BIOLA and LGBTQ?

trustee
Can you summarize from this video which colleges are doing what and where they fall on the continuum compared to what the ELCA began to do after the LCMS Expulsion from the St. Louis Seminary: https://youtu.be/l6bVKawU_Sg?si=VxU2dEqMMdP4SqP4

Here’s a quick, “just-the-facts” digest of who’s named in the video and where they land on a continuum that runs from confessional/LCMS-style orthodoxy to the post-Seminex ELCA trajectory.

What the video explicitly says

  • Scope: Dr. Everett Piper (former president of Oklahoma Wesleyan University) and host Alisa Childers argue that some CCCU schools are drifting via “deconstruct your faith” freshman rhetoric and policy language on sex/gender that normalizes progressive ideology. YouTube
  • Colleges named:
    • Biola University — Childers explains why she no longer recommends Biola to Christian parents, citing concerns in Biola’s public statements and campus life choices. YouTube
    • Oklahoma Wesleyan University (OKWU) — noted only via Piper’s role; presented (by implication) as resisting drift. Oklahoma Wesleyan University
  • Umbrella group: The Council for Christian Colleges & Universities (CCCU) is discussed as the context where this drift shows up; the episode frames the problem as cultural/ideological seepage across member schools (not a school-by-school audit). CCCU

Placing those mentions on a continuum (relative to ELCA after Seminex)

Continuum anchor points (for reference):

  • Confessional/LCMS side: After the 1974 LCMS “Seminex” split, LCMS doubled down on biblical inerrancy and rejected historical-critical approaches it saw as undermining Scripture. Wikipedia+1
  • ELCA trajectory: Over time the ELCA adopted policies welcoming partnered gay clergy (2009) and broader LGBTQ inclusion—clear markers of post-Seminex progressive outcomes. Wikipedia+2The Christian Century+2

Where the video’s named schools fall (based on what’s in or linked from the episode):

School What the episode flags Likely placement on the continuum*
Oklahoma Wesleyan Univ. (OKWU) Piper’s own institution; he is known for pushback against progressive drift. Confessional/LCMS-adjacent end (resisting drift). Oklahoma Wesleyan University
Biola University Childers says she can’t currently recommend Biola; points to language in public statements and campus choices as concerns. Middle: “guarded/contested” zone — official policies still state traditional sexual ethics, but Childers argues the lived posture/language trends progressive. Biola University+3YouTube+3Biola University+3
CCCU (umbrella) Used as the ecosystem where “deconstruct” rhetoric/policies spread; not a single stance. Wide spectrum under one tent; episode warns of leftward pressure within it. CCCU+1

*Continuum note: This is a relative placement only from what the episode raises (plus the official policy pages it references). It’s not a comprehensive rating of all CCCU schools.

Helpful primary docs the episode alludes to (re: Biola)

  • Biola’s Sexuality/Gender & Relationships policy (states sex is designed for marriage between a man and a woman; affirms biological sex as given). Biola University
  • Biola position paper on same-sex behavior (reiterates traditional stance). Biola University

Bottom line

  • The video names Biola as a current concern (language/posture vs. stated doctrine) and implicitly situates OKWU at the confessional end. It does not list a roster of specific other colleges or rank CCCU members; rather, it argues that CCCU-context habits (orientation rhetoric, policy wording, and speaker choices) function as a pipeline toward an ELCA-like outcome over time if left unchecked. YouTube

If you want, I can turn this into a longer matrix (add your target schools like APU, Westmont, Wheaton, Calvin, etc.) using each one’s published policies + recent campus actions, and place them along the same LCMS→ELCA continuum.

____________________________________________________________________________________
yes make it the whole broad continuum of colleges and their leftward shift specific issues etc.

Awesome—here’s a broad, school-by-school continuum (right-to-left = LCMS-style/confessional → ELCA-style outcomes). I kept it concise but specific, with the freshest/clearest sources linked in citations.

Continuum of Christian colleges (snapshot, 2022–2025)

Confessional / LCMS-adjacent (policies and practice clearly traditional)

“Guarded / Contested” middle (officially traditional; culture/pressure points present)

  • Biola University — Position paper and policy are traditional; critics point to posture/tone shifts. Biola University+1
  • Wheaton College (IL) — Community Covenant affirms traditional sexual ethics; active campus guidance pages on human sexuality. Wheaton College
  • Calvin University — Bound to CRC teaching (tightened in 2022); faculty dissent processes under scrutiny in 2024; ongoing campus tension. Inside Higher Ed+1
  • Taylor University — Traditional policies, but notable political/cultural splits (2019 Pence walkout & faculty dissent). Axios+1
  • Westmont College — Traditional ethos alongside robust DEI/harassment language (signals posture more than policy change). Westmont College+1

Progressive-leaning within a Christian identity (visible leftward movement in policy or practice)

