The Intellectual Plow and Rake

The richness of the uncultivated soil shows itself in the rankness and luxuriance of the weeds which it produces. The soil, then, must be cultivated, if we expect to reap a harvest of any value. So with the mind. The intellectual plow and rake must be used, and the good seed introduced. Knowledge must be imparted.  

 ~Edward Wilmot Blyden, “Hope for Africa”

Flag raising ceremony at Ricks Institute

  The students at Ricks Institute are taking their end-of-the-term exams this week. The days of this week begin like all others in the school year: at 7:30 a.m. the students line up by academic grade facing the flag pole; selected seniors hoist the flag of the Republic of Liberia and lead the student body in the pledge of allegiance, the Ricks school ode, and the national anthem; students file in to the auditorium for a brief time of devotion that includes a hymn, a prayer (both student-led), and some reflective thoughts from a member of the staff or a visitor; finally, the announcements of the day are spoken.

  As “theologian in residence” at Ricks Institute from mid-January through early March, I have the assignment to offer reflective thoughts each morning this week. I've chosen to focus attention on the aphorisms and parables that bring Matthew’s sermon on the mount to a close. We took up Matthew 6.19-24 with the emphasis upon choosing value that lasts and being single-minded. We took up the images of “the narrow gate” and “the wide gate and broad road” in Matthew 7.13 and 14. We also accepted the challenge from nature that teaches “a good tree cannot bear bad fruit and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit” from Matthew 7.15-20. We will end our week with attention to the importance of doing (Matthew 7.23) and the parable of the foundations (Matthew 7.24-27).

  (I especially am looking forward to Friday. Liberia has recently emerged from the wet season and the lesson of the hard rain on soft ground will be fresh in the minds of the students.)

  For this week, as is the case for all exam weeks, there is a respite of half-an-hour between the announcements of the day and the beginning of the exam periods. Perhaps it was the anticipation of the exams themselves or the knowledge that they would get a short break that has made the students so attentive this week. Perhaps the work of the “intellectual plow and rake” has been effective this school year. For whatever reasons, the students have been attentive.

  Even in the midst of the demands of the week, two eleventh grade young women made an appointment to talk with me this afternoon. Onell and Carina are bright and energetic. They are part of the interview staff for the Ricks Institute Press Club. Their assignment was to interview the visitor. On Friday this week they will report to the student body.

  Our conversation is what reminded me of Blyden’s line about the “intellectual plow and rake.” Onell and Carina asked good questions about values, my perception of progress in Liberia, how the Ricks students are doing at Mercer, and why I keep coming back to Liberia. It was clear to me that not only have these young woman benefited from the “intellectual plow and rake,” they also have begun learning how to use them.