From the Bible Department
Aaron Gentry
Bible Department Head & Chaplain
Pre Grammar School:
Students begin their time at CCA studying the truths of the Bible by using Lifeway’s WEElearn curriculum that “provides a range of age-appropriate activities designed to lay a foundation for understanding God, Jesus, the Bible, the church, self, family, others, and the natural world.” Students move from this foundation to the CSI Bible curriculum Walking With God and His People that they will follow from Pre-K4 through 8th grade. The CSI curriculum introduces students to the people and stories of the Old and New Testament with the goal of strengthening their knowledge and relationship with God.
Grammar School:
Students in the Grammar School use the CSI Bible curriculum Walking With God and His People. This curriculum helps students to begin exploring the deep truths of God’s Word by walking them through the stories and people of the Old and New Testament. From the CSI website: “The stories and people of the Bible are connected in meaningful ways to today’s students—increasing their understanding of God’s plan for them, deepening their faith, directing their lives, and strengthening a life-long relationship with God.” Students also spend time memorizing selected verses from the Bible and attend a weekly chapel, allowing the students a chance to live out the worship and praise that springs from their study of God’s Word.
Logic School:
Logic School students (grades 5 – 8) spend a significant portion of time surveying the entirety of the Bible and beginning to make connections between the promises and revelation of God in the Old Testament with the culmination of those promises in Jesus Christ and the early growth of the Church. Fifth grade examines the different types of writing in Scripture, paying special attention to the Gospels, the New Testament letters, and the book of Revelation. Sixth and Seventh grade conduct a survey of the Old Testament, followed by a survey of the New Testament in Eighth. Students in Seventh and Eighth grades also begin a formal study of Logic and study skills, preparing them for the rigorous discussions and Rhetorical presentations in the Rhetoric school.
Rhetoric School:
The Rhetoric School students begin an in-depth study of their Christian faith by looking at principles for interpreting the Word and then applying those principles in intensive, textually driven studies over the four years that they are in the Rhetoric School. Students also begin to wrestle with issues of faith, ethics, epistemology and worship as they examine, not only their own beliefs, but the beliefs of the major ideas and religions that compete with Christianity in the world of ideas. Students are challenged to speak the truth in love as they explore the various worldviews that dominate discussion in Western civilization.
Freshmen: Hermeneutics—This course introduces students to the various genres of Scripture and teaches principles of interpretation and application. Spending a great deal of time in the text of Scripture, students learn to differentiate between the types of literary writing in the Bible and study the foundation of the inspiration and inerrancy of God’s Word. Life of Christ—this class introduces students to Christ’s life and ministry as presented in the gospels. Particular focus is given to the synoptic gospels, showing how all of the gospel accounts fit together and how each author had particular reasons for writing his gospel. In addition to detail study on the life of Christ, students also spend time contemplating the teaching of Christ through the Sermon on the Mount, the parables and Jesus’ discourses with his disciples.
Sophomores: World Religions/Rhetoric I—This course presents the history, founders, beliefs, practices, festivals, rituals and important writings of Judaism, Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism. Each religion is compared and contrasted with Christianity, with an examination of how Christians can relate to and witness to adherents of the various religions. Students also begin their study of the art of rhetoric, learning how to develop an oral speech using the five canons of Rhetoric. Romans— As Luther stated in his preface to the book of Romans, ““This Epistle is really the chief part of the NT and the very purest Gospel, and is worthy not only that every Christian should know it word for word, by heart, but occupy himself with it every day, as the daily bread of the soul. It can never be read or pondered too much, and the more it is dealt with the more precious it becomes, and the better it tastes.” As such, this class is devoted to studying the book of Romans so that students will understand the fundamentals of the gospel and the content of the Christian faith. Students will also continue their study of Rhetoric as they study Romans. Specific objectives will include: 1) Examining the outline of the Christian faith as laid out by the apostle Paul. 2) Examining the doctrines of grace, justice, redemption and depravity. 3) Analyzing the fundamental themes, message and structure of the book of Romans and 4) Focus on the two canons: inventio and dispositio (arrangement).
Juniors continue developing the exegetical, apologetical and rhetorical skills that they have been building in the previous two years. Exegetically, the Juniors spend time in the book of Hebrews, discovering the rich connection between the Old Testament promises and the fulfilled work of Jesus Christ. Second semester the juniors begin preparing for their senior thesis by studying Apologetics. They discuss the major worldviews that have shaped Western civilization. They do this in part by an in-depth reading and discussion of Sire’s The Universe Next Door. Juniors also work rhetorically on the last three of the five canons of Rhetoric, learning how to build a persuasive argument and strengthening their skill in presentation by learning ways to memorize their speeches and connect with their audience.
Senior year students take Senior Thesis and study Old and New Testament texts that challenge the modern, conventional understanding of how God works and has worked throughout human history. Students spend time reading modern authors who discuss the nature of God, evil and suffering, and the salvation of man. Students’ rhetorical training culminates in a thesis that demonstrates the student’s ability to write, present, and defend an apologetical position on a moral or theological topic based on evidence arrived at through exegesis and research.
