Opinion

The last edition of Simpson’s campus newspaper, The Slate, featured an opinion editorial written by the newly installed editor-in-chief, Elizabeth Cifu. The article is a frank critique of a growing problem on our campus, and I would argue more generally within Protestant Evangelicalism itself--that is, the problem of anti-intellectualism.
Ms. Cifu’s mention of Simpson’s frenetic preoccupation with the word “community” is an apt criticism. She notes that community is a natural by-product of a university, and I do not disagree with her on this point. I would take the thought a bit further, however, and say that Simpson actually fears the organic development of community fostered by a robust intellectual environment. The formation of such community threatens the via antiqua that Simpson is pleased to travel ad infinitum. It seems that Simpson is interested in “developing” a particular type of community.
I would add that Ms. Cifu was overly generous in her belief that one must present a solution if one exposes a problem. This is perhaps my only point of disagreement with the article in question. The problem is that there is very little that students can do to positively affect the problem Ms. Cifu notes. The problem of anti-intellectualism is buried into the very power structure of our university. Short of a mass exodus of students and their tuition dollars, I don’t see a solution forthcoming. The university would do well to calibrate their priorities to match the true ethos of a university. If not, we have no right to continue calling ourselves Simpson “University.”