**UPDATE 2: I’ve put in an inquiry to Mark Weinstein and Lindsay Beals, Executive and Assistant Director of Public Relations respectively. I asked them if Dr. White would care to respond to any or all of our questions. I’ll let you know if I get a response…
**UPDATE 1: I’ve started a new section of other questions rolling in from students, alumni, and other concerned citizens. Let’s double my list, shall we?
Dear Dr. Thomas White,
Yesterday my alma mater, Cedarville University, announced that you are their new President. Let me be the 1st of Cedarville University’s distinguished alumni to congratulate you in a blog post! Let me also be the 1st of Cedarville’s alumni to question the wisdom of this decision.
Yes, sorry, party’s over. I’ll get right to it.
At the beginning of the official unveiling I broke the news and proceeded to express my dismay and concern regarding this seeming pivot toward the Southern Baptist Convention. Frankly, I’m concerned a cohort of activist Trustees (sort of like the “activist judges” conservative talk radio hosts bemoan from time to time) made this happen, and are using you to steer the University toward evangelical sectarianism.
Conspiratorial? Maybe. But I have just enough sources to confirm my suspicions, particularly because your election doesn’t appear to be an isolated incident. You can read my full perspective HERE, but here’s the skinny on my dismay and concern:
The Board of Trustees are narrowcasting around conservative myopia; they are seemingly aligning themselves with hard-right conservativism, á la the Southern Baptist Convention; they’re purging the school of people deemed theological dalits; and, perhaps most importantly, they’ve forgotten who their constituents are: millennial students.
And, unfortunately, it appears to many that you are the by-product of said narrowcasting, alignment, purging, and forgetfulness.
Now, Dr. White, I don’t know you, but I know quite a bit about the tribe from whence you come. And, more importantly, what’s been going on behind-the-scenes at your new home.
Hence my dismay and concern.
But I’m a reasonable guy. I generally like to give people the benefit of the doubt. And I think you deserve the same. I’d also like to give you the chance to prove my dismay and concern to be squarely in the Wrong Pile. So I jotted down a list of 25 questions I have for you and your new administration.
Yes. Twenty-five.
Now I realize you’re a busy guy. I’d imagine you’re probably still carting your library from your old digs at SWBTS to your new home in that mansion just off campus. You probably also have several soirées to attend, though since those are most certainly dry soirées there shouldn’t be any residual effect to get in the way of my little list.
So here they are, in four important categories: Cedarville’s Future Southern Baptist Convention Connection; The Role of Women in Your Administration; Student Body Concerns; and Faculty & Staff Concerns.
Many of these questions are directly related to concerns of the past (like academic freedom) and future (like the apparently developing material connection with the SBC), as well as hopes for the future (like the affirmation of women and alcohol as gifts from God). And judging by the thousands of visitors and hundreds of shares my post received yesterday, I’d say there’s a sizable group of people who have similar questions.
In advance, thank you for your care and concern for one alumnus’ set of questions, although I’m sure this list will grow as the collective alumni voice their dismay and concern. Please know these questions arise out of a spirit of love for a place that had a tremendous impact on me personally and professionally, and a place I once respected and felt proud to have on my resume.
Feel free to take the summer on these, even into the Fall. Though I imagine once Getting Started kicks in to high gear you’re gonna have your hands full!
Sincerely Yours,
Cedarville’s Future Southern Baptist Convention Connection
1) What type of material connection will Cedarville University have to the Southern Baptist Convention?
2) Is your election and soon-to-be installed Bible Chair (Jason Lee) a move to create an official affiliation with the Southern Baptist Convention?
3) Will Cedarville University become a Southern Baptist university?
4) Will faculty and staff continue to have the freedom to worship and serve in a community of their choosing?
5) Will faculty and staff be required to eventually join an SBC church? If the don’t will they be dismissed?
6) Will students continue to have the freedom to worship and serve in a community of their choosing?
