Princeton was originally founded in 1746 as the College of New Jersey, established by royal charter for “the Education of Youth in the Learned Languages and in the Liberal Arts and Sciences,” and unique in that the charter allowed the attendance of “any Person of any religious Denomination whatsoever.” The absence of an official denominational affiliation or criteria for attendance did not, however, connote the absence of strong denominational ties. To the contrary, Princeton was founded by “New Light” Presbyterians of the Great Awakening for the purpose of training Presbyterian ministers. Jonathan Dickinson, a Presbyterian minister and leader of the Great Awakening of the 1730s, was the school’s co-founder and first president. (Princeton has a $13-billion endowment.)
Princeton alumnus James Madison (class of 1771) observed, “The belief in a God All Powerful wise and good, is so essential to the moral order of the world and to the happiness of man, that arguments which enforce it cannot be drawn from too many sources nor adapted with too much solicitude to the different characters and capacities impressed with it.”
Yet today, these institutions, like the rest of the Ivy League schools—Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth and Penn—and upper-tier institutions across the nation under the tutelage of wealthy trustees and elite academicians - tend to eschew all things Christian.
The latest chapter of Christian heritage eradication in academia is being written at the nation’s second oldest university, William and Mary, chartered in 1693 in Williamsburg, Virginia, as an Anglican college.
At the behest of university president Gene Nichol, the removal of the historic Wren Chapel altar cross has been ordered “in order to make it less of a faith-specific space, and to make it more welcoming to students, faculty, staff, and visitors of all faiths.” The Wren Chapel was constructed in 1732 as “a faith-specific space,” and the cross was a gift from nearby Bruton Parish Church, founded in 1674. Bruton is the oldest continually operated Episcopal Church in America. George Washington, Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson worshipped there prior to the Revolution.
Nichol wrote, “Our Chapel, like our entire campus, must be welcoming to all. I believe a recognition of the full dignity of each member of our diverse community is vital. Though we haven’t meant to do so, the display of a Christian cross... sends an unmistakable message that the chapel belongs more fully to some of us than to others... The Wren is no mere museum or artifact. It touches every student who enrolls at the college. It defines us. And it must define us all.”
Of course, removal of the Wren cross does not “define” William and Mary. To the contrary, it redefines William and Mary. Perhaps Mr. Nichol (and his colleagues in similar posts across the nation) should size up the eye of a needle before exiling the last vestiges of Christianity from their hallowed halls.
A William and Mary graduate once mused, “Can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are the gift of God? That they are not to be violated but with his wrath? Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just: that his justice cannot sleep forever.” The name of that esteemed alumnus? Thomas Jefferson.
Quote of the week
“Thomas Jefferson, William and Mary’s most famous alum, described the teachings of Jesus Christ as ‘[T]he most sublime and benevolent code of morals which has ever been offered to man.’ Surely the continued presence of a religious symbol celebrating the life of a man who advocated one to, ‘Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you,’ is in accordance with William and Mary’s highest values.” —Lieutenant Hunter Abell (W&M ‘02)
(My Note: Does any Christian really fail to see what our country once was and what the devil is doing to it?)
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