Who Turned Out the Light? Educational Light in a Dark World

Abstract

THE PHILOSOPHERS OF the eighteenth-century Enlightenment confessed with great confidence that they had discovered the light of the world. In the luminescence of human reason the problems of the human condition could be resolved. However, at the beginning of the twenty-first century, it is clear that the light of the Enlightenment is failing to illuminate our path to the better world it promised. Our educational systems, shaped as they were by the Enlightenment, mirror this broader cultural crisis. In this time of growing darkness the call of God's people is to reflect the true light of the world for the public life of our culture. For those called to the educational sector of cultural life the light of Christ must illumine their endeavours, witnessing to the true end of history. In this article I explore what this might mean with reference to Philippians 2:14–16.