7) Will students be required to join an SBC church? If the don’t will they be dismissed?
The Role of Women in Your Administration
8) What role will women play in your administration and Executive Leadership Team, Dr. White?
9) Why is there one woman and twenty-four men on the current Board of Trustees?
10) Do you find it acceptable, that only one woman sits on the Board of Trustees, President White?
11) If not, how will you make this right?
12) Under your administration, will a woman pastor be invited and welcomed to speak in chapel?
Student Body Concerns
13) What changes (i.e. dress code, open dorm hours, etc…), if any, that Dr. Carl Ruby made to student life while acting in the capacity of VP of Student Services will you roll-back ?
14) Will women students be encouraged or discouraged from pursuing full-time pastoral ministry as a vocation?
15) Will the College Democrats campus organization survive under your administration, Dr. White?
16) Would Soul Force be invited to campus under your administration, Dr. White, in order to foster dialogue with the potent issue of homosexuality in our culture?
17) What will happen to current and future gay Christian students under your administration, Dr. White?
18) If a newlywed student couple has a baby (presumably 9 months into their marriage…) and want to baptize that baby, will they be dismissed?
19) Will you finally lift the unbiblical prohibition on alcohol, considering Scripture itself explicitly permits and embraces and encourages it?
Faculty and Staff Concerns
20) One of the harshest criticisms leveled against the current Board by faculty and staff is the lack of transparency and openness. What steps will your administration take to be open and transparent in your dealings with campus policy changes, controversies, and conflict?
21) Given the diverse opinion within the Christian community, will faculty be required to believe and teach six-day literal creationism?
22) If faculty believe and teach a literary framework view of Genesis 1 and/or a Day-Age view of creation, will they be dismissed?
23) Will faculty and staff be able to publicly support Democratic political candidates, the Democratic Party, and the Democratic political platform without fear of retribution?
24) Will faculty and staff be able to publicly rebuke Republican political candidates, the Republican Party, and the Republican political platform without fear of retribution?
25) If a professor or staff member has a baby and has him/her baptized, will they be dismissed?
Other Questions from Concerned Individuals
26.) Do you fully concur with each and every aspect of Cedarville’s Doctrinal Statement, including the White Papers on Justification, Omniscience, and Creation?
27.) Do Christians have anything further to learn from dissenting opinions (on anything from marriage to the atonement) than how better to defend against those positions? That is, should a diverse education feel more like espionage against the enemy, or a conversation among friends?
28.) How do you plan on addressing the lies/half-truths told by administrators this past year at Cedarville? Looking back at how Cedarville spun the “resignations” of Drs. Bill Brown and Carl Ruby especially, will you tolerate behavior like that under your administration?
29.) Will there be more White Papers and doctrinal inquisitions of current faculty under your administration? Not even our most distinguished CU Bible Prof escaped doctrinal “review” recently.
30.) New faculty will undoubtedly be expected to fully affirm the doctrinal statement and the White Papers, but what do you plan to do with existing faculty who might be guilty of not toeing the doctrinal line closely enough?
31) Are there plans to add more female professors in the Bible Department (similar to Josh’s question below). Dr. White’s wife plans on teaching one class per semester and Dr. Fagan is still there. But can we expect more women being hired to teach theology?
32) Dr. White, do you consider pollution, waste, and the destruction of nature to be problems of concern that Christians should address? If so, how are you going to use your leadership to 1) address the problems; 2) require maintenance and facility operations to mitigate the university’s environmental footprint?
33) Dr White, how will you and your administration address and mitigate the perceived and experienced sexism of the University? (See questions 8-12)
PS—If you’re a Cedarville Student, a Cedarville Alumnus, or concerned bystander, please use the comment section to add to this list those questions you’re interested in asking yourself.
Regarding questions 4-6, oddly enough, students already have much more freedom to choose a church than the faculty do! Our now former Professor of Church History was not allowed to attend the church of his choosing, despite submitting an official appeal/request. How sad that, instead of consulting this man on the composition of an “approved faculty church list,” Cedarville ignored him and his request.
