{"id":2197,"date":"2021-07-24T05:36:06","date_gmt":"2021-07-24T10:36:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/?p=2197"},"modified":"2023-05-06T10:31:50","modified_gmt":"2023-05-06T15:31:50","slug":"liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/","title":{"rendered":"Liberal Arts and the Transmission of Culture"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In classical circles, we speak often about the importance of the liberal arts, over and against mere career-readiness skills<\/a>, but we do not always elaborate. The reality is that career-readiness skills–skills like analyzing data, applying information technology, preparing for an interview, and completing tasks efficiently–are immensely helpful. The problem is not their usefulness, but their limitations. Career-readiness skills fail to lead students outside the realm of function and into the world of value and meaning. What our world needs today more than anything is not faster internet or a new task-management system, but better stories injected with purpose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Telling better stories requires a mastery of language, one of the keystone benefits of a liberal arts education. Language is perhaps the most under-appreciated gift that God has given His creatures. We often do not grasp language’s necessity until we are in need of it: when we are stranded in a foreign country or trying to communicate with a one-year old. Language is important because it unites us like no other medium. It serves as the vehicle for communicating how we feel, what we think, and why we are acting the way we are. Additionally, language has the rare ability of integrating the disparate strands of life, indeed of lives, into a unified whole. Language is the precondition for story, and story-telling is the foundation of culture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this blog, I will make the case that the liberal arts, especially the mastery of language, are crucial for preserving and transmitting a culture. Without language, formative stories are lost, and cultures fall into decline. Of course, not all cultures are worth preserving. For example, it is a good thing that the culture of the late Roman Empire passed out of existence. The hunger for world domination, degradation of human life, and lust for pleasure became propagations of Rome that made our world worse, not better. On the contrary, our mission as Christian, classical schools is to cultivate future culture makers<\/a>, moored in biblical values, and heralds of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Training in the liberal arts will equip our students to tell better stories, and in turn, cultivate more attractive cultures, superior to the ones contemporary secular society can possibly offer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Studying Latin: An Act of Resistance <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Let me begin with the study of Latin, a well-known curricular emphasis in classical liberal arts education. One of the most frequent questions I receive as an administrator at a classical, Christian school is “Why Latin?” After all, our modern world has been highly successful in passing on the metaphor that Latin is a “dead language.” Moreover, using a modern rubric of utility and innovation, it is difficult to discern any clear benefit of studying a language that is no longer spoken in the public square.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Amongst classical schools, it has become fashionable of late to please the modern demand for utility by citing the correlation between Latin and high SAT scores<\/a> or to remind prospective parents that derivatives of Latin are present in 60% of English words. The usefulness of Latin relieves us moderns temporarily from the fear that all the time invested in an ancient language may not pay off in the real world. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of course, this perspective assumes a particular definition of \u201cthe real world,\u201d namely, the world of professional advancement, wealth accumulation, and personal success, all measured against the performance metrics of the 21st century. But what if \u201cthe real world\u201d encompasses more than our present century? What if the surest way to educate students who will shape future cultures is to ensure they have an acute grasp of the histories and ideas of the past? What if the key to a treasure-trove of wisdom accumulated over millennia is available only through the long-lost language of Latin?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

If the answer to these questions is in the affirmative, then the study of Latin should be recovered as an act of resistance. At the risk of overstating my point, this can be illustrated in the stunning image (and example) of Tank Man. Tank Man, the moniker for the courageous unnamed citizen who protested the totalitarian regime in communist China, boldly stood his ground<\/a> the day after the massacre of pro-democracy demonstrators on June 5, 1989.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While studying Latin may not threaten one\u2019s life (some students may disagree), it remains an act of sacrificial resistance in its own way. With the growing skepticism regarding the value of reading old books, coupled with the excellent English translations that are easily accessible today, doubt remains whether the study of Latin is worth it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What we must remember is that Latin is a portal to \u201cthe real world\u201d properly conceived. Contra popular opinion, the universe did not simply pop into existence one hundred years ago. Human civilizations across the globe have existed for millenia. Latin is one entry point into one prominent civilization that has served as the seed ground for the modern conception of human rights, modern science, and the development of the western church.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

