2. Learning. A Christian, it is said, knows God not only because of faith but also on the basis of evidence. We don't just believe in God. We know there is a God. I've been on a continual journey of learning since I began my studies at Kainalu Elementary School. At first my learning was passive, as was yours. But as my childhood continued, the active learning of adulthood not only became possible but infinitely desirable. It's not simply a matter of how much experience you have but what you do with it. Negotiating my way from passive to active learning has been perhaps the single greatest theme of my academic life. I ended up becoming a permanent student -- which sometimes means I've had to unlearn well-established patterns of belief.
When I was a child, I got my first paint-by-the-number kit. I painted carefully, never going over a line even slightly. My mother delightfully declared, "David, you are an artist." Small wonder that I continued painting between the lines. It had never occured to me that there was another way of painting. Then I began "drumming." I would listen to my own drum and march to it. The lines and numbers had disappeared.
I cannot emphasize enough how important this stage of unlearning was to the process of writing such books as Why Four Gospels? and The Authorship of Hebrews: The Case for Paul. It was in Hawaii that I first learned that learning itself is an adventure. You must obviously have a knack for it to some extent. But if we knew exactly where we were going, life wouldn't be an adventure any longer.
In hindsight, it was as a student in Hawaii that the seeds of my career in education were planted. When I wrote my academic autobiography It's All Greek to Me, I realized how a dedication to the truth became such a huge part of me becoming a Greek teacher. And a big part of my learning came from role models -- both positive and negative -- in grades 1-12.
If I could have any wish for our students at the seminary, if I could have any deep wish for any one of you, I would wish for you the ability to think reflectively. As much as I love spontaneity and as much as I love creativity, my best moments are spent in reflective thinking. I reflect on what was, I reflect on what is, and I reflect on what could be. I would wish for all of my students to be able to do the same.
Coming up in Part 3: "Joy."