3) For you are the alpha and omega…
Read MoreOne of the things that Chapel Field strives to be is a place of prayer. We open the day in morning assembly in prayer. On Wednesday, Chapel opens and closes with prayer. Many classes do the same. For the most part, these prayers are extemporaneous. The vast majority of the modern evangelical West is familiar with almost nothing but extemporaneous prayers. Now there is nothing wrong with praying…
Read MoreOne of my all-time favorite poems is “In Memory of W.B. Yeats” by W.H. Auden. It is just hard to beat one of your poetic heroes writing a dirge for another one of your heroes. This poem was bouncing around my mind all day yesterday, the 2 year anniversary of the passing of Coach Spanjer—the founder and patriarch of Chapel Field Christian Schools. It is poetic, providential, fitting, that a passage from Mark’s gospel was also swirling inside my skull, mixing and…
Read MoreYesterday was the 125th birthday of C.S. Lewis, a man beloved by us at Chapel Field. He is best known by many for his Narnia series, but he is the author of many other works ranging from high scholastic writing on Medieval literature to works of apologetics and theology. Lewis grew up in a nominal Anglican home with a devout mother and a distant father. As a young boy his mother died…
Read MoreNo people ought to feel greater obligations to celebrate the goodness of the Great Disposer of events, and of the destiny of nations, than the people of the United States. His kind providence originally conducted them to one of the best portions of the dwelling place allotted for the great family of the Human race. He protected and cherished them, under all the difficulties and trials to which they…
Read MoreToday was the birthday of one of the great minds of the Western world and one of the great fathers of the Christian church, St. Augustine. Augustine was born in 354 A.D. in North Africa. He was born to a Christian mother and a non-believing father. While his mother prayed incessantly for his salvation, even to the point of tears, his father wanted him to be a worldly success. He was given the best education his…
Read More“How can you not be romantic about baseball?” Brad Pitt, playing Oakland A’s general manager Billy Beane in the 2011 movie MoneyBall posed that rhetorical question. If you haven’t seen MoneyBall, stop reading this immediately and go watch it. Life is all about order and proportion and you clearly lack both (I’m joking, but only slightly). Russian short story master Isaac Babel wrote, “No iron spike…
Read MoreOur purpose tonight, through worship and thanksgiving, is to rededicate ourselves to that noble, God-given calling. It’s only right and fitting, then, to remind ourselves WHAT that calling is, and THE PURPOSE for which we’re assembled here tonight. To do that I’ll read the school’s mission statement: “Chapel Field’s mission is to partner with parents to cultivate…
Read MoreLord God, we pray for our students; for our pre-k and elementary students whose young minds and souls need the good soil of a godly education to lay strong roots for a life of faithfulness. For our junior high students; for their growth and maturity, for minds furnished and equipped to serve you, and for our high school students, that they may become godly young men and women whose chief ambition is to live for your glory. Grant them all a blessed year in which each student grows in wisdom and stature and holiness. Guard them from the idolatrous delusions…
Read MoreA classical education is primarily concerned with the right reordering of the student’s affections, teaching them to enjoy good things, teaching them to hate wicked things, teaching them to love most what is most worthy of their love. A classical education is also concerned with giving students what…
Read More"The time is now near at hand which must [...] determine, whether Americans are to be free men…" This July 4th, join us in remembering George Washington's orders to the Continental Army in anticipation of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
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