The One and The Many—in Creation

Why are we given to isolate and fragment the subjects of day-school education?

“Secular philosophy moves from one extreme to the other, because it does not have the resources to define a position between the two extremes, and because it seeks an absolute at one extreme or another—as if there must be an absolute oneness (with no plurality) or else a universe of absolutely unique, unconnected elements, creating an absolute pluralism and destroying any universal oneness. To find such an absolute in either direction is important if the philosopher is to find an adequate standard apart from the God of Scripture. Thus is revealed philosophy’s religious quest—to find an absolute, a god, in the world. But the Christian knows there is no absolute unity (devoid of plurality) or absolute plurality (devoid of unity). These exist neither in the world nor in the world’s Creator.” p. 49-50 Apologetics to the Glory of God by John Frame.

As I prepare a talk on approaching Christian learning and studies of the various subjects and disciplines across the landscape of a standard day-school curriculum, I am mediating on man’s inclination to sever the subjects from one another with the hopes of exercising his dominion, albeit in a way that invites him to be his own self-governing interpreter. How? In what way? Our age is the scientific age. Break down the parts to the finest, granular minutiae for study. This age tempts us to fragment for our pretense of intellectual mastery. There’s something attractive about that—it fits like a glove over a hand: man’s pride and boasting, etc.

To use Frame’s reasoning above, severing Biology from History, and Language Study from Economics, and the like, suggests that there’s an absolute oneness, almost a self-contained set of rules and applications within the said discipline, that governs our approach to learning, study and behavior. For example, for some Physics can take on absolute oneness: it’s held so high that it’s thought to contain the basis for fundamental truths for answers to life. Can Physics really and truly carry that much weight? It’s believed—YES, on the basis of it being an adequate standard by which to think and live. In this view, Physics has become a god, an adequate standard.

But what’s the answer to this idolatry?

The Christian’s answer is the doctrine of the Trinity. Just as God is both One and Many, so His creation is One and Many. The doctrine of the Trinity stages us for an invitation to remain the student in our studies. God is His own interpreter of all subjects, and since He is Lord holding all subjects together, we must study them in concert, in an interrelated way. This doesn’t mean, however, that the Christian approach moves into a field of study in an irresponsible way, in a way that refuses to pursue the minutiae of the bits and particles of a discipline. But as it approaches a matter for learning, it’s always approached as something in a context of diversity, plurality and variety in the creation. The pursuit of learning includes interests about the package or interrelatedness of the creation. This means keeping absolute unity and absolutely plurality in a give and take relationship. Such a give and take approach leads to a holy contentment about the resultant mysteries, humility, faith and dependency in our study of the creation, the handiwork of our Lord and God.

G. Mark Sumpter