Called to the Life of the Mind: Some Advice for Evangelical Scholars

by Richard J. Mouw

“I wasn’t supposed to spend my life in the world of scholarship,” Richard Mouw acknowledges at the beginning of Called to the Life of the Mind. Yet he has indeed spent his career in the academy -- and has become one of the most widely respected evangelical Christian scholars of our time.

In this wise little book Mouw defends Christian scholarship as an important and legitimate endeavor, responding in particular to those traditions that continue to be suspicious of intellectual pursuits. Writing in an inviting, conversational style, Mouw reflects candidly on the faithful Christian cultivation of the life of the mind and offers gentle advice on how Christians, especially evangelicals, might fruitfully navigate the world of the academy as followers of Jesus.

Genres: Theology, Nonfiction, Education, Christianity, Philosophy, Christian, Christian Living

82 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 27, 2014

About the author

Richard John Mouw is a theologian and philosopher. He held the position of President at Fuller Theological Seminary for 20 years (1993-2013), and continues to hold the post of Professor of Faith and Public Life.

Reviews

[Brother Brandon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Recommended to me by a good friend.

In this short ~80-page book, Mouw gives us a brief introduction on why we need Christians in the academic setting (Christian and secular) and the need for all Christians to pursue deep thinking with regard to the Christian faith and the "big questions".

[Jeremy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Recommendations by J.I. Packer, James K.A. Smith, Mark A. Noll, Roger E. Olson, and others.

Chapter 1: The Price
1: Mouw was the son of an evangelical preacher and was encouraged to follow in his father's steps (the real work of God, as opposed to being in the academy); too much anti-intellectual rhetoric from the pulpit; "you don't need exegesis, you just need Jesus"; the only necessary school is "the Holy Ghost's school of the Bible"
2: college student who said that Christians don't need to worry about philosophical questions, because Jesus is the answer
3: Mouw was inspired by Frank Gaebelein (headmaster at Stony Brook School), who spoke of the price of loving God with our minds: self-restraint and hard work

Chapter 2: Accusing Voices
5: Mouw defended his philosophy dissertation at the University of Chicago in 1970; had to combat accusing voices that said he had compromised with the world
6: anti-intellectualism comes from the pietist movement (Mouw concedes that there is a spiritual battle, and that the intellect is often on the wrong side of that fight)
7: Thomas à Kempis's The Imitation of Christ opens with a false choice: either study philosophy, or serve God
8: yes, graceless knowledge is possible, but so is graceful knowledge

Chapter 3: The Value Question
10: too much focus on the intellect is elitist—not every Christian is called to cultivate this part professionally
11: a healthy Christian community supports Christians who are called to cultivate the life of the mind; Mouw used to teach philosophy at Calvin College

Chapter 4: The Need for Calisthenics
13: there's a connection between tedious sports training and seemingly useless seminary training (though at the time, it might feel mindless)
14: Simone Weil says that spending time (unsuccessfully) working on a geometry problem is progress in the life of the mind

Chapter 5: Not Too Much Haste
16: John Henry Newman says developing the mind is good in itself (not that it's separated from God, but that such development doesn't have to have an immediate, clear connection to something "practical" or "useful")
17-18: not every study must be directly related to liberating the oppressed (that would rule out the study of pure sciences), unless "oppression" is defined broadly, as in "a world in which good poetry doesn't exist"; being liberated to live in a world without access to knowledge and beauty is not much of a liberation, and someone should be working to produce that access to knowledge and beauty, even if it doesn't directly liberate people; cultivating insights into God's creation is a way of loving the Creator

Chapter 6: The Disillusionment
19: there is another option for Christians besides the withdrawal/domination binary: doing cultural good without gaining control; John Howard Yoder on engaging culture in a spirit of patience [going to Yoder for cultural engagement advice seems like going to Tchividjian for marriage advice]
19-20: the fundamentalist-liberal battle was over education, and when the fundamentalists seem to lose that battle, the academy lost its appeal; part of this was related to the evolution issue (naturalism was opposed to Christianity); fundamentalists turned to Bible institutes and practical training ("Our only textbook, the Bible")

Chapter 7: Humility and Hope
21: 9/11 described as exposing the anemia of postmodernism; Stanley Fish and the lack of objective truth (or at least access to it)
23: we're finite, but we have our finite places in God's grand scheme

