At a Glance
In March, ACU filed a lawsuit against its local school district after the district permanently cut ties with the university’s student teachers because of their biblical convictions about marriage. Join us as we discuss the extremely broad ramification of such a clear violation of religious liberty and discrimination toward Christians. Our guests are Len Munsil, president of ACU, and his wife Tracy, the executive director of the Cultural Research Center and professor of political science and government. In the discussion, we ask what worldviews have brought us to this place and why Christians should push back against our increasingly post-Christian culture.
What You'll Hear
- Introduction (1:07)
- ACU vs. Washington School District (9:55)
- How do we navigate the increasingly negative world as Christians? (18:17)
- How did the Washington School District Board come to the place where they would take such a firm stance against Christians? (26:13)
- How did ACU make the decision to take action? (31:03)
- Is it Christ-like to engage in culture, taking a political stand for religious freedom? (36:51)
- Introducing the Cultural Research Center (46:05)
- How have people’s worldviews changed since the pandemic? (59:47)
Len Munsil is the sixth President of Arizona Christian University, and is an accomplished public policy expert, a conservative organizational entrepreneur, a lawyer, a journalist, an educator and a writer. Prior to joining ACU, Munsil served as Founding President and General Counsel for The Center for Arizona Policy, a nonprofit, nonpartisan public policy organization. Under his leadership at ACU, which began in 2010, the school changed its name, added a new vision for Christian cultural engagement, raised visibility, expanded course offerings and majors, dramatically increased fundraising, experienced large enrollment gains and, in 2019, successfully moved to a much larger, state-of-the-art campus in Glendale.
Dr. Tracy Munsil is the Executive Director of the Cultural Research Center and is also Associate Professor of Political Science at Arizona Christian University. Dr. Munsil chaired the collaborative process to develop the ACU CORE liberal arts curriculum and teaches political science and Humanities courses at ACU. She was appointed by Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey to the Commission on Appellate Court Appointments and serves on the Board of Directors for Voices for the Voiceless, a next-generation pro-life organization based in Phoenix. Dr. Munsil was a full-time lecturer in the Arizona State University School of Politics and Global Studies. Her doctorate was her third degree from ASU, after earning both a political science master’s and a bachelor’s degree in journalism. At ASU she met her husband, ACU President Len Munsil. Dr. Munsil home-educated their eight children for 14 years.
Using the link above, you can read the transcript, listen along, and adjust the speed of the podcast while you listen.
I want my kids and grandkids to grow up as the home team where Christ is at the center of culture because as we know, that's better for everyone..
Len Munsil (44:25)
Go Deeper
- In this inspiring paper available on the DNA site, Professor Donald Drew summarizes the monumental volume by J.W. Bready titled England Before and After Wesley, published in 1939. It provides a detailed and inspiring case study of how God transformed an entire nation and culture through John Wesley and the revival that bears his name. Could God be working such a transformation through the Church in our generation?
- Updates on the ACU Court Proceedings from Alliance Defending Freedom.
- Article from Albert Mohler: “Hey Christians, Get Out and Stay Out: An Arizona School District Gives the Boot to Student Teachers from a Christian College.”
- Here are tips for how you can join in praying for the situation with Arizona Christian University
- Cultural Research Center – Arizona Christian University
- Arizona Christian University
- New book – Helping Millenials Thrive: Practical Wisdom for a Generation in Crisis published by Arizona Christian University Press.
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- 22:49 “We called for our community to pray for the school board members – for their safety, for their protection, for their wisdom, they’re not the enemy… according to their worldview, what they’re doing is right, they believe that what they’re doing to discriminate against us is right… because we hold to this biblical ethic on human sexuality. And so we’ve got our community praying for them.” Len Munsil
- 32:51 “The basis of their decision was that, essentially, we don’t want student teachers that are part of a university that holds to this view of marriage as being between a man and a woman. If you boil down and set aside all the rhetoric, at the end of the day, from a legal standpoint, that’s the decision that was made. And think about the implications for that.” Len Munsil
- 38:15 “We’re to engage as long as we’re here, where do we engage with God’s truth, There’s nowhere in Scripture where we’re called to go hide in a bunker, and hope that the culture doesn’t hurt us, and maybe it’ll turn back if we just pull out. I mean, I don’t see how that works. But, you know, we’re called to engage.” Len Munsil
- 44:25 “As Americans we were used to being the home team and you got the crowd for you, calls going your way and everybody’s rooting for you. That’s kind of what you described, the positive view of Christianity. And now we just got to get used to being the road team where the calls aren’t going our way, the referees aren’t really fair and the crowds booing us. And I’m thinking, I want my kids and grandkids to grow up as the home team where Christ is at the center of culture because as we know, that’s better for everyone. It’s better when you have virtue in business, when you have leaders that are trying to serve and not enrich themselves, when you have media and Hollywood and arts and entertainment that is glorifying God and lifting the human spirit rather than tearing it down – it’s better for everyone.” Len Munsil
