Ray Warwick, ACU Academic Dean

The term "liberal arts" was coined by the early Romans and implies liberty. Tracy Lee Simmons tells us in Climbing Parnassus that "'Liberal arts' derives directly from artes liberales and designates those activities promoting freedom and leisure, but we must add that, for Greeks and Romans, leisure carried none of the overtones of idleness. 'Leisure' referred to those 'arts' (even 'techniques') reckoned conducive to the contemplative or reflective life, to an expansive freedom of mind." In other words, artes liberales equals the academic disciplines for freedom. Jeffry Davis says, "Rightly understood, the pursuit of Christ is the supreme liberal art - the fundamental discipline that sets us free." He adds, "The end, or ideal objective, was to shape good people who would regularly exercise freedom in society and responsibly serve the common good."

One of the great challenges we face in Christian higher education is that we are constantly confronted with the reality that what we believe is true and right is counter-cultural to the prevailing educational paradigm. This has particularly proven to be true when it comes to the purpose or goal of education. When we are confused as to why we are pursuing education, what we do in education will be impacted. 

When the Scriptures exhort us to "take every thought captive to obey Christ" (2 Corinthians 10:5), they certainly do not intend for us to

make an exception for education. Even a cursory reading of the Bible impresses us that those who name Jesus as Lord think and act out of a different spirit than those who do not know Jesus. This is because one who has been regenerated is in thankful love with the Savior, longs to obey the Father, and delights in and takes comfort from the Holy Spirit. This divinely focused perspective gives rise to an entirely new motive in living and learning. Instead of toiling to heap pleasures and satisfaction on himself, the Christian now lives for the glory of God and the advancement of God's fame. Christian education, then, becomes an important conduit through which Christian men and women gain knowledge, discernment and skill in living. What we do in Christian education, therefore, is based upon the goal of glorifying God and blessing others. Every Christian student should be passionately and aggressively laboring to be a fully-educated, well-discipled, thoroughly prepared ambassador of King Jesus in every aspect of his life.

We at ACU believe the best way for us to pursue that lofty goal is through a Christian liberal arts program. It is our desire to prepare Christian young men and women to be outstanding contributors to culture, but that must happen as an 

outgrowth of holistically taught, spiritually and intellectually disciplined, faithful 

"Liberal Arts for the Christian Life" bit.ly/Ryken-LiberalArts

servants of Christ. As image bearers of God, man's highest end is to glorify and enjoy God. Indeed, we are to love God with all our heart, soul, strength, and mind. We don't shut down our image bearing when we walk into a classroom.

In the Introduction to a series of essays in Liberal Arts for the Christian Life, editors Jeffry Davis and Philip Ryken say, "In its purest form, Christian liberal arts education requires the learner to affirm certain basic pursuits: growth, depth, and compassion. The development of the whole person for all of life, not just for a job; the deepening of faith in God through intellectual testing, not merely attaining answers; and the commitment to using knowledge and skill to build the church and serve the world, not simply to satisfy the self: these represent some of the core distinctives of Christian liberal arts learning."

Next month we will briefly contrast Christian liberal arts education with the contemporary prevailing perspective in higher education.

ACU: Ronald, tell us about your family background, where you grew up and about your early schooling.

Kalifungwa family (L>R) Kunda, Ronald, Chisomo, Sarah and Lennox

Ronald: My father died when I was about 4, in 1966. Unfortunately, for reasons I cannot go into now, my widowed mother did not have an opportunity to raise me and my brother, so we were fostered by an uncle and aunt (my father's siblings). I did my primary education in Ndola, went to high school in Livingstone, and then back to Ndola for my college education.

ACU: How did you become a Christian?

Ronald: Though my parents were from Brethren (CMML) background, that didn't have much of an impact on me growing up, since I lived with them for such a short time. I was received into the Roman Catholic Church in Livingstone while I was in Secondary School and I became very devoted to that faith. For a while, I even considered the priesthood. However, over time, I discovered the unholiness of some of the priests I was associated with (not that I was holy myself), and that led me away from Catholicism and in search of the truth.

