'Integrating Faith and Learning' Revisited: A Cosmic Perspective

Abstract

For nearly three decades, the term, 'integration of faith and learning', or IFL, has stimulated the imagination of Christian educators. But as time has passed, the concept has become a cliche and lost its potency. Narrow, superficial, and contrived attempts to implement the concept have often only confused the issue further and induced a degree of cynicism. Despite this trend, the concept is still as relevant and important as it always has been, and there is no excuse for complacency. This paper does not wish to oversimplify the concept and its implications, but rather, to demystify it, to explore its implications in the new and enabling ways, and to propose strategies for implementing it effectively. In so doing, we will glorify God by reflecting his image more faithfully, as we were originally destined to do. This paper is simply a reflection of one Christian educator's personal journey in relation to IFL. It is offered in a spirit of collaboration in the hope that it may stimulate further our collective understanding, and empower our ministry, by reflecting His image more genuinely.