By studying Latin, students receive a rare gift: the ability to directly access the geniuses of this tradition: Virgil, Cicero, Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Dante Alighieri, and John Calvin, to name a few. We read these authors as faithful trustees of the Great Conversation, listening carefully to these voices that we might preserve the insights of what is good and true for future generations, while also correcting them in places where they were wrong or misguided. This process of preservation and correction is crucial for the project of creating future cultures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Privilege of Studying the Arts<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Lately, I have been reading and writing<\/a> on the life of John Adams, a Founding Father of the United States. Adams kept up a faithful correspondence with his wife Abigail, despite years of living overseas in Europe. In one particular letter to Abigail, Adams shares his multi-generational vision for education and the development of culture. He looked forward to the day when his children and grandchildren would not be preoccupied with war, but instead, would have the freedom to build a culture of goodness, beauty, and order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Adams writes, <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe science of government it is my duty to study, more than all other sciences; the arts of legislation and administration and negotiation ought to take the place of, indeed exclude, in a manner, all other arts. I must study politics and war, that our sons may have liberty to study mathematics and philosophy. Our sons ought to study mathematics and philosophy, geography, natural history and naval architecture, navigation, commerce and agriculture in order to give their children a right to study painting, poetry, music, architecture, statuary, tapestry and porcelain.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Here we gain a rare glimpse of how one cultural architect envisions building and transmitting a culture. Adams adopted a long-term mindset with regards to his role in the development of American society. He understood the pathway to freedom and order in society and that it runs through war and governance. Once a free and orderly society is established, the next phase of study, composed of STEM subjects like navigation and agriculture, is used to build on the foundation. Finally, it becomes the responsibility of those trained in the arts to create a beautiful and good culture, leading to a better world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately, many schools today have lost sight of this long-term vision by focusing exclusively on the urgent: career-readiness. We forget that careers only exist in the first place in a free, orderly, and cultivated society. The best way to prepare students for their future career, is ironically, to help them gain mastery in more rare and valuable skills: the liberal arts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Babylonian, Classical Education<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Oddly enough, the ancients seemed to grasp the power of the liberal arts for culture building better than us moderns. In the book of Daniel, we see that the powerful Babylonian Empire followed a process for their territorial expansion: invade, capture and assimilate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

After laying siege and destroying Jerusalem in 586 BC, King Nebuchadnezzar captured members of the Jewish elite to assimilate them into Babylonian culture. These members of Jewish nobility were \u201c…youths without blemish, of good appearance and skillful in wisdom, endowed with knowledge, understanding learning, and competent to stand in the king\u2019s palace…\u201d (Daniel 1:4). The chief servant of the king was instructed to train these men in the language and literature of the Chaldeans. They were to be educated for three years, eating the food of the city and, more importantly, imbibing the Babylonian culture. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Why were the Babylonians so set on educating a group of captive youth? They understood that the key to transmitting a culture was forming the mind through the liberal arts. By introducing Daniel and his friends to the gods, stories, myths, and values of Babylon, they would assimilate these young Jewish men into the culture. In fact, these young Jewish men were even given new names, with theological significance, branding them as citizens of the Babylonian Empire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As we know, however, Daniel and his friends refused to be assimilated. They continued to use their original Jewish names and refused to eat the king\u2019s food. Instead, they ate only vegetables, being careful to live within the dietary restrictions of the Mosaic Law. In return, God blessed them both intellectually and physically. God granted them \u201clearning and skill in all literature and wisdom, and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams…. And in every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king inquired of them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters that were in all his kingdom\u201d (Dan 1:20). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The story of Daniel is a sober reminder, both of the perceived power of the liberal arts and the blessing of obedience to God’s Word. While the Babylonians sought to promote their mighty culture through the liberal arts, only God’s plan for this world would endure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Telling the Greatest Story<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Ultimately, for Christians, the most powerful, culture-shaping story we pass on to future generations is not about western civilization, the founding of a particular nation, or Babylonian mythology (I would surely hope not!). The most transformative story is the gospel of Jesus Christ, the good news that our loving Creator sent his Son to offer forgiveness of sin and life through the Spirit, and ultimately to usher in the kingdom of God. The culture we seek to build and transmit must be rooted in this great story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our learning communities, whether at school or at home, need to gather each day and remind one another of the story of the gospel. We can do this in a few ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, we can begin each day in worship, singing songs that promote an understanding of the glory of God, the fallenness of humanity, and the need for a savior.