My brother had become a Christian in the late 1970s and he used to write me evangelistic letters. He also invited me to his church where I listened to the preaching of Rev. Joe Simfukwe who was then the pastor of Lusaka Baptist Church. In addition to this, a Christian friend of my brother, by the name of Musa Phiri, was incessant in his effort to share the gospel with me. My conversion therefore came about in 1981 through a confluence of evangelistic influences.

ACU: Tell us about your call to the pastorate and your pastoral experience.

Ronald: While I was in college at NorTec, I began to sense a calling to the preaching ministry. Feeling that I needed to prepare myself for future ministry, I began to spend a lot of hours in the library at the Theological College of Central Africa (TCCA), which was just across the street from NorTec. I informally learned my theology there. I believe I read through books on all the major disciplines in theology and took a number of night classes being offered at TCCA then.

After finishing at NorTec, I worked for three years in the copper mines in Kitwe. While I was there, I received a call to pastor a church in Mufulira. At first I was hesitant, thinking I needed to go to seminary, but my pastor encouraged me that I had already done sufficient study to prepare me for this new calling. So I accepted that call in 1988.

ACU: Tell us how you met your wife and about your family.

Ronald: Sarah was a member at Central Baptist, Mufulira, when I got there. She was a nursing student. We fell in love and married in 1990. We have three boys: Lennox (born in 1993), Kunda (1996), and Chisomo (1999). The first two were born while we were in Mufulira where I served for 10 years (1988-98). Chisomo was born in Pretoria, South Africa, where we moved in 1998. I took up my second pastoral charge there. After nine years of fruitful ministry under God, I accepted the call to Lusaka Baptist Church where I continue to serve to the present day.

ACU: You're still pursuing several degrees. Can you tell us about your studies?

Ronald: I'm working on two at the moment. God willing, I should complete a B.A. in Classics and Philosophy from UNISA in June of this year. I'm also working on a Masters of Divinity from Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary in Grand Rapids, Michigan in the States. My plate is pretty full, just now!

ACU: You'll be teaching a class at ACU. Can you tell us about it and why it is so important?

Chancellor Mbewe, Ronald Kalifungwa and Vice Chancellor Turnbull

Ronald: I'll be teaching a class called Christian Reasoning and Rhetoric using the conceptual framework provided by the classical tradition. I will teach something of the grammar and logic of Christian worldview bearing in mind the African cultural milieu in which we are located, all in the hope that our students will acquire the ability to express themselves Christianly and reasonably, in the whole of their life experience. This is, of course, foundational to the development of the student's personal, theological, relational and environmental perspective. This is why it is important.

ACU: As you assess the needs of the country of Zambia and the church in Zambia, how do you see ACU fitting in?

Ronald: Zambia has deep spiritual, social, economic and political problems, which need spiritual, intellectual and practical solutions that have been bathed in and are being driven by Christian and biblical worldview perspectives. Now, although our educational system, through our universities and colleges, has gone some way in addressing these problems, I don't believe it has gone far enough nor that it has the ability to do so. 

ACU, I believe, is well positioned, given her biblically-driven philosophical emphases, to contribute to equipping students to live to their full potential as people made in the image of God. In other words, it will help students, and Zambia through them, to fulfill the cultural mandate (Genesis 1:28) and not just to help them secure economically satisfying jobs.

I also believe that ACU will be good for the church in Zambia. It will not just be a pool from which the church will fish men, but will be a valuable partner to the church in being a gospel-shaping influence to the culture through Word-bathed liberal arts and sciences.

The Founder's Southern Baptist Midwest Regional Conference was held in St. Louis on February 24-25. ACU had a presence at the conference with Dan Pentimone (Chairman, ACU-USA), his son Daniel and a brother who has been consulting ACU with computer information, Todd Talcott. Numerous people expressed a genuine interest in ACU. We were privileged to meet Clayton and Lisa Huff, and their

Clayton Huff and Dan Pentimone

daughter Maggie who first heard about ACU a few years ago at this same conference. They are presently in the process of seeking God's will regarding a trip to visit Zambia sometime this year. Please pray for the Huffs as they seek to know and follow God's leading in this matter.

Eleven new people signed up to receive the ACU monthly prayer updates. May God be honored to work in their hearts to increase their desire to see ACU advance the kingdom of God!