Chapter 8: Navigating the "Square Inches"
25: fundamentalists scorned the evangelical interest in intellectual engagement
25-26: tone is often triumphalist or dominionist; Kuyper's "square inch" needs to be tempered with Arthur Holmes's "epistemic humility" and "epistemic hope"

Chapter 9: A Communal Task
29: universities founded "by communities of people who believed that the academic calling had a profound religious significance"; Lutheran scholar Mark Schwehn on "spiritual virtues" and the "borrowed fund of moral capital"
31: MacIntyre's Benedict option ("withdraw into strong, faith-based academic communities where we maintain the patterns of civility in our internal communal lives") is "defective" because "the monastic tradition in Roman Catholicism was never seen simply as an abandonment of everything that existed beyond the boundaries of the abbey"—"monastic communities formed a subset of a broader system of 'orders,' all of which were seen as making a contribution to the overall social and cultural scheme of things"
32-33: it takes a special calling to work in the academy

Chapter 10: Mutual Encouragement
36: convention/conference sessions on the role of faith in particular disciplines can be very encouraging for teachers

Chapter 11: Safe Spaces for "Playing Around"
38: Mormon scholars wanting a safe space to try out their ideas in dialogue
38-39: relaxation and playfulness can be good things

Chapter 12: Academic "Body Life"
41-43: the body metaphor is useful for lots of groups, including the academy: many functions, many gifts; popularizers are necessary too, even if some scholars don't take them as seriously

Chapter 13: Academic "Hopes and Fears"
45-46: Simone Weil on Christ and truth
46: John Henry Newman on stepping out in faith
48-49: the church should develop resources for scholars

Chapter 14: Critique as a "Moment"
51: Matthew Arnold on seeing life steadily and whole
52-53: Peter Berger on academic ecstasy (intellectual detachment); C. Stephen Evans on despair as a moment and despair as a way of life—Mouw applies this concept to critical distancing
53: 19c Dutch theologian Herman Bavinck on two conversions (away from the world, and back to the world)—we love God's created reality better that way [cf. the last paragraph in my statement of teaching philosophy]

Chapter 15: Reality Lovers
55: Craig Dykstra on shaping students to deeply love the created reality
56: God cares about the depths, not just the surfaces—and we should too; we need to "make connections and cultivate a proper awe and sense of mystery about the depths of created being"

Chapter 16: Honoring Creation
57-58: Mouw doesn't believe in a young earth creation, and he thinks that those who do risk a crisis of faith
58: Christians have to resist notions of constructed truth

Chapter 17: Beholders
59: pre-Socratic philosophers (fragments) and Aristotle
60: Pieper's Only the Lover Sings—we are here to behold

Chapter 18: Being Like Jesus in the Academy
63: Mouw is an ethicist
64: asking WWJD can lead to some strange situations
64-65: Yoder on imitating Christ in his suffering; Yoder and Mouw disagree on general revelation and a common moral consciousness (Mouw is more optimistic about these sources)
65-66: Luther seemed to be more sensitive than Calvin when it comes to "the tragic dimensions of politics" [not convinced; Luther was all over the place]; reference to Luther's "On Secular Authority"
67: Keller's story about someone's surprise at someone else's taking the blame for her

Chapter 19: A Loom for Weaving
69: sonnet by Edna St. Vincent Millay (proliferation of knowledge, but not wisdom)—no loom to weave the pieces together
70: postmodern rejection of metanarrative; in Plato's Meno, Socrates says not to be discouraged by a swarm of virtues as opposed to a unified virtue
71: knowing that Christ holds all things together and knows all things should make us patient

Endnotes
73-74: citations from Frank Gaebelein's The Christian, the Arts, and Truth, Thomas à Kempis's The Imitation of Christ, Simone Weil's Waiting for God, John Henry Newman's The Idea of a University, William Ringenberg's The Christian College, Stanley Fish's "Postmodern Warfare," Abraham Kuyper's "Sphere Sovereignty," Arthur Holmes's Contours of a World View, Mark Schwehn's Exiles from Eden, Alasdair MacIntyre's After Virtue, C. Stephen Evans's Despair, Craig Dykstra's "Communities of Conviction and the Liberal Arts," Josef Pieper's Only the Lover Sings, and Plato's Meno.

[Rachel · Rating 2 out of 5]

The overall message of this book is a good one. Not everyone is called to study theology academically. But those who are should take it seriously and seek to enjoy and rest in God’s Word.