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Second, when we teach classes on the Bible, we can lead students into deep dives in biblical studies, while also helping students see the grand narrative of the gospel that unites all of scripture. We can also leverage insights from other domains, for example, reading the Bible as literature<\/a>, in order to engage the imaginations and hearts of students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, we can integrate the gospel in our approach to student discipline. The gospel is not a self-help manual to equip students to fix their problems on their own. Nor is it a legalistic tome, denoting each and every expectation God has for human behavior. Rather, it is the grand story of God’s grace in our lives and His restorative plan for creation. The gospel allows us to guide students in moments of discipline to utter the words, \u201cI cannot do this on my own. Lord, please help me,” and restore them into the classroom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Conclusion<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The stories we tell are powerful for transmitting a culture, and the surest way to tell stories infused with meaning and persuasion is through training in the liberal arts. In the post-Christian western world in which we live, our society needs to hear the good news of Christ anew. By training our students in mastery of language and the arts, we are equipping students to not only have careers, but to be leaders of the future cultures of society. May God grant us much wisdom as we continue in this important work.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In classical circles, we speak often about the importance of the liberal arts, over and against mere career-readiness skills, but we do not always elaborate. The reality is that career-readiness skills–skills like analyzing data, applying information technology, preparing for an interview, and completing tasks efficiently–are immensely helpful. The problem is not their usefulness, but their […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2203,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[49],"tags":[34,627,120,628,456,167,482,23,155],"class_list":["post-2197","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-classical-tradition","tag-bible","tag-biblical-worldview","tag-culture","tag-in-the-classroom","tag-john-adams","tag-language","tag-latin","tag-liberal-arts","tag-trivium"],"yoast_head":"\nLiberal Arts and the Transmission of Culture •<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Liberal arts education equips students to build and transmit culture.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Liberal Arts and the Transmission of Culture •\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Liberal arts education equips students to build and transmit culture.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-07-24T10:36:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-05-06T15:31:50+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/city-2-1.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2048\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1343\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Kolby Atchison\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Kolby Atchison\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"11 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Kolby Atchison\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/#\/schema\/person\/5102870afaf16d74d0ad1fa4ed0363bd\"},\"headline\":\"Liberal Arts and the Transmission of Culture\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-07-24T10:36:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-05-06T15:31:50+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/\"},\"wordCount\":2053,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/#\/schema\/person\/2d4cdc44e87637ecf2c2c4327e66ade6\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/city-2-1.jpeg?fit=2048%2C1343&ssl=1\",\"keywords\":[\"Bible\",\"biblical worldview\",\"culture\",\"in the classroom\",\"John Adams\",\"language\",\"Latin\",\"liberal arts\",\"trivium\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Classical Tradition\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/\",\"name\":\"Liberal Arts and the Transmission of Culture •\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/city-2-1.jpeg?fit=2048%2C1343&ssl=1\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-07-24T10:36:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-05-06T15:31:50+00:00\",\"description\":\"Liberal arts education equips students to build and transmit culture.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/city-2-1.jpeg?fit=2048%2C1343&ssl=1\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/city-2-1.jpeg?fit=2048%2C1343&ssl=1\",\"width\":2048,\"height\":1343},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Liberal Arts and the Transmission of Culture\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/\",\"name\":\"\",\"description\":\"Promoting a Rebirth of Ancient Wisdom for the Modern Era\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/#\/schema\/person\/2d4cdc44e87637ecf2c2c4327e66ade6\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":[\"Person\",\"Organization\"],\"@id\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/#\/schema\/person\/2d4cdc44e87637ecf2c2c4327e66ade6\",\"name\":\"Patrick Egan\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/cropped-Screenshot-2025-02-23-at-10.17.57%E2%80%AFPM-1.png?fit=1093%2C995&ssl=1\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/cropped-Screenshot-2025-02-23-at-10.17.57%E2%80%AFPM-1.png?fit=1093%2C995&ssl=1\",\"width\":1093,\"height\":995,\"caption\":\"Patrick Egan\"},\"logo\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/#\/schema\/person\/5102870afaf16d74d0ad1fa4ed0363bd\",\"name\":\"Kolby Atchison\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d73aecc58884ed3f866d4ecd69943f4a233d779692f1253bf5476ce84a59ccbd?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d73aecc58884ed3f866d4ecd69943f4a233d779692f1253bf5476ce84a59ccbd?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Kolby Atchison\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/author\/kolbyatchison\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Liberal Arts and the Transmission of Culture •","description":"Liberal arts education equips students to build and transmit culture.