Taking Religion to School: Christian Theology and Secular Education

Religious Education, Spring 2001 by Harris-Ewing, Sharon

TAKING RELIGION TO SCHOOL: CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY AND SECULAR EDUCATION. By Stephen H. Webb. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Brazos Press, 2000. 253 pp.

Stephen Webb has described Taking Religion to School as the record of his own "quest for integrity in the classroom" (p. 13)-that is, a way of integrating faith and reason, religious life and professional development. An associate professor of religion and philosophy at Wabash College, Webb is also a committed Christian who has written a strong argument for "teaching religion religiously." His thesis is threefold. "First, the teaching of religion is a religious activity... Second, if teaching religion is a kind of religious activity, then it is of the utmost importance that teachers think through the intersection of theory and practice, reason and faith in their own lives.... Third, if teaching religion is a religious activity, high schools, colleges and universities need to give more scope for religious voices in the classroom and among religion faculty members" (pp. 15-16).

Webb begins with an autobiographical narrative. Growing up in a conservative, evangelical church community and attending public schools, he learned early to compartmentalize. Religion and religious voices were excluded from education. In college and graduate school, he pursued the intellectual study of religion, but his faith floundered. Now, teaching religion religiously allows-even requires-Webb to acknowledge his own faith commitments and encourages his students to confess their own as teacher and students learn together.

In seven additional chapters, Webb discusses at length many of the complex issues facing religion teachers in secular educational settings. He explores the fears many teachers have, the assertion that education in general is religious (he disagrees), the nature of confessions in the classroom, the impact of postmodern philosophy, one case history (the role of religion at Wabash College), and the latest trends in religious studies departments across North America. Webb also includes an extended dialogue with a colleague who disagrees with him. The result is an interesting and useful refinement of some of Webb's points.

Webb effectively weaves together personal, historical and contemporary perspectives in an insightful and passionate analysis. His ideas are fresh and thought provoking, even when the reader does not agree with all of his conclusions. To the extent that religious voices, perhaps especially evangelical religious voices, have in fact been silenced in religion classes, Webb's argument about creating a space in which they can be heard is compelling. To the extent that faith has been assigned to worshiping communities and reason to the academy, Webb is right that believers and students alike need to experience their interconnectedness.

On the other hand, while Webb acknowledges religious pluralism, he speaks explicitly from his Protestant Christian worldview and fails to discuss in any depth the implication of increasing pluralism for his model of teaching religion religiously. He dismisses far too easily assertions that religion should be taught objectively and neutrally, or that religion teachers need to avoid imposing their religion. These are important principles with legal and educational histories that cannot be simply discarded. Although Webb states that his analysis applies both to secondary and college level classrooms, he does not discuss important differences between these two contexts. His recommendations seem far more applicable to college and university settings in which there is a religious studies department than to high schools.

In a time when people of faith, educators, and even government officials are engaged in renewed conversations about the intersection of religion and education in our nation's classrooms and the public square, Taking Religion to School has an important contribution to make and is well worth reading.

Sharon Harris-Ewing

University of Buffalo