Every academic programme that is relevant to human growth and life should be evaluated and accredited by a body of experts. Advanced Nations of the world have never neglected this aspect of their responsibility, hence they produce experts that help them scientifically and technologically. One of the major problems of the world today is religion. There are many religions practiced worldwide. People worldwide are free to practice and teach their faith.
In Nigeria, there are two major religions Christianity and Islam. These two major religions have established schools to teach their adherents and assess their performance and grade them accordingly.
Bible teaching has been the responsibility of the church since the beginning of Christianity. Many nationas have accepted Christianity and its teaching because this has helped to improve the moral of the nations. It has also helped to improve education and eradicate superstition. Christian education no doubt has blessed many nations of the world.
The modern church finds it necessary to develop Christian leaders and teachers academically and classify them by awarding certificates, diploma and degree accordingly. These awards are meant for the church to recognize the level of academic achievement of church workers concerned and employ them for the improvement of the teaching of the church and betterment of the members of the church.
National government of many nations set up accrediting commissions to accredit courses in Primary Schools, Secondary Colleges and Universities. These courses are mostly humanistic and necessary for the economic, social and scientific development of the nations. The members of the commissions are always reputable people, experts and scholars in different disciplines.
In Nigeria, the government is secular meaning that the government is not interested in religion.
The law of the country does not state how religious academic programmes should be accredited but some non-religious scholars believe that human scholarship should be placed over against faith, they therefore arrogate to themselves the right to determine what religious faith should teach. They oppose anything spiritual in the name of higher human knowledge and scholarship. Christianity is not a pressure group that will subject the State to the will of God. The problem is that majority of the people inhumanistic political environment (those who have the power in the State) are not willing to subject themselves to the rule of the church.
Of recent, there was a threat to Christian education in Nigeria and some people believe that Christian Courses should be accredited. Some Christian school proprietors are worried about this and are confused about what to do. The question is who should accredit Christian religious academic programme? Secular accrediting or Christian accrediting body?
The government of any nation has a leading role to provide political, economic and social stability for people to operate freely while the church is the custodian of the word of God and therefore has the responsibility of building, shaping and maintaining morality and biblical principles. Christianity is a practical and workable religion that reforms and transforms life. Its education provides factual knowledge. Biblical and theological teaching is not teaching of new facts or knowledge but confirming the revealed facts and helping people to apply the facts acquired for better life.
The revelation of God in history. In the past, God spoke to his people through the prophets but today he speaks through Jesus, Bible and Holy Spirit. He manifests to them the mystery of his nature which he wants them to share with him.
WHAT IS ACCREDITATION?
Accreditation is the act of confirming that an educational institution maintains suitable standards. It is the approval of an institution of learning by a recognized accrediting body after the institution must have met certain requirements.
HOW IS SCHOOL ACCREDITATED?
The method of accreditation differs from one commission to another but the principles of accreditation expect the school to be accredited to be sure of its operations and then submit all the information required by the accrediting body including its instructional materials which will be thoroughly reviewed by competent subject-matter specialists. Accreditation is to ensure that a college is offering a quality programme or course.
Accreditation is a tool for monitoring academic quality, integrity and standard of schools.
Philosophy of secular humanism has never agreed with Christian teaching especially of the incarnation, birth, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ neither has it accepted the presence of the Holy Spirit in the life of the church. Secular accrediting agencies can neither understand or accept theological and philosophical contents of bible based curriculum and teaching method.
Most Bible Colleges in Nigeria are not recognized by Federal or State Department of Education. Secular accreditation generally hinders more than help Christian Colleges from accomplishing the purpose for which they are called by God. it should be noted that the secular accrediting commission will force its candidates to conform to predetermined academic conditions.
CHRISTIAN EDUCATION IS A GODLY EDUCATION
The primary objective of a biblical and theological education is to transform life by the revelation truths that are revealed in the Bible and by the Holy Spirit. Biblical theology is biblically the science of knowing the truths in the bible and how to apply them to life. The Christian religion is a matter of living, not of mere intellectual knowledge.
God requires that Christians should be given distinctively Christian education. Every subject studies in Bible College should reveal the plan of God and discover God-given message for every generation.
Christian education is not after traditions of man and principles of this world but after Christ in whom all the treasures and knowledge are hidden Colossians 1:28. The educational theory, methods and practice of any Bible College are to prove that there is only one God, one Christ and only truth. The bible therefore becomes foundational hand book for Christian and theological education.
We should not forget that the beginning of wisdom is the fear of God. A Christian curriculum must derive its fundamental principles from God’s Holy Word.