Regarding the questions on the role of women, I’d refer you to the failed bid of a highly-qualified female candidate during the search for the next Chair of the Bible Dept. last year after Chris Miller announced it would be his last year as Chair.
Apparently, there was concern that a female couldn’t be installed as Chair lest that be found offensive to certain churches where she might hypothetically be asked to preach from time to time as Cedarville’s Bible Chair. I wish I could say that this “concern” was handled graciously and professionally, but from what I’ve heard, that was not the case.
Given Dr. Paige Patterson’s views on women, I can’t say I have high hopes for the situation improving anytime soon.
Interesting—thanks for the info. Had not known about this bid. I realize this issue poses problems for an SBC affiliated President, not to mention incoming Bible chair. But considering Cedarville is a non-denomination institutional of higher education, it would go a long way in satisfying concerns about the affirmation of women and their spiritual gifts.
15) Will the College Democrats campus organization survive under your administration, Dr. White?
It’s been languishing for a while now, already.
College Democrats disbanded due to a lack of student/faculty support. It’s currently trying to get restarted, but there is still a lack of interest. They still don’t have an advisor.
They don’t have an advisor because faculty were told not to sponsor them. That info courtesy of the last student who tried to restart the organization.
Yikes! Can we say thought police?!
You need to quit posting speculation. It’s offensive to God. Just because someone posts something in the internet doesn’t make it so.
FYI, Jeremy, my advice is to ignore John. He escalates to online harassment and stalking fairly quickly; he’s actually stalked me online for years, at my blog and my Facebook. It started when I was still a student at Cedarville, and he tried to get me removed from my position at College Dems by sending them links to my boyfriend’s Facebook (apparently he said something semi-derogatory about Christians literally years before we dated. I didn’t know that, because John’s the one who took them time go through years of his social media history).
Summary: do not feed the troll.
Pure fabrication. Why the hatred? Making up stories and trying posting them so people can fall for them? We don’t know each other. Why the hate?
http://anthonybsusan.wordpress.com/2011/12/30/why-i-am-not-a-christian-part-2/
I may have strong views, biblically based, but I never, ever would resort to publicly trying to embarrass them,like you have attempted via the misuse of the internet. I am not the only one, since you have been banned from the official Cedarville Facebook pages because of what you claim that I do. I have zero vendettas against anyone that I don’t agree with. That’s me, and what Jesus would want of me.
Also, re:your questions on Democrats/Republicans above, I’d love to hear Dr. White’s reactions to Graves’/Mills’ Cedars piece…specifically on how they were treated in the comments sections.
http://cedars.cedarville.edu/article/481/Why-I-am-Not-Voting-for-Romney/
That’s the exact reason why I asked the questions 🙂
I figured as much
Just from an objective viewpoint, Drs. Mills & Graves had every right to publish that piece, but their presentation and interpretation of economic data is at best biased. Even as one that has worked for Governor Romney’s campaign, I fought hard as a member of CU SGA to secure leaders for College Dems (I echo Carson’s comments, not enough student/faculty interest). I wholly embrace everyone’s 1st Amendment rights to present their arguments, and I think Cedarville should be much more receptive to fielding arguments from positions opposite of themselves, but the conclusions drawn from Graves/Mills data have little to know proof behind them. Purely from an economic perspective.
Name Democrat planks that are supported by the Testament that serious Christians can support. God will not support the murder of the unborn, or a twisted view is what a marriage in the sight of God is, or coveting the rich’s goods, or using the poor for political reasons…
The reason the group failed is that unity in Christ, and unity in the doctrines of God prevailed. Serious Christians tend to be unified in issues of biblical morality. Again, no one is stopping an unofficial group.
Suggested Addition(s):
1. Do you fully concur with each and every aspect of Cedarville’s Doctrinal Statement, including the White Papers on Justification, Omniscience, and Creation?
