I present the following thoughts from the perspective of someone who grew up in and is familiar with the academic and spiritual situation on the European continent. My impression is that many of the trends that have eroded a robust Christian influence on European culture are very much active in the Evangelical world of the US in the current situation as well.

Some of the questions raised below are rhetorical in character – but others are not rhetorical at all, but meant to stimulate further thinking in the fields touched upon by them. As far as the observations or assertions are concerned: they are not meant to comprehensively represent the biblical views or the current situation or any specific period in the history between biblical times and the present. Rather, they are meant to function as pointers to parts of reality that often tend to be overlooked or underestimated.

1) Love and compassion, respect and dialogue are highly valued among Evangelicals these days, also at Biola. “Building bridges,” empathy for “the other,” “inclusion” are further aspects of this.

2) Interestingly, this sounds quite similar to mainstream rhetoric.

And of course, in many ways there is nothing “unbiblical” about these attitudes. This is certainly true for love and compassion. But what do they mean “biblically”? Do they exclude exclusion? And if not: whose exclusion and what kind of exclusion are acceptable?

3) How can we make sure that love and compassion, respect and dialogue, do not become appeasement of opposing world-views? Is there a historic example for appeasement having led to positive results?

4) How do we properly define and apply love and compassion, together with respect and dialogue, in the context of academic teaching and research? It would certainly be wrong to simply transfer the specific contents of these notions from the realm of the personal spiritual life to the realm of academics – as wrong as it would be to make such a transfer to the realm of the state.

Is it not true that in academics the pursuit of truth must never be compromised?

5) Are we able to understand that in the Bible all these notions (of love and compassion, respect and dialogue) are graded, not only not the same in the various areas of life briefly mentioned above, but also not the same with respect to different groups of people? For example, the ancient Israelite is called to love his co-Israelite neighbor and the sojourner, but not j