Bible study in any Bible College is not the mere study of historical events or characters in the Bible but to understand the biblical system of truth. The Bible is the mind of God revealed to man. It is in it that God created the heavens and earth, that man fell and that God provided a gracious plan of redemption. This knowledge helps man to think and act according to the will of God for him.
Government recognized accreditation is not necessary for the production of church managers, church administrators, prophets, ushers, theologians, Christian teachers, evangelists, Christian counselors, church pastors, deacons. Manpower for the church can be produced without government recognized accreditation. Academically trained church workers do not need government-accredited qualifications to work in the spiritually or biblically influenced environment.
Jesus is the head of any Bible College and what is taught is the ability to understand Christian faith and pass this on from one generation to another. Federal or State Department of Education is not spirit-filled or spirit-controlled and it is not managed by men and women who understand the working principles of the Holy Spirit who is the director and principal teacher of every born again Christian. If they do not understand the language of the Bible which is spiritual and beyond the comprehension of non-spirit controlled human beings, how can they understand that the manducation of the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ in the Lord’s Supper is entirely spiritual and heavenly in nature?
Accreditation of a Christian college should be based on quality, programmes/courses, operations and integrity. The standards and expectations must comply with scriptural principles as applied to education, must compromise with the vision, mission and calling of the ministry that established the college.
Christian education operators should respect the separation of Church and State because the education of Christian colleges extends beyond national boundaries. They should maintain their God-called vision and respect and submit to Jesus Christ, their Saviour who sent them to go and teach.
Accreditation of a Christian college should be with Christian focused agencies and not any secular government accrediting commission that cannot monitor effectively spiritually-ordained academic programmes.
Christian experts and scholars should establish more accrediting bodies because the number of Christian schools is growing and there are more unaccredited courses than accredited ones.
Government-accredited courses do not generate high standards. Education in secular institutions is an institionalized formal learning, of an intellectual and social nature. Facts and theories are inserted into the minds of the students but all these never germinate for use.
Secular education is also considered as a process whereby inborn potential is aired, nourished and admired. Students are developed in their capacity for co-operation, self-discipline, imaginative learning, confidence and mutual understanding. This type of education makes a man a thinking animal to develop his physical environment therefore neglecting his spiritual life and responsibility.
The Trust Book “A Guide to Living” once said, “We believe that the educational needs of a highly technical society do not have to be met at the expense of the more important human characteristics. The work of secular education is said to be incidental to the prime need of the nation.
Kurt Harn, a Germanborn idealist once said “it is wrong to coerce young people into opinions but it is a duty to impel them into experiences”. Christian faith is experiential. Its education prepares people for individual responsibility and for service to others.
a. Spirit-filled.
b. To produce life-transformation ability.
4. Faculty in the government approved courses do not have
God’s divine anointing and vision. They are not rooted in the
life-given power of the Holy Spirit.
Note importantly that people seeking employment in Federal or State ministries like medical doctors, accountants and non-church related disciplines will need government recognized accredited qualifications.
People called to full-time or part-time church work or volunteers in church ministries do not need government-accredited qualifications. It is therefore important that people willing to go to Bible Colleges for degree courses must identify the career God is calling them into. Christian and theological education has direct relevance to church, Christian ministries and para-church organisation. Enroll in a course that will help you practice the call of God in your life.
CHRISTIAN COLLEGE A Charity Organization
Christian College is the teaching ministry of the church and it is classified as tax-exempt, non-profit status. It is a charity organization established to teach Christian faith, develop church workers to produce excellence, efficiency and integrity. It is expected to provide the highest standard of education quality at the lowest possible cost.
It is the responsibility of Christian accrediting bodies and theological education controlling bodies like Association of Christian Theologians (ACTS) to make sure that the quality of Christian and theological education in Nigeria is improved. They owe it a duty to all Christians to make sure that Christian faith is taught to full understanding of the beliefs and values of Christianity. Course credits from government-accredited institution should not be accepted by the church of God that requires spirit-controlled personnel.
Many denominations and some ecumenical groups have of recent criticize some aspects of government policy and their social consequences.
Nigeria government, which is secular, should concentrate on providing full employment for her numerous unemployed citizens and attack seriously lack of want, sickness, ignorance and idleness. Secular Government has no right to interfere with religious matters but the church and religious organizations have the right to call upon government to set her policy right for the benefit of all.
Government’s attention should not be distracted from her main responsibilities. Allow Christian fathers and church experts to manage the church while Christian experts and scholars evaluate, supervise, control and improve from time to time Christian education.
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