2. Do Christians have anything further to learn from dissenting opinions (on anything from marriage to the atonement) than how better to defend against those positions? That is, should a diverse education feel more like espionage against the enemy, or a conversation among friends?
3. How do you plan on addressing the lies/half-truths told by administrators this past year at Cedarville? Looking back at how Cedarville spun the “resignations” of Drs. Bill Brown and Carl Ruby especially, will you tolerate behavior like that under your administration?
Furthermore:
4. Will there be more White Papers and doctrinal inquisitions of current faculty under your administration? Not even our most distinguished CU Bible Prof escaped doctrinal “review” recently.
New faculty will undoubtedly be expected to fully affirm the doctrinal statement and the White Papers, but what do you plan to do with existing faculty who might be guilty of not toeing the doctrinal line closely enough?
Excellent set of questions, Josh! I’m going to start a new section for incoming questions. What do you think: can we crest 50 by evening?
I imagine so!
Cedarville alumna here. I loved my time at Cedarville and am sad to see the direction it is headed. I would love to hear answers to all of your questions, but specifically about women in administration, alcohol (especially if they would lift the ban for faculty members even if they kept it in place for students) and paedobaptism.
Additionally, I would like to know if there are plans to add more female professors in the Bible Department (similar to Josh’s question below). I read that Dr. White’s wife plans on teaching one class per semester and Dr. Fagan is still there. But can we expect more women being hired to teach theology?
Excellent Callie! Yes, can we expect more women being hired to teach theology? What role will they play will be an important signal…
With Dr. Fagan gone, i doubt there will be any women in the Bible department, except for Dr. white’s wife who teaches a class on being a pastor’s wife once a semester.
As an alum that was involved with and briefly led CU’s environmental org, I am left wondering how it will fair under leadership that likely doesn’t even consider pollution, waste, and the destruction of nature as a problem. In addition to all the great concerns you raised as well.
How’s this for a question on your behalf: Dr. White, do you consider pollution, waste, and the destruction of nature to be problems of concern that Christians should address? If so, how are you going to use your leadership to 1) address the problems; 2) require maintenance and facility operations to mitigate the university’s environmental footprint?
That sounds great! We always felt like we had some general support from faculty, students, and admin or at least very little opposition for what some might describe as a ‘liberal’ org but who knows what will happen now….
This is not a Great Commission issue. “Require”??? Did you know that the USA is way less polluted now than in the 60’s? It’s one thing not to pollute or throw trash out the car window, but it’s another thing to base environmental religious beliefs on junk science and force them on others by telling them not to drive, or use plastic. If one is really concerned about “saving the planet”, they can do it on their own as an individual. It’s arrogance for a Christian to think they can actually “save the planet” from some imagined environmental disaster. Beyond me putting stuff in the taxpayer provided recycle container, I am not that concerned about “saving the planet”. God is in control of it. There are way more pressing concerns for Christians, like evangelizing the lost. They need Jesus first so they won’t be separated from God forever.
I would classify the question as a “what’s that have to do with anything” category. How does it affect my education to get a job to raise my family? It does not.
As the former VP of College Democrats: thanks for addressing the future of that beleaguered organization! And thanks, too, for addressing the role of women. Cedarville was sexist when I entered in 2006 and I’m concerned that sexism will only worsen under the current administration.
Sorry I’m just now getting to respond. I think there’s a question in there—33) Dr White, how will you and your administration address and mitigate the perceived and experienced sexism of the University? (See questions 8-12) Hows that?
That’s great, thanks!
You’re a pastor! Act like it. Be an example of grace and love as you have been shown. This article although containing truth, reeks of disrespect and undeserved bias.
