An IGCS Methodology; Or When I Get To India

[John Kenyon]

An IGCS Methodology; Or When I Get To India

The Overall Challenge

I bring this up on the eve of my trip to India. As the founder and director of an on-line learning community, I have long been a critic of traditional western education. At its core it is a system best suited for students with the best memory, thereby lessening the academic success of those that learn better through other means. It is a system best suited for those who are morning people, a system where students are grouped according to age rather than ability, a system better geared for the passive imagination, and a system running on an agricultural schedule.

In short, if you have an excellent retentive memory, are wide-awake by 8:00 a.m., get along best with people of your own age, can stifle your natural curiosity, and can learn everything necessary between September and June, then you can be a successful student.

The above, of course, does not touch on the concerns of curriculum, teachers, and administration. Nor does it touch on the value society ascribes to the present system. You need a degree from a traditional institution to be recognized as an educated person.

Today, many Christian schools, such as Gordon Cromwell, New York Theological Seminary, Pepperdine University have initiated programs for the study of world-wide Christianity. Perhaps this is just a modification of the traditional study of missions directed at a larger audience than missionaries. But the need to expand the audience (student body) for this subject is clear and urgent.

Moreover, we are now all interrelated outside of the traditional academic community. The Christian mechanic in Michigan and Japan share a common faith and industry, along with the everyday need to make a living. The African and Asian Christian face persecution in common. And so on. And so on. The need for everyone to understand the basics of globalization is as critical as the need for everyone to learn the basics of reading, writing and arithmetic, and almost as critical as the need for Christians to understand the basics of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

So the purpose of the IGCS is to study the impact of globalization on the nations/regions of the world, and how the Church is responding, but exactly how does one study it? What is our specific curriculum? Who are the teachers? Who are the students?

What Is Our IGCS Subject?

Well…heh, heh. A huge one. We’ve broken down globalization into various subtopics. Each subtopic requires a serious mind, and each subtopic can require a life-time of attention. And we’ve also broken down globalization regionally and nationally. Seems too much until one discovers that, for instance, the challenges facing Puerto Rico are global and share features in common with Timor-Leste. In addition, it requires learning about the Church, the Church in a specific nation, and how it/they are responding. So let me just take one step at a time. I am going to India to learn about globalization in India, about Christianity in India, and what it shares in common with the challenges facing this island of Puerto Rico that I call home.

Who Are The IGCS Students?

You are. I am. Thank goodness any curious mind can be. We’re quite intentionally untraditional in this respect. That is, we do not require a traditional degree to join this learning community, although we think about offering degrees one day. It is true that expertise in economics or health or politics or poverty or human rights is invaluable to a serious discussion on these matters, and invaluable to a discussion among those with expertise in these areas. It is true that expertise in biblical studies/theology is required to keep the discussion on track with how the Church is responding. It is also true that no single person can be an expert in all of these areas, and equally true that, say, an expert in human rights can learn from an expert in health related issues. It is also the fact that those without expertise in any of them are deeply involved in them. So we’re all students learning from one another.

I am not an expert on international terrorism, but I’m getting on an airplane to fly to India, and the thought of exploding in flight takes the fun out of flying. What is the price of security? And when (or if) I get to India, no doubt I’ll be meeting Hindus, and learning about Hindu/Christian relations there. I am not an expert on health or poverty, but I will encounter disease, sickness and destitution. I will also be worshipping, praying and fellowshipping with other Christians, hoping that what we share in common as Christians will out-weigh any theological and cultural differences between us. I am the student. Let me first be curious and concerned. I’ll work on the epistemology later.

Who Are the IGCS Teachers?

You are. I am. When I am in India I will be posting threads daily, if possible, on the IGCS Forum. When I am there, I expect the pastors and laity will be curious to learn about my Christian experience, and curious about life in the United States and the territory of Puerto Rico. I hope to attract as many of them as possible with internet access to become students of the Church and globalization in other nations, and to become teachers of globalization and the Church from India. Naturally, I hope to make connections with experts in particular areas, but here’s another thing. These may not be the most meaningful experiences!

I think of Jesus outside of the temple with his disciples. They see a widow giving a mite. Jesus seized on this opportunity to teach us the value of money. God uses many that are wholly unaware they are serving as stellar examples to others. I expect to meet “widows” in India. I expect that God will use me as a “widow” for others. Let me first just go. I’ll work on the didactics in the process.