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Liberal Arts and the Transmission of Culture •","og_description":"Liberal arts education equips students to build and transmit culture.","og_url":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/","article_published_time":"2021-07-24T10:36:06+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-05-06T15:31:50+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2048,"height":1343,"url":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/city-2-1.jpeg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Kolby Atchison","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Kolby Atchison","Est. reading time":"11 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/"},"author":{"name":"Kolby Atchison","@id":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/#\/schema\/person\/5102870afaf16d74d0ad1fa4ed0363bd"},"headline":"Liberal Arts and the Transmission of Culture","datePublished":"2021-07-24T10:36:06+00:00","dateModified":"2023-05-06T15:31:50+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/"},"wordCount":2053,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/#\/schema\/person\/2d4cdc44e87637ecf2c2c4327e66ade6"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/city-2-1.jpeg?fit=2048%2C1343&ssl=1","keywords":["Bible","biblical worldview","culture","in the classroom","John Adams","language","Latin","liberal arts","trivium"],"articleSection":["Classical Tradition"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/","url":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/","name":"Liberal Arts and the Transmission of Culture •","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/city-2-1.jpeg?fit=2048%2C1343&ssl=1","datePublished":"2021-07-24T10:36:06+00:00","dateModified":"2023-05-06T15:31:50+00:00","description":"Liberal arts education equips students to build and transmit culture.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/city-2-1.jpeg?fit=2048%2C1343&ssl=1","contentUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/city-2-1.jpeg?fit=2048%2C1343&ssl=1","width":2048,"height":1343},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/24\/liberal-arts-and-the-transmission-of-culture\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Liberal Arts and the Transmission of Culture"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/","name":"","description":"Promoting a Rebirth of Ancient Wisdom for the Modern Era","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/#\/schema\/person\/2d4cdc44e87637ecf2c2c4327e66ade6"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":["Person","Organization"],"@id":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/#\/schema\/person\/2d4cdc44e87637ecf2c2c4327e66ade6","name":"Patrick Egan","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/cropped-Screenshot-2025-02-23-at-10.17.57%E2%80%AFPM-1.png?fit=1093%2C995&ssl=1","contentUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/cropped-Screenshot-2025-02-23-at-10.17.57%E2%80%AFPM-1.png?fit=1093%2C995&ssl=1","width":1093,"height":995,"caption":"Patrick Egan"},"logo":{"@id":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/#\/schema\/person\/5102870afaf16d74d0ad1fa4ed0363bd","name":"Kolby Atchison","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d73aecc58884ed3f866d4ecd69943f4a233d779692f1253bf5476ce84a59ccbd?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/d73aecc58884ed3f866d4ecd69943f4a233d779692f1253bf5476ce84a59ccbd?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Kolby Atchison"},"url":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/author\/kolbyatchison\/"}]}},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/city-2-1.jpeg?fit=2048%2C1343&ssl=1","uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/city-2-1.jpeg?fit=2048%2C1343&ssl=1",2048,1343,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/city-2-1.jpeg?resize=150%2C150&ssl=1",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/city-2-1.jpeg?fit=300%2C197&ssl=1",300,197,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/city-2-1.jpeg?fit=768%2C504&ssl=1",768,504,true],"large":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/city-2-1.jpeg?fit=1024%2C672&ssl=1",1024,672,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/city-2-1.jpeg?fit=1536%2C1007&ssl=1",1536,1007,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/city-2-1.jpeg?fit=2048%2C1343&ssl=1",2048,1343,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Kolby Atchison","author_link":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/author\/kolbyatchison\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"In classical circles, we speak often about the importance of the liberal arts, over and against mere career-readiness skills, but we do not always elaborate. The reality is that career-readiness skills–skills like analyzing data, applying information technology, preparing for an interview, and completing tasks efficiently–are immensely helpful. The problem is not their usefulness, but their…","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pa7K1D-zr","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2903,"url":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2022\/04\/09\/apprenticeship-in-the-arts-part-4-artistry-the-academy-and-the-working-world\/","url_meta":{"origin":2197,"position":0},"title":"Apprenticeship in the Arts, Part 4: Artistry, the Academy and the Working World","author":"Jason Barney","date":"April 9, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"In his book So Good They Can\u2019t Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love, Cal Newport argues against the well-known Passion Hypothesis of career happiness. He describes the Passion Hypothesis as the idea that \u201cthe key to occupational happiness is to first figure out\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Classical Tradition"","block_context":{"text":"Classical Tradition","link":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/category\/classical-tradition\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"academy","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Untitled-design-14.png?fit=1100%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Untitled-design-14.png?fit=1100%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Untitled-design-14.png?fit=1100%2C600&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Untitled-design-14.png?fit=1100%2C600&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/Untitled-design-14.png?fit=1100%2C600&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2062,"url":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/05\/15\/6-tips-for-teaching-classically\/","url_meta":{"origin":2197,"position":1},"title":"6 Tips for Teaching Classically","author":"Kolby Atchison","date":"May 15, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"This past fall, I announced the launch of my free eBook \"The Craft of Teaching: 'Teach Like a Champion' for Classical Educators.