What does me being a pastor have to do with anything? I would imagine the fact you are a Worship Arts Director for a Baptist church probably plays into your offense more than my supposed disrespect or bias…
Ex-pastor Jerry,
The snarkiness of the response to someone that you didn’t see eye to eye with you is amazing. I cannot tell if you are really that naive, lack discernment, ignorant of applying the Bible to the “conversation” at hand, or the desire to coddle those that have blasphemed and disgraced God and/ or His people.
If you would even attempt to research the likes of Sarah Jones (atheist and hater of God and His people, stemming from her CU days). Sarah was a recipient of a full ride scholarship to CU, and hated everything she disagreed with, and did a James 3 thing with her speech while there. In fact, she does the James 3 thing ever since. She constantly used social media to tell her problems of being manic/depressive, bipolar for all to see. Who knows if it’s true? She posts weird stuff like that. That may explain her addiction to lying, not living in reality.
Jenny Castelani, who also loves to use and post weird things on her social media….”viva the vulva” is one of her famous lines. Note, Jerry, vulva is not a car, ask your wife….
Joshy Steele is a social activist that makes “issues” out of nothing, and repukes old liberal topics covered before. How many times over the decades does a refashioned “can females be pastors” issue vomits up? A female “pastor” is automatically out of the will of God, it’s a Bible thing. Joshy also had no problems with receiving CU scholarship funds amid this “sowing of discord”….hypocrite. $$$$$$
Joshy even shows his contempt for God’s people by referring to them as “Bible thumpers”. Jesus Himself quoted the Old Testament all the time, is Jesus a “Bible thumper” too? There are lots of us stable Christians that love God, His written word, and His will for us supremely. We have no need to “deconstruct” anything to please ourselves. Of course, the Holy Spirit’s role is to adjust us so we can be more like Him.
FYI, You really need to just delete this entire “25 Questions” blog topic since it is outdated, as well as filled with “gotcha” and nonsense questions. Let’s be nice and call them insincere questions, with the questioner not really wanting a real answer to start with. I hope the questions were ignored to the glory of God.
Remember the CU game of “stump the prof”? It’s when a college aged child tries to get the prof tongue tied with an insincere question with bad motives. That was all this “25 Questions” thing was.
Let’s delete this entire 25 Questions thing, to God’s glory, and for your cleansing of this blog of nonsense. Have a great day!
Hi Jeremy, great blog post! I hope Dr. White will address all of our concerns. Just an FYI on John Eric Spieker: He regularly harrasses people who do not share his perspectives. CU Alumni Relations has even apologized to alumni because of his harrassment. You’ll likely need to monitor his comments. (He will probably even say something nasty about me just for speaking up in 3… 2… 1…)
Great minds, Jen.
That’s a fabricated story, Why the need to follow people around that if you don’t like their convictions? I don’t know you, neither do you know me. How is this post even related to this article? I have no vendettas, do you?
Jeremy, I am the parent of a high school senior who is looking at Cedarville as a possible place to go. When I read through your questions, it appears to me that they go one of two directions – either asking about the future of the university based on the background of the new president, or asking about changes that may be made to undo changes that have been made recently. Is this valid? I ask this second part primarily towards questions 13-25. You raise issues concerning infant baptism, homosexuality, women in the ministry, a literal interpretation of Scripture, etc., but it is difficulty to know whether you want the university to move to those positions, or if the university is already there but you are concerned they will move to a different, more conservative position. Any insight you can give to this would be very much appreciated as I want what is best for my daughter! Thank you!
Hi Bryan,
Thanks for writing—especially since you’ve undertaken the important journey of finding a good school that will shape your daughter well. I think you hit on the nature of my questions well, mainly they center around where CU is heading based on inside info I have on White and also existing policies I fear will be rolled back under his and the boards leadership.
Questions 13-25 are especially targeted at the narrowness I see from the SBC that I anticipate will infect the student life and policies of the university:
I raise infant baptism because a friend of mine who is solidly evangelical is getting his PhD from a well respected seminary that’s part of a denomination that embraces infant baptism. That was enough to send up the red flags and deny him an open teaching slot—that’s now been given to one of three SBC PhD students without discertations.
