Will an Atheist be welcome at ACU?

[Marcion]

I am liking the looks of Abilene Christian University's MA in New Testament. Only thing really holding me back is that I am an agnostic-atheist. I am not really "open" about this or anything, as I do not think my philosophical views about God should really matter, but I am curious if people have any comments.

[pwe5000]

I think it depends on what you mean by "welcome." As far as I can see on their website, ACU does not make students sign a statement of faith. The application process itself might contain this step though - I can't tell that without applying.

 

More broadly, though, ACU is obviously a Christian institution committed to Christian values and to training Christian people. In the document "Identity, Mission and the Future of Abilene Christian University" (http://www.acu.edu/aboutacu/documents/acu-mission-identity.pdf) they lay out some core values of the university (among other things). These include "Christ at the center," "The authority and inspiration of Scripture," and "A commitment to prepare students to live as authentic Christians." I assume from your post that your own values do not align with those of the university. I don't think I have to expound the problems and frustrations that might arise inside and outside of class because of this clash of values (one example: ACU undoubtedly requires students to abide by certain values-based lifestyle guidelines. Are you willing to submit to guidelines based upon a set of beliefs that you do not hold yourself?)

 

So, would you be denied admission because of your beliefs? Not as far as I can tell from their website. Would you have a less frustrating experience at an institution that was more in line with your own beliefs? Probably.

[Joseph45]

Don't go there if you're an atheist agnostic. There are some Christian institutions that might be okay for you, but not there. (I know a lot about ACU, one of my relatives was even faculty there). And it's not even about whether you'll be "welcomed" or not. It's just that their scholarship will be so faith driven that it's really not that worthwhile if you're not looking for conservative hermeneutic stuff. Trust me.