\" I am now excited to share that this summer I will be presenting a workshop on the same topic at the Society for Classical Learning's Annual Conference (you\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Classical Tradition"","block_context":{"text":"Classical Tradition","link":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/category\/classical-tradition\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/classical-education.jpeg?fit=998%2C667&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/classical-education.jpeg?fit=998%2C667&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/classical-education.jpeg?fit=998%2C667&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/classical-education.jpeg?fit=998%2C667&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":52,"url":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2018\/09\/28\/review-of-the-liberal-arts-tradition-by-kevin-clark-and-ravi-jain\/","url_meta":{"origin":2197,"position":2},"title":"Review of The Liberal Arts Tradition by Kevin Clark and Ravi Jain","author":"Jason Barney","date":"September 28, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Kevin Clark and Ravi Scott Jain. The Liberal Arts Tradition: A Philosophy of Christian Classical Education. Classical Academic Press, 2013. In The Liberal Arts Tradition Kevin Clark and Ravi Jain endeavor to set the record straight about what made up the course of study in the classical tradition of education.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Reviews"","block_context":{"text":"Reviews","link":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Cathedral of the Liberal Arts Tradition","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Canva-White-Concrete-Cathedral.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Canva-White-Concrete-Cathedral.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Canva-White-Concrete-Cathedral.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Canva-White-Concrete-Cathedral.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Canva-White-Concrete-Cathedral.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":911,"url":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2020\/02\/15\/charlotte-mason-and-the-liberal-arts-tradition-part-1-mapping-a-harmony\/","url_meta":{"origin":2197,"position":3},"title":"Charlotte Mason and the Liberal Arts Tradition, Part 1: Mapping a Harmony","author":"Kolby Atchison","date":"February 15, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"\u201cWhat has Athens to do with Jerusalem?\u201d the church father Tertullian skeptically asked. Tertullian was writing at a time in which church leaders were weighing the pros and cons of mining the Greco-Roman philosophical tradition for insights they could utilize in the development of a distinctively Christian philosophy.\u00a0 Similarly, within\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Charlotte Mason"","block_context":{"text":"Charlotte Mason","link":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/category\/charlotte-mason\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Liberal-Tradition.jpg?fit=1000%2C670&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Liberal-Tradition.jpg?fit=1000%2C670&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Liberal-Tradition.jpg?fit=1000%2C670&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/Liberal-Tradition.jpg?fit=1000%2C670&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":18,"url":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2018\/07\/20\/the-classical-distinction-between-an-art-and-a-science\/","url_meta":{"origin":2197,"position":4},"title":"The Classical Distinction Between the Liberal Arts and Sciences","author":"Jason Barney","date":"July 20, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"One of the encouraging recent developments in education is the recovery of the classical educational tradition of the liberal arts and sciences amongst Christian classical schools. Of course, we\u2019re already laboring upstream, since to most people the term \u2018liberal arts\u2019 simply refers to general studies or the humanities. However, even\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Classical Tradition"","block_context":{"text":"Classical Tradition","link":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/category\/classical-tradition\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"The Liberal Arts of the Classical Tradition","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Liberal-Arts.jpg?fit=1025%2C756&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Liberal-Arts.jpg?fit=1025%2C756&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Liberal-Arts.jpg?fit=1025%2C756&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Liberal-Arts.jpg?fit=1025%2C756&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2171,"url":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/2021\/07\/10\/apprenticeship-in-the-arts-traditions-and-divisions\/","url_meta":{"origin":2197,"position":5},"title":"Apprenticeship in the Arts, Part 1: Traditions and Divisions","author":"Jason Barney","date":"July 10, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"The previous two articles have paved the way both for our discussion of Aristotle\u2019s intellectual virtue of techne, artistry or craftsmanship, as well as the intellectual virtue of phronesis, practical wisdom or prudence. In a strict sense, the analogy between artistry and morality is aside from our central argument, which\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Classical Tradition"","block_context":{"text":"Classical Tradition","link":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/category\/classical-tradition\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Apprenticeship.jpg?fit=537%2C358&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Apprenticeship.jpg?fit=537%2C358&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/Apprenticeship.jpg?fit=537%2C358&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2197","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2197"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2197\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2227,"href":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2197\/revisions\/2227"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2203"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2197"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2197"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/educationalrenaissance.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2197"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}