I reference homosexuality not because I believe the university should embrace practicing homosexuals or should condone same-sex marriage, but because I know former VP of Student Services, Dr. Ruby, was in part dismissed because of his pastoral posture toward the issue—not only with students who have same-sex attraction but also dialoguing with opposition groups in order to inform the student body of this contemporary conversation (i.e. bringing SoulForce to campus). For several trustees this posture was too open—that and he was pro-immigration! So they ousted him.
These are just two examples of where CU is heading—as I said “narrowcasting around conservative myopia” of the Southern Baptist variety that is taking it from the decade of moderate evangelicalism (think Wheaton) that had been carefully cultivated under the direction of Brown and Ruby (BTW I graduated just as Brown came in…so my perspective on him and his administration is based on friends who attended as students and faculty who taught while he was there).
I have no problem with conservatism, per se. I would put myself in that camp, although of a more moderate variety. My problem is with fundamentalism, which is where I see CU heading based my knowledge of recent events and conversations with current faculty. One person put it this way: “We almost are, in effect, [an SBC school] and we will be more so in a few years. But the clever approach the trustees and White have agreed to is that they are saying we will never be an SBC school and we’ll remain independent. White explained it in the town hall meeting. The trustees are a self-perpetuating board and if they wanted to be an official SBC school, they’d have to give over the power to the SBC to appoint board members. They don’t want to do that. So, we’ll have it both ways. We’ll never be a SBC school, but the board is free to choose SBC members and hire SBC people for the university all the want. Smart.”
If you and your daughter like the SBC, then CU will be the right fit. If not, I’d steer clear and look elsewhere. I wish it weren’t the case. CU had a significant impact on me while there from 98-02. But based on things I’ve heard and witnessed, it’s been overtaken by hard-right SBC folk, which isn’t for me and isn’t good for fostering well-rounded, engaging students.
Blessings on your search…and good for you for helping your daughter along!
-jeremy
Thank you so much for taking the time for such a thorough response. You have given me much to think about, and I am very appreciative of your time and effort to provide this information for me.
You’re welcome! And please know this is one person’s perspective. I know a lot goes into decisions like this—so hopefully this information will prove useful as you and your daughter find what’s best for her, either way.
I dont like White’s bias against women. It seems as though he has driven women out of positions he does not want them in and has put limits on how far up the admin ladder and what ministry positions a woman can hold.
As far as a female pastor being invited to speak in chapel, from what Ive seen so far I would be surprised if he allowed it. He needs to think outside the bubble on this and any other potential speaker he would deem too liberal. I fondly remember a chapel (maybe the spring of 2000) where a man spoke for 2 days. One day he played the video to “Numb” by U2. I remember some very conservative girl students, dressed almost in Mennonite garb, that ran out crying because of what they had seen in the video. It was the funniest but most pathetic thing I had witnessed in chapel. His point was to tell us not to live in a bubble, ignoring and hiding from the bubble that was Cedarville. It was important to realize that there was a real world that we would be thrown into after graduation. A world that would not coddle and baby us, a world that we needed to be ready to embrace and deal with. The next day Dr. Dixon publicly chastised those who ran out and reiterated that there is a real world out there. White needs to realize this, and while it is important not to foster a worldly view, he has to realize that the world is out there and students need to prepare to be a testimony to Christ, rather than hide from what they do not want to see or confront, because it will confront them whether they like it or not.
As far as the prohibition on alcohol goes, I have somewhat liberal views and believe that moderate consumption is ok if it is in a setting that does not cause another to stumble. When I have a drink it is in moderation and not around someone who would be offended by it, a non believer who may view it as a bad testimony or new believer who may stumble over it, etc. As far as prohibition at Cedarville goes, if you do not agree with it and wish to have a drink and your beliefs permit it, then have a moderate drink and keep quiet about it. Thats what I did.
Yes