This book has a few good points, but most of it is kind of unnecessary. Maybe I would have enjoyed it more when I was still in school.

IMO, there are too many personal stories and anecdotes. I don’t pick up books like this to hear about something that happened 50 years ago that has nothing to do with the point the book is supposed to be making. I chose to read this book because I love theology and I did study it academically. So I thought maybe it would be more theological. When he did bring up something biblical or theological, he never fully explained what he was trying to say… he danced around it, which just leaves the reader hanging.

A few more things: I found the part about Mother Teresa to be very strange. And then the part about young earth creationism was completely unnecessary and a little weird as well. This book was not cohesive in thought. It was like listening to someone ramble about 47 different concepts but not diving into any of them.

Perhaps this would be helpful to someone in seminary but it wasn’t helpful for me.

[Bob · Rating 5 out of 5]

Summary: A collection of reflective essays by one of the deans of evangelical scholarship on the calling and importance of the Christian scholarly task.

This is an absolute gem of a book!

Rarely am I so effusive about a title but this short collection of pithy essays that I devoured in an afternoon is a quite wonderful gift to anyone who loves Christ and loves scholarly work and wonders what a life pursuing these loves might look like.

Mouw begins by admitting his own surprise in discovering his vocation as a scholar, having grown up in a conservative evangelicalism in which, “you don’t need exegesis, you just need Jesus.” He discusses the “accusing voices” that considered the intellectual life dangerous to the soul, concluding that while there is something to those warnings, it is possible to be both a rigorous scholar and a devout lover of God. He affirms the value of scholarship against the larger value of God’s kingdom, the importance of the tedious intellectual “calisthenics” necessary for the fruit of rigorous scholarship, and the value of not needing to make hasty applications of what we discover.

He goes on to explore how evangelical scholars engage the wider scholarly world, eschewing either withdrawal or “takeover.” He pleads for a scholarship that is both humble and hopeful, that recognizes that all the Kuyperian “square inches” over which Jesus is Lord belong to him but will only be perfectly known by us in eternity. He speaks of the communal character of Christian scholarly work, that scholars may help one another in a “shared commitment to creative teaching and scholarship.”

I found this last proposal particularly intriguing, as Mouw framed this in terms of an academic “religious order” in which Christian scholars working at Christian institutions might also encourage the “dispersed believers” working at more secular institutions. Engaging the conversation about a “Benedict option“, he calls rather for a more truly Benedictine-type engagement that both strengthens the church and has a renewing influence in the world.

The concluding essays discuss the unique opportunity of the academy as a safe place for intellectual exploration, the various roles played in academia from serious scholarship to “populizers”, the hopes and fears of academic pilgrimage with its unknowns, the dangers of critique becoming a way of life, rather than a moment during our work, and the unique perspective we have because we believe in creation–that truth is a discovery of creation and not a creation in and of itself.

In his last essays, he returns to the theme of humility and hope, concluding with these words:

“If we effectively appropriate these attitudes — humility and hope — we can display the kind of patience that is capable of tolerating complexities and living with seemingly unconnected particularities without giving in to despair or cynicism. To show forth this kind of approach to intellectual complexities is to perform an important ministry — a Christ-like ministry — in the present day academy.”

This collection of essays is one that I would suggest every Christian scholar keep handy for those moments when one may be tempted to cynicism or despair about the future of the academy or is in need of a refreshed vision for one’s calling. Joining Mouw in his reflections on the humble and hopeful task of scholarly work under Christ may be just the encouraging word needed to enable one to press on in the academic journey.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

The history of evangelicalism and the life of the mind is both well-chronicled and checkered. While Jonathan Edwards is hailed by some as the greatest intellect (not just evangelical intellect) in American history, suspicion and anger has often boiled over from within evangelicalism against the university world. The 1925 Scopes Trial, for example, set off decades of distrust that affected generations of Bible-believing Christians.

Richard Mouw, former president of Fuller Seminary, is one such believer. He admired those who voiced simple faith in the face of intellectual challenges. Today Mouw is still sympathetic to those who think that being educated can draw one away from being holy. But he knows too that this is a false choice. One can also be a godly thinker or a sinful dimwit.

