The Christian Story and the Christian School

The Christian faith is a gift of God that in a very real sense is a story-the true story of the triune God and His people. Thinking about Christian education in narrative terms or in terms of the Christian story causes one to ask the question, how does the Christian school fit into the story of God and His people, and the question really becomes, how does the Christian school serve the mission of God. The story of God and His people is the story of the triune God's mission-commissioned by the Father, accomplished by Christ, applied by the Holy Spirit, and still in process until the end comes and God is "all in all" (I Corinthians 15:28). It ought to be obvious to all who have an understanding of the Christian religion-specifically the Reformed Christian religion, in which context Reformed Christian schools and more specifically the Protestant Reformed Christian schools were formed-that the Christian school has a story to tell. In a certain sense the school is a part of the story, a part of the narrative that the school through its teachers must tell. It is in this context and for this reason that John Bolt wrote the volume The Christian Story and the Christian School (Christian Schools International, 1993). Dr. Bolt dedicates his book to the many visionary pioneers-parents, teachers, and students-who believed that the Christian story also had to be told in the schools. Dr. Bolt states that his book, which joins a growing list of books about Christian education, is written from within a decidedly Reformed theological and confessional tradition. He asserts that this tradition has in the past century in North America enjoyed a successful and impressive track record in Christian education from the elementary to the college and university level. The writer believes that it is important for all those involved in Christian education, and those who support it, to reflect on the changed center of education.