A Proposal To Rename Patrick Henry College

by Jim Harrison
(Maryland)

Patrick Henry Must Be Spinning In His Grave

A REVIEW OF THE
PATRICK HENRY COLLEGE HANDBOOK

Prior to the founding of Patrick Henry College, Michael Farris rendered over 20 years of invaluable service to the American home school movement. Through a system of legal insurance, priced at only $100 per family per year, Michael Farris waged a battle for home school freedom, state by state, courtroom by courtroom, case by case.

The home schoolers of America are forever indebted to Michael Farris and the work of Home School Legal Defense. The author of this article is personally indebted to Michael Farris for this labor of dedication and love.

The legacy he will bequeath to home schoolers at Patrick Henry College is more dubious and remains to be seen. In 1999 Michael Farris left the field of law, in which he is so obviously gifted, to found Patrick Henry College.

The stated vision of Patrick Henry College is "to aid in the transformation of American society by training Christian students to serve God and mankind." The mission of the Department of Government at Patrick Henry College is "to promote practical application of biblical principles and the original intent of the founding documents of the American Republic."

These are admirable goals, but how does Patrick Henry College live up to them? It is impossible to promote simultaneously biblical principles of civil government and the original intent of the American founding documents.

James Madison made it clear in the Federalist Papers that it was his intent to establish a secular republic. "Who are to be the objects of popular choice," asked Madison in Federalist #57, "No qualification of wealth, of birth, of religious faith, or of civil profession is permitted to fetter the judgment or disappoint the inclination of the people."

Elsewhere, Madison observed that ?the establishment of the chaplainship to Congress is a palpable violation of equal rights, as well as of Constitutional principles.? Unfortunately, Patrick Henry College ignores Madison?s clearly stated original intent. Instead, Patrick Henry College chooses to impose its own particular brand of historical revisionism on the founding era, making the framers say something other than what they intended.

It is impossible for Patrick Henry College to promote at the same time two mutually exclusive goals. Patrick Henry College cannot at the same time promote the Biblical covenant model of civil government and the social contract inherent in the U.S. Constitution.

Patrick Henry College cannot at the same time promote the religious test oath the Bible requires of the civil magistrate and the prohibition of the religious test oath in Article VI of the U.S. Constitution. It is only by obfuscating the true nature of biblical covenantalism that Patrick Henry College can pretend to accomplish this goal.

The Patrick Henry College advertising slogan is "Patrick Henry College: A new college with a timeless vision." In our opinion a more accurate slogan would be "Patrick Henry College: A new college with tunnel vision."

Why tunnel vision for Patrick Henry College? Are we indulging in unwarranted sarcasm? You be the judge. Michael Farris and Patrick Henry College are committed to the Federalist view of the United States Constitution, a view that is show elsewhere on this site to have broken covenant with the God of the Bible.

In spite of all evidence to the contrary, Michael Farris and Patrick Henry College refuse to acknowledge the covenant breaking nature of the U.S. Constitution. Patrick Henry College is committed to the American Civil religion, which ascribes near cult status to America's founders and founding documents. Patrick Henry College refuses to acknowledge the Constitution's obvious violation of the Biblical requirement for the nation to covenant with God. Patrick Henry College fails to recognize the Biblical imperative for the civil magistrate to swear allegiance to God and His law. Moreover, Patrick Henry College refuses to acknowledge that the Constitutional requirement for the magistrate to swear allegiance to no higher power than the Constitution itself is a form of idolatry. This is tunnel vision.

To name a school of government dedicated to the Federalist perspective "Patrick Henry College" has the appearance of intellectual mendacity. The curriculum of Patrick Henry College rightly acknowledges that it was the Federalist perspective that prevailed at the Constitutional Convention. Patrick Henry College lauds this Federalist victory.

However, you will recall that Patrick Henry was the leading anti-Federalist of the era. He fought ratification of the Constitution tooth and nail right down to the wire -- -- and he almost prevailed. Only at the very end of the debate did he urge submission to the new government to avoid the possibility of civil unrest. How can we justify naming a Federalist educational institution after the nonpareil of anti-Federalism? This is tunnel vision.