In these winsome reflections, Mouw chronicles the influences which helped him—Frank Gaebelein, Houghton College, mentors on the faculty at Calvin College and more. They helped him see that our minds are gifts from God, and we disparage the Giver if we disparage the gift. The issue is not a choice between faith or reason. It is one of embracing faith infused reason and reason infused faith.

This brief and gentle book offers wise and supportive counsel to anyone affected by certain strains of Christian anti-intellectualism. It is well worth its modest price.

[Brian Virtue · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this a lot, but it's a short book of short reflections with wisdom for the life of the evangelical scholar and more importantly, communities of evangelical scholars. There's a lot of wisdom that is not often captured in other places and can only come from someone who's gained it through walking that path with humility and insight.

One of the things I found of great value, especially as someone who has been in the majority world for a significant amount of time, was Mouw's engagement over things like anti-intellectualism in evangelicalism. I sometimes forget historical perspective and still get surprised when I run into patterns of thinking that reject deep thinking and authentic efforts and scholarship for the sake of knowing God and serving this and future generations towards that end. There are indeed extremes to avoid, but good and thoughtful leadership is needed to mobilize communities toward something better. Some of those insights and reminders were worth it alone for me, but found it to be a thoughtful and accessible window into what makes for a healthy, vibrant, and God-honoring life of scholarship in academic community.

[Roman Purshaga · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the main themes of the book is the danger of false dichotomies. There is always a pressure to see both Christian and academic life as walking a tightrope between two poles (fundamentalism vs secularism; literalist vs revisionist; etc.). These dichotomies are not only dangerous as they polarize people, but also because they give a certain self-confidence that resembles arrogance and pride. Mouw’s “epistemic hope” and “epistemic humility” are so helpful in fighting this arrogance and pride. Understanding one’s finiteness in relation to God’s eternal knowledge serves as a grounding element which doesn’t still the joy and curiosity. We should see objects in the “mirror dimly,” and that should not frustrate us, although it will. Rather, it must take us back to “epistemic hope” and “epistemic humility.”

[Daniel Supimpa · Rating 3 out of 5]

A series of essays dealing with an interesting and personal perspective of an evangelical diving - and swimming - into the intellectual world. If you come from a similar background as Mouw - which I do - you might enjoy the argument pro-validity of the intellectual vocation. I particularly liked Mouw's last chapter on applying 1 Corinthians 13:12 as a dialectical guideline for Christian scholars following both the "epistemic of humility" ("We now know things in part") and the "epistemic of hope" ("We shall know things completely"). It is a good entryway for a Christian take on the life of the mind.

[Glen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This slim volume by the esteemed Christian philosopher, Mouw, has an endearing quality. The audience to whom he writes is primarily the academic community, yet we all who care about the thought life of a disciple can benefit from his pondering.

If I could summarize the flow of this narrative it would be that like: herein is a godly intellectual openly navigating what it means for our thought lives to be fully engaged in our faith walk with Jesus. There is a warmth and positivity to Mouw's short essays. Very enjoyable.

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

As an academic this gave me food for thought. I have struggled more than I even realized with faith and the pursuit of knowledge. Bringing these together has become a new priority in recent years. I think I have always compartmentalized in unhealthy and unholy ways and I’m thankful to have works like this to help me move forward.

[Ryan Garrett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very brief but quite excellent collection of essays about the life of the mind for Christians. For anyone who enjoys intellectual pursuits or for those in the professional academy (at likely any level) this is a needful reminder for Believers to seek truth boldly. Mouw’s call to both humility and hope is well put and necessary. Highly recommended for those interested in faithful scholarship.

[Matthew C. · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are some good nuggets here and there, but ultimately this was a collection of meandering musings that I found to be half-baked and thus not especially useful. No doubt there is much thought work that led to each of his mini-conclusions, though, and I don't necessarily disagree with them. The booklet format doesn't seem to work in this one (for myself at least).

[Nathan Whitley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good

Mouw offers an interesting introduction to the life of the Christian scholar. Mouw is very pastoral in his advice and encouragement in a needed discipline within the body of Christ.

[Dane Rich]

Not really the kind of book you rate. It’s more like reading the thoughtful advice of a wisened Christian scholar. Take what you will, leave what you won’t. It’s easy reading, like a white wine on a cool evening. Gentle but pleasurable notes

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very short chapters--easy read--to encourage academic work among those who consider themselves evangelicals.