  • Pepperdine University — Recognized LGBTQ club “Crossroads” (2016); campus reporting of “forward progress” in LGBTQ inclusion while maintaining a Christian frame. Facebook+2Pepperdine Graphic+2
  • Baylor University — Chartered its first LGBTQ student group (“Prism,” 2022); significant symbolic shift while keeping Baptist identity. 25 News KXXV and KRHD
  • Gordon College — Faced accreditor scrutiny (2014) over conduct policy; remained officially traditional but pressure marked a leftward pull from external bodies. Inside Higher Ed+1
  • Seattle Pacific University — Institution fought to retain traditional employee conduct policy; intense internal revolt and state-level legal battle (case revived 2024). Net effect: ecosystem pressure toward change. Seattle Met+2Reuters+2
  • Houghton University — Fired two staff who kept pronouns in signatures (2023), showing institutional resistance even as pronoun norms become mainstream around them (highlighting cultural fault lines). ABC News+1

Not “left shift” but notable compliance/PR flashpoints

  • Liberty University — Remains theologically conservative; however, record Clery Act fine ($14M, 2024) for mishandled safety reporting—cultural optics problem unrelated to doctrinal shift. AP News+1
  • Concordia University Irvine — LCMS-affiliated; separate 2025 Title IX athletics lawsuit about eliminated women’s teams (compliance issue, not doctrinal change). Swimming World Magazine

What “leftward shift” usually looks like (recurring patterns)

  1. Student-life recognition (first LGBTQ student groups get chartered) → e.g., Baylor (Prism, 2022); Pepperdine (Crossroads, 2016). 25 News KXXV and KRHD+1

  2. Policy language/tone softens while doctrinal PDFs remain traditional → Biola, Westmont, Wheaton post materials that emphasize care/DEI and hospitality. Biola University+2Westmont College+2

  3. External pressure from accreditors/AGs/judges → Gordon (accreditor 2014), SPU (WA AG investigation & 9th Cir. standing 2024). Inside Higher Ed+1

  4. Denominational pull vs. campus pluralism → Calvin navigating CRC’s 2022 decisions and faculty dissent procedures. Inside Higher Ed

Quick placement guide (one-liners)

Want me to add your priority schools (APU, Biola, PLNU, CUI, APU/Westmont/Wheaton/Calvin/Baylor/etc.) into a printable matrix with columns for policy text, recognized orgs, recent controversies (date), denominational tether, and my continuum placement? I can generate a clean 1-page table you can drop into a deck.

how common are stories like mine explained in part as a theology student who went to college conservative, shifted rather solidly down the leftward continuum, but has clawed his way back into a conservative set of positions? my story is well explained by this article on this page: https://praxisprofessional.com/antithetical-comparison-a-2001-clu-paper-and-the-lcms-view-on-sexuality/
——————————————————————————————————————————————-

 

Short answer: your story isn’t unusual, but it’s not the most common path. Lots of people shift left (or out) during late teens/college, and a meaningful minority later “reconstruct” or return to conservative/orthodox settings—your LCMS return (as you narrate on your Praxis page) is a recognizable version of that. Praxis Professional

What the data says (big picture)

  • Religious switching is widespread. Pew finds large lifetime churn—many leave the faith of their childhood; globally and in the U.S., the net flow is out of affiliation. Pew Research Center+1
  • College-age drop-off is common. Among U.S. Protestants who were regular attenders as teens, ~66% stop attending for at least a year between ages 18–22. Lifeway Research
  • A notable share return. Of those who dropped out, about 31% say they later came back to regular attendance; others come back only occasionally, and ~29% don’t return at all. So “drift → return” happens, but it’s a minority outcome. Lifeway Research+1
  • Deconstruction is common; some reconstruct. Barna reports large shares of adults say they’ve “deconstructed” the faith of their youth; not all stay away—some rebuild commitments (often with different churches/practices). Exact “return-to-conservative” fractions aren’t pinned down, but the pattern exists. RELEVANT
  • Life events nudge people back. Marriage/parenthood are associated with returns to religious involvement—one reason you see “left in college, back in thirties.” Wheatley

Does college cause a leftward shift?

Evidence is mixed and nuanced:

  • Some research finds within-individual liberalization tied to university exposure (varies by context). ScienceDirect
  • Other work suggests college mainly politically engages students rather than uniformly moving them left, and effects differ by sex and cohort. Higher Ed Dive
  • Media reviews of the scholarship echo: there’s some effect, but it’s not a monolith and depends on selection effects, disciplines, and campus culture. Snopes

Where your path fits

  • Your arc—conservative → progressive in a mainline/theology setting → conservative/LCMS return—maps onto two common waypoints (college-age drift + later return), but the specific return to a more conservative/confessional position is a smaller slice of the returners; many return to some religious involvement without fully re-embracing conservative doctrines. Lifeway Research
  • The intellectual “reconstruction” you describe (grounding in Second Temple/Jewish sources and LCMS confessionalism) is very much a known type of return narrative, even if survey data don’t separate it cleanly from other kinds of returns. Praxis Professional

Bottom line

  • Common: drifting left or stepping away during late teens/college; later re-engagement with faith.
  • Less common, but real: returning specifically to conservative/confessional positions (your LCMS outcome). Best current point estimate: roughly one-third of dropouts come back to regular practice, but only a portion of those likely mirror your confessional “climb back.” Lifeway Research