Patrick Henry regarded James Madison's coup at Philadelphia as an extremely dangerous rebellion against established authority in the state legislatures and Congress:

"And here I would make this inquiry of those worthy characters who composed a part of the late federal Convention. I am sure they were fully impressed with the necessity of forming a great consolidated government, instead of a confederation...Even from that illustrious man who saved us by his valor. That they exceeded their power is perfectly clear" (Jonathan Elliot)

And again, in the Virginia Ratifying Convention, Patrick Henry declared: "I need not take much pains to show, that the principles of this system, are extremely pernicious, impolitic, and dangerous?Here is a revolution as radical as that which separated us from Great Britain." (Patrick Henry before the Virginia Ratifying Convention, June 5, 1788) Time has proven Patrick Henry to be a prophet indeed.

A far more fitting name for Michael Farris's Patrick Henry College would be James Madison College. Such a name would have been a far more intellectually candid appellation for Patrick Henry College. Madison after all was the champion of the Federalist Party to which Michael Farris and Patrick Henry College are unreservedly devoted.

To name an institution such as Patrick Henry College, which is committed to a particular intellectual position, after the leader of its philosophical opponent smacks of intellectual duplicity. Knowing the high moral character of Michael Farris, we can only conclude that this has been done through simple historical naiveté apart from any malicious intent. Nonetheless, Michael Farris should know better. This is tunnel vision.

In one of the early fundraising letters for Patrick Henry College, Michael Farris described his vision for a Hall of Founders in the rotunda of the new Administration Building. The walls of the rotunda were to be lined with statues of the signers of the U.S. Constitution, each dedicated to a patron who would donate a substantial sum to the founding of Patrick Henry College.

In this letter Farris was forced to admit in passing that Patrick Henry was one of the handful of founders who did not sign the Constitution. However, he failed to mention Patrick Henry's pugnacious resistance to ratification of the Constitution. Undaunted and apparently oblivious to history, Farris concluded nonetheless that anti-Federalist Patrick Henry was worthy of a place in the pantheon of Federalist demi-gods at Patrick Henry College. This is tunnel vision.

Sadly, an even more serious deficiency, is Michael Farris's tendency to place only limited emphasis on the law of God in civil government. In email correspondence Michael Farris has stated, "I do not favor a form of government where there is a veneer of theonomy. It is impossible to discern good from evil on the basis of religious oaths -- think Jimmy Carter."

What does that mean? "Theonomy" is by definition "the rule of God?s law" (Theos=God/Nomos=Law). What else can we conclude from this statement than that Michael Farris does not want the Bible or God to govern in civil affairs. Knowing Michael Farris, I doubt that is the case, but he is coming across as schizophrenic. This is tunnel vision.

What does Michael Farris mean by "veneer" in that statement? Is he talking about a thin coating of Christianity to disguise an underlying and corrupt pluralism? Does he desire submission of the nation to the commandments of God, or does he not? Why does he denigrate that as a "veneer of Theonomy"?

Confusion in the thinking of the founder of Patrick Henry College on this vital issue, cannot fail to issue in confusion in the thinking of Patrick Henry College graduates. This also, is tunnel vision.

What good is it for Patrick Henry College to send a generation of Christian home schoolers into the political battle with a half-hearted commitment to the law of God as the standard for political righteousness? What good is it for Patrick Henry College to send a generation of Christian home schoolers into the political battle who have no comprehension of the convenant-breaking nature of America's founding documents? What good is it for Patrick Henry College to send a generation of Christian home schoolers into the political battle armed only with a revisionist view of U.S. History?

What we need are champions of biblical civil government, biblical law and the biblical test oath, not champions of the American Civil Religion with a veneer of Christianity. Unfortunately, that is what we find at Patrick Henry College. Until Patrick Henry College conforms its philosophy to that of its namesake, we can only lament the day that Michael Farris left his God-given calling in the legal profession.







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