[Радостин Марчев · Rating 5 out of 5]

Чудесна малка книжка! Все повече харесвам Моу.

[Joseph Hamrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good read.

[Timothy Hui · Rating 5 out of 5]

All Christian academics should read this book before and during their tenure in the academy.

[Jon Cheek · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this brief book. Some excellent points. A few disagreements.

[Zak Schmoll · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an excellent little book. I bought it because it was on sale for Kindle, but I am very glad I did. I think this serves as an important corrective to some of our temptations to say if one is not called to the "ministry" formally, their endeavors are not "Christian." We need Christians in all fields to serve as Christians where they have been blessed, and that includes higher education. This is a very practical book. 80 pages, not much to it. You can read it in an hour, but I would definitely recommend it.

[George · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brief, graceful, and wise.

[Jeremy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brief, insightful, and worthwhile.

[Kevin Fulton · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice, accessible, quick read

[Jacob · Rating 1 out of 5]

big squish

[Scott Gercken · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book consists of friendly advice to aspiring Christian scholars from a university philosophy professor in the form of short, but contiguous essays. The author was brought up as the son of a Christian preacher in a pietist, anti-intellectual environment. He tells of his conversion, so to speak, from being an unthinking, unquestioning, and perhaps naive Christian fundamentalist to being a Christian unafraid of the blessings of higher academia. He briefly outlines how he squared his vocation with a simple faith with encouraging words for those who would follow in his footsteps.

While the author counts himself a thoroughgoing Calvinist, his writing does not demonstrate that he has fully shed the pietism of his youth. However, he favorably recalls passages from Luther treating on Christian vocation, though not from the works a Luther scholar might expect!

Called to the Life of the Mind can be read in the space of an afternoon, easily. The brevity of the book, in some cases, disallows potentially more beautiful discussions of Christian vocation, especially in the last chapter. The images of weaving and wisdom beg for deeper conversation.

While I don't intend to suffix my "Amen" to the author's every point, I would nonetheless challenge a Christian reader who holds academia in small esteem to think the author's thoughts with him. Such a reader may find their mental furniture sufficiently rearranged to be open to the Christian calling to the life of the mind.

[Christopher Rush · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you were thinking "another one of those, huh?" you were correct. Yes, "another one of those." Telling us nothing new, nothing fresh, though telling us sporadically something worth hearing, Richard Mouw - with all due respect, remember - seems like he is giving us random thoughts to make some quick cash. If you've never read any of the other dozens of "yes, Christians should use their brains" books, this may seem like a fair place to start because it is so short, but I can't recommend it strongly, though. It's not very impressive, nor is it even memorable. He has a few good lines here and there, I admit freely, but the entire thing is a chore. The ridiculously brief "chapters" add to the frustration, in that they give us the impression he never elaborates on his ideas fully or meaningfully - they are all just floating notions with no coherence or substance. His "advice" is likewise forgettable, something about "be nice to people and use your brains" or something. I dunno. On the bright side, it is better than Scandal of the Evangelical Mind, so it has that going for it at least. Emphasis on "least."

[Jonathan Washburn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable and encouraging, if not provocative.

The struggle against the false dichotomy of anti-intellectualism vs. "knowledge for knowledge's sake" is real and damaging in the lives of many believers.
In "Called to the life of the mind," Richard Mouw places both ends of the paradox in their proper place, splitting the horns of the dilemma right down the middle.

The church needs Christian academics, and Christian academics need the church. "A healthy Christian community is one in which at least a segment of that community is encouraged, on behalf of the whole, to '5$8'k about it' in consistent and rigorous ways."

[Robert Lyon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Favorite Quote: "We serve a God who cares about the depths - and the breadth and the heights - of the reality that he has created: 'The earth is the LORD's and the fullness thereof, the world and all who dwell therein" (Psalm 24:1). We scholars study various aspects of that world, but we must do it in the awareness that what we focus on is indeed a part of the fullness of a created reality that we are also called to love - and in loving to see, so that we can make connections and cultivate a proper awe and sense of mystery about the depths of created being." pg. 56

[Jordan J. Andlovec · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mercifully short, poignant wisdom from a humble, hopeful scholar. If you're a Christian in academia, take an hour and read this book, you won't regret it.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful, almost poetic grouping of essays and reflections by Rich Mouw on his life as an evangelical scholar. A very short read, but deeply encouraging.